Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1893-10-20
EDISON'S IDEA OF MONEY
Compress q Bushel Of Wheat Into a Big
Dollar.
GOLD, SILVER, GEMS OF NO ACCOUNT
Iron or Steel the Basis Of the Larger Currency
Notes.-The Money Question From
4 Scientific Standpoint.

A new solution of the silver question
has been offered by Thomas A. Edison.
Mr.. Edison has thus far watched with a
good deal of interest the fight between
the gold and silver men, and he has
read many of the speeches that have
been published on the subject of a
proper material TO use in currency. He
has regarded the subject from the stand
point of thoroughly up-to- date scientist
unhampered by any of the financer's
prejudices, and his solution of the cur
rency problem is startling and novel.
This laundering after gold and silver
is largely traditional" said Mr.. Edison,
speaking to New York World represen-
tativs at his laboratory at Orange, New
Jersey. people allow themselves to be
governed by the old ideas on the subject
Of coinage formulated at time when ma
tlonal credit did not exist and currency
would only be taken at it's intrinsic
value. In the olden days, when man
put his goods or his labor into money,
he wanted that money to have an in
trnsic market value, and SO he demanded
either gold or silver. In these days a
United States government bond, of no
intrinsic value, is worth more than Its
face value in gold 1t pays interest, is
easy to handle and safer to keep than
any precious metal. Every sensible
man would rather have roll Of green
backs than the same amount in gold,
which is heavy and clumsy. Neverthe
less there is the traditional love of gold
and silver, which are only valuable be-
cause everybody wants them and are Of
no value themselves, not being 80 useful
as iron, which is the real precious metal.
People demand, apparently, that their
dollar represent intrinsic market value,
or labor performed. Now it is acknowl
edged that the relative values of both
gold and silver are constantly huctuating
and thus affecting the price of every
thing else, and the demand for them,
which is increasing, is larger than the
supply, which IL diminishing.
"What we need is a new standard of
value" said Mr.. Edison. 81 think that
the best dollar could be made out OF
compressed wheat. You take bushel
OF wheat and squeeze the water out of it
and then compress it into \ hard cake
the size of silver dollar, and stamp the
government mark upon it. That would
represent actual value and labor per-
formed, and then you could eat your dol
lar, for when you wanted to use the
wheat all that would be necessary would
be to put your money to soak. We
should then have the bushel of wheat as
a permanent unit of value, which all
farmers would appreciate, and the cur
rency of the country would represent
actual worth and labor performed. Both
gold and silver could then be dispensed
with and the present bimetallic problem
solved. Our currency, moreover, would
be as good as gold or silver in foreign
exchange, for our wheat goes to all the
countries of the world.
in all this talk about metal for coin
age" continued Mr.. Edison, II am sur
prised that no one has suggested using
iron. Iron is the most precious metal
Gold is of no use, or silver either. Man
kind has no use for either gold or silver
but iron cannot be dispensed with. Il
the people only would give up this fool
ish, traditional, hereditary laundering
for gold and silver, those metals woulC
not be worth the price of old lead anC
would be kicked aside by civilization
The human race, on the other hand
cannot dispense with iron. Iron must bt
produced to keep pace with consump
ton or it's price will steadily rise. The
demand for iron is steady and will neve;
cease. Therefore, why not issue treasur,
certificates on iron? This is the creates
iron producing country in the world, anC
our output amounts annually to NOR,
than the output of both gold and silver
Instead of loading up the treasury will
these useless metals, and as people would
want bills of large denomination to &C
company the wheat dollar, why not bu.
iron or steel instead, and issue treaeur,
certificates upon that?"
II WAS pointed out to Mr.. Edison tina
much of the agitation for the free-silve
dollar emanated from silver-mine owner
in the West who we're interested parties
and that he, az the owner of the biggea
lion deposit east of the Allegheny noun
tains, might be 30 regarded. Ill
answ cred that he did not grow wheat
while the farmers of the country, VIII
are the real power and backbone of tn
republic, produced neither silver nc
iron, but knew bushel of wheat an
the labor necessary to produce it. TIL
wheat dollar, said Mr.. Edison, would
the farmers dollar. The popular super
stition in regard to sold and silver wa
on par with the prices paid for the &c
called precious stones" For the mir
erals Mr.. Edison processes the utmo.
contempt. II would not give fifty cent
for a CARLOAD of diamonds" said he.
is we'll known that Mr.. Edison ia no
manufacturing rubies by the pound
serve as the bearings Of monographs an
other delicate pieces of mechanism. Blu
he saws, it would be as easy matter
manufacture sapphires, emeralds, garnet
and all other gems except the diamond
Anybody can make those stones,
said MIR. Edison. "As to the diamond
that is hard nut to crack, but it wi
come one of these days, and when di,
monds are turned out by the pound an
given away in boxes of candy {
cigarettes they will reach about the
true value. Indeed, one man has almol
succeeded in making the diamond. H
: makes a greenish stone Of carbon an
silicon which in hardness comes betwee
the diamond and the sapphire and is til
: next hardest thing to the diamond"
"Do you mean to say that real rubie
sapphires and emeralds can be made ?
Yes, indeed" replied Mr. Edison
at is only short time since half II
jewellers in the world we're deceived b
rubies turned out by Paris syndicate
3 which manufactured them in the lum
: like glass or coal and then broke up Il
lump to suit customers. Many of thel
ruhies, which the most expert could n
4 detect from the real, were sold in Ne
t York. After a careful examination hs
: been made it was found that there ",
I only one difference between the natur
and the artificial ruby, and that was OF
which the ordinary citizen could not d
tect, That difference was in the sha,
of the bubble in the stone. In the nat