Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1891-01-22
What is Fiat Money.

A correspondent in the Phillips
burg Democrat of last week, says:
1--WE notice IN the week before last
desire larger volume of fiat money
to be put In circulation. We desire
the editor of the Herald to tell what
he means by fiat money. Whether
gold and silver when coined into
money and stamped by the govern
ment is fiat money? We should also
like for him to tell US what would be
in his opinion the true or proper bas-
is of a circulation currency"
We answer that fiat money! is
that which is declared to be money by
the highest authority of the Nation
no matter of what material composed.
Fiat means proclamation or authori-
ty. It must be a legal tender for
debts public and private. Hereto
fore some men have argued that the
material used in making money
should be gold only; others have con-
tended it should be gold and silver,
while others Ito which school of phil
osophers we belong) hold that it may
be made of gold, silver and paper;
and that, in country like ours, as
much as $1OO,000,OOO or more, ire
deemable paper fiat dollars can be
fioated on par with coin, and furth-
er that if all other nations would de-
monetize metal, then the whole vol
ume of money might be made of ir-
redeemable fiat paper dollars.
Senator ]. ]. Ingalls, last week in
the United States senate, holding be-
tween his finger and thumb a silver
demarius or penny of that ancient
time, bearing the image and super
scripture of Caesar, said:
'It had been money for more than
twenty centuries, and would continue
to be money for twenty centuries
more should 1t so long resist the cir
cuIating canker and the gnawing
tooth of time But if one of the
pages should take it to the railroad
track and allow the train to pass over
it, its functions would disappear in a
moment, and 1t would be money no
longer, because the image and super
scription would have disappeared.
Money was the creation of law. and
the American people had learned the
lesson.
The American people are indlffer-
ent to the assaults, aspirations, argu-
ments cast upon them for demanding
that the law of the United States
shall place its image of Caezar upon
enough silver, gold and paper to en-
able them to transact their business
without embarrassment. hinderance.
delay, or impoverlshment and that
shall give them a measure of values
that will not make their earnings and
their belongings the sport and the
prey OF the spectators"
The st. Joseph Herald, (rep.) says:
What to do with the millions of
gold, and silver In the treasury, valu-
ed at S6OO,O00,000 will soon become q
great issue. When we reach that
point all the powers of earth cannot
subdue the fiat paper dollar. That is
what the money power most fears
Those issues are before us and must
be settled right. Ridicule has had
its day; discussion must follow, and
nothing but genuine arguments will
be listened to-
The people are being rapidly edu-
Gated on financial questions and the
time is not far in the future when it
will be found that there is no more
necessity fol having dollars manu-
featured from gold and silver in ord
er to measure values, than there is to
make yard-sticks and bushel-meas-
ures from the same precious metals.