The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1881-11-09
s,,ver for SALARIES.
THE NEW DOLLAR IN RELATION TO TUE PAY OF
THE ARMY AND NAVY.

THE NEW DOLLAR IN RELATION TO TUE fAf VI
THE ARMY AND NAVY.
Mr. John A. Grier, OF Phiiade'phia' WIZ
has given much thought 10 currency mat
ters has a valuable article IN the Onteu
service for Novemb' on the use OF shyer
for having our SOLDIERS and sailors lie
wss Tor ten years in our naval service, ana
therefore speaks with all due experience 10
bis comrades and the public. The ioliow-
inc extracts from MIR. Grier's paper show
its general character:
"Such is the just pride OF the army ana
navy in doing their best 10 MAINTAIN tne
honor OF our nation, that II we can succeed
in obtaining q suspension oil judgment
from them on an issue OF 80 much M
poriance, and prove that this Is false idea
il will be a most desirable result. Wepro-
pose to discuss the question very Drieny,
and make a few statements that are oiteh
overlooked. The silver dollar now coined
contains exactly the same quantity OF pure
silver that IL has since its first coinage III
1874. From that time until the PERIOD Oh
its unfortunate decentralization IN 1910, IL
was always an unlimited legal tender ior
all debts, unless otherwise distinctly speci-
fed. From 1884 TO 1873 the intrinsic value
OF this silver dollar in the markets OF the
world was from TO 81 per cent. greater
than the gold dollar.
"In truth gold is simply commodity
and its intrinsic value in comparison win
any other commodity whatever Is regulated
by the rigid economic law OF supply and
demand. Whenever government CONS
il. and calls it legai-tender money, then by
this very new use it makes q new demand
for this metal, and thus increases its utility,
and by this means increases its intrinsic
value. Thus the vain attempt 10 prove
that gold is an almost unyarying stand
ard OF intrinsic value is shown TO
be illogical. From the very nature
of commodities there can be no unyary-
ing standard or measure OF intrinsic
value. Gold is not, neither is silver,
nor are they both combined, umyarying
standards OF intrinsic value. But the
world from time immemorial has wisely
accepted both of these metals as 'agentS OF
ysluation,' and to discard either from this
important function would so greatly en-
nance the intrinsic value OF the other ~
10 cause the most tremendous shock and
distress that the commercial world has ever
felt. This eminently-wise acceptance OF
definite quantity of oareiully-coincd gold
and silver as an agent OF U0ludti0n, not a.
an mvarying measure, is recognition OF
one Of the most vital functions OF legal
money--its dcbt-paying power.
"The debt-pGVn9 UGiue OF money is
question of law, and law alone, while the
Intrinsic udlue OF money is question OF
supply and demand; but the purchasing
,Glue OF money is a question OF prices, and
in free country tx adjusted by the people,
perfectly independent of the laws OF the
Government. BE assured, then, that there
is no swindle perpetratcd on the part OF the
Government when they discard the false
idea that gold is an unyarying standard OF
intrinsic value.
"The question Of international bi-metal-
ism is one of the most subtle of economic
inquiries, and il seems highly probable,
from the results OF the late International
Monetary Conference at Paris, that the use
Of the two metalsas full legal-tender money
will be extended. However, we have little
expectation OF seeing a successful and
durable international treaty on this sub
ject. The money OF each country is some
thing almost as distinct and personal and
~ difficult 10 change as the language, the
laws, the weights, or measures, or their re-
ligion. We think that most OF the deSira-
BILE results aimed at by the bi-metallists will
be obtained simply by the separate action
Of each nation using both metals as legal
tender money in ratio and in coins TO suit
their own convenience. international COIN
age is desirable, but il is Utopian dream
OF the future. The world Is not ready
for it.
illegal money must always be a creation
OF national law, and in order that il may
be reliable il must be based on the fitness
and intrinsic value of the material used.
Silver as we'll as gold prominently fills
these acquisitions. The immense impor-
tance OF real money as an agent OF yalua-
ton was most strikingly shown by Con-
troller OF the Currency Hon. John Jay
Knox, at the late convention Of our national
bankers. He says that in the business OF
nearly two thousand of our national banks
on the one day Of June 80, amounting to
over two hundred and seventy-four million
OF dollars, only about eighty-one hun
dredths OF one per cent. was transacted by
real mOney-gold and silver-while all the
rest was done in some shape by paper,
representative of money.
1.-The real feeling of the capitalists OF
our country as to their confidence in prac-
ticsl bi-mctallism was shown by the ayidity
with which they lately exchanged their >
and per cent national bonds, for which
they could then if they wished have re-
ceived gold alone for bonds bearing only
81 per cent. interest, for which they may
receive silver il the Secretary OF the Trea-
sury wishes to pay of these bonds in this
ooi,, ~