lies in keeping it as far as possible from the rigorous investigations
and the exact conclusions of science or philosophy. Such a method is
indispensable. To pursue truth in one department, implies, or should
imply, not only a love of truth in every department, but also a
resolute purpose to discover and dislodge every error. Which of the
sciences, as preserved from controversy, is entitled to cast the first
stone at the others, or their students? “Philosophy and literature,”
says Lord Kinloch, in an admirable work, “while professing to pursue
truth in the composure of unruffled seclusion, and to be desirous of
having it elicited by the healthy excitement of friendly debate, will
protest against the dishonor of soiling their hands, or disarranging
their robes in the turmoil of heated controversy; and least of all
will they consent to be defiled with the mire or exposed to the perils
of religious strife. This plea is false in fact, as it is futile
in philosophy. It is in fact false; for literary and philosophical
controversies have neither been few in number nor wanting in a keen
and rancorous spirit. And, admitting that religious contentions have
been still more rancorous and embittered, it is only what might be
reasonably expected, on account of the higher interests at stake.
The plea is, moreover, worthless on philosophical principles; for it
eviscerates the distinction between truth and error of all meaning
and value. Better not to admit the distinction at all, than, having
admitted it in one instance, deny it in another; or, what is worse,
depreciate its significance even to thought, and that too in the most
important of its applications. All argument and all effort are forever
at an end, unless truth,—yea, all truth,—be precious; so precious,
that in the legitimate pursuit of it we may and ought to put forth our
utmost strength; and in defense of it, when found, incur the utmost
hazard.”
Do not be discouraged by apparently insurmountable obstacles. The
boldest assertions and the most plausible reasonings need not disturb
you. Difficulties seemingly insuperable have, in the past, suddenly
evanished in the light of unexpected discoveries; and every science,
you may rest assured, will hereafter show strength enough and light
enough to purify its own temple and be its own interpreter. The past
may be held to be prophetic of future solutions; and the sciences will
be found not only correcting the mistakes and the arrogance of many of
their students, but rebuking the too hasty concessions of Christian
apologists, and either directly or indirectly revealing, at the same
time, the impressiveness and the majesty of scripture truth.
POLITICAL ECONOMY.
By G. M. STEELE, D.D.
I.
I. DEFINITIONS—UTILITY OF THE SUBJECT.
1. Social science comprises the statement and explanation of the
natural laws which govern men in their mutual relations. Political
economy is the application of that portion of those laws which pertain
to the production and distribution of wealth. Now we are not to be
discouraged by this term _wealth_, as though the subject were one which
concerns only rich men, and in which a poor man could have no interest.
The man who has a little property, worth only one or two hundred
dollars, is just as really a possessor of wealth as one who has one or
two millions; and to be able to acquire and rightly use these small
fortunes is, in the aggregate, of more importance than the acquisition
and management of the greater riches of the few.
2. But what is meant by _wealth_? For the present it is enough to
say that _it comprises all things which have value_. A more complete
definition will follow by and by. What, then, do we mean by _value_?
This, too, has many forms of definition, but they for the most part
have one element in common. The general notion concerning it is that
it has reference to the amount of one commodity that may be equitably
given in exchange for a designated amount of another; this is a correct
notion. Thus a bushel of wheat may be exchanged for two bushels of
oats, or a cord of wood for twenty yards of cloth. That is, the value
of a bushel of wheat is that of two bushels of oats, and the value of
twenty yards of cloth is the same as that of a cord of wood. It is thus
seen to be a _relative_ term, and not indicative of any quality of any
one thing considered by itself. But in all instances of relationship
there must be some ground of the relation. Let us try to determine
what it is in this case. A superficial thinker might decide that it is
_money_, from the fact that value is generally estimated in money. But
money is itself in the same relation to all other commodities in this
respect as they are to one another, and its value rests upon the same
basis.
3. The chief element in value, and that constitutes its original
standard, is the _cost of production_; and by _cost_ is meant the
amount of labor involved. _Labor is the voluntary effort put forth by
man to secure some desired object._ But when we say this, a little
caution is needed. We are not to infer that the present value of an
article is estimated by the amount of labor required at the time of its
production, especially if that was a long time ago. A hundred years
since, it required the labor of a man for days to produce a yard of
cotton cloth. A dozen yards of better cloth can now be produced by
the same amount of labor; of course the present value of the latter
is superior to the present value of the former, even if this were as
good as new. It is the labor that would be required to _reproduce_ or
replace an article which determines its value.
4. But there is another element which is essential to value; this is
_utility_. It comprises all those qualities in an object which make it
available to gratify any desire. It will readily be seen that there are
objects which have utility and at the same time are without value. They
are such objects as cost nothing; that is, such as involve no labor in
their acquisition. Thus air, and sunshine, and rain, have no value; but
they are of immeasurable utility. Value is often in the inverse ratio
of utility. Iron is a far more useful metal than gold, but gold is
vastly more valuable than iron. Still, though utility may exist where
there is no value, there can be no value where there is no utility;
because no one would put forth effort for that which could not gratify
any desire, and it is the ability to gratify desire that constitutes
utility. Sometimes utility becomes the paramount element in determining
value; but ordinarily it is subordinate to the cost of production. When
the article is one for which there is a very great demand, and of which
there is a great scarcity, the value may increase many times beyond the
cost. In such case the utility rather than cost rules. But where the
demand is readily and fully met by the supply, the cost controls.
5. But valuable things can not be produced very largely without tools,
implements, and various contrivances. These constitute _capital_.
_Capital is the result of previous labor reserved and employed in
further production._ This implies self-denial. A man can not consume
what he has secured by labor and at the same time preserve it to aid
in additional production. Hence he must restrain his desires if he
would save something for this purpose. This capital is sometimes called
pre-existent labor. The point to be observed is that its existence
is due, not to labor alone, but to _abstinence_ as well. The two
elements in the cost of production are labor and abstinence, and we
may combine these in the one term, _sacrifice_. Sacrifice and utility,
then, are the two essential conditions of value; and we may complete
our definition of value by saying that _value is man’s estimate of the
amount of sacrifice requisite to the attainment of a desired object_.
6. Hence, if wealth comprises all valuable objects, and if every
desirable object which involves sacrifice has value, it would be a
proper definition to say that _wealth consists of all those objects and
qualities useful to man, the attainment of which involves sacrifice_.
This includes not only material objects and qualities, but also all
those human powers acquired by sacrifice, which enable man to master
nature. This is not admitted by many writers. But Mr. Carey states,
in a broad way, that “Wealth is the power to command the always
gratuitous services of nature.” When man is at his weakest nature does
nothing for him. Every infant, if dependent on nature alone, would
inevitably perish. So in the infancy of society, it is only by the
most strenuous exertion that a precarious existence is secured. But
with every increment of power in man, nature multiplies her services.
They are not bought but freely given, and given as soon as man is
able to command them. In the most advanced civilization the forces of
nature have become so subservient to man that in thousands of cases
one can accomplish what a score, or sometimes even a hundred, could
not formerly have done. It is this increase of power more than that of
material commodities which constitutes the real wealth of the world.
7. From this it follows that the proper subject of political economy
is MAN. The laws pertaining to the underlying science are found in
the nature and character of man—in his tastes, his desires, in the
motives influencing him and in the limitations to which he is subject.
The results to be achieved are his prosperity and freedom, his mastery
over nature, and his happiness. Here, then, is the prime reason why
every person who aspires to any intelligence at all should have some
acquaintance with this subject. It has to do more than any other study
with his temporal welfare, and with the welfare of society, without the
prosperity of which his individual prosperity will suffer.
8. A second reason is implied in the meaning of the terms used. Economy
is from a Greek compound signifying _husbandry_. It has reference to
the prudent management by a householder of his means so as to secure
the largest measure of prosperity for his family. It does not mean
parsimony, nor even mere frugality; that is, it does not consist
in mere abstinence for the sake of saving. It is rather a wise use
of means and forces, so as to make them as effective as possible.
There is an old proverb which says, “There is more in calculation
than in hard work,” and though sometimes perverted in the interest
of human laziness, it is nevertheless full of philosophy. It is this
“calculation” which such a study greatly aids.
9. _Political_ economy, as the term implies, has reference to man
in society,—to “the body politic.” The social element in man is as
imperative as any part of his constitution. Man’s greatest need is
_association_. The solitary individual is only a minute constituent of
man in man’s relation to the main purposes of life. No man is complete
in himself. He must be supplemented by others, generally by many
others, and he must find a large part of his own completeness in this
association. Each has something that others lack, and we are designed
to be sources of mutual supply to our several wants.
Here emerges another vital fact. _Individuality_ is as indispensable as
association. A superficial thinker might regard these characteristics
as antagonistic. The fact is so far otherwise that each is really
dependent on the other. Men must _differ_ in order to be of any use to
one another. It is the difference that makes the individuality. Mutual
aid is the object of association. Hence the greater the difference,
the greater the individuality; and the greater the individuality, the
greater the association. No man would associate with another unless the
one had something which the other lacked. But for this there would be
no commerce. Two farmers producing nothing but wheat would have nothing
to exchange with each other. Two men of precisely the same mental
possessions, habits and aptitudes, would never be companions for each
other.
On the other hand it is only by association that individuality becomes
the most highly developed. Only by such development do the differences
among men become great and numerous. In the lower grades of humanity
there is comparatively little difference between individuals, and there
is little association. It is only in advanced civilization that a
strongly marked individuality exists, and that we find those numerous
differences which make the mutual dependence the greatest. Here is
a potent reason for the study of this subject. It is impossible to
estimate the power of association in production alone. It is known
in a general way that the combination of men gives greatly increased
results as compared with those of men working separately. Yet it is not
nearly realized that a hundred men properly associated in an industrial
enterprise will often effect two or three hundred times as much as all
the very same men working separately.
10. Again, this subject intimately concerns man in his governmental
relations. For governments must furnish many of the conditions for the
best economical results. Then, too, the great moral enterprises of the
age, and of all ages, have to do with the principles here involved;
education, pauperism, vicious social usages, the dangerous classes,
have to be considered, and can only rightly be considered in the light
of these truths. It is wonderful how closely this study is connected
with all the great interests of humanity. Whole communities which have
been impoverished and demoralized by neglecting some of the obvious
principles of political economy, have revived and prospered under their
application. Portions of our own country are examples of both these
kinds of effects, and that, too, within the memory of men now living.
We shall follow the usual plan of the division of the subject under the
heads of _production, consumption, exchange and distribution_.
II. PRODUCTION—LABOR.
1. _Production is the creation of value by rendering the utilities of
nature available to man._ The creation, it will be noticed, is not of
matter but of value. There are two great agencies which must co-operate
in production—_nature_ and _man_. Man furnishes labor; nature furnishes
materials and forces. The former would be useless without the latter.
There must be soils, and mines, and trees, and animals, or no matter
how much labor there may be, there can be no grain, nor fruit, nor
metals, nor lumber; no houses and no meat, nor hides nor leather. So
also there may be all kinds of material, but without labor they are of
no available service to man.
2. But nature furnishes not only materials but also forces to aid man
in his productive efforts. The more obvious and palpable of these are
gravitation, especially in falling water, wind, the explosive property
of gunpowder and dynamite, the expansive power of steam, magnetism,
electricity, and the forces of vegetation. There are also numerous
passive powers, or properties of matter which, when adapted by man,
give him much advantage; such are the mechanical powers of the lever,
inclined plane, wheel and axle, pulley and wedge, and those qualities
of the metals which render them capable of taking an edge for cutting
purposes, as also malleability, ductility, elasticity, etc. It is a
beneficent fact of nature that she furnishes these materials and forces
gratuitously. She is not churlish nor parsimonious in this respect. The
more we avail ourselves of her help, the more ready she is to help us;
and the greater the advantage we obtain, the more lavishly she bestows
her gifts upon us.
It is thus seen that labor consists not in creating things but in
_moving_ them; that is, in effecting changes. It directs the natural
forces to the service of man, and it is in this that production
consists. It can move materials into position where these forces can
act upon them with the desired effect. Thus an agricultural laborer can
effect such changes in the soil as are requisite to the growth of corn;
he can place the seed in the ground, but he can not make the crop. It
is as impossible for him to create a kernel of grain as to create a
planet. Labor may move the fuel to the fire-place and properly dispose
it for kindling. It may move a match, which by a previous movement has
taken fire, to the prepared fuel; but all this would be useless but for
the conditions and forces which nature furnishes.
3. The application of labor to production is of two kinds, _direct_
and _indirect_. The direct changes effected by labor may be embraced
under the three heads of _transmutation_, _transformation_, and
_transportation_. The first comprises elementary changes, as when under
required conditions ingredients of the soil and of the atmosphere are
changed into grain and vegetables, and fruit. The second is where there
is simply a change in the form of the material, as when boards are
made into a table, or leather into shoes. The third implies merely a
change of place, as when coal in a mine, where it has no value, becomes
valuable by being brought within reach of those who desire it for fuel.
4. The greater part of labor is indirect; in some cases so much so
that its relation to the product is unseen. For instance, the man who
makes your shoes is not the only laborer concerned in that product.
Some previous labor produced the leather, and before that some labor
produced the hide from which the leather was made; some persons made
the tools, some the house or shop, and some provided sustenance for the
shoemaker. All these are conditions, without which no shoes can be
made, and all who provide them furnish a part of the labor on which the
product of the shoes depends.
Of this indirect labor there are several kinds. (1) Those who provide
the materials, and there may be many grades of these; (2) those
who furnish the implements and the machinery; (3) those who supply
the sustenance and shelter, and raiment for the laborers; (4) the
government agencies for protecting the workman; (5) organizers and
managers of business enterprises, without whom production would often
fall far short of what it now accomplishes; (6) the labor of raising
children who are subsequently to become laborers; (7) all those engaged
in the work of education, by which men are prepared for the most
efficient work—this includes not only teachers, but writers, clergymen,
etc.; (8) professional men, who devote themselves to matters essential
to the interests of the community and thus not only save the time of
the laborers, but often their property and their health, and their
lives; (9) inventors and discoverers, who ascertain new conditions of
more efficient production. These are the principal, though there are
also others.
READINGS IN ART.
I.—SCULPTURE: ITS VARIETIES AND MATERIALS.
All work cut out in a solid material, in imitation of natural objects,
is called sculpture. Thus carvings in wood, ivory-stone, marble, metal,
and works moulded from wax and clay, come under the head of sculpture.
But sculpture, as we are about to consider it, is to be distinguished
by the term _statuary_ from all carved work belonging to ornamental
art and glyptics. It must be borne in mind, however, that the sculptor
does not ordinarily carve his work directly out of the marble; he first
makes his statue, or bas relief, in clay or wax. This method enables
him to “sketch in clay” and perfect his work in this obedient material.
Michael Angelo, and many great masters could dispense with this and
carve at once the statue from the block. The modeling in clay is,
however, generally the primary work. The “model,” as it is called, is
afterward moulded, and by means of this mould a cast of the original
clay statue, or bas-relief, is taken by the use of liquid plaster. The
clay model is, therefore, like the original drawing of a painter—a
master work.
The model completed, most of the carving is done by a skilled laborer,
the sculptor taking it up to give the finish, which a master-hand
alone can bestow. The copying of the model into marble is accomplished
by means of a method of mechanical measurement, or “pointing.” The
model and the block of marble are both fastened to a base called a
“scale-stone,” to which a standard vertical rod can be attached at
corresponding centers, having at its upper end a sliding needle, so
adapted by a movable joint as to be set at any angle and fastened by
a screw when so set. The master sculptor having marked the governing
points with a pencil on the model the instrument is applied to these
and the measure taken. The standard being then transferred to the
block-base, the pointer, guided by his measure, cuts away the marble,
taking care to leave it rather larger than the model, so that the
general proportions are kept, and the more important work is then left
for the master hand.
The character of work is influenced by the nature of the material in
which the sculptor carves; the harder the stone the more difficult
to give it the pliant forms of life. It is remarkable that the most
ancient and perfect Egyptian statues should have been formed of very
hard stones; and, as the ancient Egyptians were not acquainted with
steel, they must have been dependent upon bronze, of various degrees of
hardness, for their cutting tools. These works are remarkable for their
excellence, both of form and proportion, and in the finish given to the
details of feature, the dress, and the ornaments.
Assyrian sculpture was in softer stones, limestones and alabaster;
only small objects, such as seals, being worked in hard stones.
Greek and Roman sculptors made many statues and bas-reliefs in hard
stones, such as basalt, granite, and porphyry. The extreme difficulty
of such work may be understood when it is seen that the ordinary method
of the chisel and mallet, in the most skillful hands, would be quite
unavailing in this hard material. The treadle-wheel, the drill, and the
file, are brought to aid the chisel, and even these require the use
of emery upon the wheel of the lapidary, in the manner in which the
hardest stones are cut.
Clay modeled and dried in the sun, or hardened by the fire, was
naturally one of the early forms in which sculpture was developed. At
once ready to hand, and easily modeled, it was adopted for the same
reasons that made clay convenient for the ordinary vessels of every-day
use. We find countless numbers of these baked, or sun-dried clay
figures. They have escaped destruction because of the little value of
the material and because they resist decay. The Egyptians and Assyrians
applied a vitreous glaze to terra-cotta objects, which made them more
decorative and more durable.
Terra-cotta was chosen by many sculptors to preserve the spirit and
freedom of the original. Although some shrinking under the action of
the fire must be allowed for, yet what is well baked is certain to
possess the excellence of the fresh clay. It escapes the chances of
over-finish, which too often befalls marble and bronze.
Another form of sculpture to be noticed is called _chryselephantine_,
on account of the combined use of gold and ivory; the nude parts of the
figure being of ivory, probably with color applied to the features and
the drapery of gold. The statue was substantially but roughly made in
marble, with wood, perhaps, upon it; the ivory being laid on in thick
pieces.
Statues of wood, of various kinds, were made by the most ancient
sculptors. Many small figures in wood, the work of the Egyptian
carvers, are to be seen in the museums, and the mummy cases show the
practice of carving the head, while the trunk is left only partly
shaped out of the block.
Bronze was one of the most important forms of ancient statuary. It must
be remembered that bronze is an entirely different alloy from brass,
the former being an alloy of copper and tin, while brass is of copper
and zinc. Small proportions of gold, silver, lead, and iron, were mixed
with the bronze by ancient metal-workers to give various colors to
their work; thus a blush of shame was produced by allowing the iron
in the bronze to rust. Plutarch mentions a face which was pale, the
sculptor having mixed silver with the bronze.