Theproductivepowersoflabouraregenerallygreatestwherethereisanabundanceoffertileland。’If，inthefirstsentence，theproductivepowersoflabourmeanthesmallnessofthataliquotpartofanyproducethatgoestothosewhosemanuallabourproducedit，thesentenceisnearlyidentical，becausetheremainingaliquotpartisthefundwhencecapitalcan，iftheownerpleases，beaccumulated。Butthenthisdoesnotgenerallyhappen，wherethereismostfertileland。"（"ObservationsonCertainVerbalDisputes，&c。"pp。74，75。）
　　[36]J。StuartMill:"EssaysonSomeUnsettledQuestionsofPoliticalEconomy，"
　　Lond。，1844，p。90。
　　[37]"AnEssayonTradeandCommerce，"Lond。，1770，P。44。TheTimesofDecember，1866，andJanuary，1867，inlikemannerpublishedcertainoutpouringsoftheheartoftheEnglishmine—owner，inwhichthehappylotoftheBelgianminerswaspictured，whoaskedandreceivednomorethanwasstrictlynecessaryforthemtolivefortheir"masters。"TheBelgianlabourershavetosuffermuch，buttofigureinTheTimesasmodellabourers！InthebeginningofFebruary，1867，cametheanswer:strikeoftheBelgianminersatMarchienne，putdownbypowderandlead。
　　[38]l。c。，pp。44，46。
　　[39]TheNorthamptonshiremanufacturercommitsapiousfraud，pardonableinonewhoseheartissofull。HenominallycomparesthelifeoftheEnglishandFrenchmanufacturinglabourer，butinthewordsjustquotedheispainting，ashehimselfconfessesinhisconfusedway，theFrenchagriculturallabourers。
　　[40]l。c。，pp。70，71。Noteinthe3rdGermanedition:To—day，thankstothecompetitionontheworld—market，establishedsincethen，wehaveadvancedmuchfurther。"IfChina，"saysMr。Stapleton，M。P。，tohisconstituents，"shouldbecomeagreatmanufacturingcountry，IdonotseehowthemanufacturingpopulationofEuropecouldsustainthecontestwithoutdescendingtotheleveloftheircompetitors。"（Times，Sept。3，1873，p。8。）Thewished—forgoalofEnglishcapitalisnolongerContinentalwagesbutChinese。
　　[41]BenjaminThompson:"Essays，Political，Economical，andPhilosophical，&c。，"
　　3vols。，Lond，1796—1802，vol。i。，p。294。Inhis"TheStateofthePoor，oranHistoryofthelabouringClassesinEngland，&c。，"SirF。M。
　　EdenstronglyrecommendstheRumfordianbeggar—souptoworkhouseoverseers，andreproachfullywamstheEnglishlabourersthat"manypoorpeople，particularlyinScotland，live，andthatverycomfortably，formonthstogether，uponoat—mealandbarley—meal，mixedwithonlywaterandsalt。"（l。c。，vol。
　　i，booki。，ch。2，p。503。）Thesamesortofhintsinthe19thcentury。
　　"Themostwholesomemixturesofflourhavingbeenrefused（bytheEnglishagriculturallabouTer）……inScotland，whereeducationisbetter，thisprejudiceis，probably，unknown。"（CharlesH。Parry，M。D。，"TheQuestionoftheNecessecityoftheExistingCornLawsConsidered。"London，1816，，p。69。）ThissameParry，however，complainsthattheEnglishlabourerisnow（1815）inamuchworseconditionthaninEden’stime（1797。）
　　[42]FromthereportsofthelastParliamentaryCommissiononadulterationofmeansofsubsistence，itwillbeseenthattheadulterationevenofmedicinesistherule，nottheexceptioninEngland。E。g。，theexaminationof34
　　specimensofopium，purchasedofasmanydifferentchemistsinLondon，showedthat31wereadulteratedwithpoppyheads，wheat—flour，gum，clay，sand，&c。Severaldidnotcontainanatomofmorphia。
　　[43]G。B。Newnham（barrister—at—law）:"AReviewoftheEvidencebeforetheCommitteeofthetwoHousesofParliamentontheComLaws。"Lond。，1815，p。20，note。
　　[44]l。c。，pp。19，20。
　　[45]C。H。Parry，l。c。，pp。77，69。Thelandlords，ontheirside，notonly"indemnified"themselvesfortheAnti—JacobinWar，whichtheywagedinthenameofEngland，butenrichedthemselvesenormously。Theirrentsdoubled，trebled，quadrupled，"andinoneinstance，increasedsixfoldineighteenyears。"（I。c。，pp。100，101。）
　　[46]FriedrichEngels，"LagederarbeitendenKlasseinEngland，"p。20。
　　[47]Classiceconomyhas，onaccountofadeficientanalysisofthelabour—process，andoftheprocessofcreatingvalue—，neverproperlygraspedthisweightyelementofreproduction，asmaybeseeninRicardo;hesays，e。g。，whateverthechangeinproductivepower，"amillionmenalwaysproduceinmanufacturesthesamevalue。"Thisisaccurate，iftheextensionanddegreeofIntensityoftheirlabouraregiven。Butitdoesnotprevent（thisRicardooverlooksincertainconclusionshedraws）amillionmenwithdifferentpowersofproductivityintheirlabour，turningintoproductsverydifferentmassesofthemeansofproduction，andthereforepreservingintheirproductsverydifferentmassesofvalue;inconsequenceofwhichthevaluesoftheproductsyieldedmayvaryconsiderably。Ricardohas，itmaybenotedinpassing，triedinvaintomakecleartoJ。B。Say，bythatveryexample，thedifferencebetweenuse—value（whichheherecallswealthormaterialriches）andexchange—value。Sayanswers:"Quantà
　　ladifficultéqu’élèveMr。Ricardoendisantque，pardesprocédésmieuxentendusunmilliondepersonnespeuventproduiredeuxfois，troisfoisautantderichesses，sansproduireplusdevaleurs，cettedifficultén’estpasunelorsquel’onconsidére，ainsiqu’onledoit，laproductioncommeunéchangedanslequelondonnelesservicesproductifsdesontravail，desaterre，etdesescapitaux，pourobtenirdesproduits。C’estparlemoyendecesservicesproductifs，quenousacquéronstouslesproduitsquisontaumonde。
　　Or……noussommesd’autantplusriches，nosservicesproductifsontd’autantplusdevaleurqu’ilsobtiennentdansl’échangeappeléproductionuneplusgrandequantitédechosesutiles。"（J。B。Say，"LettresàM。Malthus，"Paris，1820，pp。168，169。）The"difficulté"？itexistsforhim，notforRicardo？thatSaymeanstoclearupisthis:
　　Whydoesnottheexchange—valueoftheuse—valuesincrease，whentheirquantityincreasesinconsequenceofincreasedproductivepoweroflabour？
　　Answer:thedifficultyismetbycallinguse—value，exchange—value，ifyouplease。Exchange—valueisathingthatisconnectedonewayoranotherwithexchange。Ifthereforeproductioniscalledanexchangeoflabourandmeansofproductionagainsttheproduct，itisclearasdaythatyouobtainmoreexchange—valueinproportionastheproductionyieldsmoreuse—value。Inotherwords，themoreuse—values，e。g。，stockings，aworking—dayyieldstothestocking—manufacturer，thericherisheinstockings。Suddenly，however，Sayrecollectsthat"withagreaterquantity"ofstockingstheir"price"（whichofcoursehasnothingtodowiththeirexchange—value！）
　　falls"parcequelaconcurrenceles（lesproducteurs）obligeadonnerlesproduitspourcequ’itsleurcontent……Butwhencedoestheprofitcome，ifthecapitalistsellsthecommoditiesatcost—price？Nevermind！Saydeclaresthat，inconsequenceofincreasedproductivity，everyonenowreceivesinreturnforagivenequivalenttwopairsofstockingsinsteadofoneasbefore。Theresulthearrivesat，ispreciselythatpropositionofRicardothatheaimedatdisproving。Afterthismightyeffortofthought，hetriumphantlyapostrophisesMalthusinthewords:"Telleest，monsieur，ladoctrinebienliée，sateslaquelleilestimpossible，jeledéclare，d’expliquerlesplusgrandesdifficultésdel’économiepolitique，etnotamment，commentilsepeutqu’unenationsoitplusrichelorsquesesproduitsdiminuentdevaleur，quoiquelarichessesoit，delavaleur。"
　　（I。c。，p。170。）AnEnglisheconomistremarksupontheconjuringtricksofthesamenaturethatappearinSay’s"Lettres":"ThoseaffectedwaysoftalkingmakeupingeneralthatwhichM。SayispleasedtocallhisdoctrineandwhichheearnestlyurgesMalthustoteachatHertford，asitisalreadytaught’dansplusieurspartiesdeI’Europe。’Hesays，’Sivoustrbuvezunephysionomiedeparadoxeàtoutescespropositions，voyezleschosesqu’ellesexpriment，etj’osecroirequeuesvousparaitrontfortsimplesetfortraisonnables。’Doubtless，andinconsequenceofthesameprocess，theywillappeareverythingelse，exceptoriginal。"（"AnInquiryintothosePrinciplesRespectingtheNatureofDemand，&c。，"
　　pp。116，110。）
　　[48]MacCullochtookoutapatentfor"wagesofpastlabour，"longbeforeSeniordidfor"wagesofabstinence。"
　　[49]Compareamongothers，JeremyBentham:"ThéoriedesPeinesetdesRécompenses，"traduct。d’Et。Dumont，3èmeédit。Paris，1826，t。II，L。IV。，ch。II。
　　[50]BenthamisapurelyEnglishphenomenon。Notevenexceptingourphilosopher，ChristianWolff，innotimeandinnocountryhasthemosthomespuncommonplaceeverstruttedaboutinsoself—satisfiedaway。TheprincipleofutilitywasnodiscoveryofBentham。HesimplyreproducedinhisdullwaywhatHelvétiusandotherFrenchmenhadsaidwithespritinthe18thcentury。
　　Toknowwhatisusefulforadog，onemuststudydog—nature。Thisnatureitselfisnottobededucedfromtheprincipleofutility。Applyingthistoman，hethatwouldcriticiseallhumanacts，movements，relations，etc。，bytheprincipleofutility，mustfirstdealwithhumannatureingeneral，andthenwithhumannatureasmodifiedineachhistoricalepoch。Benthammakesshortworkofit。Withthedriestnaivetéhetakesthemodernshopkeeper，especiallytheEnglishshopkeeper，asthenormalman。Whateverisusefultothisqueernormalman，andtohisworld，isabsolutelyuseful。
　　Thisyard—measure，then，heappliestopast，present，andfuture。TheChristianreligion，e。g。，is"useful，""becauseitforbidsinthenameofreligionthesamefaultsthatthepenalcodecondemnsinthenameofthelaw。"Artisticcriticismis"harmful，"becauseitdisturbsworthypeopleintheirenjoymentofMartinTupper，etc。Withsuchrubbishhasthebravefellow，withhismotto，"nuiladiessineline！，"piledupmountainsofbooks。HadIthecourageofmyfriend，HeinrichHeine，IshouldcallMr。Jeremyageniusinthewayofbourgeoisstupidity。
　　[51]"Politicaleconomistsaretooapttoconsideracertainquantityofcapitalandacertainnumberoflabourersasproductiveinstrumentsofuniformpower，oroperatingwithacertainuniformintensity……Those……whomaintain……thatcommoditiesarethesoleagentsofproduction……—provethatproductioncouldneverbeenlarged，foritrequiresasanindispensableconditiontosuchanenlargementthatfood，rawmaterials，andtoolsshouldbepreviouslyaugmented;whichisinfactmaintainingthatnoincreaseofproductioncantakeplacewithoutapreviousincrease，or，inotherwords，thatanincreaseisimpossible。"（S。Bailey:"MoneyanditsVicissitudes，"
　　pp。58and70。）Baileycriticisesthedogmamainlyfromthepointofviewoftheprocessofcirculation。
　　[52]JohnStuartMill，inhis"PrinciplesofPoliticalEconomy，"says:"Thereallyexhaustingandthereallyrepulsivelaboursinsteadofbeingbetterpaidthanothers，arealmostinvariablypaidtheworstofall……Themorerevoltingtheoccupation，themorecertainitistoreceivetheminimumofremuneration……Thehardshipsandtheearnings，insteadofbeingdirectlyproportional，asinanyjustarrangementsofsocietytheywouldbe，aregenerallyinaninverseratiotooneanother。"Toavoidmisunderstanding，letmesaythatalthoughmenlikeJohnStuartMillaretoblameforthecontradictionbetweentheirtraditionaleconomicdogmasandtheirmodemtendencies，itwouldbeverywrongtoclassthemwiththeherdofvulgareconomicapologists。
　　[53]H。Fawcett，ProfessorofPoliticalEconomyatCambridge。"TheEconomicpositionoftheBritishlabourer。"London，1865，p。120。
　　[54]Imusthereremindthereaderthatthecategories，"variableandconstantcapital，"werefirstusedbyme。PoliticalEconomysincethetimeofAdamSmithhasconfusedlymixeduptheessentialdistinctionsinvolvedinthesecategories，withthemereformaldifferences，arisingoutoftheprocessofcirculation，offixedandcirculatingcapital。Forfurtherdetailsonthispoint，seeBookII。，PartII。
　　[55]Fawcett，l。c。，pp。122，123。
　　[56]Itmightbesaidthatnotonlycapital，butalsolabourers，intheshapeofemigrants，areannuallyexportedfromEngland。Inthetext，however，thereisnoquestionofthepeculiumoftheemigrants，whoareingreatpartnotlabourers。Thesonsoffarmersmakeupagreatpartofthem。Theadditionalcapitalannuallytransportedabroadtobeputoutatinterestisinmuchgreaterproportiontotheannualaccumulationthantheyearlyemigrationistotheyearlyincreaseofpopulation。
　　ChapterTwenty—FiveKarlMarxCapitalVolumeOnePartVII:
　　TheAccumulationofCapitalCHAPTERTWENTY—FIVE:
　　THEGENERALLAWOFCAPITALISTACCUMULATION
　　ContentsSection1—TheIncreasedDemandforLabour—PowerthatAccompaniesAccumulation，theCompositionofCapitalRemainingthesameSection2—RelativeDiminutionoftheVariablePartofCapitalSimultaneouslywiththeProgressofAccumulationandoftheConcentrationthatAccompaniesitSection3—ProgressiveProductionofaRelativeSurplus—PopulationorIndustrialReserveArmySection4—DifferentFormsoftheRelativeSurplus—Population。
　　TheGeneralLawofCapitalisticAccumulationSection5—IllustrationsoftheGeneralLawofCapitalistAccumulationA。Englandfrom1846—1866
　　B。TheBadlyPaidStrataoftheBritishIndustrialClassC。TheNomadPopulationD。EffectofCrisesontheBestPaidPartoftheWorking—ClassE。TheBritishAgriculturalProletariatF。IrelandSECTION1。THEINCREASEDDEMANDFORLABOUR—POWERTHATACCOMPANIESACCUMULATION，THE
　　COMPOSITIONOFCAPITALREMAININGTHESAME
　　Inthischapterweconsidertheinfluenceofthegrowthofcapitalonthelotofthelabouringclass。Themostimportantfactorinthisinquiryisthecompositionofcapitalandthechangesitundergoesinthecourseoftheprocessofaccumulation。
　　Thecompositionofcapitalistobeunderstoodinatwo—foldsense。
　　Onthesideofvalue，itisdeterminedbytheproportioninwhichitisdividedintoconstantcapitalorvalueofthemeansofproduction，andvariablecapitalorvalueoflabour—power，thesumtotalofwages。Onthesideofmaterial，asitfunctionsintheprocessofproduction，allcapitalisdividedintomeansofproductionandlivinglabour—power。Thislattercompositionisdeterminedbytherelationbetweenthemassofthemeansofproductionemployed，ontheonehand，andthemassoflabournecessaryfortheiremploymentontheother。Icalltheformerthevalue—composition，thelatterthetechnicalcompositionofcapital。
　　Betweenthetwothereisastrictcorrelation。Toexpressthis，Icallthevalue—compositionofcapital，insofarasitisdeterminedbyitstechnicalcompositionandmirrorsthechangesofthelatter，theorganiccompositionofcapital。WhereverIrefertothecompositionofcapital，withoutfurtherqualification，itsorganiccompositionisalwaysunderstood。
　　Themanyindividualcapitalsinvestedinaparticularbranchofproductionhave，onewithanother，moreorlessdifferentcompositions。Theaverageoftheirindividualcompositionsgivesusthecompositionofthetotalcapitalinthisbranchofproduction。Lastly，theaverageoftheseaverages，inallbranchesofproduction，givesusthecompositionofthetotalsocialcapitalofacountry，andwiththisalonearewe，inthelastresort，concernedinthefollowinginvestigation。
　　Growthofcapitalinvolvesgrowthofitsvariableconstituentorofthepartinvestedinlabour—power。Apartofthesurplus—valueturnedintoadditionalcapitalmustalwaysbere—transformedintovariablecapital，oradditionallabour—fund。Ifwesupposethat，allothercircumstancesremainingthesame，thecompositionofcapitalalsoremainsconstant（i。e。，thatadefinitemassofmeansofproductionconstantlyneedsthesamemassoflabour—powertosetitinmotion），thenthedemandforlabourandthesubsistence—fundofthelabourersclearlyincreaseinthesameproportionasthecapital，andthemorerapidly，themorerapidlythecapitalincreases。
　　Sincethecapitalproducesyearlyasurplus—value，ofwhichonepartisyearlyaddedtotheoriginalcapital;sincethisincrementitselfgrowsyearlyalongwiththeaugmentationofthecapitalalreadyfunctioning;
　　sincelastly，underspecialstimulustoenrichment，suchastheopeningofnewmarkets，orofnewspheresfortheoutlayofcapitalinconsequenceofnewlydevelopedsocialwants，&c。，thescaleofaccumulationmaybesuddenlyextended，merelybyachangeinthedivisionofthesurplus—valueorsurplus—productintocapitalandrevenue，therequirementsofaccumulatingcapitalmayexceedtheincreaseoflabour—powerorofthenumberoflabourers;
　　thedemandforlabourersmayexceedthesupply，and，therefore，wagesmayrise。Thismust，indeed，ultimatelybethecaseiftheconditionssupposedabovecontinue。Forsinceineachyearmorelabourersareemployedthaninitspredecessor，soonerorlaterapointmustbereached，atwhichtherequirementsofaccumulationbegintosurpassthecustomarysupplyoflabour，and，therefore，ariseofwagestakesplace。AlamentationonthisscorewasheardinEnglandduringthewholeofthefifteenth，andthefirsthalfoftheeighteenthcenturies。Themoreorlessfavourablecircumstancesinwhichthewage—workingclasssupportsandmultipliesitself，innowayalterthefundamentalcharacterofcapitalistproduction。Assimplereproductionconstantlyreproducesthecapital—relationitself，i。e。，therelationofcapitalistsontheonehand，andwage—workersontheother，soreproductiononaprogressivescale，i。e。，accumulation，reproducesthecapital—relationonaprogressivescale，morecapitalistsorlargercapitalistsatthispole，morewage—workersatthat。Thereproductionofamassoflabour—power，whichmustincessantlyre—incorporateitselfwithcapitalforthatcapital’sself—expansion;whichcannotgetfreefromcapital，andwhoseenslavementtocapitalisonlyconcealedbythevarietyofindividualcapitaliststowhomitsellsitself，thisreproductionoflabour—powerforms，infact，anessentialofthereproductionofcapitalitself。Accumulationofcapitalis，therefore，increaseoftheproletariat。[1]
　　ClassicaleconomygraspedthisfactsothoroughlythatAdamSmith，Ricardo，&c。，asmentionedearlier，inaccuratelyidentifiedaccumulationwiththeconsumption，bytheproductivelabourers，ofallthecapitalised，partofthesurplus—product，orwithitstransformationintoadditionalwage—labourers。
　　Asearlyas1696JohnBellerssays:"Forifonehadahundredthousandacresoflandandasmanypoundsinmoney，andasmanycattle，withoutalabourer，whatwouldtherichmanbe，butalabourer？Andasthelabourersmakemenrich，sothemorelabourerstherewillbe，themorerichmen……
　　thelabourofthepoorbeingtheminesoftherich。"[2]SoalsoBernarddeMandevilleatthebeginningoftheeighteenthcentury:
　　"Itwouldbeeasier，wherepropertyiswellsecured，tolivewithoutmoneythanwithoutpoor;forwhowoulddothework？……Asthey[thepoor]oughttobekeptfromstarving，sotheyshouldreceivenothingworthsaving。
　　Ifhereandthereoneofthelowestclassbyuncommonindustry，andpinchinghisbelly，liftshimselfabovetheconditionhewasbroughtupin，nobodyoughttohinderhim;nay，itisundeniablythewisestcourseforeverypersoninthesociety，andforeveryprivatefamilytobefrugal;butitistheinterestofallrichnations，thatthegreatestpartofthepoor—shouldalmostneverbeidle，andyetcontinuallyspendwhattheyget……Thosethatgettheirlivingbytheirdailylabour……havenothingtostirthemuptobeserviceablebuttheirwantswhichitisprudencetorelieve，butfollytocure。Theonlythingthenthatcanrenderthelabouringmanindustrious，isamoderatequantityofmoney，forastoolittlewill，accordingashistemperis，eitherdispiritormakehimdesperate，sotoomuchwillmakehiminsolentandlazy……Fromwhathasbeensaid，itismanifest，that，inafreenation，whereslavesarenotallowedof，thesurestwealthconsistsinamultitudeoflaboriouspoor;forbesides，thattheyarethenever—failingnurseryoffleetsandarmies，withoutthemtherecouldbenoenjoyment，andnoproductofanycountrycouldbevaluable。"Tomakethesociety"[whichofcourseconsistsofnon—workers]
　　"happyandpeopleeasierunderthemeanestcircumstances，itisrequisitethatgreatnumbersofthemshouldbeignorantaswellaspoor;knowledgebothenlargesandmultipliesourdesires，andthefewerthingsamanwishesfor，themoreeasilyhisnecessitiesmaybesupplied。"[3]WhatMandeville，anhonest，clear—headedman，hadnotyetseen，isthatthemechanismoftheprocessofaccumulationitselfincreases，alongwiththecapital，themassof"labouringpoor，"i。e。，thewage—labourers，whoturntheirlabour—powerintoanincreasingpowerofself—expansionofthegrowingcapital，andevenbydoingsomusteternisetheirdependentrelationontheirownproduct，aspersonifiedinthecapitalists。Inreferencetothisrelationofdependence，SirF。M。Edeninhis"TheStateofthePoor，anHistoryoftheLabouringClassesinEngland，"says，"thenaturalproduceofoursoiliscertainlynotfullyadequatetooursubsistence;
　　wecanneitherbeclothed，lodgednorfedbutinconsequenceofsomepreviouslabour。
　　Aportionatleastofthesocietymustbeindefatigablyemployed……Thereareotherswho，thoughthey’neithertoilnorspin，’canyetcommandtheproduceofindustry，butwhoowetheirexemptionfromlaboursolelytocivilisationandorder……Theyarepeculiarlythecreaturesofcivilinstitutions，[4]whichhaverecognisedthatindividualsmayacquirepropertybyvariousothermeansbesidestheexertionoflabour……
　　Personsofindependentfortune……owetheirsuperioradvantagesbynomeanstoanysuperiorabilitiesoftheirown，butalmostentirely……totheindustryofothers。Itisnotthepossessionofland，orofmoney，butthecommandoflabourwhichdistinguishestheopulentfromthelabouringpartofthecommunity……This[schemeapprovedbyEden]wouldgivethepeopleofpropertysufficient（butbynomeanstoomuch）influenceandauthorityoverthosewho……workforthem;anditwouldplacesuchlabourers，notinanabjectorservilecondition，butinsuchastateofeasyandliberaldependenceasallwhoknowhumannature，anditshistory，willallowtobenecessaryfortheirowncomfort。"[5]SirF。M。Eden，itmayberemarkedinpassing，istheonlydiscipleofAdamSmithduringtheeighteenthcenturythatproducedanyworkofimportance。[6]
　　Undertheconditionsofaccumulationsupposedthusfar，whichconditionsarethosemostfavourabletothelabourers，theirrelationofdependenceuponcapitaltakesonaformendurableor，asEdensays:"easyandliberal。"Insteadofbecomingmoreintensivewiththegrowthofcapital，thisrelationofdependenceonlybecomesmoreextensive，i。e。，thesphereofcapital’sexploitationandrulemerelyextendswithitsowndimensionsandthenumberofitssubjects。Alargerpartoftheirownsurplus—product，alwaysincreasingandcontinuallytransformedintoadditionalcapital，comesbacktothemintheshapeofmeansofpayment，sothattheycanextendthecircleoftheirenjoyments;canmakesomeadditionstotheirconsumption—fundofclothes，furniture，&c。，andcanlaybysmallreserve—fundsofmoney。
　　Butjustaslittleasbetterclothing，food，andtreatment，andalargerpeculium，doawaywiththeexploitationoftheslave，solittledotheysetasidethatofthewage—worker。Ariseinthepriceoflabour，asaconsequenceofaccumulationofcapital，onlymeans，infact，thatthelengthandweightofthegoldenchainthewage—workerhasalreadyforgedforhimself，allowofarelaxationofthetensionofit。Inthecontroversiesonthissubjectthechieffacthasgenerallybeenoverlooked，viz。，thedifferentiaspecificaofcapitalisticproduction。Labour—powerissoldto—day，notwithaviewofsatisfying，byitsserviceorbyitsproduct，thepersonalneedsofthebuyer。Hisaimisaugmentationofhiscapital，productionofcommoditiescontainingmorelabourthanhepaysfor，containingthereforeaportionofvaluethatcostshimnothing，andthatisneverthelessrealisedwhenthecommoditiesaresold。Productionofsurplus—valueistheabsolutelawofthismodeofproduction。
　　Labour—powerisonlysaleablesofarasitpreservesthemeansofproductionintheircapacityofcapital，reproducesitsownvalueascapital，andyieldsinunpaidlabourasourceofadditionalcapital。[7]Theconditionsofitssale，whethermoreorlessfavourabletothelabourer，includethereforethenecessityofitsconstantre—selling，andtheconstantlyextendedreproductionofallwealthintheshapeofcapital。Wages，aswehaveseen，bytheirverynature，alwaysimplytheperformanceofacertainquantityofunpaidlabouronthepartofthelabourer。Altogether，irrespectiveofthecaseofariseofwageswithafallingpriceoflabour，&c。，suchanincreaseonlymeansatbestaquantitativediminutionoftheunpaidlabourthattheworkerhastosupply。Thisdiminutioncanneverreachthepointatwhichitwouldthreatenthesystemitself。Apartfromviolentconflictsastotherateofwages（andAdamSmithhasalreadyshownthatinsuchaconflict，takenonthewhole，themasterisalwaysmaster），ariseinthepriceoflabourresultingfromaccumulationofcapitalimpliesthefollowingalternative:
　　Eitherthepriceoflabourkeepsonrising，becauseitsrisedoesnotinterferewiththeprogressofaccumulation。Inthisthereisnothingwonderful，for，saysAdamSmith，"afterthese（profits）arediminished，stockmaynotonlycontinuetoincrease，buttoincreasemuchfasterthanbefore……
　　Agreatstock，thoughwithsmallprofits，generallyincreasesfasterthanasmallstockwithgreatprofits。"（l。c。，ii，p。189。）Inthiscaseitisevidentthatadiminutionintheunpaidlabourinnowayinterfereswiththeextensionofthedomainofcapital。？Or，ontheotherhand，accumulationslackensinconsequenceoftheriseinthepriceoflabour，becausethestimulusofgainisblunted。Therateofaccumulationlessens;butwithitslessening，theprimarycauseofthatlesseningvanishes，i。e。，thedisproportionbetweencapitalandexploitablelabour—power。Themechanismoftheprocessofcapitalistproductionremovestheveryobstaclesthatittemporarilycreates。Thepriceoflabourfallsagaintoalevelcorrespondingwiththeneedsoftheself—expansionofcapital，whetherthelevelbebelow，thesameas，orabovetheonewhichwasnormalbeforetheriseofwagestookplace。Weseethus:Inthefirstcase，itisnotthediminishedrateeitheroftheabsolute，oroftheproportional，increaseinlabour—power，orlabouringpopulation，whichcausescapitaltobeinexcess，butconverselytheexcessofcapitalthatmakesexploitablelabour—powerinsufficient。Inthesecondcase，itisnottheincreasedrateeitheroftheabsolute，oroftheproportional，increaseinlabour—power，orlabouringpopulation，thatmakescapitalinsufficient;but，conversely，therelativediminutionofcapitalthatcausestheexploitablelabour—power，orratheritsprice，tobeinexcess。Itistheseabsolutemovementsoftheaccumulationofcapitalwhicharereflectedasrelativemovementsofthemassofexploitablelabour—power，andthereforeseemproducedbythelatter’sownindependentmovement。Toputitmathematically:therateofaccumulationistheindependent，notthedependent，variable;therateofwages，thedependent，nottheindependent，variable。Thus，whentheindustrialcycleisinthephaseofcrisis，ageneralfallinthepriceofcommoditiesisexpressedasariseinthevalueofmoney，and，inthephaseofprosperity，ageneralriseinthepriceofcommodities，asafallinthevalueofmoney。Theso—calledcurrencyschoolconcludesfromthisthatwithhighpricestoomuch，withlowpricestoolittle[8]moneyisincirculation。Theirignoranceandcompletemisunderstandingoffacts[9]areworthilyparalleledbytheeconomists，whointerprettheabovephenomenaofaccumulationbysayingthattherearenowtoofew，nowtoomanywage—labourers。
　　Thelawofcapitalistproduction，thatisatthebottomofthepretended"naturallawofpopulation，"reducesitselfsimplytothis:Thecorrelationbetweenaccumulationofcapitalandrateofwagesisnothingelsethanthecorrelationbetweentheunpaidlabourtransformedintocapital，andtheadditionalpaidlabournecessaryforthesettinginmotionofthisadditionalcapital。Itisthereforeinnowayarelationbetweentwomagnitudes，independentoneoftheother:ontheonehand，themagnitudeofthecapital;
　　ontheother，thenumberofthelabouringpopulation;itisrather，atbottom，onlytherelationbetweentheunpaidandthepaidlabourofthesamelabouringpopulation。Ifthequantityofunpaidlaboursuppliedbytheworking—class，andaccumulatedbythecapitalistclass，increasessorapidlythatitsconversionintocapitalrequiresanextraordinaryadditionofpaidlabour，thenwagesrise，and，allothercircumstancesremainingequal，theunpaidlabourdiminishesinproportion。
　　But。assoonasthisdiminutiontouchesthepointatwhichthesurplus—labourthatnourishescapitalisnolongersuppliedinnormalquantity，areactionsetsin:asmallerpartofrevenueiscapitalisedaccumulationlags，andthemovementofriseinwagesreceivesacheck。Theriseofwagesthereforeisconfinedwithinlimitsthatnotonlyleaveintactthefoundationsofthecapitalisticsystem，butalsosecureitsreproductiononaprogressivescale。Thelawofcapitalisticaccumulation，metamorphosedbyeconomistsintopretendedlawofNature，inrealitymerelystatesthattheverynatureofaccumulationexcludeseverydiminutioninthedegreeofexploitationoflabour，andeveryriseinthepriceoflabour，whichcouldseriouslyimperilthecontinualreproduction，onanever—enlargingscale，ofthecapitalisticrelation。Itcannotbeotherwiseinamodeofproductioninwhichthelabourerexiststosatisfytheneedsofself—expansionofexistingvalues，insteadof，onthecontrary，materialwealthexistingtosatisfytheneedsofdevelopmentonthepartofthelabourer。As，inreligion，manisgovernedbytheproductsofhisownbrain，soincapitalisticproduction，heisgovernedbytheproductsofhisownhand。[10]
　　SECTION2。RELATIVEDIMINUTIONOFTHEVARIABLEPARTOFCAPITALSIMULTANEOUSLYWITH
　　THEPROGRESSOFACCUMULATIONANDOFTHECONCENTRATIONTHATACCOMPANIES
　　IT
　　Accordingtotheeconomiststhemselves，itisneithertheactualextentofsocialwealth，northemagnitudeofthecapitalalreadyfunctioning，thatleadtoariseofwages，butonlytheconstantgrowthofaccumulationandthedegreeofrapidityofthatgrowth。（AdamSmith，BookI。，chapter8。）Sofar，wehaveonlyconsideredonespecialphaseofthisprocess，thatinwhichtheincreaseofcapitaloccursalongwithaconstanttechnicalcompositionofcapital。Buttheprocessgoesbeyondthisphase。
　　Oncegiventhegeneralbasisofthecapitalisticsystem，then，inthecourseofaccumulation，apointisreachedatwhichthedevelopmentoftheproductivityofsociallabourbecomesthemostpowerfulleverofaccumulation。"Thesamecause，"saysAdamSmith，"whichraisesthewagesoflabour，theincreaseofstock，tendstoincreaseitsproductivepowers，andtomakeasmallerquantityoflabourproduceagreaterquantityofwork。"