[4]The country thus suffered for lack either of the larger gold coins or of fractional coins.

At length, to remedy this difficulty, fractional silver coins, often called "token coins," were issued, in limited numbers, of less than full proportionate weight and bullion value.
This plan, having been partially tried, was generally adopted by the United States in 1853 at a time when the silver dollar of 371.25 fine grains was legally rated at the same value as the gold dollars of 23.22 grains, and was freely coined.

The fractional coins were made a little over 6 per cent lighter per dollar than the dollar coin; two half-dollars or four quarters or ten dimes contained 93.52 cents worth of silver.

Since then silver bullion has become worth much less in terms of gold, and for years past the bullion value of the silver in a dollar of silver small change has been between 40 and 60 cents.

Why then has the fractional coinage a monetary value equal to the standard money, dollar for dollar?
The answer is, because it is artificially limited in quantity, so that it does not pass the point of saturation in the field of its use.