The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1855-02-08

xOp6fys uosH noW IIOm VS. EoIcfB ma Come q bull
whlchs reviving theological discussion In The Pro
testsnt establishment with tsnfold interest. Belief
was already extsndipg In that church, In the direc-
ticn OF Eomanism; but another dogma now mas
sprung MP. which. II In UNDERWOOD, many still min
isterDg Of her affairs are also prepared to receive;
and publications arc being widely dissimenated In
which the question Ia Iedaced 10 two heads-nauasIy,
Deism or Ro~manism-that between the two there Ii
no common ground. Prince Albert il OF opinion
that the time las come for tie Church, OF which The
Queen Ia the supreme head, TO- Dpeak. or tina. we
hal have his Eminence or no Iciigicn whatever.
without entering upon any question Of this sort,
pors the proposition II it is brought ~forxard. The
Queen u psrpetually increasing her family, aud the
work OF sovereignty must necessarily be done. by
her husband, and II that Ia the case, IL Is better that
bis agency thculd have something OF the nature o,
responsibility. UNIVERSITY CLUB.
The Fixed Price OF Geld and the Standard
OF Value.
prom tho London Bankers Circular, Dec. 30l
This a ticle In intended M 0 general answer 10
various c. respondents, who are perolexed by the
two subjects which stand ~ our heading. For the
sake Of ptrspicuity we shall treat each Of them 90.
I arstely.
They who deny that the price OF gold Il fixed Ia
our ooinage, reason Ia the following manner Take,
say thor, a definite weight OF wheat, and call that
weight one quarter, ana then DIVIDE IL into eight
tqusl parts, calling each part one bussel; here there
Is bothirg but weight ard division; but assuredly
no fixed price. Granted.
III u lHliib IuuUutTt say butht ccCnOm IA, lake n
definite ' eight Of gold, and call tina. weight one
ounce, and then divide that ounce into tour equal
ports, calling each psit enc quarter ounce, or soye.
reign. Here sla0 trere Ia nothing but weight and
division; but assuredly no fixed price. Granted.
The parallel, ~ here stated, bet seen wheat and
gold Is complete, and II would remain complete. aad
afford o full justification 10 the bulliopists, II wheat
and gold were treated, as they are In this pAr allel,
simply as commodities. But to expose tn, sophism
we must proceed q step further. The wheat Ia not
coined, the gold In coined; the whea. IL not legal
tender, the gold, when coined, In legal tender; no
moneyed denomination Is put on tho What; but .
these c,ouhts 1t Is, that the parallel Ia b. oxen, and
II bt<ad OF Illustrating q demonstration, II only illus.
trafes 0 faDacy. Let the reader realise In his mind
what 10, and what alone can be, understood by the
becomes transparent. Tske any arti 10 you please,
and put upon II q moneyed denomination and, by
that very act, you do Of necessity fix It's price.
People 60 to Mark Lane TO ascertain the variable
under the Law OF supply and demand; but does any
body go TO lombard street, to ascertain the price Of
gold coined into sovereigrsi Nobody does; and why
notf Because every body knows that Its price In
sovereiRns, or only a hall, or a tenth, or . twentieth
OF that amount. Every working jeweller meits dow
sovereigns, WREN he intends 70 apply gold 10 the
purposes Of his manufacture; he never goes ID any
MAJ ktt to inquire what's the price Of s WITS. 3 grains
OF the metal, because be knows tha. the price is fixed
sovereign.
We now proceed to the standard OF va,ue. "Gold
ard Silver" says Mr.. Ricardo, "like oil other com
modities, are valuable only In proportion 70 the
quantity Of labor necessary 70 produce than and
bring them TO market. Gold In about fifteen times
%s4d TO- tsa r. I NV i. not ss' -. T snsyS = /. : ss g,ssss sI1 DC,
s~reater than that Ct gold, but solely because fifteen
times the quantity OF labor IL necessary to procure .
given quantity Of i" Our ordinance OF
coinage, passed in the third year OF the
reign Ct George l., adopted tie proportions
referred TO by Mr.. Ricardo; that IL to say, II fixed
the relations Of value between gold and silver In the
ratio OF one 70 fifteen. BE 1t observed that this
simply as st com nnns r sRp'i ratio o was vas The the % scs Of
nature, rot Of legislation, for nature bad 10 deoo-
sitRd than in the mines, that the same labor which
would only produce one ounce OF gold, would oro-
duce fifteen ounces Of silver. That proportion Par.
lament did not create, nor could Parliament change
Is. We have only as yet arrived a. raw bullion, no.
at coinage.
How then did l gislation proceed to convert this
raw bullion into legal tepder2 II put, both on
sold and silver n moneyed denomination, ard vet to
work In this fashion. Il took an ounce OF silver
coined II, and enacted that this coined ounce should
bear Q moneyed denomination q i've shilungs and
two pence (say 5s- I'd But gold, as already stated,
IL fifteen times more valuable than silver, equal
weights for equsl weights; consequently whe, a
Doneyed denomination WIS put on the coined ouncs
OF gold, IT was necessary that IL should pass as legal
tender for fifteen times AZ much az the coined ounce
Of silver; In other words for seventy-sevcn shillings
ard t~ixptnee; and In this manner the ratio bet cen
god sDd silver, m raw bullion, vas preserved, when
btth were converted into coins, and received their
respective moDeyod denominations. Subsequently.
YVES found tina. the ratio OF fifteen 10
one was not quito correct; IL became 1fteen
and q fmall fraction 70 one; therefore the colned
ounce OF gold was raised to seyen.y seven shilliugs
ard IintEence; hence VIC cay the price OF gold IL
90 lie. 81. Ter cur ce.
Nov Whit have we anivtd az A. nothing more
than this, that We lave determined the ratio. be.
tween rO1t ard Gflyar whit IA I'm the mr. = n rsin~a
stated, are 2 rdtTd meWurts OF each other. Bat
have We discovered one universal standard 81 value,
as the buliiorists have befcoled the world % be.
liz vef Certainly rot. We have settled no more
tlan the relations between god and silver, and
have taken labor ~ tbs standard measure Of b0tl
But rave we thown what proportion eithsr u
these metab, CT both OF them, bear TO coal or
cotton, irtn or sugar, beef or beer, timber or Aax,
or 10 any other commodity whatever No, ws hare
dore loibing of TIE kiud; snd what is more, II nnyef
can lie ecne, 20 that tie idea II an unl sersal standard
81 value fabf Gated out q gold or silver, or any other
commodity, Ia a vi,lsgB absufdity, though IL has
as Q good bait 70 catch ucgc3ns.
Perfect isyaiiab!ii:y ~ al times, under all cir-urn-
stances, ard Ia relation 10 all surrounding thiGss. Is
very essence CT standard, and taese conditions
Cist.r gLish II from a re6fh6rcOck. Nov, since every
thing inyentd by man !, imperfect. be cannot create
a perfect standard, which cen only b. fouDd Ia
rstuIe. Speaking pgil2sophlcally, : statdaft 81
Ter 9Th is focnd 10 the 400 900 D00:h part o. the
ear thif circumitrerts, which II equal 20 ths m asure
q $3.50 Englsh nchfs. This y the lsngth Of
the Frcrch metre. 10 III gland, tho pbil0s1phic.i
standard Of Ter 9Th 10 q Icbdalum vibrating seconds
IN The latlluce u q ecnxiCh, which Ia the mssanle
II 39.l3e3 Er glish iLch,s. The Eogli.h s.Gnaud
Il weight Is . cubic inch Of distilled writer q, the
tenn crstuie ~ G2 degrees o. FAhrenhsit, watch
Weighs 2b2 ass TOY alns. or Standard Of
capacity IA EererA'eA frm the space occupied
by ten tounts OF cisilltd water a. the tcm2e-
IaiuIe u " degrees Of Fahrenheit, Gust.
tutrg cor star dsrd gAlcn. New oil :bess
stsr fa de ard mttsu,ts are inmg'sble In Their
most rigid ard Ebaoiuts sense. and Uniform 70 what
ever thsyae applied. II yu desire ths kDg.h,
here yCu have the Ly8'iEb'e standards ard neI
surts; ard Il - plain that they have nothing 70 d.
with prices. Thy &C ccnslao,y q. cur command
Hey ian rever b. boarded CT sxpor<d; othsr NJ
tioEs are free 10 use them. or 70. use them ~ they
but sch ue would can no dsrAng ment
inorg ~tuptlvs. Can Ibis BE aid u rh1t IL %