I was very desirous of hearing from you, and was on the point of telling
you so when your letter reached me from Brighton. Mr. Hump[hre]y Austin,
a neighbour of mine, told me he saw you at Paris and I had heard of your
safe arrival in England. I am quite pleased to hear that your journey
has been agreeable to you; it could not fail to be so when it gave you
the opportunity of seeing and conversing with the principal literary men
of France and of hearing their opinions on the present state of that
important country. I hope in that quarter there will be no interruption
of the present order of things for some time to come; but, if they do
make a movement, I trust it will be for the purpose of securing more
effectually the liberty of the people by perfecting as far as human
means can perfect the representative system. There is nothing on which
the happiness of the great body of the people so much depends. I did not
expect that I had so many readers in France as the number of copies of
the French translation which you tell me have been sold would seem to
imply. I am not surprised that you found few who understood my theory
correctly and still fewer who were disposed to agree with me. I have not
yet succeeded in making many converts in my own country; but I do not
despair of seeing the number increase; the few I have are of the proper
description, and do not want zeal for the propagation of the true faith.
I have seen Say's letters to you[216]; it appears to me that he has
said a great deal for the right cause but not all that could be said. In
one point I think he falls into the same error as Torrens in his article
in the Edinburgh Review[217]. They both appear to think that stagnation
in commerce arises from a counter set of commodities not being produced
without which the commodities on sale are to be purchased, and they seem
to infer that the evil will not be removed till such other commodities
are in the market. But surely the true remedy is in regulating future
production; if there is a glut of one commodity, produce less of that
and more of another, but do not let the glut continue till the purchaser
chooses[218] to produce the commodity which is more wanted. I am not
convinced by anything Say says of me; he does not understand me and is
frequently at variance with himself, when value is the subject he treats
of. In his 4th edition[219], vol. ii, page 36, he says everything falls
in value, as the quantity is increased, by the facility of production.
Now suppose that you have to pay for what he calls 'services productifs'
in these commodities which have so fallen in value, will you give the
same value if you give for them the same quantity of commodities as
before? Certainly not, according to his own admission; and yet he
maintains, page 33, that productive services have not varied if they
receive the same quantity of a commodity, notwithstanding the cost of
production of that commodity may have fallen from 40 to 30 francs per
ell. He has two opposite notions about value, and I am sure to be wrong
if I differ with either of them[220].
I am sorry that the government of France is prejudiced against
Political Economy. Whatever differences of opinion may exist amongst
writers on that science, they are nevertheless agreed upon many
important principles, which are proved to demonstration. By an adherence
to these, governments cannot fail to promote the welfare of the people
who are submitted to their sway. What more clear than the advantages
which follow from freedom of trade, or than the evils resulting from
holding out any peculiar encouragement to population?
I have been reading your book a second time with great attention, but my
difference with you remains as firmly rooted as ever. Some of the
objections you make to me are merely verbal; no principle is involved in
them; the great and leading point in which I think you fundamentally
wrong is that which Say has attacked in his letters. On this I feel no
sort of doubt. With respect to the word value, you have defined it one
way, I another. We do not appear to mean the same thing, and we should
first agree what a standard ought to be and then examine which
approaches nearest to an invariable standard, the one you propose, or
that which I propose.
I have not heard of anything further having been written against you
either by McCulloch or Torrens, nor do I know that they have anything in
contemplation. McCulloch has written me two letters since I saw you
last; he does not say anything about value, and it will probably be a
year or two before he can publish anything on that subject in the
Supplement to the Encyclopedia. In the next Review there will be an
article of his on Tithes, which I have seen; his principles are right,
but I do not like his remedy for the existing evil[221].
Mill has been with me here for a fortnight and will stay some time
longer. He has it in contemplation to write a popular work on Political
Economy[222], in which he will explain the principles which he thinks
correct in the most familiar way for the use of learners. It is not his
intention to notice any person's opinions or to enter into a controversy
on the disputed points.
I have been looking over my first chapter with a view to make a few
alterations in it before the work goes to another edition. I find my
task very difficult, but I hope I shall make my opinions more clear and
intelligible. I did intend to defend myself against some of your
attacks, but on reflection I think that, to do myself justice, I must
say so much that I should very inconveniently enlarge the size of my
book, besides which I should be constantly drawing my readers' attention
from the [proper?] subject. If I defend myself at all, I must do it in
[a] separate publication[223].
Respecting the trial of the Queen I am more than ever convinced of the
impolicy and inexpediency of the proceedings which have led to it, and
am quite sure that the plea set up that it is a State question is a
false one: it is entered into merely to gratify the resentment and
hostility of one individual who has himself behaved so ill that whatever
he may have to complain of he so fully merits that no one is bound to
enter into his quarrels or wish for punishment to follow offences to
which his own conduct has been so instrumental.... Gatcomb is very
delightful. I wish you and Mrs. Malthus could give us your company here
before we go to London. Mr. Mill desires to be kindly remembered.
Ever yours,
DAVID RICARDO.