政治经济学及赋税原理

"A man is rich or poor," says Adam Smith, "according to the degree in which he can afford to enjoy the necessaries, conveniences, and amusements of…

It is true, that the man in possession of a scarce commodity is richer, if by means of it he can command more of the necessaries and enjoyments of…

It may be said then of two countries possessing precisely the same quantity of all the necessaries and comforts of life, that they are equally rich,…

Although Adam Smith has given the correct description of riches, which I have more than once noticed, he afterwards explains them differently, and…

In the first case, a country would not only become rich, but the value of its riches would increase. It would become rich by parsimony; by…

M. Say, in speaking of the excellences and imperfections of the great work of Adam Smith, imputes to him, as an error, that "he attributes to the…

But these natural agents, though they add greatly to _value in use_, never add exchangeable value, of which M. Say is speaking, to a commodity: as…

In the first passage we are told, that if every thing fell to half its value, from abundance, the society would be equally rich, because there…

Whether these increased productions, and the consequent demand which they occasion, shall or shall not lower profits, depends solely on the rise of…

There is only one case, and that will be temporary, in which the accumulation of capital with a low price of food may be attended with a fall of…

When merchants engage their capitals in foreign trade, or in the carrying trade, it is always from choice, and never from necessity: it is because in…

Adam Smith however, speaks of the carrying trade as one not of choice, but of necessity; as if the capital engaged in it would be inert if not so…

"About ninety-six thousand hogsheads of tobacco are annually purchased with a part of the surplus produce of British industry. But the demand of…

We manufacture commodities, and with them buy goods abroad, because we can obtain a greater quantity than we could make at home. Deprive us of this…

Again. "Those, therefore, who have the command of more food than they themselves can consume, are always willing to exchange the surplus, or, what is…

Adam Smith has justly observed, that it is extremely difficult to determine the rate of the profits of stock. "Profit is so fluctuating, that even in…

A bounty on the exportation of corn tends to lower its price to the foreign consumer, but it has no permanent effect on its price in the home market.

Suppose that to afford the usual and general profits of stock, the price of corn should in England be 4_l._ per quarter; it could not then be…

The ultimate effect then of a bounty on the exportation of corn, is not to raise or to lower the price in the home market, but to lower the price…

If, however, I have succeeded in shewing that it is not the rise in the money wages of labour which raises the price of commodities, but that such…

Adam Smith appears to have been fully aware, that the correctness of his argument entirely depended on the fact, whether the increase "of the money…

"I answer," he says, "that this might be the case, if the effect of the bounty was to raise the real price of corn, or to enable the farmer, with…

But whether wages were stationary after the rise in the price of corn, or advanced moderately, or enormously, is of no importance to this question,…

A bounty, if it raises the price of corn, either raises it in comparison with the price of other commodities, or it does not. If the affirmative be…

I cannot, however, but remark that, though Adam Smith's general doctrines correspond with this which I have just quoted, yet in one part of his…

Adam Smith again considers that the effect of the bounty is to cause a partial degradation in the value of money. "That degradation," says he "in the…

I have elsewhere attempted to shew that a partial degradation in the value of money, which shall affect both agricultural produce, and manufactured…

If then, a bounty raises the price of corn in comparison with all other things, the farmer will be benefited, and more land will be cultivated; but…

I have already attempted to shew, that the market price of corn, would, under an increased demand from the effects of a bounty, exceed its natural…

A bounty on the exportation of manufactures will undoubtedly, as Dr. Smith contends, raise the market price of manufactures, but it will not raise…

The sole effect of the bounty either on the exportation of manufactures, or of corn, is to divert a portion of capital to an employment, which it…

Mr. Buchanan appears to have seen the fallacy of Dr. Smith's arguments respecting bounties, and on the last passage which I have quoted, very…

It must, however, be conceded, that the tendency of a bounty on the exportation of any commodity is to lower in a small degree the value of money.…

The manufacturers themselves, as consumers, had to pay an additional price for such commodities, and therefore it cannot be correctly said, that "the…

It is the more necessary, to make this remark, as in the present day the authority of Adam Smith is quoted by country gentlemen for imposing…

This then is a further proof, that no particular disadvantage arises from taxes on necessaries, on account of their raising wages and lowering the…

A bounty on the production of corn then, would produce no real effect on the annual produce of the land and labour of the country, although it…

In such case, it is evident that corn would be dear, and commodities cheap; labour would continue at the same price, if the labourer were as much…

In considering this question, we have purposely left out of our consideration the effect of such a measure on foreign trade; we have rather been…

"Such parts only of the produce of land," says Adam Smith, "can commonly be brought to market, of which the ordinary price is sufficient to replace…

This passage would naturally lead the reader to conclude that its author could not have mistaken the nature of rent, and that he must have seen…

But he had adopted the notion that "there were some parts of the produce of land for which the demand must always be such as to afford a greater…

He says, that "land, in almost any situation, produces a greater quantity of food than what is sufficient to maintain all the labour necessary for…

If the comprehensive mind of Adam Smith had been directed to this fact, he would not have maintained that rent forms one of the component parts of…

"Whether a coal mine, for example," he says, "can afford any rent, depends partly upon its fertility, and partly upon its situation. A mine of any…

Neither would any greater proportion of the gross produce be paid to the landlord, whether it consisted of potatoes, which would feed three hundred…

If potatoes were to become the common food of the people, there would be a long interval during which the landlords would suffer an enormous…

When from the progress of population, land of the same quality as before should be taken into cultivation, to produce the food required, and the same…

Adam Smith never makes any distinction between a low value of money, and a high value of corn, and therefore infers, that the interest of the…