The Atlanta Constitution on April 1, 1873, reported the passage of the Coinage Act. It noted the abolition of the two-cent piece and the authorization of the Trade dollar, but did not mention the ending of the standard silver dollar. There was no widespread objection to the 1873 act until 1876. Several factors combined to bring forth protest then: tight money policies by the Treasury in preparation for the resumption of specie payments, a more precipitous drop in the price of silver than had hitherto been the case, and widespread use of Trade dollars after their rejection in the Chinese market. At the same time, the Comstock Lode and other Western mining areas were producing record amounts of silver. With a depression still ongoing, silver began to be seen as a means of inflating the currency and stimulating the economy.
