Principles of Political Economy with Applications to Social Philosophy

and the person with the bread would not want as much as would be worth a coat, and the coat could not be divided. Every person, therefore, would at all times hasten to trade his goods for anything which, though it might not fit his own immediate needs, was in high and general demand and easily divisible, so that he might be certain of being able to purchase whatever he wanted later. The primary necessities of life possess these properties to a high degree. Bread is extremely divisible and is universally desired. Still, this is not the right sort of thing; for, regarding food, unless one expects a shortage, no one wishes to possess more than is needed for immediate consumption. Consequently, a person is never sure of finding an immediate buyer for food, and most of it spoils if not sold quickly. The item that people would choose to keep on hand for making purchases must be something that, besides being divisible and generally desired, does not deteriorate over time. This narrows the choice to a small number of items.

§ 2. Through a silent agreement, almost all nations at a very early period chose certain metals, especially gold and silver, to serve this purpose. No other substances combine the necessary qualities to such a degree, along with so many additional advantages. After food and clothing—and in some climates even before clothing—the strongest desire in a primitive society is for personal adornment and for the social standing that comes from owning rare or costly ornaments. Once immediate necessities were met, everyone was eager to accumulate as large a store as possible of things that were both costly and beautiful; these were primarily gold, silver, and jewels. These were the things that everyone most enjoyed possessing, and which were most likely to be accepted by others in exchange for any kind of produce.