The independent., 1903-10-08
Money and the Taxing Power
BT ". q. A5nbT.

Inc Venetlan OWu0TS OI SOlu anu
silver metal did not deposit it as a
lean, expecting that repayment would
ever be made. They knew that the
money" inscribed or coined" fO-
their use, and placed to their credit
upon the books of the republic, was
al. they would ever receive from the
government in return for the metal
delivered. But they quickly perceived
that the money" Of Venice coined
upon those books performed every
function and ofsicc capable capable Of being
performed by any coin, with greater
facility than by use of any cumbrous
metal.
II speedily became apparent to all
Tenetians-and mankind cannot too
swiftly re-learn the fact-that the
quantity of valu- expressed in mon
ey." upon the face of "coin,' is not
determined by the quantity Of the
force of demand for the m terial
uron which it is stamped, as such ma
terial but that & is determined abso-
lutely by the intensity or languOr OF
the force of demand for it as a per-
emptory receipt by its tender, lin the
against tax levies and judgments.
AS those Venetian "coins," inscribed
upon the paper books of the republic,
performed every function of coins
stamped upon disks of gold, and per-
formed those functions better than
metallic coins could do, they were al
ways at premium over gold and sill
YER coins upon which was expressed
like quantity of value.
In order to understand this, 1t is
Only necessary to remember always
that coin has no office and performs
nc functions, except that to which it IS
ar pointed by the statute "in the pub
lie offices and in the courts" and that
anything whatever empowered exclu-
sively to perform this service is
"ooin," and must feel the full strength
CT the force of demand generated by all
tax leyies and judgments within the
jurisdiction that coins 1t.
There was no longer any need for
gold and silver. nor any competitive
struggle for it's possession among the
citizens of Venice; ut those improved
coins" written upon the books. per-
formed every function with far greater
facility than metallic coins could do.
Just as the imperfect and clumsy inn
plements of barbarians in other de-
partments of human activity are con-
| stantly superseded by more perfect ap-
pliances, SO were cumbrOus metallic
disks, the "coins" of ,arbarians, dis
| placed and discre Lifted by better form
| Of "coin."
| Gold and silver coin in Venice, like
Occupation gone." The government
was able to use, as a commodity in
exchange with s"-rounding barbarians,
who knew no better, the entire guam
.ity of gold a 4 silver metal to be
found in the republic: while at the
same time the ar superior Venetian
money" coined" upon books be-
longing to the gOvernment-and not
70 a private person, performed with
| such facility all the functions prev
ously performed by metallic coins.
hat those "coins" of Venetian mon
ey" written in the books. were con-
tantly at a premium over metallic
coins Of like denominations during six
| uuHuTCus years. tIu 81 ICuldljcu uuttl
he republic itself was destroyed by
General Bonaparte at the end of the
eighteenth century. I surmise. with.
out authority, that during this time
metallic coins were deprived of the
power of tender and were rot exemp
from taxation or execution, as tht
coins upon the books were.
The government in order to preven
further depreciation of gold and sill
yer coin and to maintain their price
stopped all usury upon the Venetian
money" coined upon its books. Bu
even this could not prevent it from
. soaring to premium over the cum
. brOus coin of savages. and statut
, had to be enacted fixing the price o
, gold and silver. Even aided thus b.
statute, these two so-called "precion
metals stood during 600 years at
discount of per cent in Venice. whicl
during all that period of time re
NAMED the clearing house OF tn