The herald., 1897-02-18
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY IS. 1897.
SENATOR HILL ON MONEY

Senator David B. Hill has an article in
the Forum for February on 1.-THE Future
of the Democratic Organization" in
which he displays the cunning of the
nolitician rather than the wisdom of the
political economist. The burden of his
argument is directed against the decla-
rations of the Chicago convention, which
he Iabors hard to show were not Demo-
cratic either in spirit or in purpose. Ike
ferring to the money plank OF the plat
form. Mr.. Hill says there is an implied
recognition of the propriety of issuing
more legal-tender paper money. That
claim or admission may be satisfactory
to Populists who believe in fiat money,
but can hardly be acceptable to Demo-
Gratis who have heretofore always IA
yored hard money-coired honeymoon
ey of intrinsic value. The true Demo-
cratic theory is that congress has no
constitutional power to issue any more
1egal-tender paper money, and should
not issue any whatever"
1t is amazing that man of Mr.. Hills
political shrewdness should indulge in
such twaddle the more so because he
makes such a glazing exposure of his
Ignorance of the philosophy of money
creating. The central thought of Mr..
Hills Future of the Democratic Or
ranization'' is that fiat" money is not
rational. sensible or possible, but it so
happens that all money is fiat money
The thing of which money is composed
is a merchantable commodity, and all of
it that is not put into given form ahc
declared to be money by the fiat of the
government authorizing its use as mon
ey remains a mere commodity. BY the
fiat of the government of the United
States, 25S grains of standard gold, 800
fine, when put into the form of disk and
stamped by the government constitutes
a legal-tender ten-dollar coin, and 41212
grains of standard silver, 800 fire, when
put into the form of a disk and stamped
by the government is a legal-tender one
dollar coin 1t is the fiat of the govern
ment and not commercial usage that
makes 25S grains, no more nor less, of
gold ten dollars. The bullion value of
25S grains of gold might be more or less
than ten dollars, but the government
does not admit that it has any value
: h,- tic
fiat. The bullion value of the metal III
a silver dollar is worth about SO cents,
but the fiat of the government gives 1t
a legal-tender value of 100 cents.
Article . of section VIII of the consti-
tuition says congress shall have power
"to coin money, regulate the value there
of, and of foreign coin" No two coun-
tries have the same money measure,
but the measure they have is fixed by
law, and as law is simply the fiat of the
government enacting it. it certainly fol-
lows that whatever the law creates is d
fiat creation.
But the weakest and the most contra
dictory of Mr.. Hills multitude of as
sertions is that congress has no consti-
tutioral right to issue any more paper
money. This is an admission that the
greenbacks that have been issued are
constitutional money, but as the con-
stitution has not been amended since
congress authorized the issue cow in cir
culation prohibiting further issue, the
logical conclusion is either the paper
money that the government has already
issued is unlawful and therefore worth
less money, or the authority when or
1t is very evident that Senator Hill
knows good deal more about practical