Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1896-04-11
CURRENCY PRIMER.
What Is Money and Why It Is
Money.
The Function of Government Is to Certify,
by Its Stamp, to tho Purity and Weight
of n Coin-It Should Not Attempt
to Mako Money from Nothing.

One of the recent publications of the
sound currency committee of So Will
liam street. New York, is entitled
Currency Primer" 1t discusses the
fundamental principles underlying
money in plain language. We quote the
following:
The whole matter of money, n meas
ure of value, q means of exchange, cir
culating medium, is one of necessity, |
convenience, adaptation to the end. tits
a question of the fitness and effective
ness of the material substance of which
the instrument is made.
Manifestly that fitness, the convent
ence, and effectiveness of the thing, must
be determined by the Judgment of those
who use the instrument, those who do
tic business the labor and exchange of
the world.
Law should attempt to follow that
Judgment and not attempt to form 1T,
force it or control it. Experience has
determined several points as to fitness,
convenience and efficiency. Silver is
found too precious, too concentrated, to
be conveniently used to represent very
small values. Something more bulky
that is, of less value by Weights need
ed. Hence for smallest values copper
coins, for slightly larger nickel or some
equivalent, and for still larger silver.
But silver is too bully-that is, of
too little value by weight-to represent
very large values. Hence gold is used
for these. But even gold is too heavy
and bulky to be used by actual count or
by actual weighing, and passing from
hand to hand at every turn in large
transactions, especially between dealers
at distance.
Hence come into use bank notes, and
far more largely still checks and bills
of exchange. BY means of these given
quantity of money will rapidly, though
only in legal sense, pass from hand to
hand, from owner to owner, by mere
entries on books of account, no money
being actually counted nor even seen
by the banker who keeps it locked up in
his valuts. Checks and bills of exchange
are simply additional facilities, con-
veniences, multiplying the rapidity of
circulation-more rapidly changing
ownership. But the money they repre-
sent must be behind them.
We now see the reason why govern
ment cannot make anything money
which it chooses to call money, nor
make it money, current with the mer-
chant" nor current with the laborer,
by simply calling it a legal tender. Gov
eminent can no more do this than it
can say what your days wages shall be
or what shall be the price of n bushel ol
wheat. Any government assuming to
do these things would soon be reformed
or if need be revolutionized by force.
Having seen the function of money
md the materials of which it should be
composed, and seeing that government
cannot make money of iron or leather ol
pasteboard, simply because intelligent
free people of great commercial inter
ests and activities will not use these
substances as money, the question
arises: What is the function of govern
ment in regard to money? Here agai1
the answer is, simply to increase th'
convenience and effectiveness of tn
substances or materials which the peo
pie have already found most convenien
and effective as standards of value. In
crease it how?
The old time method of use was t.
weigh the metal. That is slow an'
cumbrous, and inexact, unless a part a
least of the amount be divided into yer.
small pieces-in case of gold, too smal
for either safety or convenience. Henc
the art of coinage, each piece of copper
silver or gold being composed of give
weight. But if coinage be left to ind
viduals fraud will creep in. Alloy:
mixtures, debasement would be prat
ticed. Hence the convenience, the e,
fectiveuess, the fitness of metal coine
into money are Immensely increased b
confidence in its purity and in the full
ness of it's weight. Therefore the onl
duty and province of government in II
gard to coin is by its stamp, to certif
that q given piece of metal is of give
weight and of n given fineness or purit:
There the interference of governmeI
should stop, unless to declare what
legal tender, and in what sums, as
each metal.
1t is now doubted by some wheth,
government should go further and NAL
anything u legal tender for debts, al
whether it would not be better to lea
every man to make ihis contract to
paid in the money of his choice. If tn
were done, and the mints of the who
world were thrown open for free al
unlimited coinage of all metals nc
used as money, the owners of the co
would soon find which would circula
and which would not. But pass
opinion whether government should 4
why Abuse Gold?
The less courageous of the free col
age advocates pretend that they wa