﻿4 
  Transactions. 
  — 
  Miscellaneoxis. 
  

  

  very 
  important 
  quality 
  in 
  connection 
  with 
  the 
  distribution 
  of 
  wealth, 
  and 
  

   should, 
  therefore, 
  be 
  accurately 
  defined 
  and 
  carefully 
  studied, 
  bu.t 
  it 
  should 
  

   not 
  be 
  treated 
  as 
  a 
  specific 
  distinction 
  of 
  wealth 
  itself. 
  Mill 
  himself 
  says 
  

   (Book 
  III., 
  chap, 
  i.), 
  that 
  " 
  The 
  conditions 
  and 
  laws 
  of 
  production 
  would 
  be 
  

   the 
  same 
  as 
  they 
  are 
  if 
  the 
  arrangements 
  of 
  society 
  did 
  not 
  depend 
  on 
  

   exchange, 
  or 
  did 
  not 
  admit 
  of 
  it." 
  Here 
  " 
  production 
  " 
  means 
  the 
  pro- 
  

   duction 
  of 
  things 
  which 
  must, 
  by 
  the 
  definition, 
  possess 
  exchangeable 
  

   value 
  ; 
  but 
  if 
  the 
  arrangements 
  of 
  society 
  did 
  not 
  admit 
  of 
  the 
  existence 
  

   of 
  exchangeable 
  value 
  at 
  all, 
  how 
  could 
  the 
  production 
  of 
  things 
  possessing 
  

   it 
  be 
  carried 
  on 
  ? 
  Again, 
  he 
  says 
  : 
  " 
  Exchange 
  is 
  not 
  the 
  fundamental 
  law 
  

   of 
  the 
  distribution 
  of 
  the 
  produce, 
  no 
  more 
  than 
  roads 
  and 
  carriages 
  are 
  the 
  

   essential 
  laws 
  of 
  motion, 
  but 
  merely 
  a 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  machinery 
  for 
  efi'ecting 
  

   it." 
  A 
  definition, 
  however, 
  of 
  motion, 
  which 
  made 
  it 
  dependent 
  on 
  the 
  

   existence 
  of 
  roads 
  and 
  carriages, 
  would 
  be 
  exactly 
  parallel 
  to 
  a 
  definition 
  

   which 
  makes 
  wealth 
  dependent 
  on 
  exchangeable 
  value. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  always 
  undesirable 
  to 
  use 
  a 
  definition 
  which 
  pointedly 
  draws 
  the 
  

   attention 
  to 
  any 
  accidental 
  quality 
  of 
  the 
  thing 
  defined, 
  in 
  such 
  a 
  manner 
  

   that 
  this 
  quality 
  may 
  come 
  to 
  be 
  regarded 
  as 
  essential. 
  More 
  especially 
  is 
  

   this 
  the 
  case 
  when 
  there 
  already 
  exists 
  a 
  tendency 
  to 
  regard 
  the 
  accidental 
  

   quality 
  as 
  the 
  only 
  necessary 
  and 
  essential 
  one. 
  There 
  can 
  be 
  no 
  doubt 
  of 
  

   the 
  existence 
  of 
  such 
  a 
  tendency 
  as 
  regards 
  the 
  exchange 
  value 
  of 
  wealth. 
  

   How 
  many 
  people 
  look 
  upon 
  a 
  short 
  harvest 
  as 
  a 
  not 
  very 
  great 
  misfortune, 
  

   because 
  they 
  think 
  the 
  high 
  prices 
  for 
  which 
  it 
  is 
  sold 
  make 
  up 
  for 
  the 
  

   shortness 
  of 
  the 
  crop 
  ? 
  In 
  one 
  of 
  President 
  Grant's 
  annual 
  messages 
  he 
  

   congratulates 
  his 
  fellov,^- 
  countrymen 
  on 
  the 
  rise 
  of 
  prices 
  in 
  grain 
  and 
  pork 
  

   which 
  the 
  Franco-German 
  war 
  had 
  caused, 
  and 
  which 
  he 
  thought 
  must 
  be 
  

   of 
  great 
  advantage 
  to 
  the 
  United 
  States. 
  He 
  evidently 
  looked 
  upon 
  the 
  rise 
  

   in 
  the 
  exchange 
  value 
  of 
  these 
  commodities 
  as 
  equivalent 
  to 
  an 
  increase 
  of 
  

   their 
  utility, 
  and 
  that 
  a 
  scarcity 
  of 
  the 
  necessaries 
  of 
  life 
  was 
  no 
  real 
  mis- 
  

   fortune 
  to 
  the 
  labouring 
  classes 
  of 
  his 
  country 
  as 
  long 
  as 
  it 
  was 
  accompanied 
  

   by 
  high 
  prices. 
  "Where 
  such 
  opinions 
  are 
  held, 
  even 
  by 
  men 
  of 
  education, 
  

   it 
  is 
  surely 
  well 
  not 
  to 
  carelessly 
  use 
  a 
  definition 
  which 
  gives 
  a 
  sort 
  of 
  

   plausibility 
  to 
  the 
  error. 
  

  

  I 
  propose 
  to 
  define 
  wealth 
  to 
  be 
  anything 
  which 
  is 
  useful 
  to 
  man, 
  by 
  

   enabling 
  him 
  to 
  live 
  more 
  comfortably 
  or 
  elegantly 
  than 
  he 
  could 
  with- 
  

   out 
  it. 
  

  

  Of 
  the 
  total 
  wealth 
  existing 
  in 
  a 
  community 
  a 
  part 
  is 
  usually 
  called 
  

   capital. 
  Unfortunately, 
  this 
  word 
  has 
  several 
  different 
  meanings 
  in 
  com- 
  

   mon 
  language, 
  and 
  confusion 
  and 
  error 
  have 
  arisen 
  from 
  its 
  being 
  used 
  

   in 
  one 
  of 
  these 
  instead 
  of 
  in 
  its 
  defined 
  meaning. 
  It 
  sometimes 
  denotes 
  not 
  

   actual 
  wealth, 
  but 
  a 
  right 
  to 
  a 
  certain 
  share 
  of 
  the 
  wealth 
  of 
  the 
  community. 
  

  

  