首页 >出版文学> WEALTH OF NATIONS>第17章
  d。
  1202—12————116—
  1205—12——1352—3
  —134
  —15—
  1223—12————116—
  1237—34————10—
  1243—2—————6—
  1244—2—————6—
  1246—16————28—
  1247—134———2——
  125714————312—
  12581———17—211—
  —15—
  —16—
  1270416—512—1616—
  68—
  1286—28—9418—
  —16—
  TotalL3593
  AveragePriceL2191
  1/4
  PriceoftheAverageofTheaveragePriceQuarterofthedifferentofeachYearinYearsWheatPricesofMoneyoftheXIIeachYearthesameYearpresentTimesLs。d。L。s。d。L。s。
  d。
  1287—34————10—
  1288——8—3—1/4—9—
  3/4
  —1—
  —14
  —16
  —18
  —2—
  —34
  —94
  1289—12——1013/41104
  1/2
  —6—
  —2—
  —108
  1——
  1290—16————28—
  1294—16————28—
  1302—4—————12—
  1309—72———116
  13151—————3——
  13161——11064116
  110—
  112—
  2——
  131724—11965186
  —14—
  213—
  4——
  —68
  1336—2—————6—
  1338—34————10—
  TotalL23411
  1/4
  AveragePriceL1188
  PriceoftheAverageofTheaveragePriceQuarterofthedifferentofeachYearinYearsWheatPricesofMoneyoftheXIIeachYearthesameYearpresentTimesLs。d。L。s。d。L。s。d。
  1339—9————17—
  1349—2—————52
  1359168———322
  1361—2—————48
  1363—15————115—
  13691——12—294
  14—
  1379—4—————94
  1387—2—————48
  1390—134—1451137
  —14—
  —16—
  1401—16————1174
  1407—443/4—310—811
  —34
  1416—16————112—
  TotalL1594
  AveragePriceL159
  1/3
  PriceoftheAverageofTheaveragePriceQuarterofthedifferentofeachYearinYearsWheatPricesofMoneyoftheXIIeachYearthesameYearpresentTimesLs。d。L。s。d。L。s。d。
  1423—8—————16—
  1425—4—————8—
  1434168———2134
  1435—54————108
  14391——134268
  168
  144014————28—
  1444—44—42—84
  —4—
  1445—46————9—
  1447—8—————16—
  1448—68————134
  1449—5—————10—
  1452—8—————16—
  TotalL12154
  AveragePriceL113
  1/2
  PriceoftheAverageofTheaveragePriceQuarterofthedifferentofeachYearinYearsWheatPricesofMoneyoftheXIIeachYearthesameYearpresentTimesLs。d。L。s。d。L。s。d。
  1453—54————108
  1455—12————24
  1457—78————154
  1459—5—————10—
  1460—8—————16—
  1463—2——110—38
  —18
  1464—68————10—
  148614————117—
  1491—148———12—
  1494—4—————6—
  1495—34————5—
  14971—————111—
  TotalL89—
  AveragePrice—141
  PriceoftheAverageofTheaveragePriceQuarterofthedifferentofeachYearinYearsWheatPricesofMoneyoftheXIIeachYearthesameYearpresentTimesLs。d。L。s。d。L。s。d。
  1499—4—————6—
  1504—58————86
  15211—————110—
  1551—8—————2—
  1553—8—————8—
  1554—8—————8—
  1555—8—————8—
  1556—8—————8—
  1557—4——1781/2—178
  1/2
  —5—
  —8—
  2134
  1558—8—————8—
  1559—8—————8—
  1560—8—————8—
  TotalL602
  1/2
  AveragePrice—10—
  5/12
  PriceoftheAverageofTheaveragePriceQuarterofthedifferentofeachYearinYearsWheatPricesofMoneyoftheXIIeachYearthesameYearpresentTimesLs。d。L。s。d。L。s。d。
  1561—8—————8—
  1562—8—————8—
  1574216—2——2——
  14—
  158734————34—
  1594216————216—
  1595213————213—
  15964—————4——
  159754—412—412—
  4——
  15982168———2168
  15991192———1192
  16001178———1178
  160111410———11410
  TotalL2894
  AveragePriceL275
  1/3
  PricesoftheQuarterofnineBushelsofthebestorhighestpricedWheatatWindsorMarket,onLady—dayandMichaelmas,from1595to1764,bothinclusive;thePriceofeachYearbeingthemediumbetweenthehighestPricesofthoseTwoMarketDays。
  YearsYearsL。s。d。L。s。d。
  1595—2001621—1104
  1596—2801622—2188
  1597—3961623—2120
  1598—21681624—280
  1599—11921625—2120
  1600—11781626—294
  1601—114101627—1160
  1602—1941628—180
  1603—11541629—220
  1604—11081630—2158
  1605—115101631—380
  1606—11301632—2134
  1607—11681633—2180
  1608—21681634—2160
  1609—21001635—2160
  1610—115101636—2168
  1611—1188
  1612—22416)4000
  1613—288
  1614—2181/2L2100
  1615—1188
  1616—204
  1617—288
  1618—268
  1619—1154
  1620—1104
  26)54061/2
  L2169/12
  WheatperWheatperYearsquarterYearsquarterL。s。d。L。s。d。
  1637—2130Broughtover791410
  1638—21741671—220
  1639—24101672—210
  1640—2481673—268
  1641—2801674—388
  1642—000*1675—348
  1643—0001676—1180
  1644—0001677—220
  1645—0001678—2190
  1646—2801679—300
  1647—31381680—250
  1648—4501681—268
  1649—4001682—240
  1650—31681683—200
  1651—31341684—240
  1652—2961685—268
  1653—11561686—1140
  1654—1601687—152
  1655—11341688—260
  1656—2301689—1100
  1657—2681690—1148
  1658—3501691—1140
  1659—3601692—268
  1660—21661693—378
  1661—31001694—340
  1662—31401695—2130
  1663—21701696—3110
  1664—2061697—300
  1665—2941698—384
  1666—11601699—340
  1667—11601700—200
  1668—200
  1669—24460)15318
  1670—218
  L21101/3
  arryoverL791410
  *Wantingintheaccount。Theyear1646suppliedbyBishopFleetwood。
  WheatperWheatperYearsquarterYearsquarterL。s。d。L。s。d。
  1701—1178Broughtover6988
  1702—1961734—11810
  1703—11601735—230
  1704—2661736—204
  1705—11001737—1180
  1706—1601738—1156
  1707—1861739—1186
  1708—2161740—2108
  1709—31861741—268
  1710—31801742—1140
  1711—21401743—1410
  1712—2641744—1410
  1713—21101745—176
  1714—21041746—1190
  1715—2301747—11410
  1716—2801748—1170
  1717—2581749—1170
  1718—118101750—1126
  1719—11501751—1186
  1720—11701752—2110
  1721—11761753—248
  1722—11601754—1148
  1723—11481755—11310
  1724—11701756—253
  1725—2861757—300
  1726—2601758—2100
  1727—2201759—11910
  1728—21461760—1166
  1729—26101761—1103
  1730—11661762—1190
  1731—112101763—209
  1732—1681764—269
  1733—184
  64)129136
  CarryoverL6988
  L2069/32
  YearsYearsL。s。d。L。s。d。
  1731—112101741—268
  1732—1681742—1140
  1733—1841743—1410
  1734—118101744—1410
  1735—2301745—176
  1736—2041746—1190
  1737—11801747—11410
  1738—11561748—1170
  1739—11861749—1170
  1740—21081750—1126
  10)1812810)16182
  L11731/5L11394/5
  ANINQUIRYINTOTHENATUREANDCAUSESOFTHEWEALTHOFNATIONS
  byAdamSmith1776
  BOOKTWO
  OFTHENATURE,ACCUMULATION,ANDEMPLOYMENTOFSTOCK
  INTRODUCTION
  INthatrudestateofsocietyinwhichthereisnodivisionoflabour,inwhichexchangesareseldommade,andinwhicheverymanprovideseverythingforhimself,itisnotnecessarythatanystockshouldbeaccumulatedorstoredupbeforehandinordertocarryonthebusinessofthesociety。Everymanendeavourstosupplybyhisownindustryhisownoccasionalwantsastheyoccur。Whenheishungry,hegoestotheforesttohunt;whenhiscoatiswornout,heclotheshimselfwiththeskinofthefirstlargeanimalhekills:andwhenhishutbeginstogotoruin,herepairsit,aswellashecan,withthetreesandtheturfthatarenearestit。
  Butwhenthedivisionoflabourhasoncebeenthoroughlyintroduced,theproduceofaman’sownlabourcansupplybutaverysmallpartofhisoccasionalwants。Thefargreaterpartofthemaresuppliedbytheproduceofothermen’slabour,whichhepurchaseswiththeproduce,or,whatisthesamething,withthepriceoftheproduceofhisown。Butthispurchasecannotbemadetillsuchtimeastheproduceofhisownlabourhasnotonlybeencompleted,butsold。Astockofgoodsofdifferentkinds,therefore,mustbestoredupsomewheresufficienttomaintainhim,andtosupplyhimwiththematerialsandtoolsofhisworktillsuchtime,atleast,asboththeseeventscanbebroughtabout。Aweavercannotapplyhimselfentirelytohispeculiarbusiness,unlessthereisbeforehandstoredupsomewhere,eitherinhisownpossessionorinthatofsomeotherperson,astocksufficienttomaintainhim,andtosupplyhimwiththematerialsandtoolsofhiswork,tillhehasnotonlycompleted,butsoldhisweb。Thisaccumulationmust,evidently,beprevioustohisapplyinghisindustryforsolongatimetosuchapeculiarbusiness。
  Astheaccumulationofstockmust,inthenatureofthings,beprevioustothedivisionoflabour,solabourcanbemoreandmoresubdividedinproportiononlyasstockispreviouslymoreandmoreaccumulated。Thequantityofmaterialswhichthesamenumberofpeoplecanworkup,increasesinagreatproportionaslabourcomestobemoreandmoresubdivided;andastheoperationsofeachworkmanaregraduallyreducedtoagreaterdegreeofsimplicity,avarietyofnewmachinescometobeinventedforfacilitatingandabridgingthoseoperations。Asthedivisionoflabouradvances,therefore,inordertogiveconstantemploymenttoanequalnumberofworkmen,anequalstockofprovisions,andagreaterstockofmaterialsandtoolsthanwhatwouldhavebeennecessaryinaruderstateofthings,mustbeaccumulatedbeforehand。Butthenumberofworkmenineverybranchofbusinessgenerallyincreaseswiththedivisionoflabourinthatbranch,orratheritistheincreaseoftheirnumberwhichenablesthemtoclassandsubdividethemselvesinthismanner。
  Astheaccumulationofstockispreviouslynecessaryforcarryingonthisgreatimprovementintheproductivepowersoflabour,sothataccumulationnaturallyleadstothisimprovement。
  Thepersonwhoemployshisstockinmaintaininglabour,necessarilywishestoemployitinsuchamannerastoproduceasgreataquantityofworkaspossible。Heendeavours,therefore,bothtomakeamonghisworkmenthemostproperdistributionofemployment,andtofurnishthemwiththebestmachineswhichhecaneitherinventoraffordtopurchase。Hisabilitiesinboththeserespectsaregenerallyinproportiontotheextentofhisstock,ortothenumberofpeoplewhomitcanemploy。Thequantityofindustry,therefore,notonlyincreasesineverycountrywiththeincreaseofthestockwhichemploysit,but,inconsequenceofthatincrease,thesamequantityofindustryproducesamuchgreaterquantityofwork。
  Suchareingeneraltheeffectsoftheincreaseofstockuponindustryanditsproductivepowers。
  InthefollowingbookIhaveendeavouredtoexplainthenatureofstock,theeffectsofitsaccumulationintocapitalsofdifferentkinds,andtheeffectsofthedifferentemploymentsofthosecapitals。Thisbookisdividedintofivechapters。Inthefirstchapter,Ihaveendeavouredtoshowwhatarethedifferentpartsorbranchesintowhichthestock,eitherofanindividual,orofagreatsociety,naturallydividesitself。Inthesecond,I
  haveendeavouredtoexplainthenatureandoperationofmoneyconsideredasaparticularbranchofthegeneralstockofthesociety。Thestockwhichisaccumulatedintoacapital,mayeitherbeemployedbythepersontowhomitbelongs,oritmaybelenttosomeotherperson。Inthethirdandfourthchapters,I
  haveendeavouredtoexaminethemannerinwhichitoperatesinboththesesituations。Thefifthandlastchaptertreatsofthedifferenteffectswhichthedifferentemploymentsofcapitalimmediatelyproduceuponthequantitybothofnationalindustry,andoftheannualproduceoflandandlabour。
  CHAPTERI
  OftheDivisionofStockWHENthestockwhichamanpossessesisnomorethansufficienttomaintainhimforafewdaysorafewweeks,heseldomthinksofderivinganyrevenuefromit。Heconsumesitassparinglyashecan,andendeavoursbyhislabourtoacquiresomethingwhichmaysupplyitsplacebeforeitbeconsumedaltogether。Hisrevenueis,inthiscase,derivedfromhislabouronly。Thisisthestateofthegreaterpartofthelabouringpoorinallcountries。
  Butwhenhepossessesstocksufficienttomaintainhimformonthsoryears,henaturallyendeavourstoderivearevenuefromthegreaterpartofit;reservingonlysomuchforhisimmediateconsumptionasmaymaintainhimtillthisrevenuebeginstocomein。Hiswholestock,therefore,isdistinguishedintotwoparts。
  Thatpartwhich,heexpects,istoaffordhimthisrevenue,iscalledhiscapital。Theotheristhatwhichsupplieshisimmediateconsumption;andwhichconsistseither,first,inthatportionofhiswholestockwhichwasoriginallyreservedforthispurpose;or,secondly,inhisrevenue,fromwhateversourcederived,asitgraduallycomesin;or,thirdly,insuchthingsashadbeenpurchasedbyeitheroftheseinformeryears,andwhicharenotyetentirelyconsumed;suchasastockofclothes,householdfurniture,andthelike。Inone,orother,orallofthesethreearticles,consiststhestockwhichmencommonlyreservefortheirownimmediateconsumption。
  Therearetwodifferentwaysinwhichacapitalmaybeemployedsoastoyieldarevenueorprofittoitsemployer。
  First,itmaybeemployedinraising,manufacturing,orpurchasinggoods,andsellingthemagainwithaprofit。Thecapitalemployedinthismanneryieldsnorevenueorprofittoitsemployer,whileiteitherremainsinhispossession,orcontinuesinthesameshape。Thegoodsofthemerchantyieldhimnorevenueorprofittillhesellsthemformoney,andthemoneyyieldshimaslittletillitisagainexchangedforgoods。Hiscapitaliscontinuallygoingfromhiminoneshape,andreturningtohiminanother,anditisonlybymeansofsuchcirculation,orsuccessiveexchanges,thatitcanyieldhimanyprofit。Suchcapitals,therefore,mayveryproperlybecalledcirculatingcapitals。
  Secondly,itmaybeemployedintheimprovementofland,inthepurchaseofusefulmachinesandinstrumentsoftrade,orinsuchlikethingsasyieldarevenueorprofitwithoutchangingmasters,orcirculatinganyfurther。Suchcapitals,therefore,mayveryproperlybecalledfixedcapitals。
  Differentoccupationsrequireverydifferentproportionsbetweenthefixedandcirculatingcapitalsemployedinthem。
  Thecapitalofamerchant,forexample,isaltogetheracirculatingcapital。Hehasoccasionfornomachinesorinstrumentsoftrade,unlesshisshop,orwarehouse,beconsideredassuch。
  Somepartofthecapitalofeverymasterartificerormanufacturermustbefixedintheinstrumentsofhistrade。Thispart,however,isverysmallinsome,andverygreatinothers。A
  mastertailorrequiresnootherinstrumentsoftradebutaparcelofneedles。Thoseofthemastershoemakerarealittle,thoughbutaverylittle,moreexpensive。Thoseoftheweaverriseagooddealabovethoseoftheshoemaker。Thefargreaterpartofthecapitalofallsuchmasterartificers,however,iscirculated,eitherinthewagesoftheirworkmen,orinthepriceoftheirmaterials,andrepaidwithaprofitbythepriceofthework。
  Inotherworksamuchgreaterfixedcapitalisrequired。Inagreatiron—work,forexample,thefurnaceformeltingtheore,theforge,theslitt—mill,areinstrumentsoftradewhichcannotbeerectedwithoutaverygreatexpense。Incoal—worksandminesofeverykind,themachinerynecessarybothfordrawingoutthewaterandforotherpurposesisfrequentlystillmoreexpensive。
  Thatpartofthecapitalofthefarmerwhichisemployedintheinstrumentsofagricultureisafixed,thatwhichisemployedinthewagesandmaintenanceofhislabouringservants,isacirculatingcapital。Hemakesaprofitoftheonebykeepingitinhisownpossession,andoftheotherbypartingwithit。Thepriceorvalueofhislabouringcattleisafixedcapitalinthesamemannerasthatoftheinstrumentsofhusbandry。Theirmaintenanceisacirculatingcapitalinthesamemannerasthatofthelabouringservants。Thefarmermakeshisprofitbykeepingthelabouringcattle,andbypartingwiththeirmaintenance。Boththepriceandthemaintenanceofthecattlewhicharebroughtinandfattened,notforlabour,butforsale,areacirculatingcapital。Thefarmermakeshisprofitbypartingwiththem。A
  flockofsheeporaherdofcattlethat,inabreedingcountry,isboughtin,neitherforlabour,norforsale,butinordertomakeaprofitbytheirwool,bytheirmilk,andbytheirincrease,isafixedcapital。Theprofitismadebykeepingthem。
  Theirmaintenanceisacirculatingcapital。Theprofitismadebypartingwithit;anditcomesbackwithbothitsownprofitandtheprofituponthewholepriceofthecattle,inthepriceofthewool,themilk,andtheincrease。Thewholevalueoftheseed,too,isproperlyafixedcapital。Thoughitgoesbackwardsandforwardsbetweenthegroundandthegranary,itneverchangesmasters,andthereforedoesnotproperlycirculate。Thefarmermakeshisprofit,notbyitssale,butbyitsincrease。
  Thegeneralstockofanycountryorsocietyisthesamewiththatofallitsinhabitantsormembers,andthereforenaturallydividesitselfintothesamethreeportions,eachofwhichhasadistinctfunctionoroffice。
  Thefirstisthatportionwhichisreservedforimmediateconsumption,andofwhichthecharacteristicis,thatitaffordsnorevenueorprofit。Itconsistsinthestockoffood,clothes,householdfurniture,etc。,whichhavebeenpurchasedbytheirproperconsumers,butwhicharenotyetentirelyconsumed。Thewholestockofmeredwelling—housestoo,subsistingatanyonetimeinthecountry,makeapartofthisfirstportion。Thestockthatislaidoutinahouse,ifitistobethedwellinghouseoftheproprietor,ceasesfromthatmomenttoserveinthefunctionofacapital,ortoaffordanyrevenuetoitsowner。A
  dwellinghouse,assuch,contributesnothingtotherevenueofitsinhabitant;andthoughitis,nodoubt,extremelyusefultohim,itisashisclothesandhouseholdfurnitureareusefultohim,which,however,makesapartofhisexpense,andnotofhisrevenue。Ifitistobelettoatenantforrent,asthehouseitselfcanproducenothing,thetenantmustalwayspaytherentoutofsomeotherrevenuewhichhederiveseitherfromlabour,orstock,orland。Thoughahouse,therefore,mayyieldarevenuetoitsproprietor,andtherebyserveinthefunctionofacapitaltohim,itcannotyieldanytothepublic,norserveinthefunctionofacapitaltoit,andtherevenueofthewholebodyofthepeoplecanneverbeinthesmallestdegreeincreasedbyit。
  Clothes,andhouseholdfurniture,inthesamemanner,sometimesyieldarevenue,andtherebyserveinthefunctionofacapitaltoparticularpersons。Incountrieswheremasqueradesarecommon,itisatradetoletoutmasqueradedressesforanight。
  Upholsterersfrequentlyletfurniturebythemonthorbytheyear。Undertakersletthefurnitureoffuneralsbythedayandbytheweek。Manypeopleletfurnishedhouses,andgetarent,notonlyfortheuseofthehouse,butforthatofthefurniture。Therevenue,however,whichisderivedfromsuchthingsmustalwaysbeultimatelydrawnfromsomeothersourceofrevenue。Ofallpartsofthestock,eitherofanindividual,orofasociety,reservedforimmediateconsumption,whatislaidoutinhousesismostslowlyconsumed。Astockofclothesmaylastseveralyears:
  astockoffurniturehalfacenturyoracentury:butastockofhouses,wellbuiltandproperlytakencareof,maylastmanycenturies。Thoughtheperiodoftheirtotalconsumption,however,ismoredistant,theyarestillasreallyastockreservedforimmediateconsumptionaseitherclothesorhouseholdfurniture。
  Thesecondofthethreeportionsintowhichthegeneralstockofthesocietydividesitself,isthefixedcapital,ofwhichthecharacteristicis,thatitaffordsarevenueorprofitwithoutcirculatingorchangingmasters。Itconsistschieflyofthefourfollowingarticles:
  First,ofallusefulmachinesandinstrumentsoftradewhichfacilitateandabridgelabour:
  Secondly,ofallthoseprofitablebuildingswhicharethemeansofprocuringarevenue,notonlytotheirproprietorwholetsthemforarent,buttothepersonwhopossessesthemandpaysthatrentforthem;suchasshops,warehouses,workhouses,farmhouses,withalltheirnecessarybuildings;stables,granaries,etc。Theseareverydifferentfrommeredwellinghouses。Theyareasortofinstrumentsoftrade,andmaybeconsideredinthesamelight:
  Thirdly,oftheimprovementsofland,ofwhathasbeenprofitablylaidoutinclearing,draining,enclosing,manuring,andreducingitintotheconditionmostproperfortillageandculture。Animprovedfarmmayveryjustlyberegardedinthesamelightasthoseusefulmachineswhichfacilitateandabridgelabour,andbymeansofwhichanequalcirculatingcapitalcanaffordamuchgreaterrevenuetoitsemployer。Animprovedfarmisequallyadvantageousandmoredurablethananyofthosemachines,frequentlyrequiringnootherrepairsthanthemostprofitableapplicationofthefarmer’scapitalemployedincultivatingit:
  Fourthly,oftheacquiredandusefulabilitiesofalltheinhabitantsormembersofthesociety。Theacquisitionofsuchtalents,bythemaintenanceoftheacquirerduringhiseducation,study,orapprenticeship,alwayscostsarealexpense,whichisacapitalfixedandrealized,asitwere,inhisperson。Thosetalents,astheymakeapartofhisfortune,sodotheylikewiseofthatofthesocietytowhichhebelongs。Theimproveddexterityofaworkmanmaybeconsideredinthesamelightasamachineorinstrumentoftradewhichfacilitatesandabridgeslabour,andwhich,thoughitcostsacertainexpense,repaysthatexpensewithaprofit。