Produced by Distributed Proofreaders [Third (People's) Edition] Essays on Political Economy. By the late M. Frederic Bastiat, Member of The Institute of France. New York: G. P. Putnams & Sons, Fourth Avenue, and Twenty-Third Street. 1874. London: Printed for Provost and Co., Henrietta Street, W. C. Contents. Capital and Interest. Introduction 1 Capital and Interest 5 The Sack of Corn 19 The House 22 The Plane 24 That Which Is Seen, and That Which Is Not Seen. Introduction 49 The Broken Window 50 The Disbanding of Troops 54 Taxes 58 Theatres, Fine Arts 63 Public Works 71 The Intermediates 74 Restrictions 83 Machinery 90 Credit 97 Algeria 102 Frugality and Luxury 107 Work and Profit 116 Government 119 What Is Money? 136 The Law 173 Capital and Interest. My object in this treatise is to examine into the real nature of the Interest of Capital, for the purpose of proving that it is lawful, and explaining why it should be perpetual. This may appear singular, and yet, I confess, I am more afraid of being too plain than too obscure. I am afraid I may weary the reader by a series of mere truisms. But it is no easy matter to avoid this danger, when the facts with which we have to deal are known to every one by personal, familiar, and daily experience. But, then, you will say, "What is the use of this treatise? Why explain what everybody knows?" But, although this problem appears at first sight so very simple, there is more in it than you might suppose. I shall endeavour to prove this by an example. Mondor lends an instrument of labour to-day, which will be entirely destroyed in a week, yet the capital will not produce the less interest to Mondor or his heirs, through all eternity. Reader, can you honestly say that you understand the reason of this?