204 LAND AND LABOR. 



sons, leaving full employment for but about eight mil- 

 lions. At this time the average wages paid to workers, 

 when employed, is less than one dollar a day ; but we 

 will estimate at one dollar, or three hundred dollars a 

 year, which, for eight million persons, give a trade of 

 two billions four hundred million dollars per annum. 



This must be the measure of that part of our home 

 traffic now derived from the industrial classes, because 

 it is not possible that they should contribute anything 

 more than the wages they receive. 



Here is shown an annual loss to the trade of home 

 consumption, by the industrial classes, caused by their 

 increasing idleness and constant reduction in wages, 

 within the last seventeen years, that amounts to the 

 enormous sum of over eight billions of dollars per an- 

 num, and an absolute decrease of two billions eight 

 hundred and fifty millions of dollars per annum dur- 

 ing the same period, though the number of consumers 

 during that time, and in those classes have fully 

 doubled. That is, that lae seven millions of fully 

 employed, well paid persons, seventeen years ago, cre- 

 ated more than double the amount of business that is 

 now created by fourteen millions of persons of the 

 same character and capacity, when only partially em- 

 ployed and but poorly paid. 



But if it be insisted that the whole of the great in- 

 dustrial class must enter into the computation, and 

 be considered as contributing something to trade, as 

 nearly all do some work at some time, and consume 

 something, then sixty cents a day is the utmost that 

 can be allowed for the average earnings of all, which 

 results in substantially the same showing. 



