[3]\"Thewagesoflabourdependuponthepriceoflabourandthequantityoflabourperformed……Anincreaseinthewagesoflabourdoesnotnecessarilyimplyanenhancementofthepriceoflabour。Fromfulleremployment，andgreaterexertions，thewagesoflabourmaybeconsiderablyincreased，whilethepriceoflabourmaycontinuethesame。\"（West，op。cit。，pp。67，68，112。）Themainquestion:\"Howisthepriceoflabourdetermined？\"West，however，dismisseswithmerebanalities。
[4]Thisisperceivedbythefanaticalrepresentativeoftheindustrialbourgeoisieofthe18thcentury，theauthorofthe\"EssayonTradeandCommerce\"oftenquotedbyus，althoughheputsthematterinaconfusedway:\"Itisthequantityoflabourandnotthepriceofit\"（hemeansbythisthenominaldailyorweeklywages）\"thatisdeterminedbythepriceofprovisionsandothernecessaries:reducethepriceofnecessariesverylow，andofcourseyoureducethequantityoflabourinproportion。Mastermanufacturersknowthattherearevariouswaysofraisingandfellingthepriceoflabour，besidesthatofalteringitsnominalamount。\"（op。cit。，pp。48，61。）Inhis\"ThreeLecturesontheRateofWages，\"London，1830，inwhichN。W。
SeniorusesWest’sworkwithoutmentioningit，hesays:\"Thelabourerisprincipallyinterestedintheamountofwages\"（p。14），thatistosay，thelabourerisprincipallyinterestedinwhathereceives，thenominalsumofhiswages，notinthatwhichhegives，theamountoflabour！
[5]Theeffectofsuchanabnormallesseningofemploymentisquitedifferentfromthatofageneralreductionoftheworking—day，enforcedbylaw。Theformerhasnothingtodowiththeabsolutelengthoftheworking—day，andmayoccurjustaswellinaworking—dayof15，asof6hours。Thenormalpriceoflabourisinthefirstcasecalculatedonthelabourerworking15hours，inthesecondcaseonhisworking6hoursadayontheaverage。
Theresultisthereforethesame，ifheintheonecaseisemployedonlyfor71/2，intheotheronlyfor3hours。
[6]\"Therateofpaymentforovertime（inlace—making）issosmall，from1/2
d。and3/4d。to2d。perhour，thatitstandsinpainfulcontrasttotheamountofinjuryproducedtothehealthandstaminaoftheworkpeople……
Thesmallamountthusearnedisalsooftenobligedtobespentinextranourishment。\"（\"Child。Empl。Com。，II。Rep。，\"p。xvi。，n。117。）
[7]E。g。，inpaper—stainingbeforetherecentintroductionintothistradeoftheFactoryAct。\"Weworkonwithnostoppageformeals，sothattheday’sworkof101/2hoursisfinishedby4:30p。m。，andallafterthatisover—time，andweseldomleaveoffworkingbefore6p。m。，sothatwearereallyworkingover—timethewholeyearround。\"（Mr。Smith’s\"EvidenceinChild。Empl。Com。，1。Rep。，\"p。125。）
[8]E。g。，intheScotchbleaching—works。\"InsomepartsofScotlandthistrade\"
（beforetheintroductionoftheFactoryActin1862）\"wascarriedonbyasystemofover—time，i。e。，tenhoursadayweretheregularhoursofwork，forwhichanominalwageof1s。2d。perdaywaspaidtoaman，therebeingeverydayover—timeforthreeorfourhours，paidattherateof3d。perhour。Theeffectofthissystem……amancouldnotearnmorethan8s。perweekwhenworkingtheordinaryhours……withoutover—timetheycouldnotearnafairday’swages。\"（\"Rept。ofInsp。ofFactories，\"April30th，1863，p。10。）\"Thehigherwages，forgettingadultmalestoworklongerhours，areatemptationtoostrongtoberesisted。\"（\"Rept。ofInsp。
ofFact。，\"April30th，1848，p。5。）Thebook—bindingtradeinthecityofLondonemploysverymanyyounggirlsfrom14toI5yearsold，andthatunderindentureswhichprescribecertaindefinitehoursoflabour。Nevertheless，theyworkinthelastweekofeachmonthuntil10，11，12，or1o’clockatnight，alongwiththeolderlabourers，inaverymixedcompany。\"Themasterstemptthembyextrapayandsupper，\"whichtheyeatinneighboringpublichouses。Thegreatdebaucherythusproducedamongthese\"youngimmortals\"
（\"Children’sEmploymentComm。，V。Rept。，\"p。44，n。191）iscompensatedbythefactthatamongtherestmanyBiblesandreligiousbooksareboundbythem。
[9]See\"Reportsoflnsp。ofFact。，\"30thApril，1863，p。10。Withveryaccurateappreciationofthestateofthings，theLondonlabourersemployedinthebuildingtradesdeclared，duringthegreatstrikeandlock—outof1860，thattheywouldonlyacceptwagesbythehourundertwoconditions:（1），that，withthepriceoftheworking—hour，anormalworkingdayof9and10hoursrespectivelyshouldbefixed，andthatthepriceofthehourforthe10hours，working—dayshouldbehigherthanthatforthehourofthe9hoursworking—day;（2），thateveryhourbeyondthenormalworking—dayshouldbereckonedasover—timeandproportionallymorehighlypaid。
[10]\"Itisaverynotablething，too，thatwherelonghoursaretherule，smallwagesarealsoso。\"（\"ReportofInsp。ofFact。，\"31st。Oct。，1863，p。9。）
\"Theworkwhichobtainsthescantypittanceoffood，is，forthemostpart，excessivelyprolonged。\"（\"PublicHealth，SixthReport，\"1864，p。15。）
[11]\"ReportofInspectorsofFact。，\"30thApril，1860，pp。31，32。
[12]Thehandnail—makersinEngland，e。g。，have，onaccountofthelowpriceoflabour，towork15hoursadayinordertohammerouttheirmiserableweeklywage。\"It’sagreatmanyhoursinaday（6a。m。to8p。m。），andhehastoworkhardallthetimetogetIId。orIs。，andthereisthewearofthetools，thecostoffiring，andsomethingforwasteirontogooutofthis，whichtakesoffaltogether21/2d。or3d。\"（\"Children’sEmploymentCom。，III。Report，\"p。136，n。671。）Thewomenearnbythesameworking—timeaweek’swageofonly5shillings。（l。c。，p。137，n。674。）
[13]Ifafactory—hand，e。g。，refusedtoworkthecustomarylonghours，\"hewouldveryshortlybereplacedbysomebodywhowouldworkanylengthoftime，andthusbethrownoutofemployment。\"（\"ReportsofInspectorsofFactories，\"30thApril，1848。Evidence，p。39，n。58。）\"Ifonemanperformstheworkoftwo……therateofprofitswillgenerallyberaised……inconsequenceoftheadditionalsupplyoflabourhavingdiminisheditsprice。\"
（Senior，l。c。，p。15。）
[14]\"Children’sEmploymentCom。，IIIRep。，\"Evidence，p。66，n。22。
[15]\"Report，&tc。，RelativetotheGrievancesComplainedofbytheJourneymenBakers。\"London，1862，p。411，andib。Evidence，notes479，359，27。Anyhowthefull—pricedbakers，aswasmentionedabove，andastheirspokesman，Bennett，himselfadmits，maketheirmen\"generallybeginworkat11p。m……upto8o’clockthenextmorning……Theyarethenengagedalldaylong……aslateas7o’clockintheevening。\"（l。c。，p。22。）
ChapterTwenty—OneKarlMarxCapitalVolumeOnePartVI:
WagesCHAPTERTWENTY—ONE:
PIECE—WAGES
Wagesbythepiecearenothingelsethanaconvertedformofwagesbytime，justaswagesbytimeareaconvertedformofthevalueorpriceoflabour—power。
Inpiece—wagesitseemsatfirstsightasiftheuse—valueboughtfromthelabourerwas，notthefunctionofhislabour—power，livinglabour，butlabouralreadyrealizedintheproduct，andasifthepriceofthislabourwasdetermined，notaswithtime—wages，bythefractiondailyvalueoflabour—power棗棗棗棗棗棗棗棗棗棗？
theworkingdayofagivennumberofhoursbutbythecapacityforworkofproducer。[1]
Theconfidencethattrustsinthisappearanceoughttoreceiveafirstsevereshockfromthefactthatbothformsofwagesexistsidebyside，simultaneously，inthesamebranchesofindustry;e。g。，\"thecompositorsofLondon，asageneralrule，workbythepiece，time—workbeingtheexception，whilethoseinthecountryworkbytheday，theexceptionbeingworkbythepiece。TheshipwrightsoftheportofLondonworkbythejoborpiece，whilethoseofallotherpartsworkbytheday。\"[2]
InthesamesaddleryshopsofLondon，oftenforthesamework，piece—wagesarepaidtotheFrench，time—wagestotheEnglish。Intheregularfactoriesinwhichthroughoutpiece—wagespredominate，particularkindsofworkareunsuitabletothisformofwage，andarethereforepaidbytime。[3]Butitis，moreover，self—evidentthatthedifferenceofforminthepaymentofwagesaltersinnowaytheiressentialnature，althoughtheoneformmaybemorefavorabletothedevelopmentofcapitalistproductionthantheother。
Lettheordinaryworking—daycontain12hoursofwhich6arepaid，6
unpaid。Letitsvalue—productbe6shillings，thatofonehour’slabourtherefore6d。Letussupposethat，astheresultofexperience，alabourerwhoworkswiththeaverageamountofintensityandskill，who，therefore，givesinfactonlythetimesociallynecessarytotheproductionofanarticle，suppliesin12hours24pieces，eitherdistinctproductsormeasurablepartsofacontinuouswhole。Thenthevalueofthese24pieces，after。
subtractionoftheportionofconstantcapitalcontainedinthem，is6
shillings，andthevalueofasinglepiece3d。Thelabourerreceives1
1/2d。perpiece，andthusearnsin12hours3shillings。Justas，withtime—wages，itdoesnotmatterwhetherweassumethatthelabourerworks6hoursforhimselfand6hoursforthecapitalist，orhalfofeveryhourforhimself，andtheotherhalfforthecapitalist，sohereitdoesnotmatterwhetherwesaythateachindividualpieceishalfpaid，andhalfunpaidfor，orthatthepriceof12piecesistheequivalentonlyofthevalueofthelabour—power，whilstintheother12piecessurplus—valueisincorporated。
Theformofpiece—wagesisjustasirrationalasthatoftime—wages。
Whilstinourexampletwopiecesofacommodity，aftersubtractionofthevalueofthemeansofproductionconsumedinthem，areworth6d。asbeingtheproductofonehour，thelabourerreceivesforthemapriceof3d。
Piece—wagesdonot，infact，distinctlyexpressanyrelationofvalue。
Itisnot，therefore，aquestionofmeasuringthevalueofthepiecebytheworking—timeincorporatedinit，butonthecontrary，ofmeasuringtheworking—timethelabourerhasexpendedbythenumberofpieceshehasproduced。Intime—wages，thelabourismeasuredbyitsimmediateduration;
inpiece—wages，bythequantityofproductsinwhichthelabourhasembodieditselfduringagiventime。[4]Thepriceoflabourtimeitselfisfinallydeterminedbytheequation:
valueofaday’slabour=dailyvalueoflabour—power。Piece—wageis，therefore，onlyamodifiedformoftime—wage。
Letusnowconsideralittlemorecloselythecharacteristicpeculiaritiesofpiece—wages。
Thequalityofthelabourisherecontrolledbytheworkitself，whichmustbeofaverageperfectionifthepiece—priceistobepaidinfull。
Piece—wagesbecome，fromthispointofview，themostfruitfulsourceofreductionsofwagesandcapitalisticcheating。
Theyfurnishtothecapitalistanexactmeasurefortheintensityoflabour。Onlytheworking—timewhichisembodiedinaquantumofcommoditiesdeterminedbeforehand，andexperimentallyfixed，countsassociallynecessaryworking—time，andispaidassuch。InthelargerworkshopsoftheLondontailors，therefore，acertainpieceofwork，awaistcoat，e。g。，iscalledanhour，orhalfanhour，thehourat6d。Bypracticeitisknownhowmuchistheaverageproductofonehour。Withnewfashions，repairs，&tc。，acontestarisesbetweenmasterandlabourerastowhetheraparticularpieceofworkisonehour，andsoon，untilherealsoexperiencedecides。
SimilarlyintheLondonfurnitureworkshops，&tc。Ifthelabourerdoesnotpossesstheaveragecapacity，ifhecannotinconsequencesupplyacertainminimumofworkperday，heisdismissed。[5]
Sincethequalityandintensityoftheworkareherecontrolledbytheformofwageitself，superintendenceoflabourbecomesingreatpartsuperfluous。
Piece—wagesthereforelaythefoundationofthemodern\"domesticlabour，\"
describedabove，aswellasofahierarchicallyorganizedsystemofexploitationandoppression。Thelatterhastwofundamentalforms。Ontheonehand，piece—wagesfacilitatetheinterpositionofparasitesbetweenthecapitalistandthewage—labourer，the\"sub—lettingoflabour。\"Thegainofthesemiddlemencomesentirelyfromthedifferencebetweenthelabour—pricewhichthecapitalistpays，andthepartofthatpricewhichtheyactuallyallowtoreachthelabourer。[6]InEnglandthissystemischaracteristicallycalledthe\"sweatingsystem。\"Ontheotherhand，piece—wageallowsthecapitalisttomakeacontractforsomuchperpiecewiththeheadlabourer—inmanufactureswiththechiefofsomegroup，inmineswiththeextractorofthecoal，inthefactorywiththeactualmachine—worker？atapriceforwhichtheheadlabourerhimselfundertakestheenlistingandpaymentofhisassistantworkpeople。Theexploitationofthelabourerbycapitalishereeffectedthroughtheexploitationofthelabourerbythelabourer;[7]
Givenpiece—wage，itisnaturallythepersonalinterestofthelabourertostrainhislabour—powerasintenselyaspossible;thisenablesthecapitalisttoraisemoreeasilythenormaldegreeofintensityoflabour。[8]Itismoreovernowthepersonalinterestofthelabourertolengthentheworking—day，sincewithithisdailyorweeklywagesrise。[9]Thisgraduallybringsonareactionlikethatalreadydescribedintime—wages，withoutreckoningthattheprolongationoftheworking—day，evenifthepiecewageremainsconstant，includesofnecessityafallinthepriceofthelabour。
Intime—wages，withfewexceptions，thesamewageholdsforthesamekindofwork，whilstinpiece—wages，thoughthepriceoftheworkingtimeismeasuredbyacertainquantityofproduct，theday’sorweek’swagewillvarywiththeindividualdifferencesofthelabourers，ofwhomonesuppliesinagiventimetheminimumofproductonly，anothertheaverage，athirdmorethantheaverage。Withregardtoactualreceiptsthereis，therefore，greatvarietyaccordingtothedifferentskill，strength，energy，staying—power，&tc。，oftheindividuallabourers。[10]Ofcoursethisdoesnotalterthegeneralrelationsbetweencapitalandwage—labour。First，theindividualdifferencesbalanceoneanotherintheworkshopasawhole，whichthussuppliesinagivenworking—timetheaverageproduct，andthetotalwagespaidwillbetheaveragewagesofthatparticularbranchofindustry。Second，theproportionbetweenwagesandsurplus—valueremainsunaltered，sincethemassofsurpluslaboursuppliedbyeachparticularlabourercorrespondswiththewagereceivedbyhim。Butthewiderscopethatpiece—wagegivestoindividualitytendstodevelopontheonehandthatindividuality，andwithitthesenseofliberty，independence，andself—controlofthelabourers，andontheother，theircompetitiononewithanother。Piece—workhas，therefore，atendency，whileraisingindividualwagesabovetheaverage，tolowerthisaverageitself。Butwhereaparticularrateofpiece—wagehasforalongtimebeenfixedbytradition，anditslowering，therefore，presentedespecialdifficulties，themasters，insuchexceptionalcases，sometimeshadrecoursetoitscompulsorytransformationintotime—wages。
Hence，e。g。，in1860agreatstrikeamongtheribbon—weaversofCoventry。[11]Piece—wageisfinallyoneofthechiefsupportsofthehour—systemdescribedintheprecedingchapter。[12]
Fromwhathasbeenshownsofar，itfollowsthatpiece—wageistheformofwagesmostinharmonywiththecapitalistmodeofproduction。Althoughbynomeansnew？itfiguressidebysidewithtime—wagesofficiallyintheFrenchandEnglishlabourstatutesofthe14thcentury？itonlyconquersalargerfieldforactionduringtheperiodofmanufacture，properlyso—called。
Inthestormyyouthofmodernindustry，especiallyfrom1797to1815，itservedasaleverforthelengtheningoftheworking—day，andtheloweringofwages。VeryimportantmaterialsforthefluctuationofwagesduringthatperiodaretobefoundintheBluebooks:\"ReportandEvidencefromtheSelectCommitteeonPetitionsrespectingtheCornLaws\"（ParliamentarySessionof1813—14），and\"ReportfromtheLords’Committee，ontheStateoftheGrowth，Commerce，andConsumptionofGrain，andallLawsrelatingthereto\"（Sessionof1814—15p;Herewefinddocumentaryevidenceoftheconstantloweringofthepriceoflabourfromthebeginningoftheanti—JacobinWar。Intheweavingindustry，e。g。，piece—wageshadfallensolowthat，inspiteoftheverygreatlengtheningoftheworking—day，thedailywageswerethenlowerthanbefore。\"Therealearningsofthecottonweaverarenowfarlessthantheywere;hissuperiorityoverthecommonlabourer，whichatfirstwasverygreat，hasnowalmostentirelyceased。Indeed……thedifferenceinthewagesofskillfulandcommonlabourisfarlessnowthanatanyformerperiod。\"[13]Howlittletheincreasedintensityandextensionoflabourthroughpiece—wagesbenefitedtheagriculturalproletariat，thefollowingpassageborrowedfromaworkonthesideofthelandlordsandfarmersshows:\"Byfarthegreaterpartofagriculturaloperationsisdonebypeoplewhoarehiredforthedayoronpiece—work。Theirweeklywagesareabout12s。，andalthoughitmaybeassumedthatamanearnsonpiece—workunderthegreaterstimulustolabour，1s。orperhaps2s。morethanonweeklywages，yetitisfound，oncalculatinghistotalincome，thathislossofemployment，duringtheyear，outweighsthisgain……Further，itwillgenerallybefoundthatthewagesofthesemenbearacertainproportiontothepriceofthenecessarymeansofsubsistence，sothatamanwithtwochildrenisabletobringuphisfamilywithoutrecoursetoparishrelief。\"[14]MalthusatthattimeremarkedwithreferencetothefactspublishedbyParliament:
\"IconfessthatIsee，withmisgiving，thegreatextensionofthepracticeofpiece—wage。Reallyhardworkduring12or14hoursoftheday，orforanylongertime，istoomuchforanyhumanbeing。\"[15]
IntheworkshopsundertheFactoryActs，piece—wagesbecomethegeneralrule，becausecapitalcanthereonlyincreasetheefficacyoftheworking—daybyintensifyinglabour。[16]
Withthechangingproductivenessoflabourthesamequantumofproductrepresentsavaryingworking—time。Therefore，piece—wagealsovaries，foritisthemoneyexpressionofadeterminedworking—time。Inourexampleabove，24pieceswereproducedin12hours，whilstthevalueoftheproductofthe12hourswas6s。，thedailyvalueofthelabour—power3s。，thepriceofthelabour—hour3d。，andthewageforonepiece1/2d。Inonepiecehalf—an—hour’slabourwasabsorbed。Ifthesameworking—daynowsupplies，inconsequenceofthedoubledproductivenessoflabour，48piecesinsteadof24，andallothercircumstancesremainunchanged，thenthepiece—wagefallsfrom11/2d。to3/4d。，aseverypiecenowonlyrepresents1/4，insteadof1/2ofaworking—hour。24by11/2d。=3s。，andinlikemanner48by3/4d。=3s。Inotherwords，piece—wageisloweredinthesameproportionasthenumberofthepiecesproducedinthesametimerises，[17]and，therefore，astheworkingtimespentonthesamepiecefalls。Thischangeinpiece—wage，sofarpurelynominal，leadstoconstantbattlesbetweencapitalistandlabour。Eitherbecausethecapitalistusesitasapretextforactuallyloweringthepriceoflabour，orbecauseincreasedproductivepoweroflabourisaccompaniedbyanincreasedintensityofthesame。Orbecausethelabourertakesseriouslytheappearanceofpiece—wages（viz。，thathisproductispaidfor，andnothislabour—power）andthereforerevoltsagainstaloweringofwages，unaccompaniedbyaloweringinthesellingpriceofthecommodity。\"Theoperatives……carefullywatchthepriceoftherawmaterialandthepriceofmanufacturedgoods，andarethusenabledtoformanaccurateestimateoftheirmaster’sprofits。\"[18]
Thecapitalistrightlyknocksontheheadsuchpretensionsasgrosserrorsastothenatureofwage—labour。[19]Hecriesoutagainstthisusurpingattempttolaytaxesontheadvanceofindustry，anddeclaresroundlythattheproductivenessoflabourdoesnotconcernthelaboureratall。[20]
Footnotes[1]\"Thesystemofpiece—workillustratesanepochinthehistoryoftheworking—man;
itishalfwaybetweenthepositionofthemereday—labourerdependinguponthewillofthecapitalistandtheco—operativeartisan，whointhenotdistantfuturepromisestocombinetheartisanandthecapitalistinhisownperson。Piece—workersareinfacttheirownmasters，evenwhilstworkinguponthecapitaloftheemployer。\"（JohnWatts:\"TradeSocietiesandStrikes，MachineryandCo—operativeSocieties。\"Manchester，1865，pp。52，53。）I
quotethislittleworkbecauseitisaverysinkofalllong—ago—rotten，apologeticcommonplaces。ThissameMr。WattsearliertradedinOwenismandpublishedin1842anotherpamphlet:\"FactsandFictionsofPoliticalEconomists，\"inwhichamongotherthingshedeclaresthat\"propertyisrobbery。\"Thatwaslongago。
[2]T。J。Dunning:\"Trades’UnionsandStrikes，\"Lond。，1860，p。22。
[3]Howtheexistence，sidebysideandsimultaneously，ofthesetwoformsofwagefavorsthemasters’cheating:\"Afactoryemploys400people，thehalfofwhichworkbythepiece，andhaveadirectinterestinworkinglongerhours。Theother200arepaidbytheday，workequallylongwiththeothers，andgetnomoremoneyfortheirover—time……Theworkofthese200peopleforhalfanhouradayisequaltooneperson’sworkfor50
hours，or5/6’sofoneperson’slabourinaweek，andisapositivegaintotheemployer。\"（\"ReportsofInsp。ofFact。，31stOct。，1860，\"p。9。）
\"Over—workingtoaveryconsiderableextentstillprevails;and，inmostinstances，withthatsecurityagainstdetectionandpunishmentwhichthelawitselfaffords。Ihaveinmanyformerreportsshown……theinjurytoworkpeoplewhoarenotemployedonpiece—work，butreceiveweeklywages。\"
（LeonardHornerin\"ReportsofInsp。ofFact。，\"30thApril，1859，pp。8，9。）
[4]\"Wagescanbemeasuredintwoways:eitherbythedurationofthelabour，orbyitsproduct。\"（\"Abregee1ementairedesprincipesdel’economiepolitique。\"
Paris，1796，p。32。）Theauthorofthisanonymouswork:G。Garnier。
[5]\"Somuchweightofcottonisdeliveredtohim\"（thespinner），\"andhehastoreturnbyacertaintime，inlieuofit，agivenweightoftwistoryarn，ofacertaindegreeoffineness，andheispaidsomuchperpoundforallthathesoreturns。Ifhisworkisdefectiveinquality，thepenaltyfallsonhim，iflessinquantitythantheminimumfixedforagiventime，heisdismissedandanableroperativeprocured。\"（Ure，l。c。，p。317。）
[6]\"Itiswhenworkpassesthroughseveralhands，eachofwhichistotakeitsshareofprofits，whileonlythelastdoesthework，thatthepaywhichreachestheworkwomanismiserablydisproportioned。\"（\"Child。Emp。Comm。
IIReport，\"p。1xx。，n。424。）
[7]EvenWatts，theapologetic，remarks:\"Itwouldbeagreatimprovementtothesystemofpiece—work，ifallthemenemployedonajobwerepartnersinthecontract，eachaccordingtohisabilities，insteadofonemanbeinginterestedinover—workinghisfellowsforhisownbenefit。\"（l。c。，p。
53。）Onthevilenessofthissystem，cf。\"Child。Emp。Comm。，Rep。III。，\"
p。66，n。22，p。11，n。124，p。xi，n。13，53，59，&tc。
[8]Thisspontaneousresultisoftenartificiallyhelpedalong，e。g。，intheEngineeringTradeofLondon，acustomarytrickis\"theselectingofamanwhopossessessuperiorphysicalstrengthandquickness，astheprincipalofseveralworkmen，andpayinghimanadditionalrate，bythequarterorotherwise，withtheunderstandingthatheistoexerthimselftotheutmosttoinducetheothers，whoareonlypaidtheordinarywages，tokeepuptohim……withoutanycommentthiswillgofartoexplainmanyofthecomplaintsofstintingtheaction，superiorskill，andworking—power，madebytheemployersagainstthemen\"（inTrades—Unions。Dunning，l。c。，pp。
22，23）。AstheauthorishimselfalabourerandsecretaryofaTrades’
Union，thismightbetakenforexaggeration。Butthereadermaycomparethe\"highlyrespectable\"\"CyclopediaofAgriculture\"ofJ。C。Morton，Art。，thearticle\"Labourer，\"wherethismethodisrecommendedtothefarmersasanapprovedone。
[9]\"Allthosewhoarepaidbypiece—work……profitbythetransgressionofthelegallimitsofwork。Thisobservationastothewillingnesstoworkover—timeisespeciallyapplicabletothewomenemployedasweaversandreelers。\"（\"Rept。ofInsp。ofFact。，30thApril，1858，\"p。9。）\"Thissystem\"
（piece—work），\"soadvantageoustotheemployer……tendsdirectlytoencouragetheyoungpottergreatlytoover—workhimselfduringthefourorfiveyearsduringwhichheisemployedinthepiece—worksystem，butatlowwages……
Thisis……anothergreatcausetowhichthebadconstitutionsofthepottersaretobeattributed。\"（\"Child。Empl。Comm。1。Rept。，\"p。xiii。）
[10]\"Wheretheworkinanytradeispaidforbythepieceatsomuchperjob……wagesmayverymateriallydifferinamount……Butinworkbythedaythereisgenerallyanuniformrate……recognizedbybothemployerandemployedasthestandardofwagesforthegeneralrunofworkmeninthetrade。\"（Dunning，l。c。，p。17。）
[11]\"Theworkofthejourneyman—artisanswillberuledbythedayorbythepiece。Thesemaster—artisansknowabouthowmuchworkajourneyman—artisancandoperdayineachcraft，andoftenpaytheminproportiontotheworkwichtheydo;thejourneymen，therefore，workasmuchastheycan，intheirowninterest，withoutanyfurtherinspection。\"（Cantillon，\"EssaisurlaNatureduCommerceengeneral，\"Amst。Ed。，1756，pp。185and202。
Thefirsteditionappearedin1755。）Cantillon，fromwhomQuesnay，SirJamesSteuart&A。Smithhavelargelydrawn，alreadyhererepresentspiece—wageassimplyamodifiedformoftime—wage。TheFrencheditionofCantillonprofessesinitstitletobeatranslationfromtheEnglish，buttheEnglishedition:\"TheAnalysisofTrade，Commerce，&tc。，\"byPhilipCantillon，lateofthecityofLondon，Merchant，isnotonlyoflaterdate（1759），butprovesbyitscontentsthatitisalaterandrevisededition:e。g。，intheFrenchedition，Humeisnotyetmentioned，whilstintheEnglish，ontheotherhand，Pettyhardlyfiguresanylonger。TheEnglisheditionistheoreticallylessimportant，butitcontainsnumerousdetailsreferringspecificallytoEnglishcommerce，bulliontrade，&tc。，thatarewantingintheFrenchtext。Thewordsonthetitle—pageoftheEnglishedition，accordingtowhichtheworkis\"takenchieflyfromthemanuscriptofaveryingeniousgentleman，deceased，andadapted，&tc。，\"
seem，therefore，apurefiction，verycustomaryatthattime。
[12]\"Howoftenhaveweseen，insomeworkshops，manymoreworkersrecruitedthantheworkactuallycalledfor？Onmanyoccasions，workersarerecruitedinanticipationoffuturework，whichmaynevermaterialize。Becausetheyarepaidbypiece—wages，itissaidthatnoriskisincurred，sinceanylossoftimewillbechargedagainsttheunemployed。\"（H。Gregoir:\"LesTypographesdevantleTribunalcorrectionneldeBruxelles，\"Brusseles，1865，p。9。）
[13]\"RemarksontheCommercialPolicyofGreatBritain，\"London，1815。
[14]\"ADefenseoftheLandownersandFarmersofGreatBritain，\"1814，pp。4，5。
[15]Malthus，\"InquiryintotheNatureandProgressofRent，\"Lond。，1815。
[16]\"Thosewhoarepaidbypiece—work……constituteprobablyfour—fifthsoftheworkersinthefactories。\"\"ReportofInsp。ofFact。，\"30thApril，1858。
[17]\"Theproductivepowerofhisspinning—machineisaccuratelymeasured，andtherateofpayforworkdonewithitdecreaseswith，thoughnotas，theincreaseofitsproductivepower。\"（Ure，l。c。，p。317。）ThislastapologeticphraseUrehimselfagaincancels。Thelengtheningofthemulecausessomeincreaseoflabour，headmits。Thelabourdoesthereforenotdiminishinthesameratioasitsproductivityincreases。Further:\"Bythisincreasetheproductivepowerofthemachinewillbeaugmentedone—fifth。Whenthiseventhappensthespinnerwillnotbepaidatthesamerateforworkdoneashewasbefore，butasthatratewillnotbediminishedintheratioofone—fifth，theimprovementwillaugmenthismoneyearningsforanygivennumberofhours’work，\"but\"theforegoingstatementrequiresacertainmodification……Thespinnerhastopaysomethingadditionalforjuvenileaidoutofhisadditionalsixpence，accompaniedbydisplacingaportionofadults\"（l。c。，p。321），whichhasinnowayatendencytoraisewages。
[18]H。Fawcett:\"TheEconomicPositionoftheBritishlabourer。\"CambridgeandLondon，1865，p。178。
[19]Inthe\"LondonStandard\"ofOctober26，1861，thereisareportofproceedingsofthefirmofJohnBright&Co。，beforetheRochdalemagistrates\"toprosecuteforintimidationtheagentsoftheCarpetWeaversTrades’Union。
Bright’spartnershadintroducednewmachinerywhichwouldturnout240
yardsofcarpetinthetimeandwiththelabour（！）previouslyrequiredtoproduce160yards。Theworkmenhadnoclaimwhatevertoshareintheprofitsmadebytheinvestmentoftheiremployer’scapitalinmechanicalimprovements。Accordingly，Messrs。Brightproposedtolowertherateofpayfrom11/2d。peryardto1d。，leavingtheearningsofthemenexactlythesameasbeforeforthesamelabour。Buttherewasanominalreduction，ofwhichtheoperatives，itisasserted，hadnotfairwarningbeforehand。\"
[20]\"Trades’Unions，intheirdesiretomaintainwages，endeavortoshareinthebenefitsofimprovedmachinery。\"（Quellehorreur！）\"……thedemandinghigherwages，becauselabourisabbreviated，isinotherwordstheendeavortoestablishadutyonmechanicalimprovements。\"（\"OnCombinationofTrades，\"
newed。，London，1834，p。42。）
ChapterTwenty—TwoKarlMarxCapitalVolumeOnePartVI:
WagesCHAPTERTWENTY—TWO:
NATIONALDIFFERENCESOFWAGES
Inthe17thchapterwewereoccupiedwiththemanifoldcombinationswhichmaybringaboutachangeinmagnitudeofthevalueoflabour—power？thismagnitudebeingconsideredeitherabsolutelyorrelatively，i。e。，ascomparedwithsurplus—value;whilstontheotherhand，thequantumofthemeansofsubsistenceinwhichthepriceoflabourisrealizedmightagainundergofluctuationsindependentof，ordifferentfrom，thechangesofthisprice;[1]Ashasbeenalreadysaid，thesimpletranslationofthevalue，orrespectivelyoftheprice，oflabour—powerintotheexotericformofwagestransformsalltheselawsintolawsofthefluctuationsofwages。Thatwhichappearsinthesefluctuationsofwageswithinasinglecountryasaseriesofvaryingcombinations，mayappearindifferentcountriesascontemporaneousdifferenceofnationalwages。Inthecomparisonofthewagesindifferentnations，wemustthereforetakeintoaccountallthefactorsthatdeterminechangesintheamountofthevalueoflabour—power;thepriceandtheextentoftheprimenecessariesoflifeasnaturallyandhistoricallydeveloped，thecostoftrainingthelabourers，thepartplayedbythelabourofwomenandchildren，theproductivenessoflabour，itsextensiveandintensivemagnitude。Eventhemostsuperficialcomparisonrequiresthereductionfirstoftheaverageday—wageforthesametrades，indifferentcountries，toauniformworking—day。Afterthisreductiontothesametermsoftheday—wages，time—wagemustagainbetranslatedintopiece—wage，asthelatteronlycanbeameasurebothoftheproductivityandtheintensityoflabour。