VALUE OF NOTES 
50 
or by fixing the price and selling as many as are 
demanded at that price. 
The first method of limitation is easily understood : 
the producers enforce the limitation simply by not 
printing notes (and not allowing any oneelse to print 
them) beyond the prescribed number. The second 
method is enforced when notes are convertible into 
bullion, because that, as has been explained, fixes for 
them a price or value in bullion below which notes 
cannot be issued. When convertibility into bullion 
is absent, the price might be fixed in some other 
commodity than bullion—in lead for example, or 
rubber of some well-known quality. The issuers 
might be bound by law to give a certain number of 
pounds avoirdupois of lead or rubber in exchange for 
any note presented to them for redemption. But 
this would be re-establishing convertibility in the 
form of convertibility into lead or rubber instead of 
convertibility intc l:llion, and gold certainly will 
not be dethroned (ov make lead or rubber or any 
other single comm:iZ’'v rain as the standard of 
value. The only standar’ possibly superior to 
bullion is commodities in general. Actual conver- 
tibility of the note into commodities in general is 
impracticable : the Bank of England could not be 
asked to hand over the counter a basketful of the 
commodities represented in an index number. But, 
as we have seen, notes may circulate on a par with 
gold although they are not convertible into it, because 
the issuers may sufficiently limit them by watching 
the price of bullion and issuing more notes when that 
falls and fewer when it rises. So notes might be 
made to circul~te c= ~ar v7*% a collection of commo- 
dities such as _ = ..d in an index number of 
prices alth~i ~:" convertible into that 
collection, __cuwc  .. :ssuers might sufficiently 
limit them >» wate" in "2 prices of these commo-