* "Auriculas asini Mida rex habet."—Persius, sat. i. The
line as given in the text is from Dryden's translation.—
Translator.
A burst of plain speaking has more effect frequently than the most polished circumlocution2. You remember Oronte, and the difficulty which the Misanthrope3 had in convincing him of his folly4.*
Alceste. On s'expose à jouer un mauvais personnage.
Alceste. Je ne dis pas cela.
Mais....
Oronte. Est-ce que j'ecris mal?
Alceste. Je ne dis pas cela.
Mais enfin....
Alceste. Franchement, il est bon à mettre au Cabinet.
To speak plainly, Good Public! you are robbed. This is speaking bluntly, but the thing is very evident. (C'est cru, mais c'est clair).
The words theft, to steal, robbery, may appear ugly words to many people. I ask such people, as Harpagon asks Elise,** "Is it the word or the thing which frightens you?"
* See Molière's play of The Misanthrope.—Translator.
** See Molière's play of Oevare.—Translator.
"Whoever has possessed7 himself fraudulently of a thing which does not belong to him is guilty of theft." (C. Pen., art. 379.)
To steal: To take by stealth or by force. (Dictionnaire de l'Academie.)
Thief: He who exacts more than is due to him. (75.)
Now, does the monopolist, who, by a law of his own making, obliges me to pay him 20 francs for what I could get elsewhere for 15, not take from me fraudulently 5 francs which belonged to me?
Does he not take them by stealth or by force?
Does he not exact more than is due to him?
He takes, purloins8, exacts, it may be said; but not by stealth or by force, which are the characteristics of theft.
When our bulletins de contributions have included in them 5 francs for the premium9 which the monopolist takes, exacts, or abstracts, what can be more stealthy for the unsuspecting? And for those who are not dupes, and who do suspect, what savours more of force, seeing that on the first refusal the tax-gather's bailiff is at the door?
But let monopolists take courage. Premium thefts, tariff10 thefts, if they violate equity11 as much as theft à l'Americaine, do not violate the law; on the contrary, they are perpetrated according to law; and if they are worse than common thefts, they do not come under the cognizance of la correctionnelle.
Besides, right or wrong, we are all robbed or robbers in this business. The author of this volume might very well cry "Stop thief!" when he buys; and with equal reason he might have that cry addressed to him when he sells;* and if he is in a situation different from that of many of his countrymen, the difference consists in this, that he knows that he loses more than he gains by the game, and they don't know it. If they knew it, the game would soon be given up.
* Possessing some landed property, on which he lives, he
belongs to the protected class. This circumstance should
are directed against the thing itself, and not against men's
Nor do I boast of being the first to give the thing its right name. Adam Smith said, sixty years ago, that "when manufacturers hold meetings, we may be sure a plot is hatching against the pockets of the public." Can we be surprised at this, when the public winks14 at it?
Well, then, suppose a meeting of manufacturers deliberating formally, under the title of conseils generaux. What takes place, and what is resolved upon?
"Shipowner: Our merchant shipping16 is at the lowest ebb17. (Dissent) That is not to be wondered at. I cannot construct ships without iron. I can buy it in the market of the world at 10 francs; but by law the French ironmaster forces me to pay him 15 francs, which takes 5 francs out of my pocket. I demand liberty to purchase iron wherever I see proper.
"Ironmaster: In the market of the world I find freights at 20 francs. By law I am obliged to pay the French shipowner 30; he takes 10 francs out of my pocket. He robs me, and I rob him; all quite right.
"Statesman: The shipowner has arrived at a hasty conclusion. Let us cultivate union as regards that which constitutes our strength. If we give up a single point of the theory of protection, the whole theory falls to the ground.
"Shipowner: For us shipowners protection has been a failure. I repeat that the merchant marine18 is at its lowest ebb.
"Shipmaster: Well, let us raise the surtaxe, and let the shipowner who now exacts 30 francs from the public for his freight, charge 40.
"A Minister: The government will make all the use they can of the beautiful mechanism19 of the surtaxe; but I fear that will not be sufficient.
"A Government Functionary20: You are all very easily frightened. Does the tariff alone protect you? and do you lay taxation21 out of account? If the consumer is kind and benevolent22, the taxpayer23 is not less so. Let us heap taxes upon him, and the shipowner will be satisfied. I propose a premium of five francs to be levied24 from the public taxpayers25, to be handed over to the shipbuilder for each ton of iron he shall employ.
"Confused voices: Agreed! agreed! An agriculturist: Three francs premium upon the hectolitre of corn for me! A manufacturer: Two francs premium on the yard of cloth for me! etc., etc.
"The President: This then is what we have agreed upon. Our session has instituted a system of premiums26, and it will be to our eternal honour. What branch of industry can possibly henceforth be a loser, since we have two means, and both so very simple, of converting our losses into gains—the tariff and the premium? The sitting is adjourned27."
I really think some supernatural vision must have foreshadowed to me in a dream the near approach of the premium (who knows but I may have first suggested the idea to M. Dupin?) when six months ago I wrote these words:—
"It appears evident to me that protection, without changing its nature or the effects which it produces, might take the form of a direct tax, levied by the state, and distributed in premiums of indemnification among privileged branches of industry."
And after comparing a protective duty to a premium, I added, "I confess candidly28 my preference for the last system. It seems to me juster, more economical, and more fair. Juster, because if society desires to make presents to some of its members, all ought to bear the expense; more economical, because it would save a great deal in the cost of collection, and do away with many of the trammels with which trade is hampered29; more fair, because the public would see clearly the nature of the operation, and act accordingly."*
* Sophismes Economiques, first series, ch. v. ante.
Since the occasion presents itself to us so opportunely30, let us study this system of plunder31 by premium; for all we say of it applies equally to the system of plunder by tariff; and as the latter is a little better concealed33, the direct may help us to detect and expose the indirect system of cheating. The mind will thus be led from what is simple to what is more complicated.
But it may be asked, Is there not a species of theft which is more simple still? Undoubtedly34; there is highway robbery, which wants only to be legalized, and made a monopoly of, or, in the language of the present day, organized.
I have been reading what follows in a book of travels:—
"When we reached the kingdom of A., all branches of industry declared themselves in a state of suffering. Agriculture groaned35, manufactures complained, trade murmured, the shipping interest grumbled36, and the government were at a loss what to do. First of all, the idea was to lay a pretty smart tax on all the malcontents, and afterwards to divide the proceeds among them after retaining its own quota37; this would have been on the principle of the Spanish lottery38. There are a thousand of you, and the State takes a piastre from each; then by sleight39 of hand, it conveys away 250 piastres, and divides the remaining 750 in larger and smaller proportions among the ticket-holders. The gallant40 Hidalgo who gets three-fourths of a piastre, forgetting that he had contributed a whole piastre, cannot conceal32 his delight, and rushes off to spend his fifteen reals at the alehouse. This is very much the same thing as we see taking place in France. But the government had overrated the stupidity of the population when it endeavoured to make them accept such a species of protection, and at length it lighted upon the following expedient41.
"The country was covered with a network of highroads. The government had these roads accurately42 measured; and then it announced to the agriculturist, 'All that you can steal from travellers between these two points is yours; let that serve as a premium for your protection and encouragement.' Afterwards it assigned to each manufacturer, to each shipowner, a certain portion of road, to be made available for their profit, according to this formula:—
Dono tibi et concedo Virtutem et puissantiam Yolandi,
Pillandi,
Derobandi,
Filoutandi,
Et escroqt??indi,
Impunè per totam istam Viam."
Now it has come to pass that the natives of the kingdom of A. have become so habituated to this system, that they take into account only what they are enabled to steal, not what is stolen from them, being so determined43 to regard pillage44 only from the standpoint of the thief, that they look upon the sum total of individual thefts as a national gain, and refuse to abandon a system of protection, without which they say no branch of industry could support itself.
You demur45 to this. It is not possible, you exclaim, that a whole people should be led to ascribe a redundancy of wealth to mutual46 robbery.
And why not? We see that this conviction pervades47 France, and that we are constantly organizing and improving the system of reciprocal robbery under the respectable names of premiums and protective tariffs48.
We must not, however, be guilty of exaggeration. As regards the mode of levying49, and other collateral50 circumstances, the system adopted in the kingdom of A. may be worse than ours; but we must at the same time admit that, as regards the principle and its necessary consequences, there is not an atom of difference between these two species of theft; which are both organized by law for the purpose of supplementing the profits of particular branches of industry.
Remark also, that if highway robbery presents some inconveniences in its actual perpetration, it has likewise some advantages which we do not find in robbery by tariff.
For example, it is possible to make an equitable51 division among all the producers. It is not so in the case of customs duties. The latter are incapable52 of protecting certain classes of society, such as artisans, shopkeepers, men of letters, lawyers, soldiers, labourers, etc.
It is true that the robbery by premium assumes an infinite number of shapes, and in this respect is not inferior to highway robbery; but, on the other hand, it leads frequently to results so whimsical and awkward that the natives of the kingdom of A. may well laugh at us.
What the victim of a highway robbery loses, the thief gains, and the articles stolen remain in the country. But under the system of robbery by premium, what the tax exacts from the Frenchman is conferred frequently on the Chinese, on the Hottentots, on the Caffres, etc., and here is the way in which this takes place:
A piece of cloth, we shall suppose, is worth 100 francs at Bordeaux. It cannot be sold below that price without a loss. It is impossible to sell it above that price because the competition of merchants prevents the price rising. In these circumstances, if a Frenchman desires to have the cloth, he must pay 100 francs, or want it. But if it is an Englishman who wants the cloth, the government steps in, and says to the merchant, "Sell your cloth, and we will get you 20 francs from the taxpayers." The merchant who could not get more than 100 francs for his cloth, sells it to the Englishman for 80. This sum, added to the 20 francs produced by the premium theft, makes all square. This is exactly the same case as if the taxpayers had given 20 francs to the Englishmen, upon condition of his buying French cloth at 20 francs discount, at 20 francs below the cost of production, at 20 francs below what it has cost ourselves. The robbery by premium, then, has this peculiarity53, that the people robbed are resident in the country which tolerates it, while the people who profit by the robbery are scattered54 over the world.
Verily, it is marvellous that people should persist in maintaining that all which an individual steals from the masses is a general gain. Perpetual motion, the philosopher's stone, the quadrature of the circle, are antiquated55 problems; but the theory of progress by plunder is still held in honour. A priori, we should have thought that, of all imaginable puerilities, it was the least likely to survive.
Some people will say, You are partisans56, then, of the laissez passer?—economists of the school of Smith and Say? You do not desire the organization of labour. Yes, gentlemen, organize labour as much as you choose, but have the goodness not to organize theft.
Another, and a more numerous, set keep repeating, premiums, tariffs, all that has been exaggerated. We should use them without abusing them. A judicious57 liberty, combined with a moderate protection, that is what discreet58 and practical men desire. Let us steer59 clear of fixed60 principles and inflexible61 rules.
This is precisely62 what the traveller tells us takes place in the kingdom of A. "Highway robbery," say the sages63, "is neither good nor bad in itself; that depends upon circumstances. All we are concerned with is to weigh things, and see our functionaries64 well paid for the work of weighing. It may be that we have given too great latitude65 to pillage; perhaps we have not given enough. Let us examine and balance the accounts of each man employed in the work of pillage. To those who do not earn enough, let us assign a larger portion of the road. To those who gain too much, we must limit the days or months of pillage."
Those who talk in this way gain a great reputation for moderation, prudence66, and good sense. They never aspire67 to the highest offices in the state.
Those who say, Repress all injustice68, whether on a greater or a smaller scale, suffer no dishonesty, to however small an extent, are marked down for ideologues, idle dreamers, who keep repeating over and over again the same thing. The people, moreover, find their arguments too clear, and why should they be expected to believe what is so easily understood?
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1
asses
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| n. 驴，愚蠢的人，臀部 adv. (常用作后置)用于贬损或骂人 | |
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2
circumlocution
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| n. 绕圈子的话，迂回累赘的陈述 | |
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3
misanthrope
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| n.恨人类的人；厌世者 | |
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4
folly
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| n.愚笨，愚蠢，蠢事，蠢行，傻话 | |
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5
par
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| n.标准，票面价值，平均数量；adj.票面的，平常的，标准的 | |
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6
sonnet
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| n.十四行诗 | |
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7
possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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8
purloins
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| v.偷窃( purloin的第三人称单数 ) | |
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premium
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| n.加付款；赠品；adj.高级的；售价高的 | |
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10
tariff
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| n.关税，税率；(旅馆、饭店等)价目表，收费表 | |
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11
equity
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| n.公正，公平，（无固定利息的）股票 | |
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12
disarm
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| v.解除武装，回复平常的编制，缓和 | |
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13
motives
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| n.动机，目的( motive的名词复数 ) | |
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14
winks
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| v.使眼色( wink的第三人称单数 )；递眼色（表示友好或高兴等）；（指光）闪烁；闪亮 | |
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15
abridged
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| 削减的，删节的 | |
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16
shipping
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| n.船运（发货，运输，乘船） | |
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17
ebb
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| vi.衰退，减退；n.处于低潮，处于衰退状态 | |
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18
marine
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| adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵 | |
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19
mechanism
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| n.机械装置；机构，结构 | |
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20
functionary
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| n.官员；公职人员 | |
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21
taxation
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| n.征税，税收，税金 | |
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22
benevolent
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| adj.仁慈的，乐善好施的 | |
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23
taxpayer
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| n.纳税人 | |
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24
levied
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| 征（兵）( levy的过去式和过去分词 )； 索取； 发动（战争）； 征税 | |
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25
taxpayers
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| 纳税人，纳税的机构( taxpayer的名词复数 ) | |
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26
premiums
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| n.费用( premium的名词复数 )；保险费；额外费用；（商品定价、贷款利息等以外的）加价 | |
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27
adjourned
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| （使）休会， （使）休庭( adjourn的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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28
candidly
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| adv.坦率地，直率而诚恳地 | |
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29
hampered
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| 妨碍，束缚，限制( hamper的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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30
opportunely
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| adv.恰好地，适时地 | |
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31
plunder
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| vt.劫掠财物，掠夺；n.劫掠物，赃物；劫掠 | |
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32
conceal
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽 | |
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33
concealed
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| a.隐藏的，隐蔽的 | |
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34
undoubtedly
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| adv.确实地，无疑地 | |
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35
groaned
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| v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦 | |
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36
grumbled
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| 抱怨( grumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 发牢骚； 咕哝； 发哼声 | |
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37
quota
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| n.（生产、进出口等的）配额，（移民的）限额 | |
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38
lottery
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| n.抽彩；碰运气的事，难于算计的事 | |
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39
sleight
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| n.技巧，花招 | |
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40
gallant
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| adj.英勇的，豪侠的；(向女人)献殷勤的 | |
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41
expedient
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| adj.有用的，有利的；n.紧急的办法，权宜之计 | |
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42
accurately
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| adv.准确地，精确地 | |
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43
determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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44
pillage
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| v.抢劫；掠夺；n.抢劫，掠夺；掠夺物 | |
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45
demur
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| v．表示异议，反对 | |
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46
mutual
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| adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的 | |
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47
pervades
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| v.遍及，弥漫( pervade的第三人称单数 ) | |
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48
tariffs
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| 关税制度； 关税( tariff的名词复数 )； 关税表； （旅馆或饭店等的）收费表； 量刑标准 | |
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49
levying
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| 征（兵）( levy的现在分词 )； 索取； 发动（战争）； 征税 | |
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50
collateral
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| adj.平行的；旁系的；n.担保品 | |
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51
equitable
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| adj.公平的；公正的 | |
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52
incapable
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| adj.无能力的，不能做某事的 | |
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53
peculiarity
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| n.独特性，特色；特殊的东西；怪癖 | |
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54
scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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55
antiquated
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| adj.陈旧的，过时的 | |
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56
partisans
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| 游击队员( partisan的名词复数 )； 党人； 党羽； 帮伙 | |
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57
judicious
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| adj.明智的，明断的，能作出明智决定的 | |
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58
discreet
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| adj.(言行)谨慎的；慎重的；有判断力的 | |
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59
steer
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| vt.驾驶，为…操舵；引导；vi.驾驶 | |
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60
fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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61
inflexible
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| adj.不可改变的，不受影响的，不屈服的 | |
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62
precisely
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| adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地 | |
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63
sages
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| n.圣人( sage的名词复数 )；智者；哲人；鼠尾草（可用作调料） | |
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64
functionaries
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| n.公职人员，官员( functionary的名词复数 ) | |
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65
latitude
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| n.纬度，行动或言论的自由(范围)，(pl.)地区 | |
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66
prudence
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| n.谨慎，精明，节俭 | |
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67
aspire
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| vi.(to，after)渴望，追求，有志于 | |
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68
injustice
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| n.非正义，不公正，不公平，侵犯（别人的）权利 | |
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