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Show 336 OF THE PROFITS OF CAPITAL. [en. v. and practically they are very rarely so high as the actual state of the land cotn bined \Vi th the smallest possible quantity of food awarded to the labourer '\Vould adn1it of. But \vhat would be the effects upon the profits of stock of any given increase of capital, or even of any given increase of the labour necessary to produce a certain quanti.ty of corn, it would be quite. impossible to say before hand. In the ease of a mere increase of capital, how .. ever large, it has appeared that circ11mstances might occur to prevent any fall of profits for a great length of time. And, even in the case of an increase in the quantity of labour necessary to produce corn, it \vould depend entirely upon the principles of de1nand and supply and competition, \vhether the increase -in the price of corn '\\rould be such as to throw almost the whole of the increased difficulty of production upon labour, or such as to throw ahnost the "rhole of it upon profits, or finally such as to divide the loss 1norc equally in various proportions between then1. No theory of profits therefore can approach to\ Vards correctness, \vhich attempts to get rid of the principle of de1nand and supply and compe· tition. . ( $37 ) CHAPTER VI. OF THE DISTINCTION BET\\7EEN WEA.tTH AND VALUE. IT has been justly stated by Adan1 Smith that a man is rich or poor according to the degree in which he can afford to enjoy the necessaries, conveniences, and .amusements of human life. And it follows from this definition that, if the bounty of nature furnished all the necessaries, conveniences and amusements of life to every inhabitant of a country in the fullest measure of proportion to his wishes, such a country \vould be in the highest degree 'vealthy, without possessing any thing which 'vould have exchangeable value, or could command a single hour's labour. In this state of things,. undoubtedly, wealth has nothing to do with exchangeable value. But as this is not the actual state of things, nor likely to be s~ at any future time; as· the bounty of nature furnishes but few of the necessaries conveniences and an1usen1ents of life to Ulan with' out the aid of his own exertions; and as the ITreat stimulus to . 0 exertton is the desire to possess ,vhat can only be possessed by means of son1e labour or sacrifice it will be found that, in the real state in "rhich 1~a11 is placed on earth, V\realth and exchan()'eable value b ' z |
