Silver was one of the primary resources during the years from 1500s to 1700’s. Spanish America and Japan were the leading silver producers during this time period. The global flow of silver greatly affected the social and economic aspects of the participating countries. The upperclassmen had some benefits while the lower classes suffered a lot. It also made a great change in the economies of Spain and China. The global flow of silver greatly affected the countries socially. According to Wang Xijue, (Doc 3), the reason that the grain is abnormally cheap despite weak harvest is because of the shortage of the supply of silver. The Ming dynasty required all citizens to pay their taxes in silver thus put them into a serious risk as they were not able to afford silver. Xijue most likely thinks that this problem might cause the people to start rebelling and create public unrest. Ye Chunji, a county official of the Ming dynasty (Doc 1), offered to limit the wedding expenses. As the supply of silver decreases, the frugal man who is careful of his money has better chances of survival than the extravagant man who spends his money into nonsense luxuries. Ye encourages the people to spend their money wisely and into necessary things instead of living in luxury and wasting money. In Spain, Antonio Vasquez de Espinosa, described in his essay the terrible conditions of the Native Americans while working in the silver mines of Potosi (Doc 6). As a priest and a righteous man, Vasquez showed sympathy for the poor peasant workers. This document explains the ongoing mistreatment of the American Indian population by the Spanish in the Americas.
The global floe of silver also affected the economic aspects of the participating countries. Xiu Dunqiu, a writer states in his essay the effects of the using of silver as a payment for taxes (Doc 5). Buyers were no more able to use other goods as payment for traders and taxes and thus changes China’s barter economy into marketing. He Qiaoyan, a Ming dynasty official, reported to the government the high prices of Chinese goods in the Philippines (Doc 7). The prices of the silk yarns sold in the Philippines is twice as much or even more than the price sold in China and the foreigners desired much of the country’s natural resources. Qiaoyan wished to repeal the ban on the taxes. Even so, he began to notice the failing economy of his country, contrasting the prospering of other nations. Ralph Finch, a British merchant, describes in his account the trade of Macao and Japan. (Doc 4) The Portuguese trades their d=goods in exchange of only silver.
