f To the Editor of the SPEcrwron.] SIR,—May I be
permitted to submit another point, which to my mind stands in need of elucidation ? What, exactly, is the value to us of a Free Market in Gold ? Does the word " gold " in this connection signify sovereigns (at 85s. per fine ounce), or the commodity, gold bullion, at the market price of the day ? If sovereigns, the value of their gold content is obviously affected by the daily fluctuations in the world price of fine gold ; that is just why they had to be withdrawn in 1914. Again, if we stick to our present system of currency, which after all has functioned satisfactorily in the absence of gold coins for the last ten years, why should there not be a free market in gold bullion as a commodity ? In either case, is there any valid reason why London should not continue to be the financial centre of the world ?
It is stated in a well-known Banking and Currency Textbook that the 1150 millions of gold coins in circulation before the War formed a welcome reservoir, when gold coins were with- drawn. Probably ; but if that sum, which by the way is curiously approximate to the amount now held by the Bank of England, had been held in reserve, as it is now, the trouble of withdrawing them, and even of minting them, would have been avoided, and the result would have been the same. I believe it to be a fact that although the United States dollar is based on gold, a gold dollar is rarely, -if ever, seen in cir- culation ; and the same may be said of Canada ; we know that for many years back Scotland has always preferred
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