Currency fallacies refuted, and paper money ... - University Library

PAPER MONEY V [ \ DI C A JED. 37vernment will not furnish the meam of carryingthem to their destination by an issue of papermoney, they can, at all events, commute themfor a property ta.v, and so relieve the producer.But whatever is done should be done quickly;for thousands of lives are lost while we hesitate.During- the \var, this country possessed, inpaper money, the power of adding the taxes tothe natural price of all commodities, and theconsequence was, that then our working classesfared equally well whether the taxes were increasedor not.If a tax of ^s. was laid for instanceon a hat, the manufacturer or vendercharged the duty as well as the natural price,and what was previously 21*. became 2As. —When the duty on colonial produce or any othercommodity was raised, the importer added theextra tax to the naturalprice, which raised thevalue of the article to a remunerating height,and injured no one. Why can we not allowthis to be done again ?— One argument againstthe return to a system of paper currency is, thatit will prevent our having any foreign trade. As theEditor of the Times does not repeat this assertionamong his objections to a paper currency, I aminclined to think that he sees the futility of it.A paper currency is in fact the only meanswhereby we can enjoy a perfectly unrestrictedtrade with all the countries in the world, andretain our taxation. For if the .taxes are laidwith any skill, they may be made to raise the