The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1878-05-17
TnG MONEY QUESTION.


fore tho era of grcenbacks was inaugurated,
not to mention, the almost iunumerable local
suspensions over the same period. Money is
merely means of exchanging articles, and
no other value can be needed in money. 1t is
legal measure as much as a 70 rule is e
gal foot, twelve inches long, established by
custom and law 1t does not affect prices, for
the legal cord Of pine wood may be worth four
dollars, while the sane legal measure of oak
wood may be worth eight dollars, the price of
legal ton of hay may be ten dollars, while
the same legal weight of coal may have only
Of va,e cannot affect the price of commod-
ties or production The measure of the car.
penter need not be two foot rule, made of
gold or any other metal, it may be only mar
row strip Of paper, and yet "a perfect as if of
gold and set with diamosd'. All measures
whether money or yardsticks gallons or tons,
are measures only, we d, not call them pro-
ductions or mmodities. Gold is no better
as measure of value than copper, nickel, or
paper money. All these IN ,asures have the
same basis too, they all rest on custom and
law; they have no other true basis, nor need
any other foundation. Ten cents in specie
or ten cents in paper, are measures Of value,
the nickle cent is also measure of value. The
effects of mixed curren;y have always
brought disaster and finlncial distress. Pa
per money issued by any government as law
tu tender for all debts taxes and government
dues, should rest on tn, eatctmsntl of tn,
nations laws AMI credit anl on no other basis
whatever, any other basis is false AMI delu-
sve. Metals are Commodities and produc-
tons for manufacturing purposes and not
needed for money in exchanging one article
! in your p )sscssion for another article in your
neighbor's possession that you may desire to
have. Money is only convenience, not an
| absolute necessity frequent purchases, sales
| and paymeHts, are mad, without the use of
money, or any other representa- i've of value,
but simply trade value for value, but when
| money becomes the representative, it is used
| for convenience in making exchanges. A one
dollar greenback represents ten loaveS of
bread, or half days work it can twenty or
| hundred debts in one day for as many peo.
| Pile, and be paid back to you at night this is
its mission it does the work it was created
to do, law gave it being and capacity. Com
mon consent gave it notion vigor, and cur.
rency. 1t represents and exchanges property,
pays debts, answers every mans purpose,
meets every contract, fulfil. every function
required of money. We do not make watch.
es of it, but use it for m ,ncy. The use of
money depslds on legal authority and the
common consent of the people, aud not on
its material. 1t is gross error and an alb
surd notion to think that money must be
metal, or that paper must rest on metal t.
make it valuable. A few pounds of nickel
costs but a few cents but if the same nickle
be fashioned into cents it represents hun
dred dollars. The Impress Of authority gives
it va'ue unknown before, and passes current
as money by the consent Of the people. Mon
ey, ike manure, is Of no use if never spread.
We do not want money to keep, we want it
for use, and divide it up in amounts to suit
all our purchasers of articles in different pa
ces. If metal money were not used its abun.
dance would cause no imitation, its scarcity
no distress The foolish notion that God made
any metal of =" at + or of equal Importance
to the.'ordinary prod ,cts If labor is false that
the material for money must be something
scarce and difficult to proc ire, is equally alb
surd. III I'M i,rent Yl'l. u mpley, in the
mattr Il ou; Of whic it is III sde, is no more
fixel and rtttrin thl' the quality of the
wool Of W a / uu,lel basket is constructed
is regu!a. Of It's meas uring capacities AL
notion All ilels to the contrary, however
age and me.hjnored, are relics of super
sti'.n>i '. tai money, cumbersome ant
heavy at best became too. o..burdensome in max
ing '.,l al ges, and pro inises we've written OF
re go nprr to pay so much in coin, anC
II =. Ii, rsactice banks sprung into existence
anu bauk notes were printed, promising t.
lay in c1ir Occasionally man wanted
thousand dollars in cpip, and presenting the
pa er 'cccivcd the metal money without de-
lay +; and perhaps the next week the SAINT
coin came back to be exchanged for papel
money. Banks constantly had on hand, coir
almost untouched, and five dollars in paper
waIe represented by only two dollars in coin
The amount of specie held in reserve in 1865
did not excel twenty cents to the dollar
But every village wanted bank for convent
ence, the bankers foated all the paper money
possible, and thus made their living by ea,inl
up their customers. A handful of specie fol
| bushel Of bank bills, rented out to the will
Ling, confding, outraged public, and yet the
specie in the vaults in 1869 was above the
average aud exceeded that of any year since
lS4l. A mixed currency has proved to bt
{ unsound, rotten, dishonest, and does not con
. tain single element of justice ,al laws framed
in its support have been in the interest O
+ the rich, while the agriculturists md produc
ing classes, have been the chief sufferers, b,
exchanging their productions for bank bill
resting on specie basis. Everybody knows
that the amount of currency needed can new
er be redeemed in gold. 1t is as idle talk Al
to affirm that twice six will make fifty. I'm
der such system there never was or can b,
any reliability. Fluctuations and speculation
are the direct results; panics, disasters an,
misery sure and inevitable. So long as ev
erything is prosperou' and no one asks fo
gold everything goes smooth; but the mo
ment any considerable number, thinking o
the possibility of there being more pape
money than metal, rush to see who shall ge
what gold there is, the thunder-clap of de-
moraization and ruin occurs, while the bon,
/ a.,I LII 4
the losses. Bankers and money lenders es
cape unharmed. Currency resting on a spe
Gle basis is false, delusive, intoerable. Met
al money and mixed currency combined, wer'
failure at almost the commencement Of tn,
most disastrous war Of modern times.