New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1869-09-01

M
must he taken and used as this standard and guide
Gold il the article Iron lead, wheat or cotton
xsould answer the same purpose, provided they eK-
ised permanenty in nearly the same quantities, ana
there was the same uniform demand for them as for
gold over the earth, so that their value was every
where as regular and stable II too much currency
were put in circulation, gold would rise in price, q"
do all artices-hour. cotton, land. &c.-Dut n'oio
promptly. it feels at once all changes ia tn0
market The rise, oven of per lOo' "ouiu oo on
dicaton to the Secretary of the Treasury "
On the other hand, if too little currency "ei0 ="
cnaton the price of gold would fall below tho pa
L. 90 tho some which would indicate the neces
;,,, os;,oroos;n, the currency BY tbs means IN
stsod 81 usinO vast Quantities of the most eNpehSir
metals for n circulating medun, the same result
cond he obtained by taking its value I'D the MAJ
of tho country, and using it as gauge Oh i""''"
as a standard to which to conform
The economic principle OH which this reform IS
based NAV be cOmpTehended by any maihe.-niau
lie knows that the scarcity OF any preduc' III mo
market renders il dear, while It's Abundance CAUSES i.
to fall in price He can deduce the CONCLUSION 'la'
some one can mOnOpolize and hoid any one prouuc''
he can raise or lower its price at WILL anu as con-
.eonence regulate and fix it at any given point he
pleases. Now, under the power conferred by the
above law. the Government, being alone invested
with the right of creating and issuing the cur 'ncy'
il in the position of the mOnOpOls of some product
The Government can regulate the currency AT WILL
expanding or contracting it, and IN so DONG RAISE VI
lower the prices of all things, gold included tcouId
make one dollar in paper worth TWO III gOd--tnat 49,
worth At 610 Troy grains of this metal, or it could
make if worth but fifty cents in gold. To do this 1t
would in the former case have only to contract the
currency one-haf, and in the latter to double It,
To form clear idea on this subject let us suppose
&c n-iotry a
ing medium of five hundred millions and
that this amount of currency is in circula-
on In this case, the dollar of currency will
,t par; that is will I've worth, will bug, % $40
~ grains of gold Now, if the amount is Increased
. diminished, the currency will rise or tall IL III
creased five millions it will fall per lW II dlmin-
ished five millions it will rise per 100. This Will
DO the inevitable effect of Expansion and contraction
The Government can. consequently, regulate the
value of the currency by determining the amount
mt in circulation; and hence, secure the rega-
arty ard stability of the value of its dollar or the
monetary unit. If the business of the country re-
auircs more money than there is in circulation the
paper dollar will begin to be worth more than the
amount of gold fixed as its legal value. AS an
effect gold and silver bullion will flow
into the Treasury to be exchanged Dr
currency. The difference in price being IN
favor of the latter bullion will be exchanged for 1t,
exactly as it now is for coined money at the minis.
IT, on the other hand. falling OFF in the business cf
the country requires less currency causing it to de-
cline below par-there being rednndancy-the per
cenaoe of thedecne would indicate infalliby to the
Treasury the amount of currency which it should
withdraw from circulation in order to BRING IL up
again to par, and maintain it there
Gold and silver are under absolute and deSp0uc
Governments. the best materials for currency, and
for the reason that the employment of these metals
prevents kings and other rulers from increasing or
diminishing arbitrarily the amount of currency In
circulation. and thereby debasing it, and taking
from it its stability and fxedueSs Gold and silver,
furnished by nature take from absolute rulers the
power of creating money. and leave them only that
of coming lt-of putting the Government stamp upon
ii. --.
When the opinions and business habits of a nation
require that money should have an intrinsic value
in itself (which is the case with gold and silver,
which are valuable metalsl, kings and princes are
rcsxaned from creating currency out OF materials
of 10 or very little value Coinage is not the crea-
ton of a monetary value, but the Authorization
simply of the weight aud alloy OF the metals used
that is of the intrinsic value of the piece of gold or
silver of which the money Is made. BY this means.
the monetary value of the currency is combined
with the material of which it is composed. and finds
in itsnetallic substance the measure of its value.
peoples against the rapacity and dishonesty of rulers
is based wholly the principle of the equality of
the cost of money with its value. But, a
people IS free, and has the wisdom requisite to gov
srn itself why should it pay the cost of this guar
Inty--a guaranty against itsef-of which there is
no longer any need To continue to employ, under
such circumstances, currency which costs the en-
tire value it represents only be the effect of the
influence of old ideas, the falseness of which has
not been discovered and exploded and which, in
consequence, are retained. When people governs
itself all it has To do is to acquire knowledge suf
Gent to adapt it's laws and institutions to its true in
forests. IT, instead of employing for its currency
material as cheap paper, and which Is more con-
venient than gold and silver it keeps in the rut of
routine and those expensive metals it cOnfeSses
tacitly its ignorance in economic matters. The
American people will be rightly accused of this ig
nOrance if, with the experience 1T has had In the
greenback currency it does not comprehend the the
DRY of cheap circulating medium, made OF paper,
and based on principles which will entire sta
blifg and regularity to it.
Agreed it may be said let accept the idea of
cheap national currency costing to say, nothing
which is kept at par and its stability secured The
sudden return TO such a currency, however desirable
in itself would be severe blow to all having debts,
contracted under the old system, to pay" Ianswer:
Nothing is more true; but what would prevent the
introduction of a clause into the law which would
protect the interests of debtors and the
of strict justice When Russia brdged the gulf
which separated the paper from the silver rOuble-
the difference between $50 and lOO-she decreed that
all debts anteriorly contracted shosld be paid at
their real, not nominal, value-that is, in paper.
not silver, roubles The United States could follow
the same policy. al debts contracted in Greepbacks
prior 10 the passage Of the lac question ~oad be paid
in GreenbGcks or their acreage rdue during the year pre-