LAND AND WATER. 
February 17, icjiG, 
done duty for the bankers for several centuries — ought 
to be given its quietus. Put into plain English; it means 
tliat the only good money is that which the Bankers 
provide or promise to provide. This " Law " says, 
" bad money drives out good money, but good money 
cannot drive out bad money." The acceptance of this 
" law " depends entirely upon one's interpretation of 
the tenns " good " and " bad." It was observed 
centuries ago that where a cheap money (that is, 
clipped coins, paper money), was circulating freely, 
any attempt to cause the circulation of gold coins of full 
weight, failed, l)ecausb there were always enough smart 
and tricky people about to m(^t or clip such " good " 
coins and make a profit by selling the gold clippings. 
And naturally if paper was acceptable as currency it 
was extravagance to use an expensive metal like gold. 
The Gresham Law. 
Now the curious thing about this law is, that it is 
contradictory to all the laws of efficiency, evolution, and 
common sense. To take one out of thousands of every-day 
examples roofing material formerly consisted of expensive 
metals, such as lead and copper. Tliis gave place to 
tiles and slating which were much cheaper and far more 
sanitary. According to " Gresham's Law," " bad " 
roofing has driven out " good " roofing. Similarly cheap 
Bessemer steel has driven out expensive wood, brass, 
and stone, for thousands of purposes, thereby increasing 
the safety and comforts of society. In the language of 
the " Grtshamites," this means that " bad " material 
has driven out the " good." Cheap paper printing and 
bookbinding have driven out expensive parchment, 
engrossing and engraving. Hence the " bad " printing 
jness and machinery have driven out the " good " 
liandicraft ! In all the ordinary affairs of life we judge of 
the comparative merit of two things by actual trial, and 
the one that survives is pronounced the better, that is 
better for the, conditions under which the trial was made. 
Why should money be any exception to this general 
rule ? If paper money can perform all the functions of a 
gold currency, why use the expensive metal ? As a 
matter of fact, to-day, 98 per cent, of our currency is 
paper, and the alleged necessity for gold is a pretence, 
but it enables the bankers to draw the same interest for 
the use of paper as they charge for the use of gold. This 
I bcUeve is the real secret of their insistence on main- 
taining the so-called '' gold basis." 
Had Sir Thomas Gresham been born two centuries 
later, his observations on currency would doubtless have 
led him to a totally different conclusion from that ex- 
pressed in the so-called " law " which goes by his name. 
He would most probably have formulated his conclusions 
as follows : — " Our greatest philosopher, Sir Isaac 
Newton, has shown us that the direction of motion is 
always along the hne of least resistance. Applying this 
truth to the industrial world, to the activities of man- 
kind, we lind that men always seek to gratify their 
wants with the least expenditure of energy. Expressed 
in economic firms, the tendency of industry and trade 
is constantly towards cheapness — towards the abolition 
of value. Under free conditions, therefore, cheap money 
must necessarily drive out dear money. This follows 
from the teachings of philosophy and is confirmed by 
experience and observation." "Cheap" money does not 
necessarily mean money that is inefficient. Steel is 
enormously cheaper than gold, but a steel bridge is 
infinitely safer and better than one of gold. Financial 
writers — like Withers — who extol our bank cheque 
currency, are unconsciously denying the validity of the 
Gresham Law which they profess to uphold. Cheque 
currency is the cheapest form of money ever known, and 
has driven out gold currency to an extraordinary extent. 
And but for our legal tender laws, gold currency would 
disappear entirely. As l.mg as it performs the function 
of money, cheap money is the best money, and must 
of necessity drive out dear money. 
Much satisfaction has been enjoyed by our Press 
over Sir Edward Holden's reply to the bombastic speeches 
of Herr Helferich, the German Minister of Finance. 
Sir Edward's reply is said to be " crushing." No doubt 
our enemy is getting into serious financial difficulties. 
The mark is falling rapidly in comparison with the 
monetary units of neutrals. He may already have had 
to sell all liis investments abroad. He may have to part 
with all his gold. But, I repeat what I have said in a 
previous article, so long as our enemy's industrial and 
productive activities remain unimpaired, so long as he is 
{)ermitted to exchange his products in sufficient quantities 
or such material and goods which he cannot produce 
and which are necessary for his food and manufactures, 
he cannot be economically destroyed, even if the mark 
should lose 90 per cent, of its former value ! A nation 
can exist without gold — a metal which, except for use in 
certain arts such as jewellery and dentistry, is probably 
the most useless and most readily dispensable we have. 
Let us give the Devil his due. Let us reverse the 
conditions. Supposing Germany had destroyed our 
Navy and blockaded our coasts, where would our precious 
banking system be to-day ? Where would our pound 
sterhng be ? Does anyone imagine that our banking 
system would have stood the strain that Germany's has 
without crumbhng up ? We have seen that before a 
single shot was fired our system collapsed ! Indeed, 
the London banks depend absolutely upon foreign com- 
merce backed by the credit of a wealthy nation possessing 
the freedom of the seas, without which our gold supplies 
could never be renewed. Were our coasts blockaded 
they would collapse in a week ! 
A Real Comparison. 
The real comparison of Germany's banking systpm 
with that of Great Britain's is to be found in their relation 
to the industries of each country respectively. The 
Germans themselves admit that they owe their unpre- 
cedented commercial and industrial development largely 
to the policy of their bankers. Judged by the highest 
standard — namely, the development and growth of a 
nation's industries, it must be admitted that the German 
system has proved itself to be immeasurably superior to 
ours. Do our bankers intend to assist British manu- 
facturers to capture German trade in the future ? If 
they do, they must alter their policy. \Miich is best for 
a nation, the possession of great and varied manu- 
factures, of numerous engineering works, ship-building 
yards, electrical undertakings and general industries, 
or a monopoly of the world's banking business ? 
How much employment does the latter give in com- 
parison to the former ? Would cither the United States 
or Germany be willing to exchange its iron, steel and 
electrical industries for the whole of our banking busi- 
ness ? Is it not better for a nation morally, pecuniarily, 
physically and. socially to be able to employ its people 
as scientists, agriculturists, mechanics, engineers, 
chemists, electricians than as bank clerks, chauffeurs, 
footmen and butlers ? I repeat that the thing that 
matters to us is, whether our industrial and productive 
activities are to be developed ? Are we producing com- 
modities, food, minerals and other necessities as well as 
manufactured goods in sufficient quantities to meet the 
public needs, and to meet the national expenses ? 
The loss of our banking monopoly may injure a few 
hundred or at most a few thousand people. But our 
loss of the world's markets in trade and commerce will 
mean the beginning of the downfall of the British Empire. 
TO HELLAS. 
Long, long ago, in times forever gone. 
Was dreamt that mighty dream of peoples free, 
Its immortalities of Marathon, 
Of Salamis and of Thermopylae ; 
Heroic love that shrank not, could not shrink 
From risk which daunts the mediocre heart 
Won victories through worth to do and think — 
The Titan worth to play the Titan's part : 
Hellenic ranks to valour nature-nursed, 
Hellenic rulers of Hellenic race. 
In daring practised and in peril versed, 
Rejected weakness, failure and disgrace — 
And now can thine 'neath bribes or threatcnings covvet 
Where fraud's force failed and Persia's utmost power ? 
':-. \y. R.'VGG. 
Glimpses of Inner Russia, by Gustay Genrychowitch 
(Simpkin, Marshall and Co., is. net), is a little volume of 
Russian sketches from which one may learn much of the 
real Russia. Some of its. sketches are concerned with the 
effect the war has had on Rxissia. 
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