首页 >出版文学> Three Lectures on the Rate of Wages>第5章
  processofcultivationmustbeemployedwhichwillgive,notabsolutelythegreatestamountofproduce,butthegreatestafter
  deductingtheexpenses。Forthispurposeatractoffivehundredacres,fromwhichfiftyfamiliesproducedtheirown
  subsistence,andproducedscarcelyanythingmore,maybeconvertedintoonefarm,andwiththelabouroftenfamilies,and
  asmanyhorses,mayproducethesubsistenceofonlythirtyfamilies。Fortunately,however,theperiodatwhichthese
  alterationstakeplaceisgenerallyoneofgreatsocialimprovement;sothat,afterashortinterval,theincreaseddiligence
  andskillwithwhichlabourisapplied,occasionanincreaseofeventhegrossproduce。Thefundforthemaintenanceof
  labourersnowbecomesincreasedfromtwodifferentsources——partlyfromtheincreasedefficiencyofhumanlabour。when
  aidedbythatofhorsesandcattle,andpartlyfromtheresultsofapartofthehumanlaboursetfreebythesubstitutionof
  brutes。Theultimateconsequencesofsuchachangearealwaysbeneficial;thechange。itselfmust,ingeneral,beaccompaniedbydistress。Butwiththeexceptionofthesetwocases,oneofwhichproducesonlytemporaryeffects,andtheother,though
  :apparently。possible,seemneveractuallytooccur,it。appearstomedearthattheuse。ofmachinerymusteitherrasethegeneralrateofwages,orleaveitunaltered。Whenmachineryisappliedtotheproductionofcommoditieswhicharenotintended,directlyorindirectly,fortheuseof
  labourers,itoccasionsnoalterationinthegeneralrateofwages;——Isaythegeneralrateofwages;becauseitmaydiminish
  therateofwagesinsomeemployments,——adiminution。alwayscompensatedbyacorrespondingincreaseinsomeothers。I
  wasshownatBirminghamasmallscrew,which,inthemanufactureofcorkscrews,performedtheworkoffifty—ninemen;
  withitsassistanceonemancouldcutaspiralgrooveinasmanycorkscrewshanksassixtymencouldhavecutinthesame
  timewiththetoolspreviouslyinuse。Astheuseofcorkscrewsislimited,it。isnotprobablethatthedemandforthemhas
  sufficientlyincreasedtoenablethewholenumberoflabourerspreviouslyemployedintheirmanufacture,toremainso
  employedaftersuchanincreaseintheirproductivepower。Someofthecorkscrew—makers,therefore,musthavebeen
  thrownoutofwork,andtherateofwagesinthattradeprobablyfell。Butasthewholefundforthemaintenanceof
  labourers,andthewholenumberoflabourerstobemaintained,remainedunaltered,thatfallmusthavebeenbalancedbya
  risesomewhereelse——arisewhichwemaytracetoitsproximatecause,byrecollectingthatthefallinthepriceof
  corkscrewsmusthavelefteverypurchaserofacorkscrewafundforthepurchaseoflabour,ratherlargerthanhewouldhavepossessedifhehadpaidtheformerprice。If,however,machinerybeappliedtotheproductionofanycommodityusedbythelabouringpopulation,thegeneralrate
  ofwageswillrise。Thatitcannotfallisclear,onthegroundswhichIhavejuststated。Iftheimprovementbegreat,andthe
  commoditynotsubjecttoacorrespondingincreaseofdemand,someofthelabourersformerlyemployedinitsproduction
  willbethrownoutofemployment,andwages,inthattrade,willfall——afallwhich,asthewholefundforthemaintenance
  oflabourisnotdiminished,mustbemetbyacorrespondingriseinsomeothertrade。Butthefundwillbeincreasedbythe
  additionalquantityproducedofthecommoditytowhichtheimprovementhasbeenapplied:estimatedinthatcommodity,
  therefore,thegeneralrateofwages,or,inotherwords,thequantityofcommoditiesobtainedbythelabouringpopulation,willbeincreasedbytheintroductionofmachinery;estimatedinallothers,itwillbestationary。Theexampletakenfromthemanufactureofcorkscrewsisasunfavourabletotheeffectsofmachineryascanbeproposed;
  fortheuseofthecommodityissupposedtobeunabletokeepupwiththeincreasedproduction,andthewholenumberof
  labourersemployedonitis,consequently,diminished。This,however,isaveryrareoccurrence。Theusualeffectofan
  increaseinthefacilityofproducingacommodityissotoincreaseitsconsumptionastooccasiontheemploymentofmore,notless,labourthanbefore。Ihavealreadycalledyourattentiontotheeffectsofmachineryinthemanufactureofcottonandinprinting。Eachofthese
  tradesprobablyemploystentimesasmanylabourersasitwouldhaveemployedifspinning—jenniesandtypeshadnotbeen
  invented。Undersuchcircumstances(andtheyaretheusualones),thebenefitsofmachineryarenotalloyedbyevenpartialinconvenience。Fifthly。Closelyconnectedwiththismistake,andoccasionedbythesamehabitofattendingonlytowhatistemporaryand
  partial,andneglectingwhatispermanentandgeneral;ofdwellingontheevilthatisconcentrated,andbeinginsensibleof
  thebenefitthatisdiffused,isthecommonerrorofsupposingthatthegeneralrateofwagescanbereducedbythe
  importationofforeigncommodities。Infacttheopeningofanewmarketispreciselyanalogoustotheintroductionofa
  newmachine,exceptthatitisamachinewhichitcostsnothingtoconstructortokeepup。Iftheforeigncommoditybenot
  consumedbythelabouringpopulation,itsintroductionleavesthegeneralrateofwagesunaffected;ifitbeusedbythem,
  theirwagesareraisedasestimatedinthatcommodity。IftheabsurdlawswhichfavourthewinesofPortugaltothe
  exclusionofthoseofFrancewererepealed,morelabourerswouldbeemployedinproducingcommoditiesfortheFrench
  market,andfewerforthePortuguese。Wageswouldtemporarilyfallintheonetrade,andriseintheother。Theclear
  benefitwouldbederivedbythedrinkersofwine,who,atthesameexpense,wouldobtainmoreandbetterwine。Soifwhat
  arccalledtheprotectingdutiesonFrenchsilkswereremoved,fewerlabourerswouldbeemployedinthedirectproduction
  ofsilk,andmoreinitsindirectproduction,bytheproductionofthecottons,orhardware,withwhichitwouldbe
  purchased。Thewearersofsilkwouldbetheonlyclassultimatelybenefited;andasthelaboutingpopulationneitherwear
  silknordrinkwine,thegeneralrateofwageswould,inbothcases,remainunaltered。Butifthelawswhichprohibitour
  obtainingonthemostadvantageoustermstea,andsugar,andcorn,werealtered,thatportionofthe。fundforthe
  maintenanceoflabour,whichconsistsofcorn,sugar,andtea,wouldbeincreased。Andthegeneralrateofwages,asestimatedinthethreemostimportantarticlesoffood,wouldberaised。Sixthly。TheviewswhichIhavebeenendeayouringtoexplain,areinconsistentwiththecommonopinion,thatthe
  unproductiveconsumptionoflandlordsandcapitalistsisbeneficialtothelabouringclasses,becauseitfurnishesthemwithemployment。Themaintainersofthistheorymustforgetthatitisnotemployment,butfood,clothing,shelter,andfuel——in
  short,thematerialsofsubsistenceandcomfort,thatthelabouringclassesrequire。Thewordemploymentismerelya
  conciseformofdesignatingtoil,trouble,exposure,andfatigue。Allthese,perse,areevils,andthelessofthemthatis
  requiredforobtainingagivenamountofsubsistenceandcomfort,——or,inotherwords,thegreaterthefacilityofobtaining
  thatgivenamount,——thebetter,caeterisparibus,willbetheconditionofthelabouringclasses;indeed,ofallclassesinthe
  community。Whatoccasionstheprosperityofacolony?Notthedearnessofsubsistence,butitscheapness;notthe
  difficultyofobtainingfood,clothing;shelter,andfuel,butthefacility。Nowhowcanunproductiveconsumptionincrease
  thisfacility?Howcanthefundfromwhichallaretobemaintainedbeaugmentedbythedestructionofaportionofit?If
  thehigherordersweretoreturntothecustomsofacenturyago,andcovertheircoatswithgoldlace,theymightenjoy
  theirownfinery;buthowwouldthatbenefittheirinferiors?ThetheorywhichIamconsidering,repliesthattheywouldbe
  benefitedbybeingemployedinmakingthelace。Itistruethatacoat,insteadofcosting5l。,wouldcost55l。Butwhat
  becomesnowoftheextra50l。?foritcannotbesaidthatbecauseitisnotspentonalacedcoat,itdoesnotexist。Ifa
  landlordwith10,000l。ayearspendsitunproductively,hepaysitawaytothosewhofurnishtheembellishmentsofhis
  houseandgrounds,andsupplyhisstable,hisequipage,andhisclothes。Supposehimnowtoabandonallunproductive
  expenditure,toconfinehimselftobarenecessaries,andtoearnthembyhisownlabour,thefirstconsequencewouldbe,
  thatthoseamongwhomhepreviouslyspenthis10,000l。ayearwouldlosehimasanemployer;andbeyondthisthetheory
  inquestionseesnothing。Butwhatwouldhedowiththe10,000l。whichhewouldstillannuallyreceive?Noonesupposes
  thathewouldlockitupinabox,orburyitinhisgarden。Whetherproductivelyorunproductively,itstillmustbespent。If
  spentbyhimself,asbythesuppositionitwouldbespentproductively,itmustincrease,andeveryyearstillfurtherincrease
  thewholefundapplicabletotheuseoftherestofthecommunity。Ifnotspentbyhimself,itmustbelenttosomeother
  person,andbythatpersonitmustbespentproductivelyorunproductively。Hemight,perhaps,buywithitpropertyinthe
  Englishfunds;butwhatbecomesofitinthehandsoftilepersonwhosellstohimthatfundedproperty?Hemightbuywith
  itFrenchrentes;butinwhatformwouldthepriceofthoserentesgotoParis?——Intheform,aswehaveseen,of
  manufacturedcommodities。Quacunqueviadata,everymanmustspendhisincome;andthelesshespendsonhimself,themoreremainsfortherestoftheworld。Thelasttheory,inconsistentwithmyownviews,towhichIshallcallyourattention,isthatproposedbyMr。Ricardointhefollowingpassage:——'Thelabouringclasshavenosmallinterestinthemannerinwhichthenetincomeofthecountryisexpended,althoughitshould,inallcases,beexpendedforthegratificationandenjoymentofthosewhoarefairlyentitledtoit。'Ifalandlord,oracapitalist,expendshisrevenueinthemannerofanancientbaron,inthesupportofagreatnumberof
  retainersormenialservants,hewillgiveemploymenttomuchmorelabourthanifheexpendeditonfineclothesorcostlyfurniture。'Inbothcasesthenetrevenuewouldbethesame,andsowouldbethegrossrevenue,buttheformerwouldberealizedin
  differentcommodities。Ifmyrevenuewere10,000l。,thesamequantitynearlyofproductivelabourwouldbeemployed,
  whetherIrealizeditinfineclothesandcostlyfurniture,etc。etc。,orin'aquantityoffoodandclothingofthesamevalue。If,
  however,Irealizedmyrevenueinthefirstsetofcommodities,nomorelabourwouldbeconsequentlyemployed:Ishould
  enjoymyfurnitureandmyclothes,andtherewouldbeanendofthem;butifIrealizedmyrevenueinfoodandclothing,
  andmydesirewastoemploymenialservants,allthosewhomIcouldsoemploywithmyrevenueof10,000l,orwiththe
  foodandclothingwhichitwouldpurchase,wouldbetobeaddedtotheformerdemandforlabourers,andthisaddition
  wouldtakeplaceonlybecauseIchosethismodeofexpendingmyrevenue。Asthelabourers,then,areinterestedinthe
  demandforlabour,theymustnaturallydesirethatasmuchaspossibleshouldbedivertedfromexpenditureonluxuries,tobeexpendedinthesupportofmenialservants。Inthesamemanneracountryengagedinwar,andwhichisunderthenecessityofmainmininglargefleetsandarmies,
  employsagreatmanymorementhanwillbeemployedwhenthewarterminates,andtheannualexpenseswhichitbringswithitcease。IfIwerenotcalleduponforataxof500l。duringthewar,whichisexpendedonmeninthesituationsofsoldiersand
  sailors,Imightprobablyspendthatportionofmyincomeonfurniture,clothes,books,etc。etc。,andwhetheritwas
  expendedintheonewayortheother,therewouldbethesamequantityoflabouremployedinproduction;forthefoodand
  clothingofthesoldierandsailorwouldrequirethesameamountofindustrytoproducethemasthemoreluxurious
  commodities:but,inthecaseofwar,therewouldbetheadditionaldemandformenassoldiersandsailors;and,
  consequently,awarwhichissupportedoutoftherevenue,andnotfromthecapitalofacountry,isfavourabletoanincreaseofpopulation。Attheterminationofthewar,whenpartofmyrevenuerevertstome,andisemployedasbeforeinthepurchaseofwine,
  furniture,orotherluxuries,thepopulationwhichitbeforesupported,andwhichthewarcalledintoexistence,willbecome
  redundant,andbyitseffectontherestofthepopulation,anditscompetitionwithitforemployment,willsinkthevalueofwages,andverymateriallydeterioratetheconditionofthelabouringclasses。'(4)Mr。Ricardo's。theoryis,thatitismorebeneficialtothelabouringclassestobeemployedintheproductionofservicesthan
  intheproductionofcommodities;thatitisbetterforthemtobeemployedinstandingbehindchairsthaninmakingchairs;
  assoldiersorsailorsthanasmanufacturers。Nowasitisclearthatthewholequantityofcommoditiesprovidedfortheuse
  oflabourersisnotincreasedbytheconversionofanartisanintoafootmanorasoldier,eitherMr。Ricardomustbewrong,ormyelementarypropositionisfalse。Mr。Ricardoseemstohavebeenledtohisconclusionsbyobservingthatthewagesofservants,sailors,andsoldiersare
  principallypaidinkind——thoseofartisansinmoney。Hecorrectlystates,thatifamanwith10,000l。a—yearspendshis
  incomeinthepurchaseofcommoditiesforhisownuse,heretains,afterhavingmadethosepurchases,nofurtherfundfor
  themaintenanceoflabour;butthatifhespendsitinthepurchaseofcommoditiestobeemployedinmaintainingmenial
  servants,hehas,inthosepurchasedcommodities,anewfundwithwhichhecanmaintainacertainnumberofmenial
  servants。Itappearedtohim,therefore,thatthelandlordwould,inthelattercase,beabletospendhisincometwiceover;
  tosubsisttwiceasmany。personsasbefore。Itdidnotoccurtohimthatthelandlord,bypurchasinghimselfthesubsistence
  ofhisservants,merelydoesforthemwhattheywouldbeabletodobetter。forthemselves;that,insteadofspendinghis
  ownincometwiceover,hemerelytakesonhimselfthebusinessofspendingtheirsforthem;(5)andthatifheweretogiveto
  hisservantsthevalueoftheirwholesubsistenceinmoney,thewholebodyoflabourerswouldbejustaswellmaintainedas
  inthesupposedcaseofhispurchasingtheirsubsistence,andthengivingittotheminexchangefortheirservices。Noone
  wouldmaintainthatifitwerethepractice,inthiscountry,asitisinIndia,togivetoservantsboardwages,thedemandfor
  labourwouldbelessened;orthatifitwerethepractice,asitisinsemi—barbarouscountries,tomaintainservantsto
  producewithintheirmasterswallsthecommoditieswhichweareaccustomedtopurchasefromshops,thedemandfor
  labourwouldbeincreased。Stilllesscoulditbe。maintained,thatifthoseservants,insteadofproducingcommodities,were
  employedinfollowingtheirmaster'sperson,ormountingguardbeforehisdoor,suchachangewouldcreateanadditionaldemandformen,andbefavourabletoanincreaseofpopulation。SofaramIfromconcurringinMr。Ricardo'sopinion,thatitistheinterestofthelabourersthatrevenueshouldbespent
  ratheronservicesthanoncommodities,thatIbelievetheirinteresttobepreciselyopposite。Inthefirstplace,thelabourer
  cangenerallymanagebetterhisownincomethanitcanbemanagedforhimbyhismaster。Ifadomesticservantcouldearn
  aswagesthewholesumwhichhecostshismaster,evenifheweretospenditashereceivedit,hewouldprobablyspendit
  withmoreenjoyment。Secondly,theincomespentonservicesisspentinthepurchaseofwhatperishesattheinstantofits
  creation;thatspentoncommoditiesoftenleavesresultswhich,whentheirfirstpurchaserhasdonewiththem,are
  serviceabletoothers。Inthiscountrythepoorare,toagreatextent,clothedwithgarmentsoriginallyprovidedfortheir
  superiors。Inallthebetterclassofcottagesmaybefoundarticlesoffurniturewhichnevercouldhavebeenmadefortheir
  presentpossessors。Alargeportionofthecommoditieswhichnowcontributetothecomfortofthelabouringclasseswould
  neverhaveexisted,ifithadbeenthefashioninthiscountry,duringthelastfiftyyears,topreferretinueandattendanceto
  durablecommodities。And,thirdly,theincomeemployedoncommoditiesisfavourabletothecreationofbothmaterialand
  immaterialcapital;thatemployedonservicesisnot。Thedutiesofaservantaresoeasilylearned,thathecanscarcelybe
  termedaskilledlabourer:hisaccumulationsaresmallinamount,andseldomturnedtomuchadvantage。Theartisanlearns
  atrade,inwhicheveryyearaddstohisskill,andistaughtmechanicalandchemicalprocesses,oftensusceptibleof
  indefiniteimprovement,andinwhichasingleinventionmayraisetheauthortowealth,anddiffuseprosperityoverawhole
  district,orevenawholenation。Anindustriousartisancanoftensavealargeportionofhisincome,andinvestitwithgreat
  andimmediateprofit。Hepurchaseswithhissavingsasmallstockoftoolsandmaterials,andbythevigilanceandactivity
  whichcanbeappliedonlytoasmallcapital,renderseveryportionofitefficient。Theancestors,andnottheremote
  ancestors,ofsomeofourrichestandourproudestfamilies,theauthorsofsomeofourmostvaluablediscoveries,were
  commonmechanics。Whatmenialservanthasinthiscountry,andinmoderntimes,beenapublicbenefactor,orevenraised
  himselftoaffluence?Bothhistoryandobservationshowthatthosecountriesinwhichexpenditureischieflyemployedinthepurchaseofservicesarepoor,andthoseinwhichitisemployedoncommoditiesarerich。Mr。Ricardo'stheoryastotheeffectsofwarisstillmorestrikinglyerroneous。Itis,inthefirstplace,opentoallthe
  objectionswhichIhavealreadyopposedtohisviewsrespectingmenialservants。Therevenuewhichisemployedin
  maintainingsoldiersandsailorswould,evenifunproductivelyconsumed,maintainatleastanequalnumberofservantsand
  artisans;andthatportionofitwhichwouldhavebeenemployedinthemaintenanceofartisanswould(aswehaveseen)
  havebeenfarmorebeneficiallyemployed。Thedemandforsoldiersandsailorsisnot,ashetermsit,anadditional,itis
  merelyasubstituteddemand。Butagreatpartofthatrevenuewouldhavebeenproductivelyconsumed。Insteadof
  employingsomelabourersinconvertingsuburbsintofortifications,andforestsintonavies,toperishbydryrotinharbour,orbyexposure。atsea,andothersinwalkingthedeckandparadingontherampart,itwouldhaveemployedtheminaddingmoreandmore
  everyyeartothefundfromwhichtheirsubsistenceisderived。Warismischievoustoeveryclassinthecommunity;butto
  noneisitsuch。acurseastothelabourers。
  THEEND。
  NOTES:
  1。Thisisoneofthemodesinwhichslaverymaybeextinguished,butitisadreadfulabuseoflanguagetocalliteuthanasia。
  2。SeeMr。WilmotHorton's'CausesandRemediesofPauperism,'fourthseries。
  HieetiamfatisaperitCassandrafuturisOraDeijussunonunquamcreditaTeucris。3。Andyetitappearsnowtobethought,thatwagesmayberaisedbythedestructionor(whatisthesameinimmediate
  effect)thedisuseofmachinesalreadyconstructed。
  4。Principles,etc。,p。475。5。Hedidnotperceivethatallthatthelandlordspendsinpurchasingthesubsistenceandclothingofhisservantsissomuch
  deductedfromwhathewouldotherwisehavetopaytheminmoney。