The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1883-07-04
What is Money?

The value of commodity limits
its quantity. Anything which "a
he obtained in limited quantity,
with a certoin asrertainable amount
OF labor, aud which is divislDle, VIII
serve the purpose of money. f"rs
have been employed in some conn
tries as money, cattle 10 others-as
in the Ilial," in the estimation OF
the respective value of the shields OF
Diomedes and Glacus, the one worth
nine oxen, the other hundred oxen
bricks of tea in Tartary, cowrIes in
Africa, rock salt in Abssinia. Other
African tribes calculated in ndcntes
a money of the mind, which has no
substance corresponding to it, but
the value contained in which has
been sufficiently ingrained in their
minds to answer the purpose OF
measure of value. Bullion is chosen
because it complies with these TWO
conditions, difficulty of acquisition
and diyisibility, better than any
known substance. Is il not strange
that we should turn this servant into
our master and elevate that which is
a mere medium for avoiding the in
conyenlences Of barter into an indis
pensable necessary of life, hardly
secondary to food and clothing? II
by some convulsion of nature the
precious metals, gold and silver,
were utterly destroyed, the world,
would be impoverished by the loss OF
q commodity on the discovery and
manufacture of which much labor
and time have been expended, but
the only result would be that we
should have recourse to some other
continuance. The main business of
life would 60 on as before, and the
only difference would probably be
that we should be obliged to have
recourse to paper currency, based
on whatever might be found, after
careful consideration, to be the most
convenient or least inconvenient
standard value. The question would
be, as it is now, a question of rene
diving the inconvenience of barter by
providing some:mean of fixing pri.
ces. That would be all.
The DOMESTIC BosToN HUSBAND
"A new phase in the woman case
is thus delineated-if report in one
of our daily papers can be relied or
alleged to have come from individ
ual most directly interested: II am o
milliner, and I have made between
$1,000 and $4,000 year in my bust
ness for some time past. I married
four years ago. My husband is kind
and good looking, but be never learn
ed any trade, had no profession, and
could not average $500 year.
loved him, however, but 1 saw thai
it would not do to depend upon him
so l kept on with my business. AT
ter q time think he got a little la
zy, and, as we were both away dur
ing the day, we could not keep house
and got sick of boarding. Finally,
proposed that he should keep house
and would run the business ant
find the money. We have now livet
20 very happily in this way for tw'
years. My husband rises and build
the fire, gets breakfast, and leav
at 7:45 for my place of business
He does the washing and ironing an
the cleaning, and l do not know @
any woman who can beat him. H
is as neat as wax, and can cook equs
to any one in town. 1t may be a
isolated case, but l think the tim
has now come when women who hav
husbands to support should max
them do the work; otherwise the
are luxuries we must do without.
Boston Paper.
SOME curious person, who ey
IDENTIFY is not overburdened wit
work, has figured out the compens'
lion per breath which Patti receive
at $4,000 a night in the opera
"Lucia." Here is the result: She
on the stage, by the watch, just si'
~ two minutes during the three act
This gives her $50 and some cd
cents for every minute. The ave
age rate of respiration is about eig
teen a minute, so that each breath
maid $4.44. In'"Lucia there are LIZ
words and $500 notes, 50 that Pat
ia Maid $50 word and $l.75 not
For little run of dozen notes,
twenty-dollar bill is very fair pay