A History of Political Economy

第9章

Thefirsteditionoftheworkwhichachievedthisresultappearedanonymouslyin1798underthetitle——AnEssayonthe

PrincipleofPopulation，asitaffectsthefutureimprovementofSociety，withremarksonthespeculationsofMrGodwin，

M。Condorcet，andotherwriters。Thisbookaroseoutofcertainprivatecontroversiesofitsauthorwithhisfather，Daniel

Malthus，whohadbeenafriendofRousseau，andwasanardentbelieverinthedoctrineofhumanprogressaspreachedby

CondorcetandotherFrenchthinkersandbytheirEnglishdisciples。ThemostdistinguishedofthelatterwasWilliam

Godwin，whoseEnquiryconcerningPoliticalJusticehadbeenpublishedin1793。Theviewsputforwardinthatworkhad

beenrestatedbyitsauthorintheEnquirer（1797），anditwasontheessayinthisvolumeentitled"AvariceandProfusion"

thatthediscussionbetweenthefatherandthesonarose，"thegeneralquestionofthefutureimprovementofsociety"being

thusraisedbetweenthem——theelderMalthusdefendingthedoctrinesofGodwin，andtheyoungerassailingthem。Thelatter

"satdownwithanintentionofmerelystatinghisthoughtsonpaperinaclearermannerthanhethoughthecoulddoin

conversation，"andtheEssayonpopulationwastheresult。

ThesocialschemeofGodwinwasfoundedontheideathattheevilsofsocietyarisefromthevicesofhumaninstitutions。

Thereismorethanenoughofwealthavailableforall，butitisnotequallyshared:onehastoomuch，anotherhaslittleor

nothing。Letthiswealth，aswellasthelabourofproducingit，beequallydivided;theneveryonewillbymoderateexertion

obtainsufficientforplainliving;therewillbeabundantleisure，whichwillbespentinintellectualandmoral

self—improvement;reasonwilldeterminehumanactions;governmentandeverykindofforcewillbeunnecessary;and，in

time，bythepeacefulinfluenceoftruth，perfectionandhappinesswillbeestablishedonearth。Totheseglowinganticipations

Malthusopposesthefactsofthenecessityoffoodandthetendencyofmankindtoincreaseuptothelimitoftheavailable

supplyofit。Inastateofuniversalphysicalwell—being，thistendency，whichinreallifeisheldincheckbythedifficultyof

procuringasubsistence，wouldoperatewithoutrestraint。Scarcitywouldfollowtheincreaseofnumbers;theleisurewould

soonceasetoexist;theoldstruggleforlifewouldrecommence;andinequalitywouldreignoncemore。IfGodwin’sideal

system，therefore，couldbeestablished，thesingleforceottheprincipleofpopulation，Malthusmaintained，wouldsufficeto

breakitdown。

Itwillbeseenthattheessaywaswrittenwithapolemicalobject;itwasanoccasionalpamphletdirectedagainsttheutopias

oftheday，notatallasystematictreatiseonpopulationsuggestedbyapurelyscientificinterest。Asapolemic，itwas

decidedlysuccessful;itwasnodifficulttasktodisposeoftheschemeofequalitypropoundedbyGodwin。Already，in1761，

Dr。RobertWallacehadpublishedawork（whichwasamongstthoseusedbyMalthusinthecompositionofhisessay）

entitledVariousProspectsofMankind，Nature，andProvidence，inwhich，afterspeakingofacommunityofgoodsasa

remedyfortheillsofsociety，heconfessedthathesawonefatalobjectiontosuchasocialorganization，namely，"the

excessivepopulationthatwouldensue。"WithCondorcet’sextravagances，too，Malthuseasilydealt。Thateminentman，

amidstthetempestoftheFrenchRevolution，hadwritten，whilstinhidingfromhisenemies，hisEsquissed’untableau

historiquedel’esprithumain。Thegeneralconceptionofthisbookmakesitsappearanceanepochinththistoryoftheriseof

sociology。Init，ifweexceptsomepartialsketchesbyTurgot，（36）isforthefirsttimeexplainedtheideaofatheoryofsocial

dynamicsfoundedonhistory;anditsauthorisonthisgroundrecognizedbyComteashisprincipalimmediatepredecessor。

ButintheexecutionofhisgreatprojectCondorcetfailed。Hisnegativemetaphysicspreventhisjustlyappreciatingthepast，

andheindulges，atthecloseofhiswork，invaguehypothesesrespectingtheperfectibilityofourrace，andinirrational

expectationsofanindefiniteextensionofthedurationofhumanlife。Malthusseemstohavelittlesenseofthenoblenessof

Condorcet’sattitude，andnoappreciationofthegrandeurofhisleadingidea。Butofhischimericalhopesheisabletomake

shortwork;hisgoodsense，ifsomewhatlimitedandprosaic，isatleasteffectualindetectingandexposingutopias。

Theprojectofaformalanddetailedtreatiseonpopulationwasanafter—thoughtofMalthus。Theessayinwhichhehad

studiedahypotheticfutureledhimtoexaminetheeffectsoftheprinciplehehadputforwardonthepastandpresentstateof

society;andheundertookanhistoricalexaminationoftheseeffects，andsoughttodrawsuchinferencesinrelationtothe

actualstateofthingsasexperienceseemedtowarrant。Theconsequenceofthiswassuchachangeinthenatureand

compositionoftheessayasmadeit，inhisownlanguage，"anewwork。"Thebook，soaltered，appearedin1803underthe

title，AnEssayonthePrincipleofPopulation，oraViewofitsPastandPresentEffectsonHumanHappiness;withan

Enquiryintoourprospectsrespectingthefutureremovalormitigationoftheevilswhichitoccasions。

Intheoriginalformoftheessayhehadspokenofnocheckstopopulationbutthosewhichcameundertheheadeitherof

viceorofmisery。Henowintroducesthenewelementofthepreventivechecksuppliedbywhathecalls"moralrestraint，"

andisthusenabled，ashehimselfsaid，to"softensomeoftheharshestconclusions"atwhichhehadbeforearrived。The

treatisepassedthroughfiveeditions（37）inhislifetime，andinallofthemheintroducedvariousadditionsandcorrections。

Thatof1817isthelasthefullyrevised，andpresentsthetextsubstantiallyasithassincebeenreprinted。

Notwithstandingthegreatdevelopmentwhichhegavetohiswork，andthealmostunprecedentedamountofdiscussionto

whichitgaverise，itremainsamatterofsomedifficultytodiscoverwhatsolidcontributionhehasmadetoourknowledge，

norisiteasytoascertainpreciselywhatpracticalprecepts，notalreadyfamiliar，hefoundedonhistheoreticprinciples。This

twofoldvaguenessiswellbroughtoutinhiscelebratedcorrespondencewithSenior，inthecourseofwhichitseemstobe

madeapparentthathisdoctrineisnewnotsomuchinitsessenceasinthephraseologyinwhichitiscouched。Hehimself

tellsusthatwhen，afterthepublicationoftheoriginalessay，themainargumentofwhichhehaddeducedfromHume，

Wallace，AdamSmith，andPrice，hebegantoinquiremorecloselyintothesubject，hefoundthat"muchmorehadbeen

done"uponit"thanhehadbeenawareof。"Ithad"beentreatedinsuchamannerbysomeoftheFrencheconomists，

occasionallybyMontesquieu，and，amongourownwriters，byDr。Franklin，SirJamesSteuart，Mr。ArthurYoung，andMr。

Townsend，astocreateanaturalsurprisethatithadnotexcitedmoreofthepublicattention。""Much，however，"hethought，

"remainedyettobedone。Thecomparisonbetweentheincreaseofpopulationandfoodhadnot，perhaps，beenstatedwith

sufficientforceandprecision，"and"fewinquirieshadbeenmadeintothevariousmodesbywhichthelevel"between

populationandthemeansofsubsistence"iseffected。"Thefirstdesideratumherementioned——thewant，namely，ofan

accuratestatementoftherelationbetweentheincreaseofpopulationandthatoffood——Malthusdoubtlesssupposedto

havebeensuppliedbythecelebratedpropositionthat"populationincreasesinageometrical，foodinanarithmetical，ratio。"

Thisproposition，however，hasbeenconclusivelyshowntobeerroneous，therebeingnosuchdifferenceoflawbetweenthe

increaseofmanandthatoftheorganicbeingswhichformhisfood。J。S。MillisindignantwiththosewhocriticiseMalthus’s

formula，whichhegroundlesslydescribesasamere"passingremark，"because，ashethinks，thougherroneous，itsufficiently

suggestswhatistrue;butitissurelyimportanttodetectunrealscience，andtoteststrictlythefoundationsofbeliefs。When

theformulawhichwehavecitedisnotused，othersomewhatnebulousexpressionsarefrequentlyemployed，as，for

example，that"populationhasatendencytoincreasefasterthanfood，"asentenceinwhichbotharetreatedasiftheywere

spontaneousgrowths，andwhichonaccountoftheambiguityoftheword"tendency，"isadmittedlyconsistentwiththefact

assertedbySenior，thatfoodtendstoincreasefasterthanpopulation。Itmustalwayshavebeenperfectlywellknownthat

populationwillprobably（thoughnotnecessarily）increasewitheveryaugmentationofthesupplyofsubsistence，andmay，in

someinstances，inconvenientlypressupon，orevenforacertaintimeexceed，thenumberproperlycorrespondingtothat

supply。Norcoulditeverhavebeendoubtedthatwar，disease，poverty——thelasttwooftentheconsequencesofvice——are

causeswhichkeeppopulationdown。Infact，thewayinwhichabundance，increaseofnumbers，want，increaseofdeaths，

succeedeachotherinthenaturaleconomy，whenreasondoesnotintervene，hadbeenfullyexplainedbytheRev。Joseph

TownsendinhisDissertationonthePoorLaws（1786），which，wehaveseen，wasknowntoMalthus。Again，itissurely

plainenoughthattheapprehensionbyindividualsoftheevilsofpoverty，orasenseofdutytotheirpossibleoffspring，may

retardtheincreaseofpopulation，andhasinallcivilizedcommunitiesoperatedtoacertainextentinthatway。Itisonly

whensuchobvioustruthsareclothedinthetechnicalterminologyof"positive"and"preventivechecks"thattheyappear

novelandprofound;andyettheyappeartocontainthewholemessageofMalthustomankind。Thelaboriousapparatusof

historicalandstatisticalfactsrespectingtheseveralcountriesoftheglobe，adducedinthealteredformoftheessay，though

itcontainsagooddealthatiscuriousandinteresting，establishesnogeneralresultwhichwasnotpreviouslywellknown，

andisaccordinglyignoredbyJamesMillandothers，whorestthetheoryonfactspatenttouniversalobservation。Indeed，as

wehaveseen，theentirehistoricalinquirywasanafterthoughtofMalthus，who，beforeenteringonit，hadalready

announcedhisfundamentalprinciple。

Itwouldseem，then，thatwhathasbeenambitiouslycalledMalthus’stheoryofpopulation，insteadofbeingagreat

discovery，assomehaverepresentedit，orapoisonousnovelty，asothershaveconsideredit，isnomorethanaformal

enunciationofobvious，thoughsometimesneglected，facts。Thepretentiouslanguageoftenappliedtoitbyeconomistsis

objectionable，asbeingapttomakeusforgetthatthewholesubjectwithwhichitdealsisasyetveryimperfectlyunderstood

——thecauseswhichmodifytheforceofthesexualinstinct，andthosewhichleadtovariationsinfecundity，stillawaitinga

completeinvestigation。（38）

Itisthelawofdiminishingreturnsfromland（ofwhichmorewillbesaidhereafter），involvingasitdoes——thoughonly

hypothetically——theprospectofacontinuouslyincreasingdifficultyinobtainingthenecessarysustenanceforallthe

membersofasociety，thatgivestheprincipalimportancetopopulationasaneconomicfactor。Itis，infact，theconfluenceof

theMalthusianideaswiththetheoriesofRicardo，especiallywiththecorollarieswhichthelatter，asweshallsee，deduced

fromthedoctrineofrent（thoughthesewerenotacceptedbyMalthus），thathasledtotheintroductionofpopulationasan

elementinthediscussionofsomanyeconomicquestionsinrecenttimes。

Malthushadundoubtedlythegreatmeritofhavingcalledpublicattentioninastrikingandimpressivewaytoasubjectwhich

hadneithertheoreticallynorpracticallybeensufficientlyconsidered。Butheandhisfollowersappeartohavegreatly

exaggeratedboththemagnitudeandtheurgencyofthedangerstowhichtheypointed。（39）Intheirconceptionsasinglesocial

imperfectionassumedsuchportentousdimensionsthanitseemedtoovercloudthewholeheavenandthreatentheworld

withruin。Thisdoubtlessarosefromhishavingatfirstomittedaltogetherfromhisviewofthequestionthegreat

counteractingagencyofmoralrestraint。Becauseaforceexists，capable，ifunchecked，ofproducingcertainresults，itdoes

notfollowthatthoseresultsareimminentorevenpossibleinthesphereofexperience。Abodythrownfromthehandwould，

underthesingleimpulseofprojection，moveforeverinastraightline;butitwouldnotbereasonabletotakespecialaction

forthepreventionofthisresult，ignoringthefactthatitwillbesufficientlycounteractedbytheotherforceswhichwillcome

intoplay。Andsuchotherforcesexistinthecaseweareconsidering。Iftheinherentenergyoftheprincipleofpopulation

（supposedeverywherethesame）ismeasuredbytherateatwhichnumbersincreaseunderthemostfavourable

circumstances，surelytheforceoflessfavourablecircumstances，actingthroughprudentialoraltruisticmotives，ismeasured

bythegreatdifferencebetweenthismaximumrateandthosewhichareobservedtoprevailinmostEuropeancountries。

Underarationalsystemofinstitutions，theadaptationofnumberstothemeansavailablefortheirsupportiseffectedbythe

feltoranticipatedpressureofcircumstancesandthefearofsocialdegradation，withinatolerabledegreeofapproximationto

whatisdesirable。Tobringtheresultnearertothejuststandard，ahighermeasureofpopularenlightenmentandmore

serioushabitsofmoralreflectionoughtindeedtobeencouraged。Butitisthedutyoftheindividualtohisactualorpossible

offspring，andnotanyvaguenotionsastothepressureofthenationalpopulationonsubsistence，thatwillbeadequateto

influenceconduct。

TheonlyobligationonwhichMalthusinsistsisthatofabstinencefrommarriagesolongasthenecessaryprovisionfora

familyhasnotbeenacquiredorcannotbereasonablyanticipated。Theideaofpost—nuptialcontinence，whichhassincebeen

putforwardbyJ。S。Millandothers，isforeigntohisview。Heevensuggeststhatanallowancemightbemadefromthe

pubicfundsforeverychildinafamilybeyondthenumberofsix，onthegroundthat，whenamanmarries，hecannottellhow

manychildrenheshallhave，andthatthereieffromanunlooked—fordistressaffordedbysuchagrantwouldnotoperateas

anencouragementtomarriage。Thedutyofeconomicprudenceinenteringonthemarriedstateisplain;butinthecaseof

workingmentheideaofasecuredprovisionmustnotbeundulypressed，anditmustalsoberememberedthattheproper

ageformarriageinanyclassdependsonthedurationoflifeinthatclass。Still，tooearlymarriagesarecertainlynot

unfrequent，andtheyareattendedwithotherthaneconomicevils，sothatpossiblyevenlegalmeasuresmightwithadvantage

beresortedtoforpreventingtheminallranksbysomewhatpostponingtheageoffullcivilcompetence——achange，

however，whichwouldnotbewithoutitsdangers。Ontheotherhand，theMalthusiansoftenspeaktoolightlyofinvoluntary

celibacy，notrecognisingsufficientlythatitisadeplorablenecessity。Theydonotadequatelyestimatethevalueofdomestic

lifeasaschoolofthecivicvirtues，andthesocialimportance（evenapartfrompersonalhappiness）ofthemutualaffective

educationarisingfromtherelationsofthesexesinawell—constitutedunion。

Malthusfurtherinfersfromhisprinciplesthatstatesshouldnotartificiallystimulatepopulation，andinparticularthat

poor—lawsshouldnotbeestablished，and，wheretheyexist，shouldbeabolished。Thefirstpartofthispropositioncannotbe

acceptedasapplyingtoeverysocialphase，foritisevidentthatinacaselikethatofancientRome，wherecontinuous

conquestwasthechiefoccupationofthenationalactivity，orinotherperiodswhenprotractedwarsthreatenedthe

independenceorsecurityofnations，statesmenmightwiselytakespecialactionofthekinddeprecatedbyMalthus。In

relationtomodernindustrialcommunitiesheisdoubtlessingeneralright，thoughthepromotionofimmigrationinnew

statesissimilarinprincipletotheencouragementofpopulationThequestionofpoor—lawsinvolvesotherconsiderations。

TheEnglishsystemofhisdaywas，indeed，aviciousone，thoughactinginsomedegreeasacorrectiveofotherevilsinour

socialinstitutions;andeffortsforitsamendmenttendedtothepublicgood。Buttheproposalofabolitionisonefromwhich

statesmenhaverecoiled，andwhichgeneralopinionhasneveradopted。Itisdifficulttobelievethatthepresentsystemwill

bepermanent;itistoomechanicalandundiscriminating;onsomesidestoolax，itisoftenundulyrigorousinthetreatmentof

theworthypoorwhoarethevictimsofmisfortune;and，initsordinarymodesofdealingwiththeyoung，itisopentograve

objection。Butitwouldcertainlyberashtoabolishit;itisoneofseveralinstitutionswhichwillmorewiselyberetaineduntil

thewholesubjectofthelifeoftheworkingclasseshasbeenmorethoroughly，andalsomoresympathetically，studied。The

positionofMalthuswithrespecttothereliefofdestitutionissubjecttothisgeneralcriticism，that，firstprovingtoomuch，

hethenshrinksfromtheconsequencesofhisownlogic。itfollowsfromhisarguments，andisindeedexplicitlystatedina

celebratedpassageofhisoriginalessay，thathewhohasbroughtchildrenintotheworldwithoutadequateprovisionfor

themshouldbelefttothepunishmentofNature，that"itisamiserableambitiontowishtosnatchtherodfromherhand，"

andtodefeattheactionofherlaws，whicharethelawsofGod，andwhich"havedoomedhimandhisfamilytosuffer。"

Thoughhistheoryleadshimtothisconclusion，hecouldnot，asaChristianclergyman，maintainthedoctrinethat，seeingour

brotherinneed，weoughttoshutupourbowelsofcompassionfromhim;andthusheisinvolvedintheradical

inconsequenceofadmittingthelawfulness，ifnottheduty，ofrelievingdistressincaseswhereheyetmustregardtheactas

doingmischieftosociety。Buckle，whowasimposedonbymorethanoneoftheexaggerationsoftheeconomists，accepts

thelogicalinferencewhichMalthusevaded。Heallegesthattheonlygroundonwhichwearejustifiedinrelievingdestitution

istheessentiallyself—regardingone，thatbyremainingdeaftotheappealofthesuffererweshouldprobablyblunttheedgeof

ourownfinersensibilities。

ItcanscarcelybedoubtedthatthefavourwhichwasatonceaccordedtotheviewsofMalthusincertaincircleswasduein

parttoanimpression，verywelcometothehigherranksofsociety，thattheytendedtorelievetherichandpowerfulof

responsibilityfortheconditionoftheworkingclasses，byshowingthatthelatterhadchieflythemselvestoblame，andnot

eitherthenegligenceoftheirsuperiorsortheinstitutionsofthecountry。Theapplicationofhisdoctrines，too，madebysome

ofhissuccessorshadtheeffectofdiscouragingallactiveeffortforsocialimprovement。ThusChalmers"reviewsseriatim，

andgravelysetsasidealltheschemesusuallyproposedfortheameliorationoftheeconomicconditionofthepeople"onthe

groundthatanincreaseofcomfortwillleadtoanincreaseofnumbers，andsothelaststateofthingswillbeworsethanthe

first。

Malthushasinmorerecenttimesderivedacertaindegreeofreflectedlustrefromtheriseandwideacceptanceofthe

Darwinianhypothesis。Itsauthorhimself，intracingitsfiliation，pointstothephrase"struggleiorexistence"usedbyMalthus

inrelationtothesocialcompetition。Darwinbelievesthatmanhasadvancedtohispresentrelativelyhighconditionthrough

suchastruggle，consequentonhisrapidmultiplication。Heregards，itistrue，theagencyofthiscausefortheimprovement

ofourraceaslargelysupersededbymoralinfluencesinthemoreadvancedsocialstages。Yetheconsidersit，eveninthese

stages，ofsomuchimportancetowardsthatend，thatnotwithstandingtheindividualsufferingarisingfromthestrugglefor

life，hedeprecatesanygreatreductioninthenatural，bywhichheseemstomeantheordinary，rateofincrease。

Therehasbeenoflateexhibitedinsomequartersatendencytoapplythedoctrineofthe"survivalofthefittest"tohuman

societyinsuchawayastointensifytheharsherfeaturesofMalthus’sexpositionbyencouragingtheideathatwhatever

cannotsustainitselfisfated，andmustbeallowed，todisappear。Butwhatisrepellentinthisconceptionisremovedbya

wideviewoftheinfluenceofhumanity，asadisposingpower，alikeonvitalandonsocialconditions。Asinthegeneral

animaldomainthesupremacyofmanintroducesanewforceconsciouslycontrollingandultimatelydeterminingthedestinies

ofthesubordinatespecies，sohumanprovidenceinthesocialspherecanintervenefortheprotectionoftheweak，modifying

byitsdeliberateactionwhatwouldotherwisebeamerecontestofcomparativestrengthsinspiredbyselfishinstincts。（40）

DavidRicardo（1772—1823）isessentiallyoftheschoolofSmith，whosedoctrinesheinthemainaccepts，whilstheseeksto

developthem，andtocorrectthemincertainparticulars。ButhismodeoftreatmentisverydifferentfromSmith’s。Thelatter

aimsatkeepingclosetotherealitiesoflifeashefindsthem，——atrepresentingtheconditionsandrelationsofmenandthings

astheyare;and，asHumeremarkedonfirstreadinghisgreatwork，hisprinciplesareeverywhereexemplifiedandillustrated

withcuriousfacts。QuiteunlikethisisthewayinwhichRicardoproceeds。Hemovesinaworldofabstractions。Hesetsout

frommoreorlessarbitraryassumptions，reasonsdeductivelyfromthese，andannounceshisconclusionsastrue，without

allowingforthepartialunrealityoftheconditionsassumedorconfrontinghisresultswithexperience。Whenheseeksto

illustratehisdoctrines，itisfromhypotheticalcases，——hisfavouritedevicebeingthatofimaginingtwocontractingsavages，

andconsideringhowtheywouldbelikelytoact。Hedoesnotexplain——probablyhehadnotsystematicallyexamined，

perhapswasnotcompetenttoexamine——theappropriatemethodofpoliticaleconomy;andthetheoreticdefenceofhis

modeofproceedingwaslefttobeelaboratedbyJ。S。MillandCairnes。Buthisexamplehadagreateffectindeterminingthe

practiceofhissuccessors。Therewassomethinghighlyattractivetotheambitioustheoristinthesweepingmarchoflogic

whichseemedinRicardo’shandstoemulatethecertaintyandcomprehensivenessofmathematicalproof，andintheportable

andpregnantformulaewhichweresoconvenientinargument，andgaveaprompt，ifoftenamoreapparentthanreal，

solutionofdifficultproblems。WhatevertherewasoffalseornarrowinthefundamentalpositionsofSmithhadbeenina

greatdegreecorrectedbyhispracticalsenseandstronginstinctforreality，butwasbroughtoutinitsfulldimensionsand

evenexaggeratedintheabstracttheoremsofRicardoandhisfollowers。

Thedangersinherentinhismethodwereaggravatedbytheextremeloosenessofhisphraseology。Seniorpronounceshim

"themostincorrectwriterwhoeverattainedphilosophicaleminence。"Hismostardentadmirersfindhimfluctuatingand

uncertainintheuseofwords，andgenerallytracehiserrorstoaconfusionbetweentheordinaryemploymentofatermand

somespecialapplicationofitwhichhehashimselfdevised。

ThemostcompleteexpositionofhissystemistobefoundinhisPrinciplesofPoliticalEconomyandTaxation（1817）。This

workisnotacompletetreatiseonthescience，butaratherlooselyconnectedseriesofdisquisitionsonvalueandprice，rent，

wages，andprofits，taxes，trade，moneyandbanking。Yet，thoughtheconnectionofthepartsisloose，thesamefundamental

ideasrecurcontinually，anddeterminethecharacteroftheentirescheme。

Theprincipalproblemtowhichheaddresseshimselfinthisworkisthatofdistribution，——thatistosay，theproportionsof

thewholeproduceofthecountrywhichwillbeallottedtotheproprietorofland，tothecapitalist，andtothelabourer。（41）Anditisimportanttoobservethatitisespeciallythevariationsintheirrespectiveportionswhichtakeplaceintheprogress

ofsocietythatheprofessestostudy，——oneofthemostunhistoricalofwritersthusindicatingasenseofthenecessityofa

doctrineofeconomicdynamics——adoctrinewhich，fromhispointofview，itwasimpossibletosupply。

Theprinciplewhichheputsfirstinorder，andwhichisindeedthekeytothewhole，isthis——thattheexchangevalueofany

commoditythesupplyofwhichcanbeincreasedatwillisregulated，underarégimeoffreecompetition，bythelabour

necessaryforitsproduction。SimilarpropositionsaretobefoundintheWealthofNations，nottospeakofearlierEnglish

writings。Smithhadsaidthat，"intheearlyandrudestateofsocietywhichprecedesboththeaccumulationofstockandthe

appropriationofland，theproportionbetweenthequantitiesoflabournecessaryforacquiringdifferentobjectsseemstobe

theonlycircumstancewhichcanaffordanyruleiorexchangingthemwithoneanother。"Buthewaversinhisconception，

andpresentsasthemeasureofvaluesometimesthequantityoflabournecessaryfortheproductionoftheobject，sometimes

thequantityoflabourwhichtheobjectwouldcommandinthemarket，whichwouldbeidenticalonlyforagiventimeand

place。Thetheoremrequirescorrectionforadevelopedsocialsystembytheintroductionoftheconsiderationofcapital，and

takestheforminwhichitiselsewherequotedfromMalthusbyRicardo，thattherealpriceofacommodity"dependsonthe

greaterorlessquantityofcapitalandlabourwhichmustbeemployedtoproduceit。"（Theexpression"quantityofcapital"is

lax，theelementoitimebeingomitted，butthemeaningisobvious。）Ricardo，however，constantlytakesnonoticeofcapital，

mentioninglabouraloneinhisstatementofthisprinciple，andseekstojustifyhispracticebytreatingcapitalas"accumulated

labour;"butthisartificialwayofviewingthefactsobscuresthenatureoftheco—operationofcapitalinproduction，andby

keepingthenecessityofthisco—operationoutofsighthasencouragedsomesocialisticerrors。Ricardodoesnotsufficiently

distinguishbetweenthecauseordeterminantandthemeasureofvalue;nordoeshecarrybacktheprincipleofcostof

productionasregulatorofvaluetoitsfoundationintheeffectofthatcostonthelimitationofsupply。Itisthe"naturalprice"

ofacommoditythatisfixedbythetheoremwehavestated;themarketpricewillbesubjecttoaccidentalandtemporary

variationsfromthisstandard，dependingonchangesindemandandsupply;butthepricewillpermanentlyandinthelong

run，dependoncostofproductiondefinedasabove。OnthisbasisRicardogoesontoexplainthelawsaccordingtowhich

theproduceofthelandandthelabourofthecountryisdistributedamongsttheseveralclasseswhichtakepartin

production。

Thetheoryofrent，withwhichhebegins，thoughcommonlyassociatedwithhisname，andthoughitcertainlyformsthemost

vitalpartofhisgeneraleconomicscheme，wasnotreallyhis，nordidhelayclaimtoit。Hedistinctlystatesintheprefaceto

thePrinciples，that"in1815Mr。Malthus，inhisInquiryintotheNatureandProgressofRent，andafellowofUniversity

College，Oxford，inhisEssayontheApplicationofCapitaltoLand，presentedtotheworld，nearlyatthesamemoment，the

truedoctrineofrent。"ThesecondwriterherereferredtowasSirEdwardWest，afterwardsajudgeofthesupremecourtof

Bombay。StillearlierthanthetimeofMalthusandWest，asM’Cullochhaspointedout，thisdoctrinehadbeenclearly

conceivedandfullystatedbyDr。JamesAndersoninhisEnquiryintotheNatureofCorn—Laws，publishedatEdinburghin

1777。（42）ThatthistractwasunknowntoMalthusandWestwehaveeveryreasontobelieve;butthetheoryiscertainlyas

distinctlyenunciatedandassatisfactorilysupportedinitasintheirtreatises;andthewholewayinwhichitisputforwardby

AndersonstrikinglyresemblestheforminwhichitispresentedbyRicardo。