The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1879-10-31
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yFNiBAY, UCTOBER 81, ls7g.

this paper regarding 90, :" nat money
The National quotes the history Of the
money legislation by Congress to
extent, but for what pur-
pore 1t Is difficult TO see, inhsmuch as 1t
hasno bearing upon the question at is !
sue, viz. Whether dollar is a dollsyI
because made SO by government fbt,
or whether 1t is dollar because it con-
tsins dollar in value of precious metal
sis an acceptable equivalent therefor,
-fheaning BYE equivalent" note Is
sued or authorized, by the government,
promising to pay o. dollars worth OF
precious metal. The history quoted by
the Vermont National to show that the
amount, of gold and silver in the dollar
has varied, proves nothing whatever SO
far as the above question is concerned.
1t is merely an illustration Of the chief
difficulties attending a double, standard
where the amount of either metal and
its consequentvalue is liable to fluotua-
tions through the discovery and work
ing Of new. and vast sources Of supply.
The various changes in the amount OF
metal in the gold and silver dollar re-
speetively, have been simply SO many
attempts 10. keep the coins equal in val
ne to each other as the metals fluctuated
In relation TO each other. = i3ii l''
ga dollar has no existence except as
q determination of the money OF ac-
count. 1t Is thing ideal, not real as
bushel OF wheat. When the govern
ment says that piece of gold, silver or
paper shall be known as a dollar, and
legal tender for one dollar, it simply
appoints that article, made and pre-
pared i'm q regular and prescribed form
to correspond in debt paying power or
purchasing equivalency (Which is al
ways controlled by the debt paying
power) to the, money of account, which
in this country has for Its unit the dol
lar. p -, =. *.Ff
The term some dollar - is used in
this country, as the unit, in reckoning
values, and it is only as much an arbi-
trary decree or Stat" of the govern
ment to proclaim that 25.s grains of
gold, 412 1.2 or; 384 grains of silver
shall be the amount of those two metals
in O dollar of their, respective coinage,
as for the Government of England to
decree that pound of English money,
(silver) shall be only twenty sixty
sixths of pound in weight of that
metal" ~ ''''' -iii
In the view of most people dollar IL
thing as real as a bushel of wheat. Ii
is "a certain quantity or weight of gold
orot silver. 1t is true that the govern
ment in the exercise of the powers
granted it, for the benefit of the gov
erned,, establishes the weight of gold oil
silver that shall be called dollar, bul
this is very different thing from say
ing, as the National has SO often insist
n ed, that this action of the government
gives the gold or silver dollar its value
as money. 25.s grains of gold in thu
form of a bullet or rough mass, will
no government stamp whateversupor
it, is a dollar and would by any one bt
accepted as a dollar, because the mate
rial has value in itself, which no gov
ernmcnt fiat can give 10 it or take from
it. What the government does in coin
ing the gold is merely to certify that tn
piece OF gold is genuine, apd that it il
of the standard fineness and weight
This is done solely for the convenience
of the people, who otherwise could no
tell without making expensive test
whether they were offered 1858 of gold
or whether some fraudulent imitation
were being palmed upon them. Th'
government stamp saves every bushes
man the necessity of carrying a pair o
scales to weigh the dollars offered him
The government "fiat," so-called, is tn
very least important part oft. A gov
eminent fiat might decree that H..
grains of gold should be dollar. Th'
makeup and Inscriptions Of this coil
might be precisely the same as ON thu
old gold dollar, and therefore by tn
recent brilliant demonstrations of thu
National the two coins are of equa
value, But 50 far is this from being thu
case that the ''fiat" would not add ont
cent to the value of the new coin, and !
would be received by no one for mor'
&C. than precisely one-half of the old dollar
That is all there is to the government
fiat. Therefore when the National talk
about the government saying that
piece of paper shall be known as a dol
lar, aud legal tender for one dollar, |
Is talking nonsense. ',, - ,''''''
% The National triumphantly brings to
gether the silver dollar of 412 1-2grains
and the subsidiary fractional silve
coins, q dollar of which weighs onl
8s4 grains, and wants us to tell why on
passes equally as dollar with the 9th
err; and why 20 nickels, the intrinsi
value of The metal in which is onl
about II cents, will purchase as niue
as the Alp 1-2 grains silver dollar. TIL
National rather thinks the governmer
fiat does the Job. The subsidiary coir
are furnished merely as convenienc
80 in making change. They are accepte
at their face value only on account I
their convenience, They are q leg
tender only to a veryrsmall amour
is and the government is obliged to +
deem them for their nominal value
gold or silver dollars. 1t is these fe
lures and not the government fiat whi'
enables them to circulate, they beil
in fact similar to government not
SO far as their security is concerned.
The question why the silver doll
containing only 80 cents worth of met
is equally a legal tender with the go
% dollar containing 100 cents worth is e