﻿6 
  Transactions, 
  — 
  Miscellaneous. 
  

  

  Whenever 
  labour 
  is 
  devoted 
  to 
  the 
  production 
  of 
  an 
  implement, 
  there 
  is 
  

   a 
  sacrifice 
  of 
  present 
  for 
  future 
  advantage. 
  The 
  sacrifice 
  may 
  be 
  sHght 
  and 
  

   the 
  advantage 
  great 
  and 
  almost 
  immediate, 
  but 
  there 
  is 
  always 
  some 
  

   sacrifice. 
  For 
  instance, 
  olive 
  oil 
  is 
  direct 
  wealth, 
  useful 
  for 
  its 
  own 
  sake 
  ; 
  

   if, 
  instead 
  of 
  consuming 
  it 
  as 
  food, 
  the 
  owner 
  uses 
  it 
  as 
  an 
  implement 
  to 
  

   lubricate 
  a 
  steam-engine, 
  he 
  gets, 
  as 
  a 
  reward 
  for 
  his 
  slight 
  sacrifice 
  of 
  

   j)resent 
  good, 
  a 
  vast 
  return 
  in 
  labour 
  saved. 
  This 
  is 
  an 
  extreme 
  case 
  at 
  

   one 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  scale 
  ; 
  at 
  the 
  other 
  end, 
  are 
  improvements 
  in 
  land, 
  where 
  a 
  

   sacrifice 
  of 
  the 
  product 
  of 
  a 
  year's 
  labour 
  of, 
  say, 
  thirty 
  men, 
  may 
  be 
  given 
  

   in 
  exchange 
  for 
  a 
  future 
  increase 
  of 
  the 
  yearly 
  harvest, 
  equal 
  to 
  the 
  product 
  

   of 
  one 
  man's 
  labour. 
  A 
  wealthy 
  landowner 
  in 
  England 
  would 
  probably 
  

   undertake 
  such 
  a 
  work, 
  as 
  he 
  would 
  make 
  3^ 
  per 
  cent, 
  interest 
  on 
  his 
  out- 
  

   lay 
  ; 
  but 
  it 
  would 
  not 
  follow 
  as 
  a 
  matter 
  beyond 
  dispute, 
  that 
  the 
  employment 
  

   of 
  the 
  labour 
  in 
  this 
  manner 
  was 
  to 
  the 
  advantage 
  of 
  the 
  community 
  at 
  

   large, 
  or 
  that, 
  if 
  both 
  the 
  sacrifice 
  and 
  the 
  reward 
  were 
  evenly 
  distributed, 
  

   it 
  would 
  be 
  worth 
  while 
  to 
  incur 
  the 
  one 
  for 
  the 
  sake 
  of 
  the 
  other. 
  

  

  Bearing 
  in 
  mind 
  the 
  division 
  of 
  wealth 
  I 
  have 
  proposed, 
  we 
  may 
  readily 
  

   test 
  the 
  accuracy 
  of 
  the 
  several 
  statements 
  made 
  by 
  Mill 
  and 
  other 
  writers 
  as 
  

   to 
  the 
  effect 
  of 
  employing 
  labour 
  in 
  the 
  production 
  of 
  fixed 
  and 
  circulating 
  

   capital 
  (or 
  wealth) 
  respectively. 
  It 
  is 
  stated 
  that 
  the 
  increase 
  of 
  fixed, 
  

   when 
  it 
  takes 
  place 
  at 
  the 
  expense 
  of 
  circulating 
  capital, 
  must 
  be 
  tempo- 
  

   rarily 
  prejudicial 
  to 
  the 
  interests 
  of 
  the 
  labourers. 
  This 
  is 
  not 
  quite 
  

   accurate 
  : 
  labourers' 
  cottages 
  would, 
  under 
  his 
  definition, 
  be 
  fixed 
  ca]3ital 
  ; 
  

   but 
  it 
  would 
  not 
  be 
  prejudicial 
  to 
  the 
  interests 
  of 
  the 
  labourers 
  themselves 
  

   to 
  employ 
  labour 
  in 
  building 
  them 
  ; 
  provided, 
  of 
  course, 
  such 
  employment 
  

   were 
  judicious 
  — 
  that 
  is, 
  that 
  the 
  cottages 
  were 
  required, 
  and 
  the 
  still 
  more 
  

   urgent 
  requirements 
  of 
  the 
  labourers, 
  food 
  and 
  clothing 
  for 
  instance, 
  were 
  

   already 
  provided. 
  The 
  same 
  may 
  be 
  said 
  of 
  workmen's 
  club-houses, 
  tea- 
  

   gardens, 
  theatres, 
  taverns, 
  and 
  other 
  places 
  of 
  use 
  or 
  amusement 
  which 
  

   workmen 
  frequent. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  also 
  stated 
  that 
  "there 
  is 
  a 
  great 
  difference 
  between 
  the 
  effects 
  of 
  

   circulating 
  and 
  fixed 
  capital 
  on 
  the 
  gross 
  produce 
  of 
  the 
  country," 
  the 
  

   context 
  showing 
  that 
  the 
  former 
  is 
  supposed 
  to 
  be 
  the 
  more 
  productive. 
  

   A 
  steam-engine, 
  for 
  instance, 
  is 
  fixed 
  capital, 
  the 
  coal 
  which 
  is 
  consumed 
  

   in 
  it 
  is 
  circulating 
  ; 
  the 
  coal 
  is, 
  therefore, 
  more 
  productive 
  than 
  the 
  steam- 
  

   engine. 
  Surely 
  this 
  is 
  equivalent 
  to 
  saying 
  that 
  one 
  shear 
  of 
  a 
  pab 
  of 
  

   scissors 
  does 
  more 
  work 
  than 
  the 
  other. 
  Although 
  the 
  steam-engine 
  is 
  

   fixed 
  capital 
  the 
  iron 
  of 
  which 
  it 
  is 
  made 
  is 
  circulating; 
  and 
  it 
  is, 
  therefore, 
  

   a 
  more 
  productive 
  employment 
  of 
  labour 
  to 
  manufacture 
  unwrought 
  iron 
  

   than 
  to 
  make 
  that 
  same 
  iron 
  useful 
  by 
  putting 
  it 
  into 
  an 
  engine. 
  The 
  

  

  