75 ONE MAN'S GAIN ANOTHER MAN^S LOSS? 153 



learning a fresh business. They naturally made the mistake of 

 taking up what seemed a profitable trade, but more people were 

 still employed in producing food than were really required for 

 that purpose. Hence they simply shared their poverty with the 

 farmers, and gained at their expense. In the end the whole 

 community did benefit, but only after a new want had been 

 discovered, and the surplus labour was employed to supply this 

 new want. Then the improvement in farming and the supply 

 of a new enjoyment made them all better off than before. Thua 

 we see that a benefit resulting from barter may or may not be 

 obtained at the expense of others. An improvement in produc- 

 tion may or may not be followed by increased comfort all 

 round. It would not be difficult to distinguish between the 

 cases, but these distinctions when written out would make tedious 

 reading. Our present contention is merely this. In a commu- 

 nity of honest people, all producers, with no capitalist and even 

 with no money, there would still be rich and poor classes, and 

 improvements in production might result in suffering to some 

 classes ; but this suffering is not necessarily the result of any 

 profit made out of the process of buying and selling ; it was due 

 to one of two causes. Either some producer was making a 

 wrong thing, something which no one able to pay for it wanted ; 

 or else too many producers were engaged in the production of a 

 right thing.' The consumers were only willing to give so much 

 of their own produce for meat as would support a limited number 

 of meat-producers. When however a new want is discovered, 

 those who supply it become rich and enrich others. 



No one suffers if the new supply competes with nothing 

 else. The old things are wanted in the same quantity as before, 

 and if, as we assume, they can be supplied in sufficient quantity 

 for all by the number of hands actually employed, the new want 

 can be supplied aud enjoyed with absolute benefit to every one. 

 The danger is that with complex wants, men may be tempted to 

 work too hard. In civilised communities our wants are innu- 

 merable : they are satisfied in a very remarkable way. Even 

 the very poor consume more produce than the very rich in un- 

 civilised communities, where the wants are few. But the 

 savages have most leisure. Each savage works moderately and 

 supplies his own wants, which are few. The increase of civilisa- 



