SILVER 267 



SILVER 



By THEO. F. VAN WAGENEN, E.M. 



DENVER, COLO. 



PREVIOUS to 1870 silver was reckoned as one of the precious 

 metals, and possessed, by virtue of an unwritten agreement be- 

 tween the principal nations of the world, a definite value in terms of 

 gold, viz., $1.29 per fine ounce. The metal was never purchasable at 

 less than this figure, and usually commanded a premium, which, dur- 

 ing the last century, ranged from nothing up to as high as ten per cent. 

 It is now purely a commodity, like all the other metals except gold, and 

 while the demand has greatly increased since the date just mentioned, 

 the production has nearly quadrupled, and the price has fallen steadily 

 until during last year it averaged 65 cents. 



Curiously enough, since this great change silver has become one 

 of the three metals (nickel and copper being the other two) that 

 circulate as coins at a valuation far above their commodity price. 

 This of course is due to the fact that they are by law legal tenders up 

 to certain amounts, but the circumstance illustrates quite well the 

 vagaries of human law when it comes into conflict with those of nature. 

 The American quarter, the English shilling, the Latin Union franc, the 

 German Mark, the Austrian Kroner, the Russian Rouble, all being 

 coins that circulate freely at valuations ranging from twenty to twenty- 

 five cents of our money, would bring, if melted and sold as bullion, 

 little more than half those figures. On the other hand, the Indian 

 rupee, of approximately the same weight and fineness, not being backed 

 by any such law, circulates at its commodity value only, and its pur- 

 chasing power in the markets of the world fluctuates with the price of 

 the metal. 



Silver sometimes occurs in nature in the metallic condition, and it 

 is due to this fact that it has been known from very ancient times. But 

 it is not found like gold, in grains or nuggets in the gravel of stream 

 beds. Its principal habitat is the vein in rock, and hence it may be 

 inferred that in antiquity the quantity possessed by man was much 

 less than that of gold. To primitive man the latter metal was re- 

 garded, in a way, as a fragment, or at least a representative of the 

 sun, while silver bore the same relation to the moon in his mind. 



When the interior of China becomes well known, it is likely that 

 the remains of very ancient silver mines will be found there, for the 





