On November 15, 1974, the Mint began taking orders for the silver clad pieces, at a price of $15 for proof sets and $9 for uncirculated, with a deadline for orders of January 31, 1975. Uncirculated coins are like those newly released into circulation; proof coins have a mirror finish. Buyers were initially limited to five sets per person. On January 19, 1975, Brooks announced that the silver proof set price was cut to $12, and the order limit was waived. Buyers who had paid the higher price were sent refunds by check. Brooks stated that the price reduction was because of production efficiencies, the benefit of which she wished to pass along to the public. Numismatic columnist Ed Reiter noted, though, that the reduction came amidst protests from the numismatic community that the price was too high. Coin dealer Herby Skelton suggested in 1977 that the initial high price for the sets followed by the reduction, together with the large mintage of silver sets made the public suspicious and contributed to lagging sales. On August 20, 1975, the price for the uncirculated silver sets was reduced to $7 when bulk purchases of 50 or more were made. A bank in Taiwan ordered 250,000 sets at this price.