Page:The American Democrat, James Fenimore Cooper, 1838.djvu/177

Rh  and civilization, and is entitled to a distinguished place in the scale of human employments. But the mere factor, who is the channel of communication between the producer and the consumer, in what is called a regular trade, has no more claims to this character, than the clerk who copies a treaty has a claim to be considered a negotiator.

ON THE CIRCULATING MEDIUM.

Necessity has induced men to establish a certain standard of value, by means of the precious metals, to represent property. As it is desirable that this standard of value should fluctuate as little as possible, laws have been passed rendering it illegal to receive more than a fixed rate of interest for money. There can be no question that these laws would be singularly useful, did not dealers find means to evade them, for a variation in the value of the representative of property, renders all contracts liable to the hazards of a fluctuation, in addition to that of the article purchased. It is to be feared, however, that nothing short of making usury criminal, will ever effect this object; if, indeed, such a remedy be practicable.

As the world does not contain a sufficiency of the precious metals to represent any considerable amount of its debts, it has been found necessary to resort to a system of credits, for tho purposes of commerce, that is based on gold and silver. This system is so simple, that any one can understand it. The precious metals have a currency throughout christendom, while the credit of an individual, or of a banking institution, is