THE NATURE AND CAUSES OF

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established and well-known branch of business. A bold ad-venturer may sometimes acquire a considerable fortune bytwo or three successful speculations ; but is just as likely tolose one by two or three unsuccessful ones. This trade canbe carried on nowhere but in great towns. It is only in placesof the most extensive commerce and correspondence that theintelligence requisite for it can be had.

The five circumstances above mentioned, though they oc-casion considerable inequalities in the wages of labour andprofits of stock, occasion none in the whole of the advantagesand disadvantages, real or imaginary, of the different employ-ments of either. The nature of those circumstances is such,that they make up for a small pecuniary gain in some, andcounter-balance a great one in others.

In order, however, that this equality may take place in thewhole of their advantages or disadvantages, three things arerequisite even where there is the most perfect freedom. First,the employments must be well known and long establishedin the neighbourhood; secondly, they must be in their ordi-nary, or what may be called their natural state; and, thirdly,they must be the sole or principal employments of those whooccupy them.

First, this equality can. take place only iu those employ-ments which arc well known, and have been long establishedin the neighbourhood.

Where all other circumstances are equal, wages are gene-rally higher in new than in old trades. When a projector at-tempts to establish a new manufacture, he must at first enticehis workmen from other employments by higher wages thanthey can either earn in their own trades, or than the nature ofhis work would otherwise require, and a considerable timemust pass away before he can venture to reduce them to thecommon level. Manufactures for which the demand arisesaltogether from fashion and fancy, are continually changing,and seldom last long enough to be considered as old esta-blished manuf actures. Those, on the contrary, for which thedemand arises chiefly from use or necessity, are less liableto change, and the same form or fabric may continue in de-mand for whole centuries together. The wages of labour,therefore, are likely to be higher in manufactures of theformer, than in those of the latter kind., Birmingham dealschiefly in manufactures of the former kind; Sheffield in thoseof the latter; and the wages of labour in those two different