BOOK their mafters profits upon the whole ftock of II. wages, materials, and inftruments of trade em

ployed in the bufinefs. It puts immediately into motion, therefore, a much greater quantity of productive labour, and adds a much greater value to the annual produce of the land and labour of the fociety, than an equal capital in the hands of any wholesale merchant.

No equal capital puts into motion a greater quantity of productive labour than that of the farmer. Not only his labouring fervants, but his labouring cattle, are productive labourers. In agriculturetoo, nature labours along with man; and though her labour cofts no expence, its produce has its value, as well as that of the most expenfive workmen. The most important operations of agriculture feem intended, not fo much to increase, though they do that too, as to direct the fertility of nature towards the production of the plants most profitable to man. A field overgrown with briars and brambles may frequently produce as great a quantity of vegetables as the beft cultivated vineyard or corn field. Planting and tillage frequently regulate more than they animate the active fertility of nature; and after all their labour, a great part of the work always remains to be done by her. The labourers and labouring cattle, therefore, employed in agriculture, not only occafion, like the workmen in manufactures, the reproduction of a value equal to their own confumption, or to the capital which employs them, together with its owners profits; but of a much greater value. Over and above

the

V.

the capital of the farmer and all its profits, they c HAP. regularly occafion the reproduction of the rent of the landlord. This rent may be confidered as the produce of those powers of nature, the use of which the landlord lends to the farmer. It is greater or smaller according to the supposed ex, tent of those powers, or in other words, accord, ing to the fuppofed natural or improved fertility of the land. It is the work of nature which remains after deducting or compenfating every thing which can be regarded as the work of man. It is feldom lefs than a fourth, and frequently more than a third of the whole produce. No equal quantity of productive labour employed in manufactures can ever occafion fo great a repro, duction. In them nature does nothing; man does all; and the reproduction must always be in proportion to the strength of the agents that occafion it. The capital employed in agriculture, therefore, not only puts into motion a greater quantity of productive labour than any equal capital employed in manufactures, but in proportion too to the quantity of productive labour which it employs, it adds a much greater value to the annual produce of the land and labour of the country, to the real wealth and revenue of its inhabitants. Of all the ways in which a capital can be employed, it is by far the most advantageous to the fociety.

The capitals employed in the agriculture and in the retail trade of any fociety, must always refide within that fociety. Their employment is confined almost to a precise spot, to the farm,

II.

BOOK and to the shop of the retailer. They muft generally too, though there are fome exceptions to this, belong to refident members of the fociety.

The capital of a wholesale merchant, on the contrary, feems to have no fixed or neceffary refidence any-where, but may wander about from place to place, according as it can either buy cheap or fell dear.

The capital of the manufacturer must no doubt refide where the manufacture is carried on; but where this fhall be is not always neceffarily determined. It may frequently be at a great distance. both from the place where the materials grow, and from that where the complete manufacture is confumed. Lyons is very diftant both from the places which afford the materials of its manufactures, and from thofe which confume them. The people of fashion in Sicily are clothed in filks made in other countries, from the materials which their own produces. Part of the wool of Spain is manufactured in Great Britain, and fome part of that cloth is afterwards fent back to Spain.

Whether the merchant whofe capital exports the furplus produce of any fociety be a native or a foreigner, is of very little importance. If he is a foreigner, the number of their productive labourers is neceffarily lefs than if he had been a native by one man only; and the value of their annual produce, by the profits of that one man. The failors or carriers whom he employs may still 'belong indifferently either to his country, or to their country, or to fome third country, in the

fame

V.

fame manner as if he had been a native. The CHA P. capital of a foreigner gives a value to their furplus produce equally with that of a native, by exchanging it for fomething for which there is a demand at home. It as effectually replaces the capital of the perfon who produces that furplus, and as effectually enables him to continue his bufinefs; the fervice by which the capital of a wholefale merchant chiefly contributes to support the productive labour, and to augment the value of the annual produce of the fociety to which he belongs.

It is of more confequence that the capital of the manufacturer fhould refide within the country. It neceffarily puts into motion a greater quantity of productive labour, and adds a greater value to the annual produce of the land and labour of the fociety. It may, however, be very useful to the country, though it should not refide within it. The capitals of the British manufacturers who work up the flax and hemp annually imported from the coafts of the Baltic, are furely very useful to the countries which produce them. Those materials are a part of the furplus produce of thofe countries which, unlefs it was annually exchanged for fomething which is in demand there, would be of no value, and would foon ceafe to be produced. The merchants who export it replace the capitals of the people who produce it, and thereby encourage them to continue the production; and the British manufac turers replace the capitals of thofe merchants.

BOOK

II.

A particular country, in the fame manner as a particular perfon, may frequently not have capital fufficient both to improve and cultivate all its lands, to manufacture and prepare their whole rude produce for immediate ufe and confumption, and to transport the furplus part either of the rude or manufactured produce to thofe diftant markets where it can be exchanged for fomething for which there is a demand at home. The inhabitants of many different parts of Great Britain have not capital fufficient to improve and cultivate all their lands. The wool of the fouthern counties of Scotland is, a great part of it, after a long land carriage through very bad roads, manufactured in Yorkshire, for want of a capital to manufacture it at home. There are many little manufacturing towns in Great Britain, of which the inhabitants have not capital fufficient to tranfport the produce of their own industry to those distant markets where there is demand and confumption for it. If there are any merchants among them, they are properly only the agents of wealthier merchants who refide in fome of the greater commercial cities.

When the capital of any country is not fufficient for all thofe three purposes, in proportion as a greater share of it is employed in agriculture, the greater will be the quantity of productive labour which it puts into motion within the country; as will likewife be the value which its employment adds to the annual produce of the land and labour of the fociety. After agriculture, the capital employed in manufactures

puts