M i John Stuart Mill Stephen Nathanson’s clear-sighted abridgment of Principles of l l Political Economy,Mill’s first major work in moral and political philosophy, provides a challenging, sometimes surprising account of Mill’s views on many important topics: socialism, population, P the status of women, the cultural bases of economic productivity, r the causes and possible cures of poverty, the nature of property i rights, taxation, and the legitimate functions of government. n Nathanson cuts through the dated and less relevant sections of c this large work and includes significant material omitted in other i Principles of p editions, making it possible to see the connections between the l views Mill expressed in Principles of Political Economyand the e ideas he defended in his later works, particularly On Liberty. s Indeed, studying Principles of Political Economy,Nathanson Political Economy o argues in his general Introduction, can help to resolve the apparent contradiction between Mill’s views in On Libertyand f those in Utilitarianism,making it a key text for understanding P with Some of Their Applications Mill’s philosophy as a whole. o l i to Social Philosophy t i STEPHEN NATHANSON is Professor of Philosophy, Northeastern c University. a Abridged l E c o n o m y 90000 H A C Edited, with Introduction, by K E Stephen Nathanson T T 9 780872 207134 ISBN 0-87220-713-7 0713 JOHN STUART MILL Principles of Political Economy With Some of Their Applications to Social Philosophy Abridged JOHN STUART MILL Principles of Political Economy With Some of Their Applications to Social Philosophy Abridged Edited, with Introduction, by Stephen Nathanson Hackett Publishing Company, Inc. Indianapolis/Cambridge Copyright © 2004 by Hackett Publishing Company, Inc. All rights reserved 10 09 08 07 06 05 04 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 For further information, please address: Hackett Publishing Company, Inc. P.O. Box 44937 Indianapolis, IN 46244-0937 www.hackettpublishing.com Cover design by Listenberger Design & Associates Text design and composition by Jennifer Plumley Printed at Sheridan Books, Inc. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data John Stuart Mill : principles of political economy with applications to social philosophy / edited and abridged by Stephen Nathanson p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-87220-714-5 (cloth) — ISBN 0-87220-713-7 (paper) 1. Economics. 2. Economics—Philosophy. 3. Social sciences— Philosophy. 4. Mill, John Stuart, 1806–1873. I. Title: Principles of political economy with applications to social philosophy. II. Nathanson, Stephen, 1943– HB161.J75 2004 330.15’3–dc22 2003056869 ISBN-13: 978-0-87220-714-1 (cloth) ISBN-13: 978-0-87220-713-4 (paper) e- e-ISBN: 978-1-60384-037-8 (e-book) (cid:1) CONTENTS Editor’s Introduction ix Further Readings xxxvii A Note on the Text xxxvii John Stuart Mill Principles of Political Economy With Some of Their Applications to Social Philosophy Abridged Edition Prefaces 3 Preliminary Remarks 6 Book I Production Chapter I. Of the Requisites of Production 19 Chapter II. Of Labour as an Agent of Production 22 Chapter III. Of Unproductive Labour 28 Chapter IV. Of Capital 32 Chapter VI. Of Circulating and Fixed Capital 34 Chapter VII. On What Depends the Degree of Productiveness of Productive Agents 36 Chapter VIII. Of Co-operation, or the Combination of Labour 46 Chapter IX. Of Production on a Large, and Production on a Small Scale 55 Chapter X. Of the Law of the Increase of Labour 65 v vi Contents Chapter XI. Of the Law of the Increase of Capital 69 Chapter XII. Of the Law of the Increase of Production from Land 75 Chapter XIII. Consequences of the Foregoing Laws 79 Book II: Distribution Chapter I: Of Property 85 Chapter II: The Same Subject Continued 98 Chapter IV: Of Competition and Custom 112 Chapter V: Of Slavery 114 Chapter VI: Of Peasant Proprietors 117 Chapter VII: Continuation of the Same Subject 119 Chapter VIII: Of Metayers 122 Chapter IX: Of Cottiers 125 Chapter X: Means of Abolishing Cottier Tenancy 129 Chapter XI: Of Wages 132 Chapter XII: Of Popular Remedies for Low Wages 141 Chapter XIII: The Remedies for Low Wages Further Considered 146 Chapter XIV: Of the Differences in Wages in Different Employments 154 Chapter XV: Of Profits 163 Book III: Exchange Chapter I: Of Value 169 Chapter XVII: On International Trade 172 Book IV: Influence of the Progress of Society on Production and Distribution Chapter I: General Characteristics of a Progressive State of Wealth 177 Contents vii Chapter II: Influence of the Progress of Industry and Population on Values and Prices 180 Chapter IV: Of the Tendency of Profits to a Minimum 183 Chapter VI: Of the Stationary State 188 Chapter VII: On the Probable Futurity of the Labouring Classes 192 Book V: On the Influence of Government Chapter I: Of the Functions of Government in General 205 Chapter II: Of the General Principles of Taxation 211 Chapter III: Of Direct Taxes 223 Chapter IV: Of Taxes on Commodities 227 Chapter V: Of Some Other Taxes 231 Chapter VI: Comparison between Direct and Indirect Taxation 235 Chapter VII: Of a National Debt 242 Chapter VIII: Of the Ordinary Functions of Government, Considered as to Their Economical Effects 247 Chapter IX: The Same Subject Continued 252 Chapter X: Of Interferences of Government Grounded on Erroneous Theories 260 Chapter XI: Of the Grounds and Limits of the Laisser- Faireor Non-Interference Principle 277 Index 305 EDITOR’S INTRODUCTION In many cases, when classic works are republished, their intellectual or literary value is widely recognized. If the work’s reappearance rais- es any question, it is a question addressed to readers: “why have you not yet read this book?” When a long neglected work is republished, however, its history of neglect raises the question: “why read this book?” If generations of serious readers have thought it could be safe- ly ignored, perhaps there is no reason to attend to it now. John Stuart Mill’s Principles of Political Economyfalls into this sec- ond category. It is a formerclassic. First published in 1848, it quickly became the bible of 19th century English economics. Seven editions appeared during Mill’s lifetime, the last in 1871, and Mill both updat- ed the book and made some substantial revisions to it. It continued to be reprinted after his death and was widely read for a long time. Nonetheless, Mill’s Principles of Political Economy is not widely read today and is generally ignored both by economists and philoso- phers. This neglect is understandable. The book is long (about a thousand pages), and many parts are either genuinely or apparently obsolete. One of Mill’s aims in writing the book was to explain the state of economics at the time he wrote. As changes occurred within economics, much of what he had to say was superseded by later work. The theoretical parts ceased to be of interest to economists, and the many applications to current issues of Mill’s time appeared less and less relevant as time passed. The book has been neglected by philosophers for different reasons, having to do both with the book itself and with changing conceptions of the role of philosophy. Perhaps the primary reason for philosophi- cal neglect is that Principles of Political Economydoes not look like a philosophical work. Its title and organization reflect a focus on eco- nomic laws and phenomena. The first three of the five books that make up the volume are entitled: Production, Distribution, and Exchange. There is also a lot of empirical information about forms of ix