118 Economy of Machinery and Manufactures. 



terior detail of British manufactories, as being of equal, if not great- 

 er importance to the prosperity of commerce, and the welfare of the 

 State, than even the perfection and extent of their manufactures. 

 Although they have arrived, by the excellence of their machinery 

 and the skill of their artisans, at a great degree of perfection, yet it 

 is owing to this vigilant economy, that they can afford their products 

 at so cheap a rate, as to command the markets of all the world, ex- 

 cept such as are closed against them by a restrictive policy. 



The first object of a manufacturer is, or ought to be, the perfec- 

 tion of his products — the second, so to manage his concerns as to 

 afford them, at the cheapest possible price. By the first, he secures 

 a market, and by the second, an extensive market, i. e. if the goods 

 are of the best quality, they will secure purchasers, and if cheap, 

 more purchasers can afford to buy and more goods will be sold. If 

 then the seller makes a profit on capital, it will increase in the ratio 

 of sales. The cheaper the article is, the larger will be its list of 

 consumers, and the greater probability will there be of its becoming a 

 necessary of life, of its not falling into disuse, and, consequently, of 

 its affording a desirable and profitable employment. 



Competition is another and compelling stimulus to produce goods 

 with the least cost ; for dear goods, of equal quality, will be driven 

 from the market, and supplanted by the cheaper commodity. 



So low is the rate of profit upon capital in the manufacturing in- 

 terests of Great Britain, since the introduction of machinery, that a 

 manufacturer has many points to ascertain, relative to the facilities of 

 which he may avail himself, and the various modes of economy he can 

 practice, before he can, prudently, invest capital in such an enterprise. 

 In this country it would be still more essential, that he should learn 

 whether the location is favorable, i. e. if he employs steam, wheth- 

 er fuel is near and plentiful — whether the metals for his machinery 

 are at hand — whether the raw materials for his work are cheap and 

 abundant — whether the part of the country, its temperature, its pre- 

 dominating dryness or humidity, are suited to the goods which he 

 intends to produce — and whether a ready market, with cheap and easy 

 modes of transportation, is at hand. These questions being settled, 

 he has to regulate the interior details, where, if his mechanical ope- 

 rations are not conducted with the utmost skill, if every possible saving 

 is not made, and the most rigorous economy enforced, his hopes will 

 be disappointed, and his exertions will fail. So thoroughly has the 

 system of economy been tested in every department of the arts — 



