22.5. 5. The same Subject continued.
The bullion drawn from the American
mines, imported into Europe, and thence sent to the East, has greatly
promoted the navigation of the European nations; for it is merchandise
which Europe receives in exchange from America, and which she sends in
exchange to the Indies. A prodigious quantity of gold and silver is
therefore an advantage, when we consider these metals as merchandise;
but it is otherwise when we consider them as a sign, because their
abundance gives an alloy to their quality as a sign, which is chiefly
founded on their scarcity.
Before the first Punic war,
[7]
copper was to silver as 960 to 1;
[8]
it is at present nearly as 731/2 to 1. When the proportion shall be as
it was formerly, silver will better perform its office as a sign.
Footnotes
[7]
See chapter 12 of this book.
[8]
Supposing a mark of eight ounces of silver to be worth forty-nine
livres, and copper twenty sols per pound.
