GOLD SUPPLY.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 229, 26 March 1912, Page 4

GOLD SUPPLY.

The enormous increase in the world's I supply of gold, and the effect sucli has,' and apparently will continue to have, on ; the general level of prices, is exercising j the minds of economists. The question has been raised by Professor Irving Fisher, of Yale University, as to whether gold i 9 .proving itself to be a satisfactory standard of value. His opinion is unfavorable to the claims of gold, and is based on the obvious fact that the rise of prices is causing disturbance in every country of the world. Professor Fishet proposes, therefore, an international con:mission to discuss the possibility of fixing the value of gold coin in gold-using countries somewhat in the way that the value of the rupee is now determined in India. It is suggested that on this principle gold coin could be maintained in some definite ratio to prices, provided a satisfactory index number of the latter could obtained. The difficulties to be overcome in formulating such a scheme seem at first sight to be insuperable. Experience, however, is rapidly being accumulated from experiments in connection with silver-using countries which have attempted to maintain their currency at a definite value in relation to gold. In discussing the question, the Economist remarks that whether such a scheme would work in the case of gold currency itself is very problematical, but all will agree that it 19 highly desirable , to check the present depreciation of i gold.