The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1898-02-15

SCISSOR an officer of the sovereign, en-
powered equally with him to exercise
one of the very highest attributes of
sovereignty-the power to cancel debt
whenever found in the realm Of the
sovereign, without other process Of
law, to the amount specified in his war
rant of office: the amount of money in
his possession.
MONEY IN REALITY AND MONEY IN USE.
One great difficulty in understanding
the money question arises from the
fact that people do not consider the
difference between money in reality
and money in use. The completed
locomotive standing in the shop is a
very different thing from that same
locomotive in the full exertion of it's
powers. Money in reality is the engine
at rest and money in use is this same
locomotive fulfilling the purposes for
which it was constructed.
Before discussing this question fur
Their I will place before you some ex
tracts from the writings and speeches
of Senator Jones, of Nevada, to which
/ shall have occasion to refer.
He asserts that there is one principle
of monetary science that il held stead
fast in view will constitute an unerring
guide through what would otherwise
be a path of inextricabIe difficulty.
"That principle is that the value of
&GA gT-Sk "a N0Nrn~ ~ n~- %wwT &c,
determined by the number of units in
circulation. In other words the value
of every dollar depends On the number
of dollars out"
The following is his definition of
value: value is human estimation
placed upon desirable objects whose
quantity is limited"
Again, speaking of value, he says:
"Value does not reside in any article or
the substance of any article"
Resuming the discussion, take any
piece Of money in reajity from the
bankers tray, and, referring to my
definition, you will find it some sub
stance fashioned in accord with and
carrying upon its surface the law, will,
decree or edict of the sovereign, signed
with his undisputed signature and seal,
and this decree is that every person
within his realm must take this sub
stance so fashioned and signed in full
cancellation Of any debt to the amount
specified in the edict upon the sub
stance. Here no reference is made as
to what the substance shall be. and, so
far as, the money quality of the sub
stance is affected, it is entirely imma
terial whether the decree is impressed
upon a leaf of gold or a leaf of paper.
Stripped of verbiage, money is the edict
of the sovereign borne to his subjects
upon some substance, and the validity
of that money rests in no sense upon
the value of the substance, but in the
power Of the sovereign to enforce his
decree.
Still, referring to the piece of money
taken from the bankers tray, did the
conservation Of this substance set apart
by the sovereign for the purpose of
money and rendered sacred by his seal
impart value to the substance in any
amount whatever2 Let us take from
the same tray a twenty dollar gold
piece and a twenty-doller~ greenbRck,
each stamped with the same etamp,
and each a legal tender for twenty dol
lars.
Here, according to Senator Jones, we
have twenty gold units of money and
we have twenty paper units of money,
each Of the same value. Erase the
stamp from the gold piece and the
greenback, and if value does not re.
side in any article or tho substance of
any article" will the gentleman kindly
tell US what property or quality it is in
the gold piece that enables us to sell
it for twenty dollars, while for the
greenback we can only get one mill?
So far l have spoken of money in reality
at rest; I will now discuss the powers
and properties of money in use, and
here l introduce my main proposition:
PROPOSITION.
When a debt has been honestly in
CURED for value or worth received
that debt is never cancelled till value
or worth has been returned for it in
full; or, in other words, all trade or
traffic, whether money has been used
or not, In the end is a barter transac
kiOn Il