THE WEALTH OF NATIONS.

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in cultivating this land, and in maintaining this labour, mustlikewise be much greater. In the midst of all the exactionsof government, this capital has been silently and graduallyaccumulated by the private frugality and good conduct of in-dividuals, by their universal, continual, and uninterruptedeffort to better their own condition. It is this effort, pro-tected by law and allowed by liberty to exert itself in themanner that is most advantageous, which has maintained theprogress of England towards opulence and improvement inalmost all former times, and which, it is to be hoped, will doso in all future times. England, however, as it has neverbeen blessed with a very parsimonious government, so par-simony has at no time been the characteristical virtue of itsinhabitants. It is the highest impertinence and presumption,therefore, in kings and ministers, to pretend to watch overthe economy of private people, and to restrain their expense,either by sumptuary laws, or by prohibiting the importationof foreign luxuries. They are themselves always, and with-out any exception, the greatest spendthrifts in the society.Let them look well after their own expense, and they maysafely trust private people with tlieift. If their own extrava-gance does not ruin the state, that of their subjects never will.

As frugality increases, and prodigality diminishes the pub-lic capital, so the conduct of those whose expense just equalstheir revenue, without either accumulating or encroaching,neither increases nor diminishes it. Some modes of expense,however, seem to contribute more to the growth of publicopulence than others. '

The revenue of an individual may be spent either in thingswhich are consumed immediately, and in which one day’sexpense can neither alleviate nor support that of another; orit may be spent in things more durable, which can thereforebe accumulated, and in which every day’s expense may, ashe chooses, cither alleviate or support and heighten the effectof that of the following day. A man of fortune, for example,may either spend his revenue in a profuse and sumptuoustable, and in maintaining a great number of menial servants,and a multitude of dogs and horses ; or contenting himselfwith a frugal table and few attendants, lie may lay out thegreater part of it in adorning his house or his country villa,in useful or ornamental buildings, in useful or ornamental fur-niture, in collecting books, statues, pictures; or in things morefrivolous, jewels, baubles, ingenious trinkets of different kinds;