Adam Smith：The Wealth of Nations, Book II, Chapter I, Paragraph 693

Fourthly, of the acquired and useful abilities of all the inhabitants and members of the society. The acquisition of such talents, by the maintenance of the acquirer during his education, study, or apprenticeship, always costs a real expense, which is a capital fixed and realized, as it were, in his person. Those talents, as they make a part of his fortune, so do they likewise that of the society to which he belongs. The improved dexterity of a workman may be considered in the same light as a machine or instrument of trade which facilitates and abridges labour, and which, though it costs a certain expense, repays that expense with a profit.

Source： https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/3300
Locator：Book II, Chapter I, paragraph 693 · Verified：2026-10-19 · Verification：Exact match

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