[3]"Thewagesoflabourdependuponthepriceoflabourandthequantityoflabourperformed……Anincreaseinthewagesoflabourdoesnotnecessarilyimplyanenhancementofthepriceoflabour。Fromfulleremployment，andgreaterexertions，thewagesoflabourmaybeconsiderablyincreased，whilethepriceoflabourmaycontinuethesame。"（West，op。cit。，pp。67，68，112。）Themainquestion:"Howisthepriceoflabourdetermined？"West，however，dismisseswithmerebanalities。
　　[4]Thisisperceivedbythefanaticalrepresentativeoftheindustrialbourgeoisieofthe18thcentury，theauthorofthe"EssayonTradeandCommerce"oftenquotedbyus，althoughheputsthematterinaconfusedway:"Itisthequantityoflabourandnotthepriceofit"（hemeansbythisthenominaldailyorweeklywages）"thatisdeterminedbythepriceofprovisionsandothernecessaries:reducethepriceofnecessariesverylow，andofcourseyoureducethequantityoflabourinproportion。Mastermanufacturersknowthattherearevariouswaysofraisingandfellingthepriceoflabour，besidesthatofalteringitsnominalamount。"（op。cit。，pp。48，61。）Inhis"ThreeLecturesontheRateofWages，"London，1830，inwhichN。W。
　　SeniorusesWest’sworkwithoutmentioningit，hesays:"Thelabourerisprincipallyinterestedintheamountofwages"（p。14），thatistosay，thelabourerisprincipallyinterestedinwhathereceives，thenominalsumofhiswages，notinthatwhichhegives，theamountoflabour！
　　[5]Theeffectofsuchanabnormallesseningofemploymentisquitedifferentfromthatofageneralreductionoftheworking—day，enforcedbylaw。Theformerhasnothingtodowiththeabsolutelengthoftheworking—day，andmayoccurjustaswellinaworking—dayof15，asof6hours。Thenormalpriceoflabourisinthefirstcasecalculatedonthelabourerworking15hours，inthesecondcaseonhisworking6hoursadayontheaverage。
　　Theresultisthereforethesame，ifheintheonecaseisemployedonlyfor71/2，intheotheronlyfor3hours。
　　[6]"Therateofpaymentforovertime（inlace—making）issosmall，from1/2
　　d。and3/4d。to2d。perhour，thatitstandsinpainfulcontrasttotheamountofinjuryproducedtothehealthandstaminaoftheworkpeople……
　　Thesmallamountthusearnedisalsooftenobligedtobespentinextranourishment。"（"Child。Empl。Com。，II。Rep。，"p。xvi。，n。117。）
　　[7]E。g。，inpaper—stainingbeforetherecentintroductionintothistradeoftheFactoryAct。"Weworkonwithnostoppageformeals，sothattheday’sworkof101/2hoursisfinishedby4:30p。m。，andallafterthatisover—time，andweseldomleaveoffworkingbefore6p。m。，sothatwearereallyworkingover—timethewholeyearround。"（Mr。Smith’s"EvidenceinChild。Empl。Com。，1。Rep。，"p。125。）
　　[8]E。g。，intheScotchbleaching—works。"InsomepartsofScotlandthistrade"
　　（beforetheintroductionoftheFactoryActin1862）"wascarriedonbyasystemofover—time，i。e。，tenhoursadayweretheregularhoursofwork，forwhichanominalwageof1s。2d。perdaywaspaidtoaman，therebeingeverydayover—timeforthreeorfourhours，paidattherateof3d。perhour。Theeffectofthissystem……amancouldnotearnmorethan8s。perweekwhenworkingtheordinaryhours……withoutover—timetheycouldnotearnafairday’swages。"（"Rept。ofInsp。ofFactories，"April30th，1863，p。10。）"Thehigherwages，forgettingadultmalestoworklongerhours，areatemptationtoostrongtoberesisted。"（"Rept。ofInsp。
　　ofFact。，"April30th，1848，p。5。）Thebook—bindingtradeinthecityofLondonemploysverymanyyounggirlsfrom14toI5yearsold，andthatunderindentureswhichprescribecertaindefinitehoursoflabour。Nevertheless，theyworkinthelastweekofeachmonthuntil10，11，12，or1o’clockatnight，alongwiththeolderlabourers，inaverymixedcompany。"Themasterstemptthembyextrapayandsupper，"whichtheyeatinneighboringpublichouses。Thegreatdebaucherythusproducedamongthese"youngimmortals"
　　（"Children’sEmploymentComm。，V。Rept。，"p。44，n。191）iscompensatedbythefactthatamongtherestmanyBiblesandreligiousbooksareboundbythem。
　　[9]See"Reportsoflnsp。ofFact。，"30thApril，1863，p。10。Withveryaccurateappreciationofthestateofthings，theLondonlabourersemployedinthebuildingtradesdeclared，duringthegreatstrikeandlock—outof1860，thattheywouldonlyacceptwagesbythehourundertwoconditions:（1），that，withthepriceoftheworking—hour，anormalworkingdayof9and10hoursrespectivelyshouldbefixed，andthatthepriceofthehourforthe10hours，working—dayshouldbehigherthanthatforthehourofthe9hoursworking—day;（2），thateveryhourbeyondthenormalworking—dayshouldbereckonedasover—timeandproportionallymorehighlypaid。
　　[10]"Itisaverynotablething，too，thatwherelonghoursaretherule，smallwagesarealsoso。"（"ReportofInsp。ofFact。，"31st。Oct。，1863，p。9。）
　　"Theworkwhichobtainsthescantypittanceoffood，is，forthemostpart，excessivelyprolonged。"（"PublicHealth，SixthReport，"1864，p。15。）
　　[11]"ReportofInspectorsofFact。，"30thApril，1860，pp。31，32。
　　[12]Thehandnail—makersinEngland，e。g。，have，onaccountofthelowpriceoflabour，towork15hoursadayinordertohammerouttheirmiserableweeklywage。"It’sagreatmanyhoursinaday（6a。m。to8p。m。），andhehastoworkhardallthetimetogetIId。orIs。，andthereisthewearofthetools，thecostoffiring，andsomethingforwasteirontogooutofthis，whichtakesoffaltogether21/2d。or3d。"（"Children’sEmploymentCom。，III。Report，"p。136，n。671。）Thewomenearnbythesameworking—timeaweek’swageofonly5shillings。（l。c。，p。137，n。674。）
　　[13]Ifafactory—hand，e。g。，refusedtoworkthecustomarylonghours，"hewouldveryshortlybereplacedbysomebodywhowouldworkanylengthoftime，andthusbethrownoutofemployment。"（"ReportsofInspectorsofFactories，"30thApril，1848。Evidence，p。39，n。58。）"Ifonemanperformstheworkoftwo……therateofprofitswillgenerallyberaised……inconsequenceoftheadditionalsupplyoflabourhavingdiminisheditsprice。"
　　（Senior，l。c。，p。15。）
　　[14]"Children’sEmploymentCom。，IIIRep。，"Evidence，p。66，n。22。
　　[15]"Report，&tc。，RelativetotheGrievancesComplainedofbytheJourneymenBakers。"London，1862，p。411，andib。Evidence，notes479，359，27。Anyhowthefull—pricedbakers，aswasmentionedabove，andastheirspokesman，Bennett，himselfadmits，maketheirmen"generallybeginworkat11p。m……upto8o’clockthenextmorning……Theyarethenengagedalldaylong……aslateas7o’clockintheevening。"（l。c。，p。22。）
　　ChapterTwenty—OneKarlMarxCapitalVolumeOnePartVI:
　　WagesCHAPTERTWENTY—ONE:
　　PIECE—WAGES
　　Wagesbythepiecearenothingelsethanaconvertedformofwagesbytime，justaswagesbytimeareaconvertedformofthevalueorpriceoflabour—power。
　　Inpiece—wagesitseemsatfirstsightasiftheuse—valueboughtfromthelabourerwas，notthefunctionofhislabour—power，livinglabour，butlabouralreadyrealizedintheproduct，andasifthepriceofthislabourwasdetermined，notaswithtime—wages，bythefractiondailyvalueoflabour—power棗棗棗棗棗棗棗棗棗棗？
　　theworkingdayofagivennumberofhoursbutbythecapacityforworkofproducer。[1]
　　Theconfidencethattrustsinthisappearanceoughttoreceiveafirstsevereshockfromthefactthatbothformsofwagesexistsidebyside，simultaneously，inthesamebranchesofindustry;e。g。，"thecompositorsofLondon，asageneralrule，workbythepiece，time—workbeingtheexception，whilethoseinthecountryworkbytheday，theexceptionbeingworkbythepiece。TheshipwrightsoftheportofLondonworkbythejoborpiece，whilethoseofallotherpartsworkbytheday。"[2]
　　InthesamesaddleryshopsofLondon，oftenforthesamework，piece—wagesarepaidtotheFrench，time—wagestotheEnglish。Intheregularfactoriesinwhichthroughoutpiece—wagespredominate，particularkindsofworkareunsuitabletothisformofwage，andarethereforepaidbytime。[3]Butitis，moreover，self—evidentthatthedifferenceofforminthepaymentofwagesaltersinnowaytheiressentialnature，althoughtheoneformmaybemorefavorabletothedevelopmentofcapitalistproductionthantheother。
　　Lettheordinaryworking—daycontain12hoursofwhich6arepaid，6
　　unpaid。Letitsvalue—productbe6shillings，thatofonehour’slabourtherefore6d。Letussupposethat，astheresultofexperience，alabourerwhoworkswiththeaverageamountofintensityandskill，who，therefore，givesinfactonlythetimesociallynecessarytotheproductionofanarticle，suppliesin12hours24pieces，eitherdistinctproductsormeasurablepartsofacontinuouswhole。Thenthevalueofthese24pieces，after。
　　subtractionoftheportionofconstantcapitalcontainedinthem，is6
　　shillings，andthevalueofasinglepiece3d。Thelabourerreceives1
　　1/2d。perpiece，andthusearnsin12hours3shillings。Justas，withtime—wages，itdoesnotmatterwhetherweassumethatthelabourerworks6hoursforhimselfand6hoursforthecapitalist，orhalfofeveryhourforhimself，andtheotherhalfforthecapitalist，sohereitdoesnotmatterwhetherwesaythateachindividualpieceishalfpaid，andhalfunpaidfor，orthatthepriceof12piecesistheequivalentonlyofthevalueofthelabour—power，whilstintheother12piecessurplus—valueisincorporated。
　　Theformofpiece—wagesisjustasirrationalasthatoftime—wages。
　　Whilstinourexampletwopiecesofacommodity，aftersubtractionofthevalueofthemeansofproductionconsumedinthem，areworth6d。asbeingtheproductofonehour，thelabourerreceivesforthemapriceof3d。
　　Piece—wagesdonot，infact，distinctlyexpressanyrelationofvalue。
　　Itisnot，therefore，aquestionofmeasuringthevalueofthepiecebytheworking—timeincorporatedinit，butonthecontrary，ofmeasuringtheworking—timethelabourerhasexpendedbythenumberofpieceshehasproduced。Intime—wages，thelabourismeasuredbyitsimmediateduration;
　　inpiece—wages，bythequantityofproductsinwhichthelabourhasembodieditselfduringagiventime。[4]Thepriceoflabourtimeitselfisfinallydeterminedbytheequation:
　　valueofaday’slabour=dailyvalueoflabour—power。Piece—wageis，therefore，onlyamodifiedformoftime—wage。
　　Letusnowconsideralittlemorecloselythecharacteristicpeculiaritiesofpiece—wages。
　　Thequalityofthelabourisherecontrolledbytheworkitself，whichmustbeofaverageperfectionifthepiece—priceistobepaidinfull。
　　Piece—wagesbecome，fromthispointofview，themostfruitfulsourceofreductionsofwagesandcapitalisticcheating。
　　Theyfurnishtothecapitalistanexactmeasurefortheintensityoflabour。Onlytheworking—timewhichisembodiedinaquantumofcommoditiesdeterminedbeforehand，andexperimentallyfixed，countsassociallynecessaryworking—time，andispaidassuch。InthelargerworkshopsoftheLondontailors，therefore，acertainpieceofwork，awaistcoat，e。g。，iscalledanhour，orhalfanhour，thehourat6d。Bypracticeitisknownhowmuchistheaverageproductofonehour。Withnewfashions，repairs，&tc。，acontestarisesbetweenmasterandlabourerastowhetheraparticularpieceofworkisonehour，andsoon，untilherealsoexperiencedecides。
　　SimilarlyintheLondonfurnitureworkshops，&tc。Ifthelabourerdoesnotpossesstheaveragecapacity，ifhecannotinconsequencesupplyacertainminimumofworkperday，heisdismissed。[5]
　　Sincethequalityandintensityoftheworkareherecontrolledbytheformofwageitself，superintendenceoflabourbecomesingreatpartsuperfluous。
　　Piece—wagesthereforelaythefoundationofthemodern"domesticlabour，"
　　describedabove，aswellasofahierarchicallyorganizedsystemofexploitationandoppression。Thelatterhastwofundamentalforms。Ontheonehand，piece—wagesfacilitatetheinterpositionofparasitesbetweenthecapitalistandthewage—labourer，the"sub—lettingoflabour。"Thegainofthesemiddlemencomesentirelyfromthedifferencebetweenthelabour—pricewhichthecapitalistpays，andthepartofthatpricewhichtheyactuallyallowtoreachthelabourer。[6]InEnglandthissystemischaracteristicallycalledthe"sweatingsystem。"Ontheotherhand，piece—wageallowsthecapitalisttomakeacontractforsomuchperpiecewiththeheadlabourer—inmanufactureswiththechiefofsomegroup，inmineswiththeextractorofthecoal，inthefactorywiththeactualmachine—worker？atapriceforwhichtheheadlabourerhimselfundertakestheenlistingandpaymentofhisassistantworkpeople。Theexploitationofthelabourerbycapitalishereeffectedthroughtheexploitationofthelabourerbythelabourer;[7]
　　Givenpiece—wage，itisnaturallythepersonalinterestofthelabourertostrainhislabour—powerasintenselyaspossible;thisenablesthecapitalisttoraisemoreeasilythenormaldegreeofintensityoflabour。[8]Itismoreovernowthepersonalinterestofthelabourertolengthentheworking—day，sincewithithisdailyorweeklywagesrise。[9]Thisgraduallybringsonareactionlikethatalreadydescribedintime—wages，withoutreckoningthattheprolongationoftheworking—day，evenifthepiecewageremainsconstant，includesofnecessityafallinthepriceofthelabour。
　　Intime—wages，withfewexceptions，thesamewageholdsforthesamekindofwork，whilstinpiece—wages，thoughthepriceoftheworkingtimeismeasuredbyacertainquantityofproduct，theday’sorweek’swagewillvarywiththeindividualdifferencesofthelabourers，ofwhomonesuppliesinagiventimetheminimumofproductonly，anothertheaverage，athirdmorethantheaverage。Withregardtoactualreceiptsthereis，therefore，greatvarietyaccordingtothedifferentskill，strength，energy，staying—power，&tc。，oftheindividuallabourers。[10]Ofcoursethisdoesnotalterthegeneralrelationsbetweencapitalandwage—labour。First，theindividualdifferencesbalanceoneanotherintheworkshopasawhole，whichthussuppliesinagivenworking—timetheaverageproduct，andthetotalwagespaidwillbetheaveragewagesofthatparticularbranchofindustry。Second，theproportionbetweenwagesandsurplus—valueremainsunaltered，sincethemassofsurpluslaboursuppliedbyeachparticularlabourercorrespondswiththewagereceivedbyhim。Butthewiderscopethatpiece—wagegivestoindividualitytendstodevelopontheonehandthatindividuality，andwithitthesenseofliberty，independence，andself—controlofthelabourers，andontheother，theircompetitiononewithanother。Piece—workhas，therefore，atendency，whileraisingindividualwagesabovetheaverage，tolowerthisaverageitself。Butwhereaparticularrateofpiece—wagehasforalongtimebeenfixedbytradition，anditslowering，therefore，presentedespecialdifficulties，themasters，insuchexceptionalcases，sometimeshadrecoursetoitscompulsorytransformationintotime—wages。
　　Hence，e。g。，in1860agreatstrikeamongtheribbon—weaversofCoventry。[11]Piece—wageisfinallyoneofthechiefsupportsofthehour—systemdescribedintheprecedingchapter。[12]
　　Fromwhathasbeenshownsofar，itfollowsthatpiece—wageistheformofwagesmostinharmonywiththecapitalistmodeofproduction。Althoughbynomeansnew？itfiguressidebysidewithtime—wagesofficiallyintheFrenchandEnglishlabourstatutesofthe14thcentury？itonlyconquersalargerfieldforactionduringtheperiodofmanufacture，properlyso—called。
　　Inthestormyyouthofmodernindustry，especiallyfrom1797to1815，itservedasaleverforthelengtheningoftheworking—day，andtheloweringofwages。VeryimportantmaterialsforthefluctuationofwagesduringthatperiodaretobefoundintheBluebooks:"ReportandEvidencefromtheSelectCommitteeonPetitionsrespectingtheCornLaws"（ParliamentarySessionof1813—14），and"ReportfromtheLords’Committee，ontheStateoftheGrowth，Commerce，andConsumptionofGrain，andallLawsrelatingthereto"（Sessionof1814—15p;Herewefinddocumentaryevidenceoftheconstantloweringofthepriceoflabourfromthebeginningoftheanti—JacobinWar。Intheweavingindustry，e。g。，piece—wageshadfallensolowthat，inspiteoftheverygreatlengtheningoftheworking—day，thedailywageswerethenlowerthanbefore。"Therealearningsofthecottonweaverarenowfarlessthantheywere;hissuperiorityoverthecommonlabourer，whichatfirstwasverygreat，hasnowalmostentirelyceased。Indeed……thedifferenceinthewagesofskillfulandcommonlabourisfarlessnowthanatanyformerperiod。"[13]Howlittletheincreasedintensityandextensionoflabourthroughpiece—wagesbenefitedtheagriculturalproletariat，thefollowingpassageborrowedfromaworkonthesideofthelandlordsandfarmersshows:"Byfarthegreaterpartofagriculturaloperationsisdonebypeoplewhoarehiredforthedayoronpiece—work。Theirweeklywagesareabout12s。，andalthoughitmaybeassumedthatamanearnsonpiece—workunderthegreaterstimulustolabour，1s。orperhaps2s。morethanonweeklywages，yetitisfound，oncalculatinghistotalincome，thathislossofemployment，duringtheyear，outweighsthisgain……Further，itwillgenerallybefoundthatthewagesofthesemenbearacertainproportiontothepriceofthenecessarymeansofsubsistence，sothatamanwithtwochildrenisabletobringuphisfamilywithoutrecoursetoparishrelief。"[14]MalthusatthattimeremarkedwithreferencetothefactspublishedbyParliament:
　　"IconfessthatIsee，withmisgiving，thegreatextensionofthepracticeofpiece—wage。Reallyhardworkduring12or14hoursoftheday，orforanylongertime，istoomuchforanyhumanbeing。"[15]
　　IntheworkshopsundertheFactoryActs，piece—wagesbecomethegeneralrule，becausecapitalcanthereonlyincreasetheefficacyoftheworking—daybyintensifyinglabour。[16]
　　Withthechangingproductivenessoflabourthesamequantumofproductrepresentsavaryingworking—time。Therefore，piece—wagealsovaries，foritisthemoneyexpressionofadeterminedworking—time。Inourexampleabove，24pieceswereproducedin12hours，whilstthevalueoftheproductofthe12hourswas6s。，thedailyvalueofthelabour—power3s。，thepriceofthelabour—hour3d。，andthewageforonepiece1/2d。Inonepiecehalf—an—hour’slabourwasabsorbed。Ifthesameworking—daynowsupplies，inconsequenceofthedoubledproductivenessoflabour，48piecesinsteadof24，andallothercircumstancesremainunchanged，thenthepiece—wagefallsfrom11/2d。to3/4d。，aseverypiecenowonlyrepresents1/4，insteadof1/2ofaworking—hour。24by11/2d。=3s。，andinlikemanner48by3/4d。=3s。Inotherwords，piece—wageisloweredinthesameproportionasthenumberofthepiecesproducedinthesametimerises，[17]and，therefore，astheworkingtimespentonthesamepiecefalls。Thischangeinpiece—wage，sofarpurelynominal，leadstoconstantbattlesbetweencapitalistandlabour。Eitherbecausethecapitalistusesitasapretextforactuallyloweringthepriceoflabour，orbecauseincreasedproductivepoweroflabourisaccompaniedbyanincreasedintensityofthesame。Orbecausethelabourertakesseriouslytheappearanceofpiece—wages（viz。，thathisproductispaidfor，andnothislabour—power）andthereforerevoltsagainstaloweringofwages，unaccompaniedbyaloweringinthesellingpriceofthecommodity。"Theoperatives……carefullywatchthepriceoftherawmaterialandthepriceofmanufacturedgoods，andarethusenabledtoformanaccurateestimateoftheirmaster’sprofits。"[18]
　　Thecapitalistrightlyknocksontheheadsuchpretensionsasgrosserrorsastothenatureofwage—labour。[19]Hecriesoutagainstthisusurpingattempttolaytaxesontheadvanceofindustry，anddeclaresroundlythattheproductivenessoflabourdoesnotconcernthelaboureratall。[20]
　　Footnotes[1]"Thesystemofpiece—workillustratesanepochinthehistoryoftheworking—man;
　　itishalfwaybetweenthepositionofthemereday—labourerdependinguponthewillofthecapitalistandtheco—operativeartisan，whointhenotdistantfuturepromisestocombinetheartisanandthecapitalistinhisownperson。Piece—workersareinfacttheirownmasters，evenwhilstworkinguponthecapitaloftheemployer。"（JohnWatts:"TradeSocietiesandStrikes，MachineryandCo—operativeSocieties。"Manchester，1865，pp。52，53。）I
　　quotethislittleworkbecauseitisaverysinkofalllong—ago—rotten，apologeticcommonplaces。ThissameMr。WattsearliertradedinOwenismandpublishedin1842anotherpamphlet:"FactsandFictionsofPoliticalEconomists，"inwhichamongotherthingshedeclaresthat"propertyisrobbery。"Thatwaslongago。
　　[2]T。J。Dunning:"Trades’UnionsandStrikes，"Lond。，1860，p。22。
　　[3]Howtheexistence，sidebysideandsimultaneously，ofthesetwoformsofwagefavorsthemasters’cheating:"Afactoryemploys400people，thehalfofwhichworkbythepiece，andhaveadirectinterestinworkinglongerhours。Theother200arepaidbytheday，workequallylongwiththeothers，andgetnomoremoneyfortheirover—time……Theworkofthese200peopleforhalfanhouradayisequaltooneperson’sworkfor50
　　hours，or5/6’sofoneperson’slabourinaweek，andisapositivegaintotheemployer。"（"ReportsofInsp。ofFact。，31stOct。，1860，"p。9。）
　　"Over—workingtoaveryconsiderableextentstillprevails;and，inmostinstances，withthatsecurityagainstdetectionandpunishmentwhichthelawitselfaffords。Ihaveinmanyformerreportsshown……theinjurytoworkpeoplewhoarenotemployedonpiece—work，butreceiveweeklywages。"
　　（LeonardHornerin"ReportsofInsp。ofFact。，"30thApril，1859，pp。8，9。）
　　[4]"Wagescanbemeasuredintwoways:eitherbythedurationofthelabour，orbyitsproduct。"（"Abregee1ementairedesprincipesdel’economiepolitique。"
　　Paris，1796，p。32。）Theauthorofthisanonymouswork:G。Garnier。
　　[5]"Somuchweightofcottonisdeliveredtohim"（thespinner），"andhehastoreturnbyacertaintime，inlieuofit，agivenweightoftwistoryarn，ofacertaindegreeoffineness，andheispaidsomuchperpoundforallthathesoreturns。Ifhisworkisdefectiveinquality，thepenaltyfallsonhim，iflessinquantitythantheminimumfixedforagiventime，heisdismissedandanableroperativeprocured。"（Ure，l。c。，p。317。）
　　[6]"Itiswhenworkpassesthroughseveralhands，eachofwhichistotakeitsshareofprofits，whileonlythelastdoesthework，thatthepaywhichreachestheworkwomanismiserablydisproportioned。"（"Child。Emp。Comm。
　　IIReport，"p。1xx。，n。424。）
　　[7]EvenWatts，theapologetic，remarks:"Itwouldbeagreatimprovementtothesystemofpiece—work，ifallthemenemployedonajobwerepartnersinthecontract，eachaccordingtohisabilities，insteadofonemanbeinginterestedinover—workinghisfellowsforhisownbenefit。"（l。c。，p。
　　53。）Onthevilenessofthissystem，cf。"Child。Emp。Comm。，Rep。III。，"
　　p。66，n。22，p。11，n。124，p。xi，n。13，53，59，&tc。
　　[8]Thisspontaneousresultisoftenartificiallyhelpedalong，e。g。，intheEngineeringTradeofLondon，acustomarytrickis"theselectingofamanwhopossessessuperiorphysicalstrengthandquickness，astheprincipalofseveralworkmen，andpayinghimanadditionalrate，bythequarterorotherwise，withtheunderstandingthatheistoexerthimselftotheutmosttoinducetheothers，whoareonlypaidtheordinarywages，tokeepuptohim……withoutanycommentthiswillgofartoexplainmanyofthecomplaintsofstintingtheaction，superiorskill，andworking—power，madebytheemployersagainstthemen"（inTrades—Unions。Dunning，l。c。，pp。
　　22，23）。AstheauthorishimselfalabourerandsecretaryofaTrades’
　　Union，thismightbetakenforexaggeration。Butthereadermaycomparethe"highlyrespectable""CyclopediaofAgriculture"ofJ。C。Morton，Art。，thearticle"Labourer，"wherethismethodisrecommendedtothefarmersasanapprovedone。
　　[9]"Allthosewhoarepaidbypiece—work……profitbythetransgressionofthelegallimitsofwork。Thisobservationastothewillingnesstoworkover—timeisespeciallyapplicabletothewomenemployedasweaversandreelers。"（"Rept。ofInsp。ofFact。，30thApril，1858，"p。9。）"Thissystem"
　　（piece—work），"soadvantageoustotheemployer……tendsdirectlytoencouragetheyoungpottergreatlytoover—workhimselfduringthefourorfiveyearsduringwhichheisemployedinthepiece—worksystem，butatlowwages……
　　Thisis……anothergreatcausetowhichthebadconstitutionsofthepottersaretobeattributed。"（"Child。Empl。Comm。1。Rept。，"p。xiii。）
　　[10]"Wheretheworkinanytradeispaidforbythepieceatsomuchperjob……wagesmayverymateriallydifferinamount……Butinworkbythedaythereisgenerallyanuniformrate……recognizedbybothemployerandemployedasthestandardofwagesforthegeneralrunofworkmeninthetrade。"（Dunning，l。c。，p。17。）
　　[11]"Theworkofthejourneyman—artisanswillberuledbythedayorbythepiece。Thesemaster—artisansknowabouthowmuchworkajourneyman—artisancandoperdayineachcraft，andoftenpaytheminproportiontotheworkwichtheydo;thejourneymen，therefore，workasmuchastheycan，intheirowninterest，withoutanyfurtherinspection。"（Cantillon，"EssaisurlaNatureduCommerceengeneral，"Amst。Ed。，1756，pp。185and202。
　　Thefirsteditionappearedin1755。）Cantillon，fromwhomQuesnay，SirJamesSteuart&A。Smithhavelargelydrawn，alreadyhererepresentspiece—wageassimplyamodifiedformoftime—wage。TheFrencheditionofCantillonprofessesinitstitletobeatranslationfromtheEnglish，buttheEnglishedition:"TheAnalysisofTrade，Commerce，&tc。，"byPhilipCantillon，lateofthecityofLondon，Merchant，isnotonlyoflaterdate（1759），butprovesbyitscontentsthatitisalaterandrevisededition:e。g。，intheFrenchedition，Humeisnotyetmentioned，whilstintheEnglish，ontheotherhand，Pettyhardlyfiguresanylonger。TheEnglisheditionistheoreticallylessimportant，butitcontainsnumerousdetailsreferringspecificallytoEnglishcommerce，bulliontrade，&tc。，thatarewantingintheFrenchtext。Thewordsonthetitle—pageoftheEnglishedition，accordingtowhichtheworkis"takenchieflyfromthemanuscriptofaveryingeniousgentleman，deceased，andadapted，&tc。，"
　　seem，therefore，apurefiction，verycustomaryatthattime。
　　[12]"Howoftenhaveweseen，insomeworkshops，manymoreworkersrecruitedthantheworkactuallycalledfor？Onmanyoccasions，workersarerecruitedinanticipationoffuturework，whichmaynevermaterialize。Becausetheyarepaidbypiece—wages，itissaidthatnoriskisincurred，sinceanylossoftimewillbechargedagainsttheunemployed。"（H。Gregoir:"LesTypographesdevantleTribunalcorrectionneldeBruxelles，"Brusseles，1865，p。9。）
　　[13]"RemarksontheCommercialPolicyofGreatBritain，"London，1815。
　　[14]"ADefenseoftheLandownersandFarmersofGreatBritain，"1814，pp。4，5。
　　[15]Malthus，"InquiryintotheNatureandProgressofRent，"Lond。，1815。
　　[16]"Thosewhoarepaidbypiece—work……constituteprobablyfour—fifthsoftheworkersinthefactories。""ReportofInsp。ofFact。，"30thApril，1858。
　　[17]"Theproductivepowerofhisspinning—machineisaccuratelymeasured，andtherateofpayforworkdonewithitdecreaseswith，thoughnotas，theincreaseofitsproductivepower。"（Ure，l。c。，p。317。）ThislastapologeticphraseUrehimselfagaincancels。Thelengtheningofthemulecausessomeincreaseoflabour，headmits。Thelabourdoesthereforenotdiminishinthesameratioasitsproductivityincreases。Further:"Bythisincreasetheproductivepowerofthemachinewillbeaugmentedone—fifth。Whenthiseventhappensthespinnerwillnotbepaidatthesamerateforworkdoneashewasbefore，butasthatratewillnotbediminishedintheratioofone—fifth，theimprovementwillaugmenthismoneyearningsforanygivennumberofhours’work，"but"theforegoingstatementrequiresacertainmodification……Thespinnerhastopaysomethingadditionalforjuvenileaidoutofhisadditionalsixpence，accompaniedbydisplacingaportionofadults"（l。c。，p。321），whichhasinnowayatendencytoraisewages。
　　[18]H。Fawcett:"TheEconomicPositionoftheBritishlabourer。"CambridgeandLondon，1865，p。178。
　　[19]Inthe"LondonStandard"ofOctober26，1861，thereisareportofproceedingsofthefirmofJohnBright&Co。，beforetheRochdalemagistrates"toprosecuteforintimidationtheagentsoftheCarpetWeaversTrades’Union。
　　Bright’spartnershadintroducednewmachinerywhichwouldturnout240
　　yardsofcarpetinthetimeandwiththelabour（！）previouslyrequiredtoproduce160yards。Theworkmenhadnoclaimwhatevertoshareintheprofitsmadebytheinvestmentoftheiremployer’scapitalinmechanicalimprovements。Accordingly，Messrs。Brightproposedtolowertherateofpayfrom11/2d。peryardto1d。，leavingtheearningsofthemenexactlythesameasbeforeforthesamelabour。Buttherewasanominalreduction，ofwhichtheoperatives，itisasserted，hadnotfairwarningbeforehand。"
　　[20]"Trades’Unions，intheirdesiretomaintainwages，endeavortoshareinthebenefitsofimprovedmachinery。"（Quellehorreur！）"……thedemandinghigherwages，becauselabourisabbreviated，isinotherwordstheendeavortoestablishadutyonmechanicalimprovements。"（"OnCombinationofTrades，"
　　newed。，London，1834，p。42。）
　　ChapterTwenty—TwoKarlMarxCapitalVolumeOnePartVI:
　　WagesCHAPTERTWENTY—TWO:
　　NATIONALDIFFERENCESOFWAGES
　　Inthe17thchapterwewereoccupiedwiththemanifoldcombinationswhichmaybringaboutachangeinmagnitudeofthevalueoflabour—power？thismagnitudebeingconsideredeitherabsolutelyorrelatively，i。e。，ascomparedwithsurplus—value;whilstontheotherhand，thequantumofthemeansofsubsistenceinwhichthepriceoflabourisrealizedmightagainundergofluctuationsindependentof，ordifferentfrom，thechangesofthisprice;[1]Ashasbeenalreadysaid，thesimpletranslationofthevalue，orrespectivelyoftheprice，oflabour—powerintotheexotericformofwagestransformsalltheselawsintolawsofthefluctuationsofwages。Thatwhichappearsinthesefluctuationsofwageswithinasinglecountryasaseriesofvaryingcombinations，mayappearindifferentcountriesascontemporaneousdifferenceofnationalwages。Inthecomparisonofthewagesindifferentnations，wemustthereforetakeintoaccountallthefactorsthatdeterminechangesintheamountofthevalueoflabour—power;thepriceandtheextentoftheprimenecessariesoflifeasnaturallyandhistoricallydeveloped，thecostoftrainingthelabourers，thepartplayedbythelabourofwomenandchildren，theproductivenessoflabour，itsextensiveandintensivemagnitude。Eventhemostsuperficialcomparisonrequiresthereductionfirstoftheaverageday—wageforthesametrades，indifferentcountries，toauniformworking—day。Afterthisreductiontothesametermsoftheday—wages，time—wagemustagainbetranslatedintopiece—wage，asthelatteronlycanbeameasurebothoftheproductivityandtheintensityoflabour。