The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1896-06-03

That Once Served Well as Money We're
Dcmonetized.
In the opinion of some excellent
judges the address of Colonel Jacob l.,
Greene, before the Hartford beard Of
trade on March 20, is one Of t,lo clear.
est statements Of the true functions Of
money ever made. Colonel Greene is
president Of the Connecticut Mutual
Life Insurance company, said to be the
largest nlaneycd institution i'll New Eng
land. We quote below part Of this
most excellent speech:
Trade exists before money. Money Is
born Of the necessities Of trade, and is
simply IFS instrument. And trade, no
matter how complex its forms, how
narrow Ut how wide its field, what the
range Of its objects Or the number OF
character Of its irstrumentalities and
incidents, is nothing else but the free,
willing exchange of one mans property
for that CT another The fundamental
fact, and the everlasting neral element
in such exchanges, is this: No man will
ingly exchanges his own valuable COM
modify, his property, except for another
commodity, another piece Of property Of
at least equal value to him.
The whole principle and motive of
honest trade and the absolute condition
CT permanently prosperous trade are
property for property, substance fer sub
stance, equal value for agreed equal
value. Anything else, 10 matter how
phrascd, is robbery Of enc or ether Of
the parties, and is Immediately destruc-
tive CT real commerce, for it cxhausts
the party who is made to get less than
he is made to give.
But the direct exchange Or barter CT
scattered cOrmCCities by their rCspec-
tive owncrs is slow, laborious, costly
and inconvenient process. The problem
Of trade is to bring the scattered own-
ers CT needed commodities and the scat
tered consumers Of them effectively to-
gethcr as seasonably, quickly and
cheaply as possible. All the manifold
instrumentalities Of commerce are
merely devices to that one end. And
The first necessity to that end is some
form and kind CT property so useful and
desirable to all men, no matter for what
special reason, and so uniformly and
universally acceptable by them that they
will everywhere among these producers
and consumers readily exchange for it
any item CT property they wish to ex-
change, knowing that it will. willingly
and without loss, be taken in exchange
for any other item of property they may
happen to want and whenever they may
happen to want it. That kind of prop
orty fer which all ether kinds can be
exchanged, which can buy and sell all
others, men call money. To serve this
use NEST effectively and economically,
it must possess in the highest attain
able degree certain qualities. 1t must
have value, real usefulness i'll itself, for
men do net Willingly trade valuable for
vallcloss t..-tt44gs. 1t must Keep its value,
fer men will not trade value for value
less thing merely because it onco had
value. They must have tho present sub
stance and not the mere tradition Of
value. 1t must be as invariable in value
as possible-that, while it is kept On
hand awaiting other exchanges, it may
lose as little as possible Of its power to
buy other commodities. It must be as
nearly imperishable and indestructible
as possible. 1t must have as small bulk
as possible consistent with sufficient
abundance, both for convenience of
handling and for safety and cheapness
Of carriage. 1t must be CT sort of
equally valuable, equally desirable,
equally acceptable wherever men trade,
else its purchasing power is not every
where equal, ard its function SO far
fails.
Wherever men have advanced beyond
savagery. they have by custom and COM
mon use adopted some then available
form of property, possessing more or
less of these qualities, as the medium
of their exchanges. So long as, for any
reason, that form has had a recognized
value and acceptability as wide as the
range Of trade Of that time, it has
served its purpose, even if imperfectly.
When its acceptability has ceased, OF
has ceased to be commensurate with the
field Of trade, it has dropped out Of use.
History is full of instances Ct disused
and abandoned moneys.
Whenever particular form of prop.
erty has served as a medium Ct ex-
change, it has necessarily become &
measure Of the value Of every item OF
property exchanged by its intervention.
When cowries were the medium, ev.
erything else was valued in CowriCs. II
was the same way with sheep, COWS,
cloths, hides, lunches Of shingles, etc.
So that Intermediate kind or form OF
property, by first exchanging for which
all other kinds CT property are exchanged
for each ether, is fer the time being 10th
medium of exchange and Il measure
Of value of the things exchanged.
Whenever u money has been kind
of property which existed i'll natural
units, like cowries, arrowheads, sheep
or other like sort, the conventional unit
of exchange has been tho natural unit
by which the count of quantity would
be made. But when the extension of the
field of trade and the changed wants OF
mon have compelled such retinements in
the quality, bulk and convenience OF the
instrument of exchange that the rarel
metals were more acceptable for the
purpose, some conventional unit OF
quantity and some universally satisfac-
tory mode of its certifcation had to be