Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1896-05-30
THE BI=METALLIC STANDARD.
An Argument Against the Single Gold standard by
Honesty.


, ducing the wheat or its intrinsic value.
/ This fact is demonstrated every day in
| buying and selling commodities, and
cannot be truthfully denied. In truth
the word intrinsic has no place what
| ever in the system Of exchange values.
| 1t is foreign elemEl~nd should be
| expunged from any honest discussion OF
the money question Now what are the
! functions of money in the system OF
exchange values which has been set
up by law by which property and Ia
Dor are eXchar ged. TO accommodate the
wants and desires OF mankind, based
upon the natural law of supply and de-
mand? The functions OF money are
three in number, viz: TO furnish % the
common medium by which exchanges
are rendered possible, (2) the common
measure by which the comparative val
4 ueS of these exchanges are estimated,
and CD the standard by which future
obligations are determined Money is
a common denominator or common
measure of value in terms of which are
estimated the value of all other goods.
A unit of money measures value good
deaLupon the same principle that the
weight weighs pound and half bush
ell measures a half bushel4 1t is i'm
material il the yard stick, pound weight
( and half bushel are made of gold, silver
/ iron, wood or any other material. the
measure is the same, regardless of the
intrinsic value of the material of the
yard stick. pound weight and half
/ buShel The value Of thing is what
/ it will exchange for; the value of money
/ is what money will exchange for, or its
/ purchasing power in other property or
| labor. property and labor being the base
| of money II prices are low, money I'll
/ buy much of other things and : o. gh
value; if prices are high, il viii buy
little of other things and is of low value.
/ The value of money is inversely as gen
eral prices falling as they rise and ris-
| ing as they fall. The value of money is
/ inversely as its quantity, multiplied by
/ its Efficiency, the amount of transac-
tiOnS being assumed to be constant.
/ The proximate condition which deter
mines value is the equation between
| supply and demand; and this is clearly
the case with reference to money. The
supply OF a commodity means the quaint
ity of Ii which is offered for sale.
But in what shape does the sale of mon
ey take place? BY being offered for goods.
The supply of money, then. is the
quantity of it which people are wanting
TO lay out; or all the money in circula-
ton at the time. The demand for a
commodity is the purchasing power Of
fered for It, Demand in the special
case OF money consists in all the goods
offered for sale. There Is. however. a
peculiar feature in the case of money
which arises from its position as a
medium of exchange, viz that money Is,
so to speak, in a constant state o. sup
/ ply and demand, since its principal SER
vice is TO act as the means of purchas-
ing or exchanging commodities. From
this il follows that the factors which
determine the value of money are: QD
the amount OF money in circulation. and
(2), the amount of goods to be sold If
either OF these factors are artificially
or otherwise interfered with a change
in the relative value of money and
! goods instantly occurs. Another thing
which gives a peculiar feature to the
/ problem of money value is in the case
I
/ production affects value without any
actual change in supply. The knowl-
edge that commodity can be produced
I at lower cost will cause a reduction
I in its value. This is not true of money.
/ Either the quality or the efficiency of
money must be altered to change it's
value This is. of course. a result of its
position as the circulating medium.
When the coinage of a State is artificial
~ limited the value of money plainly
depends on supply and demand Prior
/ TO the dOmanetiZatiOn of silver. COIN
age was limited TO the production of
/ both gold and silver. based upon the
/ equality of the metals as money, but
since that period coinage has by law
/ been limited to the production of gold
| alone Then an unlimited demand for
/ gold for coinage, the quantity of metal
/ in the unit being fixed by law, was con-
/ tinued and the demand for silver for
/ coinage discontinued. BY this legisla-
/ ton the former demand for gold and
silver for use as money based upon the
equality of the metals, and the base
upon which all exchanges under the law
of supply and demand were made, has
been changed or altered. The contin-
uance of the demand for gold for COIN
age and the discOntinuance of the de-
mand for silver for coinage, under the
national law of supply and demand.
and irrespective of the intrinsic value
OF the metals, created an artificial di-
vergance in the former exchange value
of the quantity of metal contained in
the gold unit and the quantity of metal
contained in the silver unit; the number
OF units in both gold and silver having
beet set up since the dawn of ciyiliza-
ton down to 1878, as a standard by
which all exchanges of property and
labor should be measured and eX-
changed. Decentralization of silver
/ changes the standard measurement OF
/ exchange values. the standard upon
which all existing debts have substan-
\ TALLY been created, good deal in the
same manner as if all obligations were
/ legally payable in yards Of cloth and
\ the laws should declare that the yard
stick hereafter should be 70 inches in
/ length instead of Sc inches. This would
not increase the legal obligation as ex-
I pressed in yards, yet il would require
twice the amount OF cloth to legally
/ discharge the obligation without cor
/ responding decrease in the cost of pro-
/ dueing the cloth. In fact, doubling by
Legislation the obligation in cloth of
the debtor. benefits the creditor with