The Indian financial debate ended on Friday week, without a
speech from Mr. Gladstone, who proposes to speak at a sub- sequent stage after Whitsuntide. Mr. Lowe, however, spoke, and made, "with his life in his hand," he said, a proposal which has puzzled his critics not a little. We believe it to be a bold and able—but, we fear, not practicable—proposal. He wishes to give India a gold currency, without disturbing the gold market of the world. His proposal is to reduce the rupee to a token, and to make gold the currency for high values, but to represent it by paper receivable for taxes, of course, but con- vertible into gold only when presented in very large amounts,— say, £500, or even more. The effect of this, he thinks, would be that England and India would have the same gold standards, but that India would require little actual gold in metal. That plan, which is based on Mr. Ricardo's, is clever, and certainly is not answered by Lord G. Hamilton. He says the Indian demand for silver would end, and the price of silver would drop in London. Quite true, and very annoying, but not annoying to India, which would have a gold standard. The real objection is that the paper, not being easily convertible,. would not float, except as unconvertible paper would. The ten- dency would be to make it float by buying gold to exchange for it, which is just what European economists dread. Any large demand from India would appreciate gold to a ruinous extent.
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