Like all other contracts, wages should be left to the fair and free competition of themarket, and should never be controlled by the interference of the legislature. David Ricardo More Quotes by David Ricardo More Quotes From David Ricardo It is here we come to the heart of the matter. The economic principle of comparative advantage', 'a country may, in return for manufactured commodities, import corn even if it can be grown with less labour than in the country from which it is imported David Ricardo principles heart country Nothing contributes so much to the prosperity and happiness of a country as high profits. David Ricardo happy happiness country The farmer and manufacturer can no more live without profit than the labourer without wages. David Ricardo farming wages business There can be no rise in the value of labour David Ricardo profit finance fall There is no way of keeping profits up but by keeping wages down. David Ricardo wages business way The demand for money is regulated entirely by its value, and its value by its quantity. David Ricardo quantity values demand Neither a state nor a bank ever have had unrestricted power of issuing paper money without abusing that power. David Ricardo economics states paper The interest of the landlord is always opposed to the interests of every other class in the community. David Ricardo interest community class No extension of foreign trade will immediately increase the amount of value in a country, although it will very powerfully contribute to increase the mass of commodities and therefore the sum of enjoyments. David Ricardo commodity increase country Profits are not made by differential cleverness, but by differential stupidity. David Ricardo profit stupidity made Money is neither a material to work upon nor a tool to work with. David Ricardo materials tools The exchangeable value of all commodities rises as the difficulties of their production increase. David Ricardo commodity increase difficulty Neither machines, nor the commodities made by them, rise in real value, but all commodities made by machines fall, and fall in proportion to their durability. David Ricardo durability real fall There can be no greater error then in supposing that capital is increased by non-consumption. David Ricardo consumption errors supposing-that Labour, like all other things which are purchased and sold... has its natural and its market price. David Ricardo economy politics wisdom It is not by the absolute quantity of produce obtained by either class, that we can correctly judge of the rate of profit, rent, and wages, but by the quantity of labour required to obtain that produce. David Ricardo wages judging class By far the greatest part of those goods which are the objects of desire, are procured by labour and they may be multiplied, not in one country alone, but in many, almost without any assignable limit, if we are disposed to bestow the labour necessary to obtain them. David Ricardo desire may country A rise of wages from this cause will, indeed, be invariably accompanied by a rise in the price of commodities; but in such cases, it will be found that labour and all commodities have not varied in regard to each other, and that the variation has been confined to money. David Ricardo variation wages causes After all the fertile land in the immediate neighbourhood of the first settlers were cultivated, if capital and population increased, more food would be required, and it could only be procured from land not so advantageously situated. David Ricardo population land would-be Taxation under every form presents but a choice of evils. David Ricardo taxation choices evil
