﻿TRAN 
  SACTIONS 
  

  

  OF 
  THE 
  

  

  NEW 
  ZEALAND 
  INSTITUTE, 
  

  

  18 
  7 
  8. 
  

  

  I.— 
  MISCELLANEOUS. 
  

  

  Aet. 
  I. 
  — 
  On 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  Terms 
  used 
  in 
  Political 
  Economy. 
  

  

  By 
  John 
  Cabrutheks, 
  M.Inst. 
  C.E. 
  

   [Read 
  before 
  the 
  Wellington 
  Philosophical 
  Society, 
  13th 
  July, 
  1878.] 
  

   Political 
  Economy 
  has 
  been 
  very 
  unfortunate 
  in 
  its 
  nomenclature, 
  which 
  

   has 
  been 
  drawn 
  from 
  the 
  vocabulary 
  of 
  the 
  mercantile 
  world, 
  every 
  word 
  

   of 
  which, 
  besides 
  its 
  direct 
  notation, 
  connotes 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  distinctly 
  some 
  

   economic 
  doctrine. 
  In 
  spite 
  of 
  definitions, 
  the 
  secondary 
  meanings 
  of 
  the 
  

   several 
  words 
  have 
  influenced 
  the 
  thoughts 
  and 
  teaching 
  of 
  political 
  

   economists. 
  

  

  The 
  object 
  of 
  this 
  paper 
  is 
  to 
  examine 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  principal 
  terms 
  in 
  

   general 
  use, 
  and 
  their 
  definitions 
  as 
  given 
  in 
  Mill's 
  " 
  Principles 
  of 
  Political 
  

   Economy," 
  which 
  is 
  almost 
  universally 
  accepted 
  as 
  the 
  best 
  exponent 
  of 
  

   modern 
  thought 
  on 
  the 
  subject. 
  I 
  hope 
  to 
  be 
  able 
  to 
  suggest 
  others, 
  which 
  

   will 
  not 
  be 
  so 
  liable 
  as 
  those 
  given 
  by 
  Mill 
  to 
  confuse 
  the 
  thoughts 
  by 
  

   suggesting 
  a 
  secondary 
  meaning 
  not 
  included 
  in 
  the 
  definition 
  itself. 
  Even 
  

   should 
  I 
  not 
  succeed 
  my 
  labour 
  will 
  not 
  be 
  thrown 
  away, 
  as 
  it 
  is 
  always 
  

   useful 
  to 
  look 
  at 
  scientific 
  problems 
  from 
  more 
  than 
  one 
  point 
  of 
  view. 
  

  

  Wealth. 
  

   Mill 
  defines 
  wealth 
  to 
  be 
  " 
  all 
  useful 
  or 
  agreeable 
  things 
  which 
  possess 
  

   exchangeable 
  value." 
  To 
  this 
  definition 
  it 
  may 
  fairly 
  be 
  objected 
  that 
  

   exchangeable 
  value 
  is 
  a 
  merely 
  accidental 
  quality 
  of 
  some 
  things 
  useful 
  or 
  

   agreeable, 
  and 
  should 
  not, 
  therefore, 
  be 
  treated 
  as 
  essential. 
  Eobinson 
  

   Crusoe's 
  cave 
  and 
  garden 
  were 
  just 
  as 
  much 
  wealth 
  as 
  if 
  he 
  had 
  been 
  able 
  

   to 
  exchange 
  them 
  for 
  other 
  things. 
  Exchangeable 
  value 
  is, 
  it 
  is 
  true, 
  a 
  

  

  