PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS — SECTION F. 327 



doctrine that the transfer of debt may be made ad infinitum. 

 The only condition is that it was an honest debt to begin 

 with. In the case supposed the exchange was a token for a 

 day's labour for some commodity that took the same time to 

 create. 



Eeferring to the token itself, money, it is of no conse- 

 quence of what material it is made, provided (1) that the 

 supply is easily procurable, (2) that it is durable, (3) that it 

 can be easily carried, and (4) that it cannot be counterfeited. 

 In itself money is only the tangible sign of some article of use 

 or desire in terms of the labour put forth in its creation. 

 What, then, of a golden sovereign? This trinket has cost at 

 least the putting-forth of from twice to ten times its value 

 in labour to produce it. Little wonder is it that a gold- 

 mining country is always recognised as being a poor country. 

 iNIanifestly, to raise gold as a medium of exchange is a great 

 waste of capital — i.e., of labour, the basis of all capital. True 

 economy consists in expending as little labour as possible in 

 pi'oducing any article desired for a given use. Hence the 

 advantage of so-called labour-saving machines. The article 

 under consideration for the moment is the medium of exchange 

 — money. In the passing from hand to hand of this medial 

 agency there is the danger that some person possessing a token, 

 say, for a day's labour may take it into his head that it would 

 be easy to foist a money-token into circulation for which he 

 had not expended an honest day's labour, so he starts in the 

 evil business of a counterfeiter or forger of money. The value 

 of gold as coin, if any, is that, in consequence of its costing a 

 good deal more in labour to get from the earth than it will 

 represent as money, it is not likely to be over-issued. Whether 

 tliere is enough of it to afford a regular supply is not often 

 thought of. If the revived doctrine of the alchemists should 

 prove to be practicable — viz., that "indications point to the 

 near discovery by scientists of methods by which to transform 

 the two sole forms of atoms into any substance that may be 

 desired" — then perhaps the " superstition that gold may be 

 made a standard of value " will become patent to the most 

 credulous believer in the " intrinsic " worth of gold as a money- 

 token. But, in the meantime, may not gold be looked upon as 

 representing the remorseless sacrifice of human life, the agony 

 of ill-requited and desperate toil, of needless suffering, cruel 

 l)loodshed, and savage rapine? If we knew the history of a 

 piece of gold and its transition down through the ages it might 

 make us shudder as at the fire of hell. Of this more here- 

 after. 



We left A's acknowledgment of the indebtedness of a day's 

 labour passing from hand to hand : at length it may be pre- 

 sented to him for the equivalent that B would not accept be- 



