Adam Smith · Complete work
Book V, Chapter I, 19
Book V, Chapter I, 19 of 152. Read it here for reference, or continue through the entire work without leaving the reader.
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The proper performance of every service seems to require, that its pay or recompence should be, as exactly as possible, proportioned to the nature of the service. If any service is very much underpaid, it is very apt to suffer by the meanness and incapacity of the greater part of those who are employed in it. If it is very much overpaid, it is apt to suffer, perhaps still more, by their negligence and idleness. A man of a large revenue, whatever may be his profession, thinks he ought to live like other men of large revenues; and to spend a great part of his time in festivity, in vanity, and in dissipation. But in a clergyman, this train of life not only consumes the time which ought to be employed in the duties of his function, but in the eyes of the common people, destroys almost entirely that sanctity of character, which can alone enable him to perform those duties with proper weight and authority.
PART IV. Of the Expense of supporting the Dignity of the Sovereign.
Over and above the expenses necessary for enabling the sovereign to perform his several duties, a certain expense is requisite for the support of his dignity. This expense varies, both with the different periods of improvement, and with the different forms of government.
In an opulent and improved society, where all the different orders of people are growing every day more expensive in their houses, in their furniture, in their tables, in their dress, and in their equipage; it cannot well be expected that the sovereign should alone hold out against the fashion. He naturally, therefore, or rather necessarily, becomes more expensive in all those different articles too. His dignity even seems to require that he should become so.
As, in point of dignity, a monarch is more raised above his subjects than the chief magistrate of any republic is ever supposed to be above his fellow-citizens; so a greater expense is necessary for supporting that higher dignity. We naturally expect more splendour in the court of a king, than in the mansion-house of a doge or burgo-master.
CONCLUSION.
The expense of defending the society, and that of supporting the dignity of the chief magistrate, are both laid out for the general benefit of the whole society. It is reasonable, therefore, that they should be defrayed by the general contribution of the whole society; all the different members contributing, as nearly as possible, in proportion to their respective abilities.
The expense of the administration of justice, too, may no doubt be considered as laid out for the benefit of the whole society. There is no impropriety, therefore, in its being defrayed by the general contribution of the whole society. The persons, however, who give occasion to this expense, are those who, by their injustice in one way or another, make it necessary to seek redress or protection from the courts of justice. The persons, again, most immediately benefited by this expense, are those whom the courts of justice either restore to their rights, or maintain in their rights. The expense of the administration of justice, therefore, may very properly be defrayed by the particular contribution of one or other, or both, of those two different sets of persons, according as different occasions may require, that is, by the fees of court. It cannot be necessary to have recourse to the general contribution of the whole society, except for the conviction of those criminals who have not themselves any estate or fund sufficient for paying those fees.
Those local or provincial expenses, of which the benefit is local or provincial (what is laid out, for example, upon the police of a particular town or district), ought to be defrayed by a local or provincial revenue, and ought to be no burden upon the general revenue of the society. It is unjust that the whole society should contribute towards an expense, of which the benefit is confined to a part of the society.
The expense of maintaining good roads and communications is, no doubt, beneficial to the whole society, and may, therefore, without any injustice, be defrayed by the general contributions of the whole society. This expense, however, is most immediately and directly beneficial to those who travel or carry goods from one place to another, and to those who consume such goods. The turnpike tolls in England, and the duties called peages in other countries, lay it altogether upon those two different sets of people, and thereby discharge the general revenue of the society from a very considerable burden.
The expense of the institutions for education and religious instruction, is likewise, no doubt, beneficial to the whole society, and may, therefore, without injustice, be defrayed by the general contribution of the whole society. This expense, however, might, perhaps, with equal propriety, and even with some advantage, be defrayed altogether by those who receive the immediate benefit of such education and instruction, or by the voluntary contribution of those who think they have occasion for either the one or the other.
When the institutions, or public works, which are beneficial to the whole society, either cannot be maintained altogether, or are not maintained altogether, by the contribution of such particular members of the society as are most immediately benefited by them; the deficiency must, in most cases, be made up by the general contribution of the whole society. The general revenue of the society, over and above defraying the expense of defending the society, and of supporting the dignity of the chief magistrate, must make up for the deficiency of many particular branches of revenue. The sources of this general or public revenue, I shall endeavour to explain in the following chapter.
Musean translation
Mouseia’s complete machine-assisted Musean translation, made directly from the complete English text of all five books for fidelity, the author’s force and cadence, and modern clarity.
The proper performance of any service seems to require that its pay or reward be proportioned as closely as possible to the nature of the service. If it is badly underpaid, the work is likely to suffer from the poor qualifications and limited abilities of most who undertake it. If it is greatly overpaid, the work may suffer still more from their negligence and idleness. Whatever his profession, a man with a large revenue thinks he should live like other men with large revenues, spending much of his time on feasting, vanity, and dissipation. But for a clergyman, such a life not only consumes the time that ought to be devoted to his duties; in the eyes of ordinary people, it also destroys almost entirely the sanctity of character that alone enables him to carry out those duties with proper weight and authority.
PART IV. On the Expense of Maintaining the Sovereign's Dignity.
Beyond the expense required to enable the sovereign to perform his various duties, a certain expense is needed to maintain his dignity. This expense varies both with the stage of society's development and with the form of government.
In a wealthy and developed society, where every rank of people is daily spending more on housing, furnishings, meals, clothing, and carriages, the sovereign can hardly be expected to stand alone against the fashion. Naturally, or rather necessarily, he too spends more on all these things. Indeed, his dignity seems to require it.
Just as a monarch stands higher above his subjects in dignity than the chief magistrate of a republic is ever thought to stand above his fellow citizens, so more expense is needed to uphold that higher dignity. We naturally expect greater splendor at a king's court than at the residence of a doge or burgomaster.
CONCLUSION.
The expense of defending society and that of upholding the dignity of its chief magistrate are both incurred for the general benefit of society as a whole. It is therefore reasonable that they be paid from the general contributions of the whole society, with every member contributing as nearly as possible in proportion to their respective means.
The expense of administering justice may also, no doubt, be regarded as incurred for the benefit of the whole society. It would therefore be perfectly proper to pay for it through the general contributions of the whole society. Yet those who give rise to this expense are the people whose injustice, in one form or another, makes it necessary to seek protection or redress from the courts. Those who benefit most directly from it, in turn, are the people whose rights the courts either restore or uphold. The expense of administering justice can therefore quite properly be borne by the particular contributions of either or both of these two groups, as circumstances require—that is, by court fees. There need be no recourse to the general contributions of society except to convict criminals who have no property or funds sufficient to pay those fees themselves.
Local or provincial expenses, whose benefits are local or provincial—spending on policing a particular town or district, for example—ought to be met by local or provincial revenue, and should impose no burden on society's general revenue. It is unjust to make the whole society pay an expense whose benefits are confined to only part of it.
The expense of maintaining good roads and communications undoubtedly benefits the whole society and could therefore be paid, without injustice, from everyone's general contributions. Yet the most immediate and direct beneficiaries are those who travel or carry goods from place to place and those who consume those goods. The turnpike tolls of England and the duties called peages in other countries place this expense entirely on those two groups, thereby relieving society's general revenue of a considerable burden.
The expense of institutions for education and religious instruction undoubtedly benefits the whole society as well, and could therefore be paid from the general contributions of the whole society without injustice. Yet it might be equally appropriate, and even advantageous, for the entire cost to be borne by those who benefit directly from such education and instruction, or by the voluntary contributions of those who think they need either one.
When institutions or public works benefiting the whole society cannot be, or are not, maintained entirely through the contributions of the particular members who benefit most directly from them, the shortfall must in most cases be made up by the general contributions of the whole society. In addition to paying for society's defense and the dignity of its chief magistrate, the general revenue must make good the shortfall in many particular branches of revenue. In the following chapter I shall seek to explain the sources of this general or public revenue.
Plain English translation
Mouseia’s complete Plain English edition, made independently and directly from the complete English text of all five books.
For people to do any job properly, their pay should match the nature of the work as closely as possible. When pay is far too low, the work tends to suffer because most of those doing it lack ability and standing. When pay is far too high, the work may suffer even more because people become careless and idle. Whatever his profession, a man with a large revenue thinks he should live like others with large revenues. He spends much of his time at parties, showing off, and pursuing diversions. For a clergyman, this way of life does more than take up time he should spend on his duties. In ordinary people's eyes, it almost completely destroys the reputation for holiness that alone allows him to perform those duties with proper influence and authority.
PART IV. The Cost of Upholding the Sovereign's Dignity.
Besides the expenses needed for a sovereign to carry out his various duties, some spending is necessary to uphold his dignity. The amount varies with a society's level of development and its form of government.
In a wealthy, developed society, every social group spends more each day on houses, furniture, food, clothing, and transportation. We can hardly expect the sovereign alone to resist this fashion. He naturally, or rather necessarily, spends more on all those things as well. His position even seems to demand it.
A monarch stands higher above his subjects than the chief official of any republic is thought to stand above his fellow citizens. Maintaining that higher status therefore costs more. We naturally expect more splendor at a king's court than at the home of a doge or burgo-master.
CONCLUSION.
The costs of defending society and upholding the chief official's dignity are both incurred for the benefit of society as a whole. It is therefore reasonable to pay for them through contributions from everyone, with each person contributing as nearly as possible according to their means.
The cost of administering justice can also be regarded as benefiting all of society. So there is nothing wrong with paying for it through contributions from everyone. But the people who cause this cost are those whose unjust acts make it necessary to ask courts for protection or a remedy. And those who benefit most directly are the people whose rights the courts restore or uphold. Depending on the circumstances, it is therefore quite proper to charge one or both of these groups for administering justice through court fees. Society as a whole need contribute only when it is necessary to convict criminals who have no property or other funds sufficient to pay those fees.
Local or provincial expenses that bring local or provincial benefits, such as spending on policing a particular town or district, should be paid from local or provincial revenue. They should not burden society's general revenue. It is unfair to make everyone pay for something that benefits only part of society.
Maintaining good roads and transport routes certainly benefits all of society, so it would not be unfair to pay for it through everyone's contributions. Yet the most direct beneficiaries are people who travel or move goods between places, and people who consume those goods. England's turnpike tolls and the charges called peages in other countries put the entire cost on those two groups. This removes a substantial burden from society's general revenue.
Institutions for education and religious instruction also benefit the whole of society. It would therefore be fair to pay for them through everyone's contributions. But it might be equally fair, and even somewhat advantageous, for the entire cost to be paid by the people who directly receive that education and instruction, or through voluntary contributions from people who believe they need either one.
Some institutions or public works benefit all of society but cannot, or do not, get their full funding from the members who benefit most directly. In most cases, everyone must contribute to cover the shortfall. Society's general revenue must pay not only for its defense and the chief official's dignity but also for shortfalls in many particular sources of revenue. In the next chapter, I will explain the sources of this general or public revenue.