The Worlds Gold Its Geology Extraction And Political Economy Classic Reprint PDF Download

Excerpt from Gold, Its Place in the Economy of Mankind In order to write advantageously about any given commodity, it is necessary to consider first in what way the community regards it as a "useful thing." The result of this inquiry naturally decides the lines upon which the treatise should be drawn up. Take the case of iron, for instance. This valuable metal, owing to the introduction of machinery, and the researches of science in connection with its properties, has assumed so much importance to the economic life of man in the present age, that Kipling conveys an obvious truth when he writes - Gold is for the mistress - silver for the maid, Copper for the craftsman cunning at his trade. "Good," said the Baron, sitting in his hall, "But Iron - Cold Iron, is master of them all." Wherefore any writer, discussing iron as a commodity, must describe the processes by which it is adapted for industrial use, for upon their proper execution, and upon the possibility of their improvement, depends, to a large extent, industrial development and the future prosperity of mankind. Gold, on the contrary, needs to be considered from quite a different standpoint. Its chief importance does not lie in its chemical and industrial application. It is based mainly upon the quantity of its production and the way in which the metal, when produced, is applied to lubricate the wheels of commerce. In other words, in the case of gold, the relation of the metal to Banking and Exchange is of supreme interest. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.