A Caveat Against Injustice

A Caveat Against Injustice
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IF WHAT IS USED AS A MEDIUM OF EXCHANGE IS FLUCTUATING IN ITS VALUE, it is no better than unjust weights and measures, both which are condemned by the laws of God and man.

Roger Sherman is the author of Article 1 Section 10 of the United States Constitution: “No State shall … make any Thing but gold and silver Coin a Tender in Payment of Debts.”

Forasmuch, as there have been many disputes arisen of late concerning the medium of exchange in this colony, which have been occasioned chiefly by reason of our having such large quantities of paper Bills of Credit on some of the neighbouring governments passing in payments among us, and some of those governments having issued much larger sums of Bills than were necessary to supply themselves with a competent medium of exchange, and not having supplied their treasuries with any fund for maintaining the credit of such Bills:

They have therefore been continually depreciating and growing less in their value, and have been the principal means of the depreciation of the Bills of Credit emitted by this colony, by their passing promiscuously with them; and so have been the occasion of much embarrassment and injustice in the trade and commerce of the colony, and many people — and especially widows and orphans — have been great sufferers thereby.

But our Legislature having at length taken effectual care to prevent further depreciation of the Bills of this colony, and the other governments not having taken the prudent care, their Bills of Credit are still sinking in their value, and have in fact sunk much below the value of the Bills of this colony.