第18章 THE COMMODITY(16)

2.Petty treats the division of labour also as a productive force，and he does so on a much grander scale than Adam Smith.See An Essay Concerning the Multiplicetion of Mankind ，Third Edition，1686，pp.35-36.In this essay he shows the advantages which division of labour has for production not only with the example of the manufacture of a watch --as Adam Smith did later with the example of the manufacture of a pin --but considers also a town and a whole country as large-scale industrial establishments.

The Spectator of November 26，1711，refers to this "illustration of the admirable Sir William Petty".McCulloch's conjecture that the Spectetor confused Petty with a writer forty years his junior is therefore wrong.

(See McCulloch，The Literature of Political Economy，a Classified Catalogue，London，1845，p.102.)Pctty regards himself as the founder of a new science.

He says that his method "is not yet very usual"，"for instead of using only comparative and superlative Words，and intellectual Arguments"，he proposes to speak "in Terms of Number，Weight or Measure ；to use only Arguments of Sense，and to consider only such Causes，as have visible Foundations in Nature；leaving those that depend upon the mutable Minds，Opinions，Appetites，and Passions of particular Men，to the Consideration of others"(Political Arithmetick ，etc.，London，1699，Preface).

His audacious genius becomes evident for instance in his proposal to transport "all the movables and People of Ireland，and of the Highlands of Scotland ...into the rest of Great Britain".This would result in the saving of labour-time，in increasing productivity of labour，and "the King and his Subjects would thereby become more Rich and Strong"(Political Aritlmetick ，Chapter 4[p.225]).Also in the chapter of his Political Arithmetick in which --at a time when Holland was still the predominant trading nation and France seemed to be on the way to becoming the principal trading power --he proves that England is destined to conquer the world market："That the King of England's Subjects，have Stock competent and convenient，to drive the Trade of the whole Commercial World"(op.cit.，Chapter 10[p.

272]).'That the Impediments of England's greatness，are but contingent and removable"(p.247et seq.).A highly original sense of humour pervades all his writings.Thus he shows for example that the conquest of the world market by Holland，which was then regarded as the model country by English economists just as Britain is now regarded as the model country by continental economists，was brought about by perfectly natural causes "without such Angelical Wits and Judgments，as some attribute to the Hollanders"(op.

cit.，pp.175-16).He champions freedom of conscience as a condition of trade，because the poor are diligent and "believe that Labour and Industry is their Duty towards God"so long as they are permitted "to think they have the more Wit and Understanding，especially of the things of God，which they think chiefly belong to the Poor"."From whence it follows that Trade is not fixt to any Species of Religion as such；but rather ...to the Heterodox part of the whole"(op.cit.，pp.183-86).He recommends special public contribution for rogues，since it would be better for the general public to impose a tax on themselves for the benefit of the rogues than to be taxed by them (op.cit.，p.199).On the other hand，he rejects taxes which transfer wealth from industrious people to those who "do nothing at all，but Eat and Drink，Sing，Play，and Dance：nay such as Study the Metaphysicks"[op.cit.，p.198].Petty's writings have almost become bibliographical curiosities and are only available in old inferior editions.'This is the more surprising since William Petty is not only the father of English political economy but also an ancestor of Henry Petty，alias Marquis of Lansdowne，the Nestor of the English Whigs.But the Lansdowne family could hardly prepare a complete edition of Petty's works without prefacing it with his biography，and what is true with regard to the origin of most of the big Whig families，applies also in this case --the less said of it the better.

The army surgeon，who was a bold thinker but quite unscrupulous and just as apt to plunder in Ireland under the aegis of Cromwell as to fawn upon Charles II to obtain the title of baronet to embellish his trash，is not a suitablc image of an ancestor for public display.In most of the writings published during his lifetime，moreover，Petty seeks to prove that England's golden age was the reign of Charles II，a rather heterodox view for hereditary exploiters of the "glorious revolution".Return 3.As against the "black art of finance"of his time，Boisguillebert says：

"The science of finance consists of nothing but a thorough knowledge of the interests of agriculture and commerce"(Le détail de la France，1697.In Eugene Dalre's edition of Economistes financiers du XVIII siècle ，Paris，1843，Vol.I，p.241).