The Hawaiian gazette., 1880-05-19

Mr.. W. L. GREEN only partially states our
reason for demanding U. S. gold currency,
which is, not only, "because it has fixed
and permanent value, and because it is the
most convenient coin with which to pay our
foreign debts !" but also because the U. S.
gold dollars in which our products are payable
are intrinsicallY of more value than are the
silver dollars with which we are paid, and for
the further and important reason that the pre-
sent silver currency must sooner or later bring
trouble and loss, and that as long as this cur
rency is all that we have, we shall have to
pay for exchange any price up to IL per cent.
which the Bank may ask.
1t is not correct to attribute to the law of
1876 the dearth Of gold and the presence of
only silver currency, for the plain reason
that the law has not been enforced. The re-
suit of enforcing it must have been to keep or
bring U. S. gold here, and that is the reason it
was not enforced
Mr.. Green does not disguise the present diff
ficulty, to prevent which he voted for the gold
law of ls76, and he admits the Importance of
q. S. gold basis but he sees but one alterna-
tive, " for getting out of our currency Difficult
ties" and that is, to declare dollar of U. S.
gold to be worth here as it now is in fact 81 O3,
o: else to coin Hawaiian gold coins of about
three per cent. (3-l00) less value than q. S.
gold COINS.
His reason for thinking that gold, desirable
as it is, ought to pass at its actual value plus
the cost of getting it here is, that the cost of
introducing a coin into the country for cur
rency purposes is as legitimate a charge as
that of turning bullion into gold" He thinks
it is mistake that the British Government,
(and he might say the same of the q. S. Gov
ernment), makes no charge for coming gold"
He also thinks that, this young country with
its dearth of capital but magnificent produc-
tive powers will hardly consent to eschew the
benefits of the vast system of credit, or trans
fer of capital from where it is scarce and
which we may almost say, keeps the world
moving, in order to be able to obtain even SO
desirable an object as U. S. gold currency.''
Let us look at facts. The sugar planter is
entitled to be paid what his sugar is worth
here, not its value here, and also the money il
costs him to export it to foreign markets. He
can get his money here in u S. gold, which
would be its full value in San Francisco, less
cost of transportation across the water. Has
the planter or any other person having goods
to sell any right to say to others, that they
shall pay him the expense of getting his goods
to foreign market? When it is said that it
costs Sl.03 to bring $1.0O of U. S. gold here
nothing else can be meant than that those to
whom money is payable here for their exported
goods prefer to be paid in San Francisco, in or
der to get the added price there over what they
would get here, and also in order to use the
money there to pay for imported goods, or in
other words 10 yet he hana6t If t,a o,oI,.x,-.
With all respect to the opinions of others
we are not of the opinion that it is the vast
system of credit which keeps the world NOV
ing, or which gives the best results but per-
haps the discussion of that matter is aside
from this question of our currency.
For even if we did all our business on Dor
rowed capital the amount of coin to be brought
here would be only the surplus after paying
Tor our imports. The proceeds of exports are
OF course used in paying for machinery, stock,
breadstuffs, implements and so on. The credit
business will go on, if we shall have gold coin
instead of silver brought here, although the
cost OF getting goods to market, or the ex-
change, will not be gained by the exporters and
those acting with them. Practically the thing
works in this way. The planter, who is usu-
ally in debt, gets no benefit of the gold or of
exchange, which is absorbed by the agents
anu thO Luz VI having only q
silver currency is that no one who has money
can make remittances without losing some II
per cent, but he must buy exchange, and at
the price asked for it. The fact that the bank
or others make profits on importing silver
bought with gold, or on exchange does not con-
Germ the public. But the public is vitality con-
cerned in any course of business which leaves
it at the mercy of a currency so variable, and
so much less in value than gold, as this silver
is, and which makes monopoly of exchange |
1t would seem strange that the bank itself did |
not see that as surely as imports exceed ex-
ports, evil must come, and that it may at any |
time be Decessary to refuse to take silver ex- |
cept at its value as compared with gold, and |
also to charge some II per cent for exchange, |
or the cost of exporting silver and buying gold |
with it. 1t is from these views, that we have |
pointed out the motives which have led per- |
sons 10 import silver instead of gold, and not |
because we grudge them the large profits which |
they made by SO doing.
Mr.. Green's suggestion of over-valuing gold |
would do no good, for more money can be i
made by importing silver at its present over !
valued current rate. And besides, if silver |
and gold coins were equally over-rated, that |
is, if we continued to pass 80 cents in silver as
100 cents, and called Sl.00 in gold equal to |
Sl.l0, the evils we have pointed out would |
not be lessened but might be greatly exagge- |
rated.
The morals of the horse jockey, proverbially |