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A FEW HINTS 
 
 ON 
 
 DECIMALIZING THE CUKEENCY, 
 
 RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED FOR THE CONSIDERATION OP 
 
 THE IIONOJRABLE THE 
 
 MEMBERS OF THE PROVINCIAL LEGISLATURE 
 
 AND THE 
 
 )IERCANTILE CLASSES OF TOE PROVINCE GENERALIY, 
 
 BY JAMES ALEXANDER 
 
 TORONTO: 
 
 MACLEAR & CO., PUBLISHERS, KING STREET EAST ; 
 
 AND TO DK HAD AT 
 
 A. n. ARMOUR & CO.'S, TORONTO; ARMOUR & RAMSAY'S, MONTREAL, 
 AND ALL BOOKSELLERS. 
 
 1856. 
 
1:^ T :*: s i i J' ;•): ' i /■• 
 
 ,YOA;niinj') ^iiiT i)"%K'ia/Jiso;'ii! 
 
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 A FEW HINTS 
 
 ON 
 
 DECIMALIZING THE CUIUIENCY. 
 
 Observing among the reported procccding.s of the ironorable 
 the Legislative Assembly, a notice of motion to the following 
 effect : " That after the 31st day of January, 1857, accounts 
 in this Province shall be kept upon the decimal system, of 
 ■which the Dollar shall be the unit, and the intrinsic value of 
 the circulating coinage assimilated to that of the United 
 States," and having in the Old Country, (from which lam but 
 a few months out,) taken an interest in the question of a deci- 
 mal currency for Great Britain, to the extent of contributing 
 a paper on the subject to the Transactions of a Scientific 
 Society,* besides studying pretty minutely the Parliamentary 
 Evidence and Report, and other publications which have 
 emerged upon the question, I venture in this form to offer a 
 contribution to the stock of public knowledge on this very 
 important, and as I presume to think, little understood subject. 
 From previous predilections, I was interested on arriving in 
 this Province to ascertain the state of the question here, as I 
 understood, that Canada was far in advance of the Mother 
 Country, where " the fixing of the unit" forms a very debatable 
 point, and I Avas informed that action had been taken on it, 
 even to the extent of direct legislation, but that the Bills when 
 sent home, according to the Constitution, for the approval of 
 Her Majesty, had been vetoed by the Imperial Government, 
 and there the matter has rested until revived by the above 
 notice of motion by Mr. Mackenzie. 
 
 Why the Old Country should thus " play the dog in 
 the manger," as it were, on this question, I am at a loss 
 
 * A Paper entitled "Suggestions for a simple system of Decimal 
 Notation and Currency," read before the Royal Scottish Society of Arts 
 at Edinburgh, 12th December, 1853, and by order of the Society printed, 
 in the Transactions, Vol. IV. 
 
 1 
 
to coiiccivp, unless I may bo uUoavcmI to sn;zi:'cs(, tliat the 
 system |tr('f)(>sc'(l to l)o utlojitcMl, Ijcini; tlint ot" " J)(»ll;ii"S and 
 (Jcnts," tlic Imperial (government may have eonsnUrcd il to 
 have too Amerieanizin<j; a tendency, and !)('( ri alVnid lliat it 
 Mii/rht prove " the insertion of the thin end of the ^ve(l;;•(•. ' Jjiit 
 he this as it inav, I confess that I hhouhl mv.-clt' trreatlv I'ctrret 
 to see this Trovinee become, even m name, a ])art and parcel 
 of the domain popularly knoAvn as " Dollai'dom ;" and I 
 therefore venture to jiropose a system, more in aceordnnco 
 with l>rltish hahlts and feelings, — which shall intain our 
 (;lierish(>d and ancient names of coins, — Avhich may he adojited 
 at once in this Province with equal facility, a> all (/,<■ ihiiir)iti» 
 for it arc rcadii to our hand^ and which, in my opinion, pos- 
 sesses considerable advantages over the system of the United 
 States, Avhile, through an almost mere "" distinction without a 
 dinerence," it still harmonizes with it, in a tleg- jcMvhieh would 
 not in aiiy Avay inconvenience our reciprocal commercial rela- 
 tions or transactions ; -while, as nothing di'a"\vs tlie line of 
 distinction more })al])ably betwixt two neighbouring nations, 
 ;,han a difference in the moneys of account, it Avould enable 
 Oanadians ''to keep tiiemselvcs to themselves," if 1 may use 
 the expression, in this respect. 
 
 It Avould be altogether superfluous In me to enter hero into 
 vj\y argument on the superior advantages of a Deeiniiil System 
 over our present mode of reckoning ; on this point I believe 
 every man in the Province is agreed, avIio at all thinks upon 
 the subject. I have often had it asked me, however, "' Where 
 can you find a more beautifully simple sy.~;tem of money 
 reckoning tlian by dollars and cents?" and this is the task 
 fcliat I j)r()()ose for myself. Now in this case, the proverb that 
 ■'.Familiarity breeds contempt," is reversed, and it is fami- 
 liarity alone, that has bred cither admiration or preference ; 
 Tor the lact is, that, no matter what the names of the repre- 
 sentative coins may be, any system whatever, to be m/ij.ic, 
 has only to be decimal, as they arc convertible terms, and 
 hence, dollars and cents are only simple through familiar iiy 
 and contrast. 
 
 Now, Avhat Is a Decimal system of money notation and 
 currency ? It is neither more nor less than keeping accounts 
 III one denomination of money, that denomination being (or at 
 lease ought to be) the lowest, which theexigencles of commerce 
 in any country may require. I say in one denomination, for 
 though dlflcrcnt names may be given to distinct coins, or 
 representations of money, containing specific amounts of this 
 lowest denomination, for convenience of expression, yet, when 
 
5 
 
 
 put upon paper, ;)11 sums aro treated and worked as mere 
 euniulaiiv(> aecounts of that onr denoinination. Let us take 
 an example from tlic United States money. Here is lli'54, 
 twelve hundred and thirty-four (of any thin^')? hut, hy plaeiuf^ 
 a deehual point hctAvixt the two uiid<Uo fi<:i;ures, and the appro- 
 priiite -i;_'n heforc it, it is at once reeo;^nised as .Sl:i.34 (twelve 
 dollars, thirty-four cents) ; l)ut the United States, thou^di they 
 kee]> aecounts in dollars, still find it necessary to have liiijlier 
 expressions of value, with specific 7iames, and accordinrrly, thoy 
 have a g<dd coin of ten dollars, which they call an " Eagle ;" 
 if, then, I Avisli to give the ahove sum a more English appear- 
 ance, and state it thus. El. 2. 34. (one eagle, two dollars, 
 thirtN'-four cents) no one could have any diihculty in recog- 
 nising it, as merely the former sum of cents, under a new 
 guise; or if, adopting thcpractice of another decimal country, 
 we put the sign (somewhat similar to the dollar sign) hetwixt 
 the eagle anil the remainder of the cents, thus, l||-34, the two 
 lines heing merely understood to represent the ruled column 
 of an account hook, it does not at all affect our rcrriqnilion of 
 the amount of cents. Or again, suppose we hold this 1||234 
 to he laJfccnts, or equivalent to§G.17,it will be etpially clear, 
 that if instead of halving the ffjures, we halve the dciiomina- 
 tious, and call it "one half eagle" (or a five-dollar bill) two 
 half dollars, three half dimes, and four half cents, we shouid 
 arithmetically convey the same meaning, and state the same 
 intrinsic amount, merely in diflfercnt words. Kow, in decimal 
 money reckoning, this tlecimal integer of a thousand, so stated 
 as to 1)0 at once patent to the eye, provided it does not disturb 
 our ordinary notions or habits of estimating value, possesses 
 very great advantages: for one, it is capable of being expressed 
 in the English language, as indeed in all languages, by the 
 monosyllable '' mil ;" and in the suppositious case of two 
 clerks, comparing entries in business or bank books, the glibc 
 facility with which they can run over sums, such as 3||440 
 (three mil,' four, forty), 12||(380 (twelve mil, six, eighty), 
 i00||500 (a hundred mil, five), and so on, Avithout ever 
 reipiiring to repeat or go back upon a figure, has only to be 
 tried to be appreciated. This mode of stating decimal money 
 has also another very great advantage — that of safety from 
 fraudulent alteration of an amount, in a cheque, bill, or other 
 instrument ; a mere dot betwixt two figures is capable of being 
 obliterated and altered in position, and the larger the sum the 
 greater the temptation to attempt this ; by the mere alteration 
 of the position of the dot, and the addition of a cipher, ten 
 thousand dollars can at once be made to appear a hundred 
 
thousand ; but with tlic above system, this is iinj)OssibU' — tliore 
 can never 1)C more nor less tlian three fi figures or eipliers 
 to the ri;i;lit of tlie cohnnn si<;n, and tlius, even tiie cliance of 
 vitiation is avoided. 1 see tliat tliis is stron^^ly reeoninicmU'd 
 in " J^ickens' llouseliohl Words," p. o41>, for the ado])li()ii of the 
 Ohl Country, in tlicir decimal system, now under consideration ; 
 and so far as I am aware, it was first su<rgcstcd by myself in 
 the paper previously alluded to, December, IcSAS. 
 
 I trust I have succeeded in making it plain, that provided a 
 system of money notation is decimal, it can be set down in 
 any way suiting the habits or predilections of the ])eople using 
 it ; but the entire ({uestion of a decimal system, and tiie almost 
 interminable discussions upon it, remind me of nothing so 
 much as a jjicturc I used to see in my early days, entitled 
 "The shade of Napoleon visiting his tomb at St. Helena;" 
 the ordinary ob.icrver saw nothing but a tomb, surrounded by 
 a railing, with some trees in the foreground, but it i-e(|uired to 
 be closely looked into, for the apparition, the appearance of 
 wliicli was managed in outline, by a particular grouping of the 
 branches of the trees; when it once flashed upon the vision, it 
 could never be lost sight of again ; but I have met with obtuse 
 individuals, who look as they niiglit, never could see it at all. 
 I will now adduce an example of a simple decimal system, 
 where the money denomination is somewhat of a ''ghost," of 
 value : I mean that of Portugal. In this country, accounts 
 are kept in " rees;" and though they have an ample array of 
 circulating coins, with specific names, on paper, everything is 
 stated in "rees." A single ree is, however, too infinitesimal 
 to be represented by a coin, and the lowest representation of 
 money is a copper piece of five rees, written thus ||005, and so 
 the coins rise, until they arrive at a "mil ree," which is 
 represented by 1 on the left-hand side of the column. There 
 is no metallic coin for a milree, which is solely represented by 
 paper money ; and though they have gold coins of high value, 
 none of them represent a pure decimal integer, llegarding 
 this system. Sir John Bowring, in his evidence before the 
 Decimal Coinage Committee of the English House of Commons, 
 states as foUoAvs : — 
 
 (Evidence, No. 1525). — "I have been much in Spain and Portugal; 
 and mention, as an example, that in Spain, in consequence of the absence 
 of a decimal system, accounts are kept with considerable difficulty, and 
 their correctness is seldom to be depended on. I had often occasion to 
 see the perplexities and mistakes of the commissariat functionaries in 
 Spain, durino; the Peninsular war ; while just crossing the frontier into 
 Portugal, where there exists a decimal system of coinage and account, 
 inaccuracies were very rare, and all money operations recorded with 
 
liore 
 )liers 
 iQ of 
 ikUmI 
 fill*' 
 tioii ; 
 ■ir in 
 
 (led ii 
 :\n in 
 nsinj^ 
 ilniost 
 ng po 
 ititlt'«l 
 en a ;" 
 led by 
 ired to 
 nee of 
 oi' tlic 
 <ion, it 
 obtuso 
 at all. 
 ystein, 
 ^t," of 
 •counts 
 rray of 
 liinrr is 
 tesinial 
 tion of 
 and so 
 liicli is 
 
 There 
 itcd ])y 
 
 value, 
 .rarding 
 ore the 
 mmons, 
 
 ortugal ; 
 Q absence 
 ilty, and 
 
 casion to 
 narics in 
 itier into 
 
 account, 
 
 (led with 
 
 
 ' 
 
 prcat facility. I may also mention, in reference to the coinage of Spain, 
 that as tilt) tlitlerniit Spjinish colonics (Muancipated themselves from tho 
 mother country, they ovorv one, without exception, adopted tho decimal 
 system ; and tho universal adoption of that system has everywhere been 
 r('(;o)rnist'd as ii great benefit and blessing to tho people. The system in 
 Spain is as al)surd and inconvenient as most of tho other non-docimal 
 nysfems. Tho accounts are kept in reida of vellon, everyone of which 
 represerjts .'it maravedis ; but if is A.sv inronrcniviUlhan the Enjliah system, 
 iv/tcre the ilirisioits arc by 4, I'J, and liU.'' 
 
 Now Sir John Bowring is one of the most eminent decimal 
 authorities we have, and he hoMs it inijwssiblc, in decimalizing 
 the British coinage, that the sovereign, penny, and farthing 
 can co-exist, as circulating coins. I humbly think that ho is 
 one of those who has failed to descry tho apparition before 
 alluded to. In this ([notation from his evidence, three distinct 
 statements are made: — first, that the Bortuguesc system is 
 eminently " simple, and all money operations recorded with 
 great facility;" second, that the Spanish system is perplexing, 
 absurd, and inconvenient, " and the correctness of accounts 
 seldom to be depended on ;" and thirdly, that inconvenient as 
 the Spanish system is, it is less so than the " British, where 
 the divisions are by 4, 12, and 20." There is frequently but 
 one step from the sublime to the ridiculous, and it would 
 appear that there is the same slight division betwixt the easy 
 and the difficult ; for who would believe, that tho system here 
 so highly lauded, and that as sweepingly condemned, arc as 
 nearly as possible identical, and in circulating coins, exactly 
 BO ; and that by tho mere abolition of the use of the divi- 
 sions in reckoning, and stating value in one simple denomina- 
 tion, here has been the British monetary system, actually 
 decimalized to our hands, witliout the change of a coin, for a 
 century and a half ! It is simply done, by choosing a 
 " denomination of account " heloiu the farthing, of which that 
 coin is held to consist of 5, thus giving to it the value of tho 
 dccinuil unit, Avhen all tho other coins being multiples of tho 
 farthing, ac([uire a decimal character. This will be better seen 
 by the following table, containing the circulating coins of 
 Portugal, and their respective values in rees, on one side, and 
 the British coins, with their values in farthings on the other ; 
 by which it will be seen that the rces of the Portuguese coins, 
 divided by 5, give the farthings of the British ; or the con- 
 verse, that the farthings of the British coins, multiplied by 5, 
 give the rees of the Portuguese. 
 
8 
 
 CniClIIiATINd COINS OF I'OllTIMiAL AND I5UITAIN. 
 
 rOHTUQAL. 
 
 BRITAIN. 
 
 Colnii. 
 
 b rucH 
 
 10 roi'H ... 
 A Tliitmii 
 
 A half toHtwQ .. 
 3 vlii<imi pli'i'o .. 
 
 IVKtoon 
 
 vlntcin ploco .. 
 12 Tlntoin ]ilo<-o.. 
 
 Crusado iioto .. 
 
 Half innlilnro..., 
 A niuidure 
 
 Cln^uliitiin Viiluo. 
 
 (lIlK !M;(Ptli |i;irt \ 
 ( of II iiii)|i|iiro... / 
 
 liiilf vinti'iii 
 
 fill.- ■Jlnili jinrt | 
 ( (if u niiilUiiri'... J 
 
 'J' .'. viuti'ins 
 
 Writ 1.11 '' 
 tlnis In \i {''itrtli- 
 Ilt'CN. Idj^'h. 
 
 I'OOS 
 1 010 
 
 1,020 
 
 1050 
 1"00 
 illOO 
 |120 
 I -J 10 
 
 [180 
 
 ',' 1(10 
 "4mil. 8."| 4 SOU 
 
 (or liulfcrtisnilo,"! 
 th.i '-:ulh iif B,- 
 
 ( ui..l,|(.iv ) 
 
 I 'Jl vintcms, tlii'S 
 tnitlmfa niol- • 
 
 ( (loin ) 
 
 nronouni'i' 1 — 
 
 " 'J mil. 4.'- 
 
 1 
 
 • > 
 
 4 
 
 I 
 
 12 
 
 1 
 
 I 21 
 
 1 4H 
 
 I Oi'i 
 
 4S0 
 000 
 
 ColtiH. 
 
 fiii-Uilmr 
 
 halfpenny 
 
 poiiny 
 
 ) propoNrd iii'W I 
 r.,|iiHfJl,,,|., 
 
 ( or lo milsT... ) 
 thriMpi'imy picci 
 
 (proposiMl nrw f 
 ciiin of ."ill., or 
 
 ( 211 mills \ 
 
 KlxpC'IK'O 
 
 slillliiii; 
 
 florin 
 
 hilf snv(>rcl,.?n ... 
 sovoreiisn or pound 
 
 Clri'iilullon Viiluc, 
 
 f thi''"i;oili pirt of 
 
 I lho2»olli purl of 
 I n pound. 
 
 ( li lUhKl to III' 
 
 CI liii d r r dill- 
 
 do, 
 
 rth' 'J nil p-irt ofii 
 
 ( |ioinid. 
 
 ( 'J I p Hit, 111. I 
 
 I liutliof apDund. 
 
 llorc tlicn is the Britisli colna<re dec ImaUzcd just as it now 
 exists, aiul proved porCoctly ^vorkill)le l)y a country wliieli lias 
 liad it in operation for a lon<i; period; its simplicity, moreover, 
 borne testimony to by one of the hi^ihest En^^lish decimal 
 authorities ; but it lacks one feature, ■which in Ijritain a})pcars 
 to be an absolute necessity— it has no entire inte<jcr of a 
 high value, such as the pound, in -vvhich to state value. 
 Having myself resided for some time in Portugal, I took this 
 system for my model, to a certain extent, hut cndefivourcd to 
 adapt it more to the feelings of the British people. 
 
 ^Fy proposition was simply to keep accounts in farthings, 
 under the new name of mils, and disusing the sovereign or 
 pound as a coin of account, but leaving it as the standard of 
 value, and to circulate at the value of OGO farthings as at 
 present, to ado])t a new integer of a thousand farthings 
 and revive in it the now obsolete but time-honoured name of 
 Guinea, which, formerly of the value of twenty one shilling.=!, 
 would now be two-pence or eight-farthings less, viz., 20s. lOd. 
 This proposition is, I have reason to believe, along with a mul- 
 titude of others, at present before the Royal Commission on 
 Decimal Coinage. But to adopt this system in the Old Country, 
 it will be observed, from the above table, that there is a necessity 
 for the introduction of two new coins of 10 and 20 farthings ; 
 and also of another step, which, before I had the slightest 
 

 
 lings, 
 iiin or 
 ard of 
 
 us at 
 
 thiriL'S 
 
 imo of 
 
 line:?, 
 
 lOd. 
 
 a mul- 
 
 I 
 
 iiitcntidri df (■oiiiIii;j; fo Canadu, or knew nii^tlilii;.;- of licr 
 currtiicy, I |toiiilc(l out ns nocc.x.sary to l>t' adoptcMl, and it is 
 bccaiiso I find tliat tliosc coin?>, or I'oins of analo;;t)iiH value, 
 7'rifnin'n</ sh'/l fo In' infroih/rrd hi lirifiiin^ arc not only in 
 (jvnci'dl t'ii'rulat!i,)i here, Imt that the otiu'r step uliicli I pro- 
 j)()S('d, has also, lonj; since l>ocn taken in this counlrv, that I 
 ain ciiiholdcnrd now to intrude my views on tlic ii'';:i.ilatur(' 
 and mercantile classes of the I'rovinee. At nan-c? -D of niv 
 former ]ia|)('r T say, " It wonhl he no great stretch, to decree, 
 that in eoiisc(|n('nee of tli(> rise in tlie value of silver, in relation 
 to the gold standard, the llorin, the shilling, and the slx-pt'iice, 
 hhall he held as legal tenders respectively for '1^. Id., Is. 0.\d 
 and (i{, and if it he conceded that this or some .such measure 
 would re(juire to ho resorted to, at any rate, to keep the silver 
 in eireuhition, even if we were not thinking of a, deeimal 
 syslem at all, it uill he S(>en that with the new coins of I'.M. 
 and ")d. or 1<) and -M farthings, and the appreciation of the llorin 
 to '2s. Id. or I'll) farthings, we would construct a [)erfect 
 decimal system, indicating in all the gradations the coins with 
 wliieh to jiay, with a familiar integer in the new guinea." T 
 am ])leased to find that the V(M'y appreciation 1 advocate ahove. 
 in the case of the British shilling and si.\-j)i'nce, has already 
 taken place in this Province; and there is no reason why it 
 should not also he cxtcndeil to the llorin ; and vc now hnvc 
 every element ne(^e8sarij for keeping accounts decimaDy with- 
 out the change of a coin. Let us then aholish for ever the 
 ahsurdities and perplexities of Halifax and York rhirreiicy, 
 and make our^eives no longer the laughing stock of the 
 increasing numher of travellers who visit our country. My 
 fellow townsman, and I helicvo I may call him friend, Mr. 
 AVilliain Chanil)ers, says, in his '' ThiiiL's as thev are in 
 America" — under the head of ^Montreal. ''•Each Bank issues 
 notes as low as f)^. currency or 4s. sterling: and a, note of this 
 kind is popularly e((uivalent to an American dollar. The 
 maintenance of what is termed currency in the present 
 advanced state of things, is not very intelligihle to travellers 
 from the Old Country. One might see some meaning in the 
 denomination, if there was a correspondingly dejircciated 
 coinage in circulation. But excepting the small notes just 
 referred to, and occasi-^nally American dollars, the entire cir- 
 culating medium consists of English money. AVliy an ordinary 
 shilling is spoken of as fiftccn-])ence, or how storekeepers, in 
 asking seven-pence half-penny for an article, should im^an six- 
 pence, is a mystci'v in iinancc not easily exjjhiineil. In my 
 ignorance, I ventured respectfully to suggest to a respcctahle 
 
JU 
 
 Colonist, tli.'it I thought it would only bo reasOnji1)lo to call a 
 shilling a nhilling, and change the nominal prices of things 
 accordingly. Jiut I felt, by the reply, that I had trodden 
 on dangerous ground. The method of computation, in which 
 the pound sterlii j is considered equivalent (strictly) to 
 £\ 4s. 4d. currency, could not it seems bear criticism." 
 Let us no longer have this said of us ; let us return 
 to our allegiance to our old English money nomenclature ; 
 let us make our friends from the Old Country aware as 
 they pass from the States, even tlirough the medium of our 
 money, the first thing a man has to look at, that they are 
 again on r>ritish soil ; and perhaps they may be induced to 
 believe that their c^sh Avill not tly so fast in the form of 
 guinc'is and shillings, as it may have done as dollars and cents. 
 Having brought this scheme forward as a competing one 
 with the project of assimilating our monies of account to those 
 of the United .""tatcs ; let us now see how our cii'culating 
 medium would Avork under it, and weigh its advantages and 
 disadvantages, in comparison. Though we ha'e few British 
 farthings in circulation hero, still it is a frequent (quotation of 
 price, and therefore, being held, as present, would stand as the 
 
 unit. Thus the farthing : — tiils 
 
 The Canadian currency " copper" 
 
 The Canadian penny token 
 
 The British coined penny 
 
 The American lialf dime " 
 
 The American dime " 
 
 The British six-pence or Canadian "Yorker" .... 
 The JJritish shillin_L: (and x\merican quarter dollar) 
 
 The British florin (and American half dollar 
 
 Tho British half crown " 
 
 Th'^ oi.o dollar, (gold, silver or paper,) now to be 
 
 1-! J orins 
 
 Tii" British crown-piece 
 
 Th } t'.v: dollar bill now to be 4 florins 
 
 Tic three dollar bill " " 
 
 The four dollar bill " 8 - 
 
 The five dollar bill, or Canadian Guinea, now to 
 
 be 10 florins, and highest integer 
 
 And the half sovereign and sovereign, representing in Britain, 
 if of full weight, 480 and 900 farthings, or mils, would here, 
 where they bear a premium of 1| per cent., represent ||487 and 
 11974 mils respectively. 
 
 It is unnecessary to quote the three pence and four pence 
 British coins, which wouid, of course, pass at their respective 
 
 u 
 
 <.(. 
 
 a 
 
 u 
 
 u 
 
 u 
 
 liooi 
 
 11002 
 11003 
 11004 
 11010 
 11020 
 11025 
 11050 
 11100 
 11120 
 
 11200 
 11240 
 11400 
 IIGOO 
 11800 
 
 111000 
 
11 
 
 to 
 
 ) tlioso 
 jlatinf; 
 OS and 
 British 
 tion of 
 as the 
 11001 
 11002 
 11003 
 11004 
 11010 
 ||020 
 11025 
 11050 
 
 llioo 
 
 1|120 
 
 11200 
 11240 
 11400 
 1|(;00 
 11800 
 
 
 i 
 
 vahics of 12 and 16 mils. Hero it will be seen that we 
 have the advantage of constructing a perfect decimal system 
 of Canadian sterling decimal currency, with the integer 
 exactly represented by the five dollar bill, the chief medium 
 of payment in all Banking and Commercial transactions, and 
 whicli, appearing in accounts as 1, can be counted like a parcel 
 of one pound Scotch bank note.^, while our relative ideas of 
 estimating value, are far less disturbed as betwixt the sovereign 
 or pound sterling, and the guinea, than betwixt the pound 
 currency and the pound sterling, the difierenco being only four 
 per centum. Twenty-four guineas would exactly represent 
 twenty-five pounds, one hundred pounds, ninety-six guineas. 
 
 The next figure is represented as an integer, by the British 
 florin, or tAVO shilling piece, and the American half dollar; by 
 &imj)ly halving any figure in which, the exact number of dollars 
 in which to pay is at once obtained, and as the British florin 
 is now appearing in greater numbers in the Province, by 
 legally according to it, the appreciation whicli the shilling and 
 six-pence have already obtained, its increase Avould be encour- 
 aged, and therefore, adhering to Old Country tcj-ms we should 
 speak of '"florins" as the integer of hundreds of mils. The 
 old British shilling, not conveying in its name any specific 
 amount of pence, would retain its old familiar title, and we 
 should thus satisfy Mr. Chambers and other travellers, by 
 " calling a shilling, a shilling,' while the ^ix-jyeiicc, no longer 
 of that exact value, but a farthing more, would find a most 
 appropriate designation in retaining its truly Canadian name 
 of "Yorker," of whicli, I think, it would be difficult indeed 
 to denude it, but which may remain as a reminescence, of the 
 absurdities and perplexities from which a decimal system of 
 arithmetic is to free us. The next fic-iire mi the account is 
 represented by the American half dime, which Avould find 
 expression as a "ten mil piece," while its double, or "dime," 
 would be a " fip-penny-bit," a term exactly expressing its 
 value. Canadian money terms would then bo " guineas, 
 florins, and mils;" audit seems to me that there would be a 
 peculiar appropriateness in Canada, reviving the old English 
 term Guinea as her integer of account, while she still holds by 
 the old liquid measures, which in the Old Country have long 
 ago been discarded for the Imperial. 
 
 But I shall now be asked, "if you return to sterling money, 
 how do you propose to adjust the copper currency, which is 
 strictly Halifax, and how will you reconcile a), ignorant 
 country person to the acceptance of twelve pence for an 
 
 English 
 
 shilling, while he has hitherto been accustomed to 
 
12 
 
 receive fifteen, witliout his believing tliat there " is cheating 
 somewhere?"' I confess that this at first sight presented 
 some dinictilty to my mind, for even arbitrary legishition, if 
 reiiuired to l)e resorted to, would fail to reconcile " interests." 
 There can of course, be no difficulty in giving to the English 
 coined penny, of whioh some are in circulation, the position 
 which it boars to the shilling at home, and it would therefore 
 bear the value of 4 mils. But the other copper currency being 
 the private issue of Banks, if we accorded to it the sterling 
 value, we should not only give the banks a large profit on 
 their copper token issues, but deal unfairly with the public 
 holder. I think, however, that I can suggest an ecpiitable 
 mode of adjustment in this particular, which eminently shows 
 how harmony can be extracted out of apparently discordant 
 materials. If tothe Canadian "copper"orhalfpenny bank token 
 be assigned the value of two mils, and to the penny token the 
 value of three mils onlv, instead of four, it Avill be found, that 
 all or any of the silver coins can bo changed through equal 
 munhcrs of these, and the same intrinsic value of copper be 
 passed, as at present, while the calculation to do tliis is both 
 sim})le and decimal : divide the number of mils by 5, and you 
 have the equal number of penny and halfpenny tokens re- 
 quired. Is change desired for a British shilling, or quarter 
 (foliar, of the value of 50 mils ? Divide by 5, which gives 10 ; 
 and you find that ten penn}'- and ten halfpenny tokens exactly 
 liquidate it, as thus : — 
 
 MIL?. MILS. 
 
 10 penny tokens, currency lOd., at ||003 --- ||OoO 
 10 halfpenny do. " 5d., at ||002 =- ||020 
 
 I 
 
 Currency lod. 
 
 Mils ||0o0 
 
 Thus three of the one coin would be equal to two of tlic 
 other, and we should 1)0 enabled to meet payments of any 
 tiiimber of mils up to the first silver coin of ton mils, until we 
 were sup}»lied with otlier pieces of 5 mils, more accor(lant with 
 the decimal svstcm. 
 
 But the high integer, is not tbc only advantage, for the 
 cent is not a sujjicienthf low denomination, for the exigencies 
 of Americim commerce, as we frecpicnlly meet witli American 
 quotations of prii'os such as 12^ cents, 6] cents. Now the 
 introduction oH vuf(ja7' fractions h([n\ic inadmissible, in a pure 
 and properly constructed decimal system ; indeed it is one of 
 the chief features of our present complicated calculations, 
 •which the decimal system is designed to do away with. This 
 
 I 
 
13 
 
 cheating 
 iresented 
 iition, if 
 toree^ts." 
 
 Eno;lish 
 
 position 
 therefore 
 cy l,>eing 
 
 sterling 
 profit on 
 10 pu1)lic 
 cf|uitablc 
 :ly shows 
 iscordant 
 .nk token 
 oken the 
 and, tliat 
 iii'h equal 
 oppcr bo 
 is is Loth 
 
 and you 
 Dkens re- 
 • quarter 
 fives 10 ; 
 s exactly 
 
 ;]0 
 20 
 
 )0 
 
 of tho 
 of any 
 until Ave 
 ant v*"ith 
 
 for tho 
 ciij^enciea 
 Linerican 
 Now the 
 ill a pure 
 s one of 
 
 lations, 
 ii. This 
 
 it is which makes the Portuguese system so simple and easy, 
 as the denomination of calculation is lower than any simple 
 quotation of price can he. I may bo told that in practice it 
 is easy to calculate a half or quarter cent, as 5 or :?5 ; but this 
 would require an additional decimal point after the cents, to 
 prevent confusion, and that perplexing "dot" is from school 
 days already invested with sufTicicut mystery in the minds of 
 the great bulk of the community. A lower denomination than 
 cents, then, in daily practice (keeping always in view that on 
 paper, all calculations under a decimal system arc made in one 
 simple denomination) — a lower denomination than cents, would 
 entail ease and brevity in calculations just in proportion as 
 fractions of cents occur in a quoted price, which is very fre- 
 quent. Let anyone calculate 1234 lbs. of sugar at 1\ sterling, 
 14i cents American, or 29 mils, under this proposed system, 
 and he will find, that while the first requires the employment 
 of oO figures, and the second 24, the last only requires 20 
 figures, shortening the process by so much. 
 
 But I could have understood the predilection for tho adop- 
 tion of dollars and cents, as tho currencjj of Canada, if any 
 commercial advantage Avas to bo gained by it ; if by the mere 
 adoption of the terms, we could render our curiency e(|ual in 
 circulation or intrinsic value to that of the United States, whicli 
 is indeed embraced in the motion before the Legislature, but 
 how it is to bo done, and even if it could be done, whether it 
 would ho jJolitic, is rather a difficult question. At present, if 
 any unsophisticated Canadian should cross tho lines, with 40 
 British shillings in his pocket, which, (sharing in the popular 
 belief, as Chambers calls it), he has hitherto regarded as 40 
 "quarters," or cfpiivalent to ten dollars, and wishes to acquire 
 therewith one of those gold coins knov»n as an " eagle," the 
 citizen to whom he may apply, says, "No, sir-reo ! though out 
 of compliment to our superior sagacity, you liave chosen to 
 call vour money after ours, that does not make 't the same, 
 and, (referring to a manual which all acute Yankees have 
 always at hand) I guess, stranger, if you want to trade, that 
 you would, according to this book require to come down with 
 80 cents more, but " he would probably continue, "I rather 
 calculate, if you are anxious to exchange them images of your 
 fusty old monarchs, for this effigy of Liberty, surrounded by 
 the stars of our spangled banner, I can't allow you more than 
 20 cents apiece for them : twenty times forty is eight hun- 
 dred ; now just see, stranger, if you haven't got other ten of 
 them things about you." Noav this is what I have actually 
 experienced as tho Yankee estimate of " approximation to 
 
14 
 
 intrinsic value; and, as wo have no mint of our own in this 
 Province, and consequently no power to provide the requisite 
 coins, surely it cannot be proposed, that in every payment of 
 a dollar, after the 31st of January, 18r)7, avc must add tAVO 
 dimes or 20 cents, to the four British shillings, which in our 
 present ideas constitute that amount. The par of exchange 
 betwixt two countries, is the amount of the coins of one 
 country which Avill give the same quantity of precious metal, 
 as that contained in a given amount of the coins of another. 
 x\t the British Mint price of gold, the United States " eagle " 
 is oidy equivalent to £2 Is. sterling, which would give 4s. Id. 
 and l-r)tli of a penny to the gold dollar ; and so surely as we 
 ever think of giving in to the exhorbitant discount of 7^- per 
 cent, more than the equality, practically exacted, so surely Avill 
 our silver coinage speedily disappear from circulation, and be 
 displaced by large and small images of " Liberty," which will 
 soon demonstrate owr mistaken notions of "equality," while 
 we shall bear the expense of the "fraternity," and lose every 
 advantage which our previous apppreciation of the silver has 
 given us, in retaining a circulating medium in the Province. 
 If then by assimilation, we can only arrive at approximation, 
 there cannot, I think, be a greater mistake than to suppose, 
 that the adoption of similar money terms, without attaining 
 identity of value, can have any other effect, than that of pro- 
 ducing confusion in the monetary relations of different 
 countries ; and surely, in regard to the term " Dollar," there 
 is already sufficient confusion amid llix Dollars and Mexican, 
 Spanish Dollars and American, Peruvian Dollars and Chilian, 
 without adding a " Canadian Dollar " to the list. But if mere 
 approximation is all that can be attained, this proposed system 
 attains it, sufficiently near for all practical purposes, assuming 
 the relative value of the dollar at the usual received rate of 
 4s. 2d, — fifty pence, or two hundred farthings or mils sterling, 
 leaving the course of Exchange (which depends altogether on 
 other elements, obvious to every mercantile man, such as the 
 ratio of supply and demand), to adjust the differential or 
 intrinsic par. The two money systems of reckoning arc iden- 
 tical, and present a mere distinction with but the slightest 
 difference, the one being kept in cents and the other in nomi- 
 nal half cents, wc have only to double large and small amounts 
 of dollars and cents, to obtain the equivalent in mils, or guineas 
 and mils, or halve any amount of these to obtain dollars and 
 cents, while single quotations of price in dollars, are just 
 double quotations in florins, and single quotations in cents 
 just loublc quotations in mils. This calculation requires the 
 
 k 
 
 I 
 
15 
 
 in this 
 
 >f(ui.sitc 
 
 ncnt of 
 
 (Ul two 
 in our 
 
 clmno-c 
 
 of one 
 
 t metal, 
 
 .notlicr. 
 eagle " 
 4s. U. 
 
 r as we 
 Ti per 
 
 .'ely "will 
 and be 
 
 lich ■will 
 
 ," while 
 
 ;e every 
 
 Iver has 
 
 'rovincc. 
 
 imation, 
 
 suppose, 
 
 ittaining 
 of pro- 
 
 diiferent 
 ' there 
 
 Mexican, 
 Chilian, 
 if mere 
 system 
 ssuming 
 , rate of 
 sterling, 
 thcr on 
 1 as the 
 ntial or 
 ire iden- 
 slio-htest 
 m nomi- 
 amounts 
 guineas 
 lars and 
 are just 
 in cents 
 aires the 
 
 
 slightest mental effort, and -where the distinction, instead of 
 being a disadvantage, is, as between two different peoples, a 
 positive advantage. So with Portugal, a milree, at the ordi- 
 nary par of 50(1. sterling, is only another name for a dollar ; 
 as an integer, it represents a denomination ten times lower 
 than the cent; tlierefore, by cutting off the right-hand figure 
 from any amount of rees, and adjusting tlie decimal point, it 
 is at once transformed alike in appearance and nominal value 
 to dollars and cents. So with France: at the same nominal 
 par, a dollar is only another name for five francs, and a cent 
 for five centimes, and by multiplying dollars and cents l)y five, 
 (as the centime is five times lower than the cent), we at once get 
 the equivalent in francs and centimes. And so it is with every 
 other decinud currency : division or multiplication by 10, or 
 some power of 10, as 2 or 5, readily converting the different 
 denominations, with a sufficient approximation for all practical 
 purposes, into one another. Then by adopting this system, we 
 adhere to the Old Country money terms, using those alone, 
 conveying at once to the minds of immigrants the feeling that 
 that they have not changed their country, ai.d rendering the 
 relative calculations in all our transactions with her eminently 
 simple. The subject of decimalizing the IJritish coinage is at 
 present one of great interest and discussion in ihe Old 
 Country, and the competing units are the pound and the 
 farthing. The present pound (to which from long hal>it they 
 are wedded at honu) is that which at ])resent isolates IJritain, 
 from nominal parity with the other decimal nations : but to 
 adhere to it as a decimal integer, she would require to alter 
 the value of the penny and farthing, a matter involving seri- 
 ous inconvenience ; while if she adopt the farthing unit, she 
 would require to take the very steps as to ajjpreciation of the 
 circulating value of the florin, shilling, and sixpence, Avhich 
 has already taken place in this province, or introduce new 
 coins of so much higher value, while the paper currency of the 
 kingdom would also require to be changed. In adhering to the 
 pound, we could not now, without inconvenience, and losing 
 the advantage we have obtained by the appreciation, follow 
 her, however much inclined, and all the difference will be, that 
 her mil will be of fjur per cent less value than ours ; but prac- 
 tically this would be found of little importance in our com- 
 mercial relations, for in a;r2;re(^atc amounts it would only make 
 a difference of 4 per cent on that part of any sum which is 
 below 25 mils ; and as our denomination would represent the 
 present British farthing, we should only have to resort to the 
 every-day school practice of division by 4, 12, and 20, to 
 bring any amount to British pounds, shillings and pence. The 
 
1() 
 
 fidoption of llio fartliin^ unit by tliis Province, mi,L5lit not be 
 without its cfiect in the decision of the matter in Britain ; but 
 tliou;j;li I inlvocatcd it, ivliiU there, speaking now, and feeling 
 as a Canadian, I should not regret to see her ado})t the pound, 
 as she Avould thereby allow us to retain in peace, the apprecia- 
 tion of the silver which it has already been found necessary 
 to decree. It i,s at all events pretty certain, that whatever 
 pystein she adopt, " Dollars and Cents " will at least not be the 
 nomenclature of her coins, or of her denomination of account ; 
 and though there has lately been some rumour of a convention, 
 to consider the possibility or feasil)ilitvof unitinc!; in one bond 
 of common money reckonincr, "all nations of the earth,"' tliis 
 is cleai'lv Utopian, and frauu'ht with <ji;iii:anlic diniculties. It 
 may be all very Avell for r>ritain, who confessedly acknow- 
 ledges that some change in h^r own money system is abso- 
 lutely required, to moot sucii a proposition, but Vtdiat other 
 nation, satii^fied icitli its jjresviit ftj/ste/u, vrill be the next to 
 give Avay ? Will France V Will America? ^.-^ ssuredly not. 
 To wait, then, for the realisation of any such visionary 
 scheme, would be like waiting at Cananoipie till the St. LaAV- 
 renee should run past: Avhat we Avant is not so much a system 
 of c(iual moiiey reckoning, as a practical system of accounting, 
 wiiich shall lessen the hibour of our clerks and book-keepers, 
 v.hieh shall decrease the liability to error, and Avhich shall 
 banisii from the schools of our cliihlren all tlie perplexities and 
 mjv^terii'S of money tables, compound aritlnnetic, and "■prac- 
 tice ;*' and above all, v:e /ra it it notv, and instead of Avaiting 
 till ihe ols.t of January, 1857, this system could, if avc Avere 
 !--<) minded, be brouglit into operation on the 1st May, 1856. 
 
 1 have thus endeavoured to shoAV, that hoAvever much avc may 
 now be di-^posed, /?'o?/i the mere force of ])resent contrast, to 
 envy tlie superior facilities apertainlng to the monetary system 
 of our neighbours, that does not at all prove, that Ave are 
 incapable of constructing for oursclv-es, and or t of our OAvn 
 materials, a system having at least equal, and I take leave to 
 ihlidc, consido'ing our position and connections, in many 
 respects, superior advantages ; and if I have shoAvn, that 
 the simplicity of a Decimal system of money reckoning 
 does not in any Avay depend upon the particular names 
 <_)f coins employed,— that some systems have advantages 
 over others, both, in regard to the loAvness of the unit, 
 and the amount ex])ressed in the hiiihest inten-ral de- 
 nomination, as respects the previous habits and ideas of the 
 people Avlio are to use it ;— that this liighest expression docs 
 not, of necessity, require to bo represented by the sovereign, 
 or standard of value, the currency of this Province at present 
 
 I 
 
 J 
 
17 
 
 t not be 
 :iin ; Ijut 
 (I {'eeling 
 pound, 
 ipprccia- 
 icci'ssiiry 
 wliatcvcr 
 lot be tlic 
 account ; 
 iivontion, 
 one bond 
 •til," this 
 Ities. It 
 iicknow- 
 I. is abso- 
 lat other 
 ' next to 
 cdly not. 
 visionary 
 St. I.aw- 
 a system 
 counting, 
 c-kcepcrs, 
 lich shall 
 xitior. and 
 1 ''• prac- 
 f "waitinji!: 
 
 4 7 
 
 f v,'c ^Yerc 
 
 1856. 
 
 ]\ ^^■c may 
 
 }it)-a8f, to 
 
 ry system 
 
 t Ave are 
 
 our own 
 
 leave to 
 
 in many 
 
 Avn, that 
 
 eckonins; 
 
 r names 
 
 Ivantaiies 
 
 the unit, 
 
 :'gral de- 
 
 as of the 
 
 sion does 
 
 overeign, 
 
 t present 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 proving perfectly workable with the novcrcujn almost entirely 
 out of view as a circulating coin of account ;— and if I have 
 proved, (as I humbly submit that I have,) that, though the fact 
 appears to have l)een apprehended neither by the Legislature, 
 nor those generally watchful guardians of the ])ublic interest, 
 the Press, the Acts of Parliament, loth and 14th Vie., Caj). 8 
 and '.', reii'uhiting our circulation value of certain silver coins, 
 actually had the eiTect oi' rcndcrini/ Decimal in this IWovince^ 
 at their rcftpective values in Itrilish farthings, those; very 
 coins which it is so diilicidty to render decimal in ]>ritain, and 
 that l)eside3 having an exact integer of one thousand farthings 
 — in the Hank bill for twenty-live shillings currency, — five 
 dollars, or ten. llorins sterling, — Ave have other convenient Bank 
 paper representations, for tAvo, four, and eight ilorins sterling, 
 or 200, 400, and 800 farthinrfs or mils, a cireulatiiuji; medium 
 Avhich, Avithout an entire alteration of her currency hiws, 
 Great Britain can never hojio to obtain. 1 liuml;ly think 
 that it Avould no?o almost amount to an act of political sui- 
 cide, in jiursuit of a mere arithmetical '' igni,- fatuus," under 
 the title (4'" assimilation of units and intrinsic value," to throAV 
 our currency again into that vortex of com})eting interests, 
 AvhIch, amid the iluctuations of commerce, is ever and anon 
 causing large exportations of specie from America, and that 
 our Avisest course Avould rather lie, in confiniiii;; ourselves 
 "Avithin our OAvn lines," to the simple o])jeet of ficilitating 
 the compilation of accounts and calculations generally. Thrt.'Av- 
 ing out of vieAV the probability of further legislation in the 
 direction of *'■ assimilation," meeting ^low Avith even less 
 sympathy from the Imperial (Government than it has already 
 manifested toAvards the former measure of ISao, the country 
 has only to throAv oft' the nightmare of the '* absurd anonmlies 
 of the present currency," from the oppression of Avhieh the 
 mere act of aAvaking might have freed lier any time these five 
 years past, and by at once abolishing them audit together, and 
 returnin"- to " stei'linr:'," v 'ththe feature Avhich the Icuislation 
 of this I'rovince has already given to it, not only drr.Av closer 
 Aviththe Mother Coimtry, those bomls, v.diich, a community of 
 money value and terms, may be supposed to engender, but 
 still preserve to Canada that individualiti/ amonrj the nations, 
 in one of the most dlstlnctiA'C particulars, Avhich draAv the line 
 of demarcation, all the more necessary betAvixt two neigh- 
 bouring, but still in many resp:ots dissimilar pcojjks, of the 
 Game Anglo Saxon origin, from Avhich, in the present eon- 
 fititutlon of "men and things," God forbid! she should be the 
 first to resile.