The Online Library of Liberty

A project of Liberty Fund, Inc.

• Preface
• Chapter I: Barter
• Want of Coincidence In Barter.
• Want of a Measure of Value.
• Want of Means of Subdivision.
• Chapter II: Exchange
• Utility and Value Are Not Intrinsic.
• Value Expresses Patio of Exchange.
• Chapter III: The Functions of Money
• A Standard of Value.
• A Store of Value.
• Separation of Functions.
• Chapter IV: Early History of Money
• Currency In the Hunting State.
• Currency In the Pastoral State.
• Articles of Ornament As Currency.
• Currency In the Agricultural State.
• Manufactured and Miscellaneous Articles As Currency.
• Chapter V: Qualities of the Material of Money
• 1. Utility and Value.
• 2. Portability.
• 3. Indestructibility.
• 4. Homogeneity.
• 5. Divisibility.
• 6. Stability of Value.
• 7. Cognizability.
• Chapter VI: The Metals As Money
• Iron.
• Lead.
• Tin.
• Copper.
• Silver.
• Gold.
• Platinum.
• Nickel.
• Other Metals.
• Alloys of Metals.
• Chapter VII: Coins
• The Invention of Coining.
• What Is a Coin?
• Various Forms of Coins.
• The Best Form For Coins.
• Coins As Works of Art.
• Historical Coins.
• The Royal Attribute of Coining.
• Chapter VIII: The Principles of Circulation
• The Standard Unit of Value.
• Coin, Money of Account, and Unit of Value.
• Standard and Token Money.
• Metallic and Nominal Values of Coins.
• Legal Tender.
• The Force of Habit In the Circulation of Money.
• Gresham's Law.
• Extension of Gresham's Law.
• Chapter IX: Systems of Metallic Money
• Currency By Weight.
• Unrestricted Currency By Tale.
• Single Legal Tender System.
• Multiple Legal Tender System.
• Composite Legal Tender.
• Chapter X: The English System of Metallic Currency
• English Gold Coin.
• English Silver Coin.
• English Bronze Coinage.
• Deficiency of Weight of the English Gold Coin.
• Withdrawal of Light Gold Coin.
• Supply of Gold Coin.
• Supply of Silver Coin.
• The Royal Mint.
• Chapter XI: Fractional Currency
• Billon Coin.
• Composite Coin.
• Bronze Coin.
• English Bronze Coin.
• Weight of the Currency.
• Nickel, Manganese, Aluminium, and Other Metals and Alloys.
• Chapter XII: The Battle of the Standards
• The Double Standard.
• Compensatory Action.
• The Demonetization of Silver.
• Disadvantages of the Double Standard.
• The Monetary Systems of the World.
• Chapter XIII: Technical Matters Relating to Coinage
• The Alloys In Coin.
• The Size of Coins.
• The Wear of Coin.
• Methods of Counting Coins.
• Cost of the Metallic Currency.
• Chapter XIV: International Money
• Advantages of International Money.
• Disadvantages of International Money.
• Conflict of Monetary Systems.
• International Monetary Negotiations.
• Decimalization of English Money.
• The Future American Dollar.
• German Monetary Reform.
• Systems of Fractional Money.
• Final Selection of the Unit of International Money.
• Chapter XV: The Mechanism of Exchange
• Progressive Development of the Methods of Exchange.
• Representative Money.
• Cheque and Clearing System.
• Chapter XVI: Representative Money
• Early History of Representative Money.
• Reasons For the Use of Representative Money.
• Inconvenience of Metallic Money.
• The Weight of Currency.
• Saving of Interest.
• Chapter XVII: The Nature and Varieties of Promissory Notes
• Specific Deposit Warrant.
• General Deposit Warrant.
• Difference Between a Special and a General Promise.
• Pecuniary Promissory Notes.
• Principles of the Circulation of Representative Money.
• Chapter XVIII: Methods of Regulating a Paper Currency
• 1. Simple Deposit.
• 2. Partial Deposit.
• 3. Minimum Reserve.
• 4. Proportional Reserve.
• 5. Maximum Issue.
• 6. Elastic Limit.
• 7. Documentary Reserve.
• 8. Real Property Reserve.
• 9. Regulation By the Foreign Exchanges.
• 10. Free Issue System.
• 11. The Gold Par Method.
• 12. Convertibility By Revenue Payments.
• 13. Deferred Convertibility.
• 14. Inconvertible Paper Money.
• Over Issue of Paper Money.
• Want of Elasticity of Paper Money.
• Chapter XIX: Credit Documents
• Measurement of Credit.
• Bank-notes.
• Cheques.
• Bills of Exchange.
• Interest-bearing Documents.
• Definition of Money.
• Chapter XX: Book Credit and the Banking System
• Single Bank System.
• System of Two Banks.
• Complex Bank System.
• Branch Bank System.
• Bank Agency System.
• London Agency System.
• Country Clearing System.
• Chapter XXI: The Clearing-house System
• Transaction of Business At the London Clearing House.
• Manchester Clearing House.
• New York Clearing House.
• Extension of the Clearing System.
• Advantages of the Cheque and Clearing System.
• Proportion of Cash Payments.
• Cases to Which the Clearing System Is Inapplicable.
• Chapter XXII: The Cheque Bank
• Relation of the Cheque Bank to Other Banks.
• The Cheque Bank As a Monetary Agent.
• Payment of Wages By Cheques.
• The Cheque Bank As a Savings Bank.
• Results of the Cheque Bank System.
• Chapter XXIII: Foreign Bills of Exchange
• Origin and Nature of Bills of Exchange.
• Trade In Foreign Bills.
• The World's Clearing House.
• Centralization of Financial Transactions In London.
• Representation of Foreign Bankers In London.
• Chapter XXIV: The Bank of England and the Money Market
• Expansion of Trade.
• Competition of Bankers.
• The Bank Charter Act of 1844.
• The Free-banking School.
• Possibility of Over-issue.
• The Right of Coining Bank Notes.
• Scotch and English Banking.
• Cash Reserves of Bankers.
• Remedy For the Sensitiveness of the Money Market.
• Chapter XXV: A Tabular Standard of Value
• Corn Rents.
• A Multiple Legal Tender.
• Lowe's Proposed Table of Reference.
• Poulett Scrope's Tabular Standard of Value.
• Difficulties of the Scheme.
• Chapter XXVI: The Quantity of Money Needed By a Nation
• Quantity of Work to Be Done By Money.
• Efficiency of the Currency.
• Effects of the Cheque and Clearing System.
• Conclusion.

Extension of Gresham's Law.

Gresham's remarks concerning the inability of good money to drive out bad money, only referred to moneys of one kind of metal, but the same principle applies to the relations of all kinds of money, in the same circulation. Gold compared with silver, or silver with copper, or paper compared with gold, are subject to the same law that the relatively cheaper medium of exchange will be retained in circulation and the relatively dearer will disappear. The most extreme instance which has ever occurred was in the case of the Japanese currency. At the time of the treaty of 1858, between Great Britain, the United States, and Japan, which partially opened up the last country to European traders, a very curious system of currency existed in Japan. The most valuable Japanese coin was the kobang, consisting of a thin oval disc of gold about 2 inches long, and 1¼ inch wide, weighing 200 grains, and ornamented in a very primitive manner. It was passing current in the towns of Japan for four silver itzebus, but was worth in English money about 18s. 5d., whereas the silver itzebu was equal only to about 1s. 4d. Thus the Japanese were estimating their gold money at only about one-third of its value, as estimated according to the relative values of the metals in other parts of the world. The earliest European traders enjoyed a rare opportunity for making profit. By buying up the kobangs at the native rating they trebled their money, until the natives, perceiving what was being done, withdrew from circulation the remainder of the gold. A complete reform of the Japanese currency is now being carried out, the English mint at Hong Kong having been purchased by the Japanese government.

What happened in an extreme degree in Japan has often happened in England and other European countries, in a less degree. If the ratio of gold and silver in the coinage, as legally current, differs only one or two per cent. from the commercial ratio, it may become profitable to export the one metal rather than the other, and in this way, as we shall see, the main part of the currency of France was changed from silver into gold between 1849 and 1869. In fact the character of the coinage of most nations has been determined in a similar manner, and England and the United States were thus led to adopt a principal gold currency. There is every reason to believe that in ancient Rome, both in the time of the Republic and of the Empire, great difficulties were encountered in regulating the currency of silver alongside of copper, and the perplexity became worse when gold coin was introduced.

Chapter IX

Systems of Metallic Money

We are now in a position to analyse the construction of the various systems of metallic money which have existed, or do exist, or which might be conceived to exist. The systems actually brought into operation are more numerous than is commonly supposed, and I have nowhere met with an adequate classification of them. M. Courcelle-Seneuil, indeed, has satisfactorily described some of the principal systems, and MM. Chevalier, Garnier, and other writers, both continental and English, have given other brief classifications. But we must now take a comprehensive view of the possible ways in which two, three, or more metals may be employed in the construction of a more or less useful monetary system.

There seem to be five distinct modes in which a government may deal with metallic money.

1. It may confine itself to providing a system of weights and measures, and may then allow the precious metals to be passed about from hand to hand, like other commodities, in terms of the national weights and measures, and in the form which individuals find to be most convenient. This we may call the system of currency by weight.

2. To save the trouble of frequent weighing, and the uncertainty of fineness of the metal, it may coin one or more metals into pieces of certain specified weights and fineness, and may afterwards allow the public to make their contracts and sales in one or other kind of coin, as they deem expedient. This may be described as the system of unrestrictd currency by tale.

3. To prevent misunderstandings, the government, while emitting various coins, in various metals, may ordain that all contracts expressed in money of the realm shall, in the absence of express provision to the contrary, be taken to mean money of one kind of metal, specially named, while other coin shall be left to circulate at varying market rates compared with this principal kind of coinage. This is the single legal tender system.

4. The government may emit coins of two or more kinds of metal, and enact that money contracts may be discharged in one or other kind, at certain rates fixed by law. This is the multiple legal tender system.

5. While maintaining one kind of coin as the principal legal tender, in which all large money contracts must be fulfilled, coins of other kinds of metal may be ordered to be received in limited quantities, as equivalent to the principal coin. For this the name composite legal tender system may be proposed.