98
DOMESTIC MANNEKS OK THE PKUSSIANS.
evident that tlie luxuriös are those which can be tlie mosteasily dispensed with by tlie Community, and which, whenindulged in, form a safer criterion than either of the othersas to the tastes or propensities of the individuals.
generally, under such circumstances, are far removed from want, and there is butlittle difference between rieh and poor. In more advanced nations, however, thevarious arts come to be practised, and a considerable proportion of the capitaldevoted to their produetion ; consequently, there being comparatively less wealthapplied to the increase of the articles of necessity, and more to those of comfortand luxury, the former become gradually scarce, and the latter abundant. Thenatural result is, that whilst articles of luxury and comfort are being inordinatelycheapened, the necessaries of life are growing regularly more and more costly ;so that the poor, under such circumstances, become continually poorer, obtainingless and less for their money, whilst the rieh, on the other hand, get graduallyricher, securing more and more comforts and luxuries for the same amount ofexpenditure; hence the nation comes, ultimately, to be divided into two extremeclasses,—the very rieh and the very poor.
That such has been the case in our own land there cannot be a doubt.Every article of luxury has of late years been greatly reduced in price. Wehave, nowadays, cheap watches and cheap gold chains, cheap silks, carriages,pianos, furniture, pine-apples, ices, concerts, and operas ; whilst bread, and meat,and rent, have all been as gradually augmenting in money-value.
Every man among us knows that the great alteration in this country withinthe last Century has arisen from the vast development of our manufactures, ourmines, and our means of intercommunication ; but while this great change hasbeen going on, and our population extending itself at a most rapid rate, the pro-duetion of the necessaries of life has hardly been augmented among us,—theinclosure of waste lands having been comparatively trifiing ; and thus, whilev, e have cheap cloth, and Shirts, and stockings, and crockery, and glass, and hard-ware, the price of bread is considerably dearer than it was before Manchester,Sheffield, Birmingham, and Merthyr Tydfil, &c., sprang into existence. Hencewe have, at frequent intervals, the social anomaly oecurring among us of toomany Shirts and too many shirtless; and this owing to the simple fact that thereis not sufficient " purchasing power" in the Community at such times to cause ademand for tlie surplus manufactures : or, in less technical terms, the peoplehave no surplus food to exchange against such commodities, i.e. no funds where-with to purchase the stock on band, and contribute toward a fresh supply.
Such likewise appears to be the case with Rhenish Prussia, for there theproduetion of wine is annually increasing, and that of com as gradually decreas-ing ; so that wine becomes more plentiful for the rieh and food scarcer for thepoor, and while the vineyards are becoming more numerous, even black breadis growing to be a luxury, and the consumption of potatoes and the number ofout-wanderers (emigrants) getting greater every year.
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