148 INTERNATIONAL CURRENCY

to get the economic ship as far as possible on an
even keel

If the proposed substitute is to succeed it will
have to be at least as acceptable as gold, and at the
same time its quantity must be so regulated as to
be at all times constant in relation to the output of
commodities. Can we pretend that the economic
enlightenment of mankind has yet reached a point
at which such a currency could be produced and
regulated by the Governments of the world and be
accepted by their citizens ?