Principles of Political Economy and Taxation. 159 



Mr. Jones has observed, an assumption without any a priori 

 foundation whatever, and not at all consistent with the known 

 history of agriculture. 



Let r be the number of quarters of corn, grown on an acre 

 of land, p the price of a quarter in pounds, c the capital em- 

 ployed on one acre, including wages; d the sum requisite to re- 

 place c with the usual profit: then we have the money rent of 

 one acre =pr — d. 



If r„ be the produce of the limiting soil, pr a -d=0; and 

 rent of one acre = pr —pr n . 



Since c is the whole capital employed on an acre, it is the 

 sum of all the doses up to the last. 



Instead of a quarter of corn, a pound, an acre, we may take 

 any other unit of produce, price, and land. 



1 



II. Postulate of Wages. 



4. Mr. Ricardo assumes that the natural rate of wages is 

 invariable; that is, that the labourer's command of food and 

 other necessaries is never permanently augmented or diminished. 

 Hence, if the price of corn (or whatever is the main article ... 

 food) rises or falls, a rise or fall in wages shortly follows and 

 compensates this charge. 



This opinion is supposed to be established by the ascertained 

 laws of the progress of population. It is conceived thai if the 

 demand for labour, and consequently the reward of it, is di- 

 minished, the encouragement to population being thus weakened 

 a retardation in its advance will occur, which will, after a certain 

 period, restore the original standard of wages ; and that these 

 effects inverted will occur in the case of an increase of wages. 



