The great West. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1889-18??, 1891-07-24
THE TRUE UNIT OF VALUE.
A Missourian's Opinions ON the vital
Money Subject.


A Missourian's Opinions ON the vital
Money Subject.
George G. Ward, of Kansas City,
Mo-, is drawn out by an anonymous
attack upon some Of his statements,
and makes an analysis which is in
structive as well as logical, disclosing
the fa,seness of the theory of metalism:
This basic or fundamental error is
the idea or theory that money measures
commodities as compared with itself
(money). This is a false assumption;
money measures the relative value of
any certain commodity as compared
with all other commodities. The value
of money does not enter into the calcu-
lation or comparison. He rightly says
that there is no other yardstick but the
labor of production. A days labor,
not any certain amount OF gold and
silver, is the true unit of value. Mono
metallists and bimetallists alike be-
lieve in system of barter rather than
in a medium of exchange" They
think that commodities are exchanged
for money for the sake of the value of
the money, which is not the case.
Money is simply a certificate that the
community owes the holder thereof a
certain amount of labor or the pro-
ducts thereof. Hence my claim that
money should be printed on paper,
and should read 1.-The community owes
the holder hereof the value of one days
labor, to be paid on demand" My un-
l>~oxyv 1uo,,11 ho corooc%;o ~
sertions carry within themselves the
germs of their own destruction. The
tin bucket and the wooden bushel do
not measure capacity, they measure
oil and wheat. The yardstick does
not measure length, it measures goods.
If there are exchanges effected we
simply give so much wheat for so
much oil. The bucket bushel and
yardstick are not natural measures;
they are simply the material embodi-
ment of ideal quantities. If the law
should declare that one inch should
be one-fourth longer than now. and
that it should take fifteen of them to
make a foot our present yardsticks
would be useless and unavailable. All
measures and weights are creations of
law, simply and purely fiat. But
leaving argument, let us look at facts
The laborer for hire would refuse as
wages ring intrinsically worth So,
and willingly accept a dollar green
back bill. Why? Because he wants
money for what it will buy, not for
what it is worth. The greenback bill
is intrinsically worth nothing, but has
passed through hundreds of hands
since leaving the United States treas
ury, and has paid for hundreds of days
of labor, and will probably con-
tinue to circulate until it is worn
out. The theory that gold and silver
coin is the only true money must be
based upon an expectation that there
will sooner or later come a general
''bust up" in which the United States
will cease to exist as nation. Then
those who have gold and silver will
have wealth, those who have checks,
drafts notes, greenbacks. etc., will
have nothing. and the depositors in
banks will have secured notes and
bonds with no laws to enforce their
collection. My friend thinks that
such ideas as these. and the idea that
all depositors might call for their
money at once, are preposterously alb
surd. Well, suppose they are, their
very absurdity emphasizes the absurd
ity of the theory of metallism. If the
government stands, man would just
as soon have paper money as gold, if
it will equally as we'll exchange for
commodities. If he wants gold or sill
yer he can buy them. But if the
government collapses, why, there is
very little gold or silver anyhow, and
billions of bonds, notes. checks and
drafts will be paper all, and worthless
paper at that.