Honest Money

Written in the late 19th century, Honest Money is a clear, argumentative primer on what money is, how it gets its value, and what happens when a society's currency system becomes unstable or politically manipulated. Arthur Isaac Fonda walks the reader from first principles—value, standards of value, and the basic functions of money—into the practical disputes of his era: coin versus paper, the effects of changing supply, and the real-world consequences for wages, prices, savings, and trust. Fonda's central idea is simple and demanding: a monetary system should be honest—meaning understandable, consistent, and resistant to schemes that quietly transfer wealth through inflation, distortion, or confusion. Part economics lesson, part reform-minded critique, the book reads like a debate meant for citizens, not just specialists—urging readers to see money not as magic, but as a social tool whose design shapes everyday life.