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THE NATURE ANT) CAUSES OK

Whatever, therefore, we may imagine the real wealth andrevenue of a country to consist in, whether in the value of theannual produce of its land and labour, as plain reason seemsto dictate, or in the quantity of the precious metals whichcirculate within it, as vulgar prejudices suppose, in eitherview of the matter, every prodigal appears to be a publicenemy, and every frugal man a public benefactor.

The effects of misconduct are often the same as those ofprodigality. Every injudicious and unsuccessful project inagriculture, mines, fisheries, trade or manufactures, tends inthe same manner to diminish the funds destined for the main-tenance of productive labour. In every such project, thoughthe capital is consumed by productive hands only, yet, as bythe injudicious manner in which they are employed, they donot reproduce the full value of their consumption, there mustalways be some diminution in what would otherwise havebeen the productive funds of the society.

It can seldom happen, indeed, that the circumstances of agreat nation can be much affected either by the prodigalityor misconduct of individuals; the profusion or imprudence ofsome being always more than compensated by the frugalityand good conduct of others.

With regard to profusion, the principle which prompts toexpense, is the passion for present enjoyment; which, thoughsometimes violent and very difficult to be restrained, isin general only momentary and occasional. But the princi-ple which prompts to save, is the desire of bettering our con-dition, a desire which, though generally calm and dispas-sionate, comes with us from the womb, and never leavesus till we go into the grave. In the whole interval whichseparates these two moments, there is scarce perhaps a singleinstance in which any man is so perfectly and completelysatisfied with his situation, as to be without any wish of al-teration or improvement of any kind. An augmentation offortune is the means by which the greater part of men pro-pose and wish to better their condition. It is the means themost vulgar and the most obvious; and the most likely wayof augmenting their fortune, is to save and accumulate somepart of what they acquire, either regularly and annually, orupon some extraordinary occasions. Though the principleof expense, therefore, prevails in almost all men upon someoccasions, and in some men upon almost all occasions, yet inthe greater part of men, taking the whole course of their life