MONEY’S PURCHASING POWER,

Gisborne Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 3391, 5 December 1911, Page 7

MONEY’S PURCHASING POWER,

THE EFFECTS OF FLUCTUATING

MARKETS

Speaking on the purchasing power of inonev at the London School of Economics and Political Seieuce, Professor H- S. Fox well (as reperted in the “Daily Telegraph”) said that when it was considered that men on the Stock Exchange did not know the value of a kind of political assent to (he doctrine I money, it was not surprising that the. ordinary public did not. Parliament itself, which, lie supposed, would give that the value of money varied, almost wholly ignored the variation."in the legislation just passed. In the case of the Irish land question, lie pointed out, the difficulty was mainly caused, in the first instance, by the fall of prices, and not by tho fact that landlords raised their rents—not the deliberate raising of rents by the rise of the money in which those rents were exnrcsscd. The same factor, he ventured to think, might have been one of the contributory causes of the- recent railway troubles. Tli latest demand of workmen was to have a minimum wage fixed in money, quite irrespective .of the value cf that money, and the fact that money varied. With regard to the present rise in prices, he pointed out that it would take ten years before prices at their present rate of increase, equalled those of twenty years ago. Curiously enough, until, this year, the rise had been smaller in food than in the case of ordinary materials, but this year liad been an exception. Referring to the recent proposal to fix the purchasat the weight of gold, but at the paring power of money—to fix prices, not chasing power—Professor L'oxwell observed "that a token coin might be u-ed, or paper currency employed. One important point was that the- question of prices could not lie consideied by nations independently, national prices being interdependent, but lie,, nevertheless. agreed with the scheme in the abstract/ It was a sound aim, worthy of tlie attention of experts. He would be unwilling to consent to any regulations which would transform a moderate rise of nrices into a fa 1 cf prices, he pro- j sent situation was normal, despite popular opinion, and the present level of prices was net high. It had, as a matter of fact, hardly ewer been so lor during the past 120 veal’s.