The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1895-08-03
Gold and silver in Bible Days.

Gold and Silver i'm Bible Days.
In view OF the gold and silver contro- |
versy now agitsting the country, it is in
teresting TO note the wide range OF dis
crepaucy in the valuation OF the precious
metals in the days OF Bible history. The
tables Of standard values, as printed in
most Of our Bibles, is rs follows:
Silver. Gold
a fsisns s,.sss g f Tsisas jS
These figures may be verified BY refer
ring to the tables in any Of the standard
Bibles upon our family center tables. and
from them it appears that the usual ratio
between the metals in those days was
something over 20 to l. However, there
| ia little doubt but that these figures APP
ply to q given period Of history. or are
| mere average Of the standards OF ratio
that must have existed in about thou
sand years, from the days OF Abraham
until after the building Of the Temple in
the days of Hiram and Solomon, and at
various times the ratio between gold and
silver was widely divergent.
In the Sunday School Visitor, Of July
7th, printed at Nashville, Tenn, under
supervision of the M. r. church authori-
ties, we find what we believe to be an
authentic statement Of values, that dit
fers from that above. and plainly shows
the great range Of Auctuation at differ
emit periods It is AZ follows:
Silver. Gold:
sheke.. .tabout, Sos Shsksl......;; g g g g
, Talent. $sSS " Taient...... SAs<eS ~
A very simple arithmetical process will
readily show that the shekels in this lat
ter instance we're valued at the ratio Of
about l6 30 /, while 10 the case OF the
talents the ratio was about Is to !.
Now, we all know that no such thing
rs gold talent piece OF s13,8o9 or $32,-
$50 value, or silver talent pieces OF $685.
or e1,563 value. were ever handled in
those days, but that the value of the
shekels and talents was measured and
determined by weight. It made littl'
difference whether the gold and silver
was in the shape OF coin or not, its valu'
was determined solely by weight, ant
/ the values left OF record show that thu
4 recognized and accepted ratios of differ
emit periods were widely apart.
!. From these facts, we naturally aYgu
|. that the worthless Of the Bible we're pos
sibly as much pussled 70 az q permanent
and standing rata n16nanEanld a1d ~
n Yer, as are our Solons Of the present.
+ It>seems that in the primitive days Q
good old Abraham and Isaac the rati
was about l6 10 1; but. as the childre
= of Abraham multiplied and grew wea
thier and wiser, they changed their star
d dard of value. Perhaps it was their o.
n perisnce in Egypt, or their forty yeaI
:. "a travels with Moses and Aaron, that gav
n them better knowledge. Be this as
to may, the later rates OF the talents, in tt
days OF King Solomon, was about %
:, 1; and Solomon, we believe, is accredite
with being about az smart rs the averae
free silver man Of to-day.
Thus il appears that the "history I
a. the ages" has its everlasting "lesson f
ID the present" in financial matters, as
ny everything else, and we may turn to
in pages for instruction, even in these da
no of 16 to statesmen. The older natio
Of Europe have profited by their own
perience, and, indeed, they may ha
been in some measure instructed by Il
teachings Of sacred and profane histor
= when they deliberately determined tn
II it was impossible to FIX by law either {
money value or the mercantile value
IN the precious metals. Here in these Vi
ted States we have the accumulated Z
perience of the past and present, and
have no lsars that the good sense a
sound Judgment Of this great nation
freemen is going to be 80 swayed by
signing demagogues as that they sh
be led into any such folly as to conn
- the government to the maintenance
silver at the fictitious ratio OF 16 to l.
DR.. Prices crea0 Baking Powde
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