The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1896-07-04

silver dollars. These dollars were of
excellent appearance, and We're minted
in large quantities. Also fractional
coins were turned out, so that even
Hong Kong was flooded with dimes
and five-cent pieces. These coins were
left for awhile to make their own way
in competition with the Mexican,
American, French and English coins
that circulate SO largely in Asia
However, at = later date proclamations
were put out announcing that the
Viceroy's new dollars must be received
on the same footing as the foreign
coins and that they would be taken in
payment of taxes and customs duties
This was done, of course, to force them
into circulation.
About the beginning of last January
the currency fluctuations began to be
plainly manifest. The Mexican dollar,
whose value had been fixed at 1000
cash." fell to 902 at Hankow and
Ningpo At Chinkiang, the Spanish
dollar dropped from 1900 cash to 1,175,
and the tael, whose worth had been de-
creed to be 700 cash by the first Man
chu emperor, but which had risen to
1,4S0, fell to 1,345. AT Yangchow the To-
cal tael went down to 1900 cash, and
the Mexican dollar to a little over 900
At Chinkiang and Marking only 935
cash were given for the Chinese dollar
At Hankchow 1000 cash were still CIV
en-, but it was found that 20 per cent.
We're base coins.
AS soon as the authorities understood
that the money of the people had APP
preciated so dearly they set about rem
edying the trouble in Characteristic Chi
nese fashion. They believed that it
was in some way connected with the
payment of the Japanese indemnity,
and they also suspected that cash was
being exported to Japan and melted
down into basins and Kettles. The
mandarins then everywhere issued
proclamations ordering the cash banks
not to fix unreasonable prices" for the
copper coins; the export Of cash from
port to port was forbidden: severe PEN
alties were threatened against meters
OF base coiners, and SO on. But, as any
European political economist would
have foretold, the situation was not re-
lieved. The Economist account contin-
ues:
ut was not long before news came
from Picking that there had been a SIM
liar crisis there, too; to make matters
worse, the two metropolitan mints
| were at a standstill for want Of copper.
Not only did matters not improve, but
things went from bad to worse every
where. The tea season was coming on,
advances were required for purchases
up country, riots were taking place,
and CONSERVATION was in every mans
eye Some wiseacre at last discovered
that. If all the authorities maintained
the rigid prohibition against sending
cash away to port, it was evident
that no cash could possibly arrive from
a port. 1t was also discovered that so
long as cash was so large and heavy
that a string of them weighed eight
English pounds. 1t was absurd to buy
raw copper for coming at thirty to fifty
| pounds ton sterling. and with the
other hand give away eight pounds OF
finely mixed and carefully stamped
| copper for a trifle over two shillings-
| the sterling value of the Mexican dol
| lar.
| THE authorities at Hanlxow and sew
eral other great centers, especially tea
marts, endeavored to tide over the inn
mediate difficulties by issuing official
cash notes, receivable in payment of
| taxes and customs dues but redeenla-
BILE at some date not, specified How
ever, in order to ohviate loss from wear
and tear, these notes were to be cam
celed and exchanged for new ones i'm
/ l,a, l1,5 he
| official counter. Proclamations We're
issued authorizing the free export Of
cash from port to port, Enormous or
| ders for cash were sent to the Canton
mint. which for some reason had re-
Gently stopped working; copper cash
/ was ordered to be struck on whole
sale scale in various provinces where
minis existed, but where for years past
| they had been neglected; and the latest
news Is, in fine, that a general i'm
provement is shortly hoped for, when
| the new cash shall have come into free
| circulation.
"Incalculable popular injury has al
ready been worked all over China by
this singular monetary crisis, and II
ought to be lesson to all who rashly
interfere with the status quo Of the
currency, be it gold, silver or copper.
In other words, it was impossible
even in so conservative a country as
| China to keep silver from fiuctuatlne
| in value and dollars becoming cheaper
as they become more abundant. The
bullion value of both silver and copper
! had to be taken into consideration In
monetary transactions, and that Is true
| the wide world over.