all in the spirit of retaliation, but in that of self-defence, as well as for the more perfect elucidation of the principles of the science, I have compared the effects of aristocratic with those of democratic institutions upon the development of national enterprise, the growth of opulence, the security of property, the popular feeling of uneasiness or content, and the general well-being of the people in Great Britain and the United States. Too much stress is habitually laid by English economists upon the natural advantages which our countrymen are supposed to possess, especially in the broad expanse of fertile territory which still remains open for settlement by them. But surely we cannot claim superiority in this respect over England, whose colonial dominion comprises Nova Scotia and Canada, a large portion of the East and the West Indies, the southern part of Africa, and the whole of New Zealand and Australia. Besides, I have attempted to show that the causes of the increase of capital are moral rather than physical, and that there is a drawback, as well as an advantage, in the abundance and cheapness of land, which incite the people to leave behind them all the means and appliances of civilization, and to become squatters and backwoodsmen in the wilderness. Though I have had frequent occasion to controvert the opinions of English economists, it is little to say that this work could not have been written without the aid which their writings have afforded, and that I have often borrowed from one or two of them facts and arguments which have served to confute the theories of the others. The authority of Adam Smith, Malthus, and Ricardo seems to be waning even in England; a new school has sprung up in opposition to them, whose opinions on many important points are visibly gaining ground, and have already begun to affect the legislation of the kingdom. Among these dissentients may be reckoned the eminent traveller and social economist, Mr. Samuel Laing, and the ingenious and well-informed author of "OverPopulation and its Remedy," Mr. W. T. Thornton; while Mr. Tooke, the author of an admirable "History of Prices," and Mr. Fullarton, have ple, who are naturally cordial well-wishers to England, a strong feeling of surprise and indignation at the insolent and domineering tone habitually assumed about everything pertaining to America by that influential journal which, even more than the British ministry, is the organ of public opinion in Great Britain,- a feeling which mere diplomacy, though conducted by persons as wise and generous as Webster and Ashburton, can never entirely eradicate. successfully established, in opposition to the paradoxes of Ricardo and his followers, a rational theory of the currency. Mr. J. S. Mill, an avowed iconoclast and reformer, has followed or preceded these writers on some of their points of dissent from the old school, and has incorporated into his work some very bold speculations respecting the laws of inheritance and the distribution of property; but in other respects, he has followed very closely in the footsteps of Malthus and Ricardo. From the writings of all whom I have mentioned by name, and of several others, I have derived valuable aid and instruction. Throughout the work, I have had in view the wants of learners, and have tried to incorporate into it such elementary information about banking operations, the system of disposing of the public lands, the nature of bills of exchange, the functions of the currency, the supply of the precious metals, and the course of trade both at home and with foreign countries, as might be useful not only to classes in college, but to other young men, who, with less preparatory training, are about to enter the mercantile profession. CAMBRIDGE, December 28, 1855. CONTENTS. The science of wealth founded on the laws of human nature Articles of wealth are quickly consumed THE AIMS, THE LIMITATIONS, AND THE ADVANTAGES OF THE There are general laws that constitute a theory of wealth Errors in reducing the principles of this science to practice Importance of the study of social economy Necessity of teaching the doctrines of this science Dignity and utility of the science of wealth Selfishness and cupidity made to minister to the public good What constitutes national independence Divine wisdom and beneficence manifested in economical laws The paradox of the creation of value. Value cannot exist without difficulty of attainment Distinction between natural and artificial wealth THE MEASURE OF VALUE, AND THE DISTRIBUTION OF WEALTH AMONG THE COÖPERATING PRODUCERS OF IT Definition and measure of labor Two limitations of this general law Exchangeable value transformed into natural wealth Exceptions caused by accidents and monopolies . The Scotch Highlanders owned the soil in common property Eviction of the Highland tenantry Tenant right in Ireland; other effects of custom Competition distributes values with perfect fairness Mutual dependence of agriculture, commerce, and manufactures Increased dexterity, corporeal and mental Classification of operatives and economy of labor Limits of the division of labor The mental faculties dwarfed by the division of labor Frugality the source of capital Productive and unproductive consumption Unproductive consumption ought not to be regretted Fixed and Circulating Capital defined Enumeration of articles ranked under these two heads . Influence of moral causes exemplified in Spain Uncertain exactions are the most injurious Manners and opinion, more than law, create security. THE INCREASE OF CAPITAL AS AFFECTED BY THE ENCOURAGE- Difference between skilled artisans and rude laborers Proportion of rude laborers to the whole population Loss suffered from a deficiency of skilled labor Ireland compared with Massachusetts in this respect Comparative amount of pauperism in these two cases. |