2 9 o THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



temperature of the body, secured by the use of houses and cloth- 

 ing, and the evenness of the vital processes consequent upon 

 regular nutrition, depends that appreciation of the impressions 

 which come through the senses that leads to the clear and vigor- 

 ous working of the mind. But in those early days tools and 

 appliances were so rude and methods so crude that there was little 

 time for any one to spend except at the work which directly con- 

 cerned his bodily welfare. The duration of such tasks for men 

 and women was usually from daylight until dark. The self- 

 sufficiency of each household was forced by the conditions of life 

 in a sparsely settled region. 



As the number of inhabitants in a certain area increased, and 

 communication between them became less difficult, it was found 

 that the production of certain articles, which involved particular 

 skill, particular training, or particular facilities, could, with profit 

 to an entire community, be left to the individuals possessing the 

 requisite skill, training, or facilities. For example, a man making 

 shoes for a considerable number of people acquired skill enabling 

 him to make better shoes than the man who devoted but limited 

 time to the making of a limited number for his own family, and 

 the greater the time devoted to and the greater the revenue 

 derived from the prosecution of a single industry the more readily 

 could he afford, from time to time, to possess himself of appliances 

 rendering more and better work possible with less effort, and the 

 better could he afford to give more time to seeking the material 

 best adapted for his product, which, as the quantities he used 

 increased, he could secure, other things equal, at decreasing cost. 

 And so with other functions contributing to material welfare. 



When the demands upon an artisan became so great that he 

 could not meet them entirely by his own personal exertion he em- 

 ployed a man to assist him. This is the first combination the 

 simplest industrial organization. Its characteristics should be 

 carefully noted. The efforts of both men being directed by the 

 employer, there is centralized control, and the joint efforts of the 

 two men supplying a greater demand than was possible for the 

 one, the field of their operations extends. And the two men, by 

 systematically combining their efforts, other things being equal, 

 accomplish more than could the two men working separately ; 

 wherefore, there is economy of production. 



The numbers of individuals engaged in work for which there 

 was greatest demand increased most rapidly every village pos- 

 sessing its cobblers, carpenters, blacksmiths, and weavers and 

 with the further increase of population and the extension of the 

 area over which their products or services could be distributed, 

 the number of separate vocations increased. Because of the 

 greater number of people wanting houses it became profitable for 



