VALUE OF A LIMITED COIN 27 
it is obvious that the plenty of current coins of gold 
and silver of this kingdom is of great advantage tc 
trade and commerce.” 
The effect of a charge for coining is to tend to 
raise the ordinarv value of the coin above that of the 
uncoined metal -7 the amount of the charge, just 
as any charge for the manufacture of any other 
article ordinarily raises its price by a corresponding 
amount above the value of the raw material. It 
restricts the production until the manufactured 
article is sufficiently above the value of the raw 
material to make the manufacture pay. So, if our 
Mint coined all gold brought to it, but charged 5 per 
cent, any one who brought enough gold to make 100 
sovereigns would only get 95 sovereigns in exchange 
for it, and in consequence no one would bring gold 
to the Mint <~ long as he could get more than g5 
sovereigns ~~ for that amount of gold elsewhere. 
Whenever .. was worth while to get gold minted it 
would be because the market price of gold was only 
£95 for the quantity out of which 100 sovereigns 
were made, and when the price of gold is at that 
level it means that ninety-five sovereigns—f£g5— 
will buy enough gold to make 100 sovereigns, so 
that the sovereign is worth 1% of the gold of which 
it is made, or to put it in other words, that the coin 
is worth one-nineteenth more than the gold in it. 
It cannot be more than this for any appreciable 
time where coinage is ‘‘ free,” i.e. any one can 
bring as much gold as he pleases to the Mint and have 
it coined on paying the charge. So if the demand for 
coin were to increase rapidly, it would be met by a 
greater supply On t>~ - "¢r hand, the value of the 
sovereign mig: * ovr «hundred ninety- 
fifths of the 7." _ _ _I come Guration, 
owing te. dec... new coinage would 
not tale nie In “he value con’? not in