RODBER  TUS-J  A  GE  TZOIV.

17

Other  two-thirds  will  go  to  capital.  The  hands  thrown  out  of
work  by  the  introduction  of  the  machine  will  find  employment
"  elsewhere,  and  as  consumers  they  will  in  part  profit  by  the
lowering  in  price  of  the  products,  consequent  on  the  employment ­
  of  mechanical  contrivances.  It  cannot  be  denied  that
the  working  man  is  better  fed,  better  lodged,  and  better  clothed
to-day  than  formerly.  If,  then,  it  is  true  that  the  aggregate  of
wages  bears  a  less  proportion  to  the  national  produce,  because
fixed  capital,  the  source  of  the  increased  production,  engrosses
an  increasing  share,  the  position  of  the  labourer  is,  on  the  other
hand,  improved,  because  competition,  by  bringing  down  the
selling-price  of  commodities  to  a  level  with  the  cost  of  production, ­
  causes  all  consumers  to  profit  by  the  progress  of
manufacture.  ^
Rodbertus  criticises  in  a  very  specious  way  the  theory  of
Ricardo  that  rent  arises  from  the  necessity  of  bringing  into
cultivation  more  and  more  refractory  land.  According  to  him,
rent  arises  ^simply  from  the  increased  productivity  of  labour,
and  there  would  be  rent  even  if  all  lands  were  equally  fertile.
If  a  man  by  cultivating  the  soil  can  draw  from  it  more  than
is  necessary  for  his  subsistence,  he  can  give  up  the  surplus
to  somebody  else,  and,  if  he  does  not  own  the  land  himself,
he  will  be  obliged  to  give  it  to  the  owner.  The  landlord  will
ask  all  he  can  get  ;  the  amount  which  the  tenant  can  pay  will
depend  on  the  quantity  of  produce,  the  price  of  this  produce,
and  the  necessary  cost  of  its  production.  Rent  will  increase
accordingly,  if  more  is  produced  per  acre,  if  the  produce  is
sold  at  a  higher  price,  or  if  it  is  produced  more  economically.
Once  more,  it  follows  from  this  that  the  more  productive
agricultural  labour  becomes,  the  more  the  landlord’s  share
increases,  while  that  of  the  labourer,  remaining  the  same,
will  bear  a  less  proportion  to  the  total  produce.
These  deductions  contain  a  portion  of  the  truth.  In  fact,
in  order  that  there  should  be  rent,  it  is  enough  that  land
should  be  the  subject  of  a  monopoly  and  should  produce
more  than  suffices  for  the  maintenance  of  him  who  cultivates
it.  But  Rodbertus  has  not  paid  attention  to  the  fact  that
if  agricultural  labour,  by  becoming  more  productive,  brings.
c