It is therefore in England and America, the two countries possessing
not only most commercial enterprise, but most security against
invasion, that the paper money has come into earliest and widest
use. To the paper of the banks have been added the checks and bills
of exchange of private individuals, until money proper plays a
greatly diminishing part in the operations of commerce. Goods are
exchanged and debts paid by a system of balancing claims against
claims, which really has almost ceased to rest on money at all. So
that a man may be a very rich man in our day, and have really
nothing to show for his wealth whatever. You go to his house, and
you find nothing but a lot of shabby furniture. The only thing there
which Seneca would have called wealth is perhaps his wife's jewels,
which would not bring a few thousand dollars. You think his money
must be in the bank, but you go there with him and find that all he
has there is a page on the ledger bearing his name, with a few
figures on it.
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