Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: SECTION II. On the Exchange of Wealth.—Introdiictory Remarks. Exchange Implies the existence of private property. The expression "exchange of wealth" implies the existence of property. It also implies that property is possessed not by society at large but by individuals and classes. If property were possessed by the whole community in the same way as that described in "the Acts of the Apostles" as the custom of the early Christians, there could be no such thing as exchange of wealth. "Neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own ; but they had all things in common." "Neither was there any among them that lacked : for as. many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold, and laid them down at the apostles' feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need." Socialism. If the state of things described in these verses were general the dream of the socialist would be realised. Property would- not be destroyed, but "the exchange of wealth" would be a meaningless expression, for no one could exchange that which belonged as much to every one else as to himself. The exchange of wealth consequently implies the existence of individual property ; it might therefore have appeared appropriate to discuss the laws of the distribution of wealth among certain classes and persons, previous to explaining that which is comprehended under the term "exchange of wealth." The opposite course has however been here adopted because until the meanings of the w "value" and "price" are properly understood, and until the causes which regulate the value of commodities are thoroughly grasped, it will be difficult to present in a short space a clear view of the circumstances which determin...