San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1896-08-09
A MONEY CATECHISM.
SOME PLAIN ANSWERS TO IMPORTANT
QUESTIONS CONCERNING MONEY.

Bulky, and Business of Civilized World Is
Adjusted to ItrLaws Cannot Make 1t
Less Acceptable Money-senator Stewart
and Silver States Prefer Gold.
Question. What is money! Answer.
Any common medium of exchange (which
is accepted as payment in itself.
@. What is representative money? A.
Any common medium of exchange
which promises to pay money.
O. What is meant by primary money?
A. This is new phrase introduced to
confuse people by suggesting that there
is also secondary money.
O. What is money Of final redemp-
ton? A. This is another late addition
to the American language implying that
there are several different kinds of
money. There is only one kind of money
in this country. There are several diff
ferent kinds of representative money.
Q. Give examples of each. A. Gold
coin is money. Everything else that
circulates, whether of metal or of paper,
is representative money.
Q. Is silver coin representative
money. A. 1t is
@. In what way does the government
promise to redeem its silver coins? A.
By the act of congress Of June 8, 1879,
it promises to redeem all coins smaller
than 81 when. presented in sums
not less than $40. By the act of Feb.
%, 1878, the government promises to
receive silver dollars at par in all pay
ments to itself. By the act of July 10,
1890, it declares it to be the policy of
the government to keep the two metals
at parity with each other. By two
different acts the secretary of the treas
ury is authorized to purchase coin and
to issue the obligations of the United
States therefor.
Q. What is the indispensable quality
and first requisite of money? A. That
it should be universally acceptable.
@. Is there any kind of money uni
versally acceptable but gold?- A. There
is not.
@. Would not silver be equally &C.
ceptable if it were equally legal tender?
A. Silver dollars are legal tender. Give
any man the option of taking 100 of
these pieces or 10 goldpieces Of $40
each and he will choose the latter.
Therefore they are not equally accepta-
BILE.
Q. Is. the difference in weight the
only reason why gold is more acceptable
than silver? A. That is not the only
reason now, but it was the main if not
the only reason when civilized nations
made their choice between the two.
| @. What reasons exist now that did
not exist then? A. A variation of 80
per cent has taken place in the value of
the two metals. In addition to being 16
times as heavy, silver has lost one-half
of its value during the interval
Q. Are there any other reasons why
silver is not equally acceptable with
gold? A. Yes; although a limited
amount of silver (and also of nickel and
copper is used as a medium of ex-
change, it is now a commodity in the
markets Of the world subject to the same
fluctuations as other commodities. Peo-
pie do not like to use fluctuating COM
modify as money, and will not if they
can get anything better.
c. Have you mentioned all the rea-
sons why gold is acceptable as money
and silver is not? A. The most decisive
reason is that the civilized world has
adjusted itself to the gold standard dur
ing long period of time. All business
is bottomed on it. 1t is an accomplished
fact coextensive with the commercial
world. To change to another standard
would be literally turning the CONNER
cial world upside down.
! Q. Can such change be produced?
A. Absolutely impossible. In a conceiv-
able case one country may turn itself
upside down, but that feat would not
make gold less acceptable or silver more
SO, even in that country. Acceptableness
is state Of the human mind which
laws cannot change.
Q. Is the preference for gold uni
versal? A. 1t is universal among civil
liked men. Even the silver advocates in
the United States prefer gold in their
business affairs, that is everywhere ex-
cept on the stump. Senator Stewart Of
Nevada makes his mortgages payable. in
gold. When he was reproyed for this
bad example, he said that he merely
followed the universal custom on the
Pacific coast, where he lives. So we
have his authority for the statement
that in the section Of the Union where
the demand for silver is most vociferous
everybody prefers gold in his private
business
@. Can you give any other examplesi
A. The territory of Arizona brought a
bill before congress two or three years
ago, asking authority to issue bonds
payable specifically in gold, on the
ground that the money would be Dor
rowed at considerable lower rate Of
interest than if they were payable in
dollars without specifying the kind Of
dollars The state of Utah IS negotiating
specific gold loan now for the same