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。