The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1932-12-27
POWER DOLLAR
PROPOSED TO
REPLACE COLD
New Monetary Unit Based
on Electricity Offered
by Writer.

iBB United Press
, ATLANTIC CITY, N. j., Dec. 81.
The electric dollar to replace
gold has been added to the pool of
ideas scientists have advanced, with
the hope of lifting the world from
the depression and insuring it
against a recurrence Of an era Of
dehation.
This new monetary plan was ad-
yanced by Dr. John P. Norton,
financial writer of Suffield, Conn.
on the eve of the opening of the
American Association for the Ad-
vancement Of Science meeting here
today.
He proposed this new unit of ex-
change be known as the Edison
dollar" with its value in terms Of
gold as forty kilowatt hours.
Dr. Norton explained the kilo-
Watt-hour is an electrical unit
which is the same in quality and
quantity everywhere in the United
States. He argued that the cost
of producing this electrical unit does
not vary greatly over the country.
He would provide for decreases in
cost of production, made possible
through progress in the industry.
by having the new standard reval-
ued every five years.
Legislation Is Needed
ITO start the system into opera
ton" DR.. Norton said, Legislation
would be needed, defining the
standard value within the United
States as the electric dollar legal
tender for all transactions or con-
tracts with durations less than five
years"
The scientist, in urging his plan
be enacted, cited these chief bene-
fits claimed for the electric dollar. "
A 25 per cent reduction in the ma
tional debt
Absolute stability with its Sc
curity impregnable.
1t can be expanded and con-
tracted automatically to control the
index number.
Gold is left free for all to use as
standard of value in long term
contracts, or as an international
money.
Lien on Power Properties
DR.. Norton explained corpora
tons would pay wages and divi-
dends in electric dollars and in
turn commodities and rents would
be paid for with the new unit THE
source of Edison dollars" he said,
would be the electric light and
power companies.
The present bond-secured bank
notes arise by banks depositing gold
bonds with the treasury against
which bank notes are issued to the
banks and pass into the monetary
circulation. In a similar way the
electric light companies would de-
post with the treasury futures in
kilowatt hours, j. e., their promise
to deliver kiloWatt hours in the flu
ture to an amount fixed in certain
manners, against which the United
States would issue electric dollars
The bond held by the govern
ment Of the ultimate redemption
would be a lien ahead of all obliga-
tions on the property of the cleo
trical corporations"
Along Scott School of Thought
The electric dollar" DR.. Norton
suggested, would go to the electrical
companies instead of to banks as
now, there TO be paid out in wages
dividends and in payment of sup
plies just as bank note currency is
paid out by banks.
Banks would keep checking &C.
counts in electric dollars anc
their gold paper substitutes woulc
be retired gradually. In this man
ner DR.. Norton argued, $5O00,00 ,O0(
no longer would be needed to pre-
serve the sanctity of the gold stand
ard.
This sum-" he said would rep
resent the advance that would have
been gained by adopting the cleo
trio dollar sum equivalent to one
quarter of the national debt"
DR.. Norton's plan was viewed as
a concrete idea from the Howard
Scott school of thought which
stresses an energy" unit in deter
mining the value CT any product il
the scene of democracy.