From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > In creating U.S. dollars a value in gold was determined and proclaimed > by law thereby giving dollars some value (say one thirty fifth of an > ounce of gold, as at one time). A value for a dollar would seem not to > exist otherwise, it is, after all, just a pretty piece of paper. I know > things are different now but I've always seen the old "$35 per ounce" as > setting the value of a dollar, not the value of gold.
Indeed, the dollar was once defined as a certain quantity of gold. On 31 January, 1934, Franklin Delano Roosevelt changed the definition by issuing an Executive Order. In summary: BEFORE 31-Jan-1934: One dollar = 23.22 grains gold AFTER 31-Jan-1934: One dollar = 13.71 grains gold I should also include this way of looking at the ratios: BEFORE 31-Jan-1934: 1 troy oz gold = $20.67 AFTER 31-Jan-1934: 1 troy oz gold = $35.01 I doubt this answers your more subtle questions about price manipulation. The only point here is that the phrase "Twenty Dollars in Gold" used to mean a very specific, well-defined quantity of gold. -- Patrick P.S. For conversion purposes: 1 troy ounce = 480 grains 1 gram = 15.43 grains --- You are currently subscribed to e-gold-list as: archive@jab.org To unsubscribe send a blank email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Use e-gold's Secure Randomized Keyboard (SRK) when accessing your e-gold account(s) via the web and shopping cart interfaces to help thwart keystroke loggers and common viruses.
