Credit Money and the Precious Metals, 265 



increase them. I advocate the permanent international 

 monetisation of the two precious metals as a remedy based 

 on the same principle, but free from the defects, and automatic 

 in its action. Such an arrangement would not interfere with 

 the function of credit money ; on the contrary, by steadying 

 prices, it would increase the steadiness of credit. It would 

 in no sense interfere with the movement of the gold ion 

 except to the extent of regulating it ; a free path would be 

 allowed to it, but it would be, so to speak, a mean free path ; 

 instead of being liable, as at present, to fly off into space, 

 it would swing in a certain steady relation, on the average, 

 to commodity ions in general. 



I feel that I, perhaps, owe an apology to the Society for 

 bringingbeforeit these researches in the domain of economics. 

 It has been the glory of the Society, however, to lay the 

 foundation of that sanitation which is doing so much to 

 improve the health-conditions of the masses, and to produce 

 two great teachers, Dalton and Joule, whose discoveries 

 have vastly increased the efficiency of the labourer, by 

 increasing his use of the forces of nature. It will be not 

 less honourable to the Society, to encourage inquiries 

 tending to promote the equitable distribution of the wealth 

 hus produced. 



