The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1895-05-15
THIRD ARTICLE ON "COlN's IMAM
GAL SCHOOL 49, THE sooh'h vi
Moneys VALUE

There IS hut little piac''di use '''
nrecious metals. We plug teeth with
gold. tip Ightnng-rods. and do ie"
other things with il. and then its uses Tor
man are about ended. The foundation
of its value must be looked Tor elsewhere
therefore. than in its practical useiul-
ness. 1t is in mans vanity and ms
nassion for ornamcntation. The savage
who feels no reluctance at appearing
naked before spectators would blnsh'
though. if he had forgotten his feathers
and paint. But the desire for ornaineh-
tation will not account by itself for gold
value. II gold lay all over the face OF
the earth. and could be had for the pick
ing Of Il up. no one would care for IT
any more than people care for wild flow
ers. 1t has therefore another source oil
value. which is its scarcity and that
means no more than the labor required TO
nroduce II. But this labor alone Will
not make il valuable for H. is OF no con-
sequence how much labor might be re-
ouired to dig given quantity Of sold
out OF the ground. still, after the Few
practical needs for gold were subserNed'
The rest would be without value If man
were without passion for ornameniation'
The value of the precious metals grows,
therefore. out of the conjoint principle Oh
mans passion for ornamentation ana the
labor necessary to produce them. Inc
passion is as steady and as fixed as the
color of the metal, and il may therefore
le left out of the account. 1t may be
assumed TO exist always The laD"i
necessary TO produce the metal is. then,
the only thing which it is important TO
consider. We plant ourselves firmly,
then. upon the proposition that the labor
necessary 10 produce a precious metal
that is. the average labor-is
the gage of its value, as it is of the
value of everything else. desire for 1t
being conceded.
We VIII illustrate this: Suppose one
of our great transatlantic liners were
wrecked upon desert ISLAND with
crew ard passengers. men and women, OF
900 souls, supplied with a years proNls-
ions and all the tools necessary Tor oidi-.
nary labor. The colony, possessing all
SITS old-time passion for COMMUNICATION,
would at once 90 to work. Some would
raise wheat some corn. some sheep. Tor
food and wool. and some would begin
digging in a vein OF gold discovered AT
she end OF the year. when crops were gar
nered. trading would begin. On what
basis would il commence? The wheat
man would be found to have raised 100
bushels of wheat, the corn man 90 bushels
Of corn. and the gold man woald have
dug out enough gold 10 make 100 dollars.
The wheat man would inevitably contend
then that as "a bushel of his wheat cost
as much labor as two bushels of corn, it
was worth two bushels Of corn. and the
gold man would contend that as one of
his dollars cost as much labor as a bushel
OF wheat. IL was worth a hushel of wheat.
They would inevitably begin their trad
ing. then. upon the basis of the labor re-
qulred to produce each article. Their
exchange OF wheat for corn would be
upon the basis OF the labor involved in
each, and OF corn Tor. dollars upon the
basis or the labor involved in each, and
therefore two bushels OF corn would be
demanded for one bushel OF wheat or for
one dollar Of gold.
Now. the principle which would control
this colony IN the commencement Of their
traffic. is the principle which lies at the
bottom of all the trading OF the world.
The desire for an article. whether money
or anything else. being conceded. the test
OF It's value is the labor involved in its
production. But this gage is not abso-
Lutte. II is relative only. affected by the
desire for the article-what is called the
demand The desire FOR gold is fixed,
and the annual increase Of II has so
far been in fair proportion to the increase
OF population. II is not probable. there
fore. that the desire for gold will be
modified 20 any important extent. It's
place in the scale OF values is consequent
~ fixed, or very nearly so. But boun-
toous harvest IN some quarters may
make the same labor produce there twice
The quantity of wheat this year that It
produced last year. The desire or demand
for wheat win be the same this year as
a. was last year, but the supply OF It