92 



what is the same tiling, "25682 of an ounce of - 916 pure gold. 

 The following table has been constructed by me in this way, 

 and embraces 28 of the principal commodities of English com- 

 merce, and representing the most important of all human 

 industries. 



(Table C.) 



On examining the preceding table, the first thing that arrests 

 attention is the great range of differences of the equivalent 

 exchange weights of different commodities. Thus in 1893 1 

 ton of gold is shown as the equivalent of 22'23 tons silver ; 

 of 1,247 tons tin ; of 1,344 tons copper ; of 2,628 tons 

 beef ; of 7,158 tons sugar ; of 7,520 tons lead ; of 16,695 

 tons flour ; of 136,000 tons salt ; and of 348,636 tons of 

 coal. 



The most striking thing, however, shown in the figures 

 relating to the two periods 1870 and 1893, is the permanence 

 or persistency of their relative exchange weights with the 

 central unit of their system — gold — and with each other. 



Seeing that all the commodities (excepting their standard, 

 which cannot of itself show variation) have been greatly 

 affected by alteration of prices — some having risen by as 

 much as 59 per cent, (salt), while the greater number of 

 prices of commodities have fallen at various degrees from 4 to 

 46 per cent.' — it is remarkable that the relative value-orbits — ■ 

 if we may coin a suitable phrase — only amount to an exhibi- 

 tion of greater or less eccentricity of orbit ; and not (except 

 in. one or two instances where the values of commodities lie 

 close to each other) to any disturbance of the original 

 sequence in their order or weight distance from gold, or the 

 centre of the system around which we may picture them as 

 revolving as in the diagram which T have prepared to 

 illustrate this very important law. 



(Diagram I.) 

 The True Law op Value or Economic Price Orbits 

 (Corresponding with Equivalent Exchange 

 Weights). 



The true law of value or economic price orbits of various 

 commodities relative to the centre of their system — the gold 

 unit — have their equivalent exchange weight magnitudes 

 primarily determined inversely in the exact ratio of their 

 cost of production. That means that the greatness of the 

 radial distance of the commodities from the central unit of 

 value corresponds exactly with the corresponding smallness. 

 of cost of production relative to a common unit of weight. 

 Thus the radius of the value-orbit of coal is very great as 



