PROFESSOR L. LEVI ON THE COINAGE.

Waikato Times, Volume XXVIII, Issue 2304, 16 April 1887, Page 2 (Supplement)

PROFESSOR L. LEVI ON THE COINAGE.

At- King's Coll'ge, on the 27th inst., Professor Leone Levi delivered the second of this year's course of the Gilbart Lectures on Banking, the discourse forming the concluding part of the lecture delivered on the previous Thursday on the " ApprbC'ation of Gold and the Depreciation of Silver." Having referred to various definitions of the word " money," Professor Ltvi dealt with the cost of the production of gold and silver, and alluded to the different circumstances which led to the cost varying materially. Mr G. H. Norman had assumed an average yield for gold of about SO2 grains per ton, and about 39,000 grains of silver per ton, establishing a proportion of 4S parts of silver to one part of gold, thus giving much greater diversity in the cost of the two metals than was assumed in the ratio of 1 to 15A, or even the present real ratio. Assuming, however, that in some definite proportions of value gold and silver were alike fitted for a calculating medium, the experience of the gold coinage in England wa3 that the two could not be kept simultaneously in circulation. In 1G95 the whole of the silver coinage went out of the country in a very short time. In 1717 the guinea in gold was made equivalent to twentyone shillings in silver, but it circulated for much more—sometimes even for thirty shillings. In ISI6, after the conclusion of the French war, great complaints arose as to the state of the silver currency, and a new coinage was necessary. The Act of that year fixed that a pound of silver should be coined into sixty-six shillings, sixtytwo being for the silver and four being retained for assaying and the cost of production. The new sovereign was then declared the only tender, and no tender of silver coin was declared to be legal for more that forty shillings. This only sanctioned and established by law what was previously in effect the practice. It was an anomaly that the gold coinage in England was carried on ou a principle differing from every other manufacture and the practice of almost every other country, the cost of coining being defrayed Ly the Government. The Mint, however gained on the coinage of silver and bronze. The rate of seigniorage on silver had recently greatly increased in consequence of the fall in the price of that metal. In 1870 the rate of seigniorage was 9 percent., in 1881 271.3 per cent, aud in ISSS as much as 30 per cent. The surplus of £37,959 in the receipts of the Mint would not lost, one of the principal duties of the State being to maintain the coinage at the highest point of efficieucy. Having referred to the plan suggested by Mr Childers for dealing with the halfsovereign and the objections which the proposals of the right lion, gentleman raised, Professor Levi expressed his opinion that the opportunity of re-coin-ing the half-sovoreiun, and perhaps other coins, should he taken in this Jubilee year to inaugurate a reform in the coinage by introducing the decimal system, which he mentioned would immensely simplify all our calculations, economise at least by one-third the time now spent in schools in teaching arithmetic, and perhaps bring about a common international system of weights, measures and coins. When the re-coinaye of silver became

necessary in 1810, it was suggested to divide the new sovereign into twenty shillings of tenpance each, and ever since the question had been discussed from time to time. What we wanted was first by a very slight alteration in the British sovereign to bring it into harmony with the gold coin of 2")f in tha Latin Union. The sovereign contained 113 001 grains of fine gold and the 25f 112.000 grains. Lat both nations agree to adopt the same gold coin of 112 grains exactly, and the initial difficulty was overcome. It would not, however, he held, be sufficient to get an international gold coin, and the next step, lie imagined, should bu todivide the sovereign into 25 new shillings of 10d each with a token gold coin representing ten such new shillings, or 100 pence, Should such a change be made the sovereign would practically remain the standard coin of the realm as at present. For educational purposes and small transactions the new token coin would become very valuable, and abroad it would be equal to the 10f. piece, the new shilling being equal to the franc. That to his mind was a practical reform worthy of consideration, and the opportunity he regarded as most favourable for giving it effect. He would not, however, be dogmatic as to the apecific method most advisable in order to obtain a decimal and international coinage.