PROBLEMS  OF  DISTRIBUTION  227

surplus,  so  to  speak,  which  has  been  termed
consumers’  surplus  ;  only  in  this  case  the
surplus  must  accrue  not  to  those  who  buy
consumers’  goods  but  to  the  direct  consumers
of  the  capital,  namely,  those  who  are  active
in  producing  in  conjunction  with  the  capital
yielding  the  surplus.
The  question  naturally  suggests  itself  at
this  point  as  to  whether  it  is  theoretically
possible—apart  from  broad  questions  of  justice
and  social  policy—to  secure  the  whole  of  the
benefits  resulting  from  the  use  of  capital  for
the  community  at  large,  no  share  being  left
for  capitalists.  Evidently  it  would  not  be
possible  to  bring  about  this  result  by  the  simple
expedient  of  prohibiting  the  payment  of
interest,  even  if  such  a  prohibition  were  not
evaded.  Were  interest  forcibly  suppressed
under  the  conditions  now  ruling,  which  naturally ­
  give  birth  to  a  market  rate  of  interest,  it
is  highly  probable,  to  say  the  least,  that  the
amount  of  capital  saved  would  be  substantially
reduced,  so  that  a  loss  would  be  occasioned  to
others  than  capitalists,  as  well  as  to  capitalists, ­
  which  might  easily  surpass  in  amount
the  saving  effected  for  the  former  through
the  non-payment  of  interest.
Nevertheless  it  is  conceivable,  though  most
improbable,  that  circumstances  might  arise