Any change in a money system must, of necessity, cause some disturbance of business, and such change should be so devised as to cause the least possible disturbance, and do as little injury to vested interests and existing obligations as possible. The system chosen should, moreover, be adapted not only to the needs of the present, but also to the possible requirements of the future, so that no change of system will afterwards be called for to meet further changes in demand, and cause again a disturbance of commerce. In short, it should be a system logical, economical, scientific, and permanent,--not a makeshift, to be changed in the next Congress by the addition of another makeshift, in the manner in which our present crazy patchwork of money has been created and maintained. CHAPTER VIII. SOME PROPOSED CHANGES IN OUR MONEY SYSTEM. Of the many plans that have been proposed to correct the evils of our existing money system, it is not necessary to notice here more than two or three. Most of the others are more or less temporary expedients which, even if meritorious, fall so far short of an adequate or permanent solution of the problem as to merit little attention. The change which has been most urgently advocated is a return to the free coinage of silver. It is not proposed to enter into any extended discussion of the merits or demerits of this proposition. Much has been written on the subject already, most of it, unfortunately, from a partisan standpoint, and ignoring all facts and principles, however well established, which did not agree with the views advocated. This, it may be said, is equally true of both sides to the controversy. It seems desirable, therefore, to point out how the principles we have already investigated apply to the question. Those who advocate free coinage of silver claim that the value of gold has increased since free silver coinage was stopped, while the value of silver has remained more nearly constant. This claim, as we have seen, is correct. They claim not to desire to substitute silver for gold in the coinage, but to use both together at the ratio of 15.988 to 1, under a bi-metallic system, increasing the volume of money, and thereby raising prices to a higher level. Their opponents say that free silver coinage will drive gold out of the country and the value of our standard will at once fall to the present bullion value of silver (about 50 to 60 cents, measured in gold), and that bi-metallism is only practicable by agreement between the leading nations.