58 



CHILI, 



There is a fallacy in the reasonings of many- 

 people, even on the spot, as to the extent of min- 

 ing profits, which arises, probably, out of the pre- 

 valent misconceptions respecting the nature of 

 money ; or, which is the same thing, the true use 

 of the precious metals, considered as wealth. In 

 consequence of great gains being occasionally 

 made by mining, it is erroneously assumed, that 

 the returns from capital so employed are likely 

 to be, upon the whole, greater than from that 

 applied to agriculture, for instance, or to com- 

 merce ; and many ruinous speculations have been 

 entered into, solely from omitting to take into ac- 

 count the multiplicity of failures, which balance 

 the casual successes, and necessarily reduce the 

 profits to the ordinary level. Even, however, if 

 this uncertainty were not characteristic and in- 

 herent in the nature of mining, still, like every 

 other branch of industry, it could not long con- 

 tinue to yield extraordinary profits ; since, if ca- 

 pital were more productively bestowed on mines 

 than in other ways, it would be speedily with- 

 drawn from those other employments, and ap- 

 plied to mining speculations, until competition 



