The independent., 1904-12-22
Judge Fitzgerald


read all of the books and this is well,
for many are worthless, but there are
many that we should read but, for null
tiple reasons are unable to do so, which
is regretable The work entitled, The
Thirty Years War against Silver, by
Judge FITZGERALD is undoubtedly one
of the latter kind and The Independent
is to be thanked for giving it's readers
even a brief review of the salient
points covered in the work which may
serve to put ''laymen,' |. e., the ordl-
nary man, upon inquiry and take some
of the conceit out of professional mon
ey scientists, especially those whose
clamor has been for free silver BIZ
metallists, gold standard votaries, fiat
money deprecators, etc. Those VINO
are denounced as 'yisionarles,
nave long been telling the peo-
pie who are clamoring for reform
which they seemingly do not want.
that all real money is fiat money ana
that the word fiat" means the decree
of law making body, or OF one clothed
with sovereign authority. Although
Nevada is silver producing state ana
also the home of Judge Fitzgerald, the
prospectus of the judges book is large
ly handicapped from the fact that there
don't seem to be any graft provided
for in it and, strange as it may seem,
very many of our "reformers' are COW
ertly looking for some kind OF graft
Not so, however with such reformers
as Flavius j. Van Vorhis, who gave us
the able article a few weeks since, or
Thomas Hunt of Kennedy, O., in his
Philosophy of Freedom talk to readers
of The Independent in the last issue as
we'll as the rest of the Philosophy of
Freedom logic that The Independent is
giving its readers. The sidelights given
us Of Judge Fitzgerald's book, togeth-
er with the beacon lights always seeD
on page 6 of The Independent, should
serve to remove the barnacles from
the hides of "bi-metallists," "free sill
verites," "gold Standard people and
decorticate the moss from the backs of
those reformers who propose to fool
the people a little while longer with
an Income tax the benefits of which
no one, not even in the late campaign
where so much was supposed to be at
stake, had the temerity to 'srise and
explain it's merits. But the world does
move and evolution insists that Single
tax on land values go along with it.
The contributions of such men as Mr.
Delmar, Fitzgerald, Van VorhiS, ETC.,
never forgetting the mention OF the
greatest of economic philosophers,
Henry George, have started the wheels
of progress with new impetus and it is
now to be hoped that all those really
honest reformers who have hastily re-
marked that "the horse was seventeen
feet high" will be candid enough 10
admit their haste, recognize their error
and say that it should read hands in
stead of s'feet."
Under the maxim, "humanum est eI
rare not even Judge Fitzgerald need
blush at error and to hasty conclu-
Sions often, nay, even so commonly
found in the closing paragraphs express
sive of advance thought in economic
and other science; so, without the cour-
tesy of s'big pardon, We suggest that
the judge is mistaken when he says
(if The Independent quotes him right
ly) that "if anything beside silver and
gold coin is made legal tender, the
constitution must be changed" The
United States constitution provides
that Congress shall have power to
coin money and regulate the value
thereof and of weights and measures.
Judge Tiffany, on constitutional Jaw
says: ''there is really no such thing as
gold and silver money. Money is the
sovereign authority impressed on that
which is capable of taking and receiv-
ing the impression. That upon which
the stamp is placed is called coin;
the coin may be metal, parchment OF
paper" In this connection the United
States supreme court says, II Wallace
page 552: ''here we might stop, but
will briefly notice an argument pre-
sented in support of the position thai
the unit of money value must possess
intrinsic value. The argument is de-
rived from assimilating the constitu
tional provisions respecting standar;
of weights and measures to that con
ferring the power to coin money ant
regulate it's value" Idem, page 55;