The volume begins by defining receipts, income, and produce, distinguishing between gross, net, and free income within an economic system. Roscher explores the statistical importance of national income, emphasizing that the increase of gross income is secondary to the growth of net and free income, which facilitates higher human enjoyment and societal progress. The argument then moves to the distribution of wealth, dividing net national income into rent, wages, and interest on capital. The second section provides an exhaustive analysis of the rent of land, building upon the classical theories of fertility and favorable situation.
Rent is established not as a monopoly tribute but as a differential surplus arising from the varying productivity of land and the natural limits placed upon agricultural improvement. The historical evolution of rent is traced from sparse civilizations to densely populated nations, highlighting the interplay between advancing civilization, agricultural techniques, and the general good. The third section addresses wages, analyzing the price of common labor through supply and demand, and establishing the cost of production of labor as the minimum wage threshold.
Roscher examines how the working class holds power over wages through the regulation of future labor supply and standard of living. Differences in wages across various branches of trade are attributed to rare personal acquirements, economic risk, and personal disagreeableness. The history of wages is traced from lower stages of civilization through flourishing epochs to declining eras, evaluating wage policies, fixed rates, and the dynamics of strikes. The final section investigates the interest on capital, defining its rate and distinguishing it from the price of money. The general laws governing interest are explored through the lens of productivity and abstinence, tracking the historical decline of interest rates alongside economic development and the international migration of capital.
