It is great skill and knowledge which generally enable a man to earn large wages. Rich people like to get the best of everything, and thus the few people who can do things in the best possible way can ask very high prices. Almost any one can sing badly; but hardly any one can sing as well as Mr. Sims Reeves: thus he can get perhaps L20 or L30 for every song which he sings. It is the same with the best artists, actors, barristers, engineers. An artist is usually his own capitalist, for he maintains himself during many months, or even years, while he is painting a great picture; if he succeeds in doing it excellently well, he can sell the picture for thousands of pounds, because there are many rich people who wish to possess good pictures. #45. Adam Smith on Wages.# There are, however, various circumstances which cause wages in any particular employment to be higher or lower than in other employments, and we had better attend to what Adam Smith has said on this subject. He mentioned five principal circumstances which make up for small wages in some occupations, and balance great wages in other ones, as follows: (1.) #The Agreeableness or Disagreeableness of the Employments themselves.# If an employment is in itself comparatively pleasant, it attracts many who would not otherwise go into it at the current wages. Thus, officers of the army and navy are not on the average highly paid; but there is never any difficulty in finding men willing to be officers, because the work is thought to be easy, and there is honour and power attaching to it. On the other hand, a good butcher makes high wages, because his business is a greasy one, besides being thought to be cruel, and a clever man must be attracted to it by good earnings. (2.) #The Easiness and Cheapness, or the Difficulty and Expense of learning the Occupation.# This circumstance always has much importance, because the greater number of the people are poor, and are consequently unable to give their children a long good education. Thus, the larger part of the young men who grow up are only fit for common manual employments, and therefore get low wages. To learn a profession, like that of an architect or engineer, it is requisite to pay a high premium, and become a pupil in a good office, and then there are many years to be spent in practising and waiting before profit begins to be made. Hence the comparatively few who succeed in the difficult professions gain very high wages.