Introduction
It is by labor that every nation obtains all the necessities and conveniences of life, of everything it consumes, whether it consumes the result of its own production or trades it for the product of other nations.
It would therefore seem that the wealth of a nation would be proportional to the number of citizens engaged in productive employment. But this is not so, and the present book is an inquiry into a number of reasons for the discrepancies between the wealth of nations.
The first book of this inquiry concerns itself with the productive powers of labor. In "savage" nations engaged in primitive trades, such as hunting and fishing, it can be observed that virtually every individual who is able to work is employed in useful labor. And still, such nations are miserably poor, and many perish for lack of the basic necessities of life. Meanwhile, in more "civilized" nations, there are a large number of individuals who are not engaged in productive activity, and even those who are so employed spend less time and less effort at these activities, yet enjoy far greater wealth. Even the lowest and poorest, if they are industrious and frugal, enjoy a greater share of the necessities and conveniences of life than it is possible for any savage to acquire.
The second book considers the nature of "apital stock and the way with which it is employed. (EN: The term "capital stock" is not defined at this time, but is generally understood to mean productive resources that include materials, equipment, land, and the like.) Whatever the manner in which labor is applied, the abundance of scarcity of goods depends on the number of those who are employed in labor, as compared to those who are not so employed. Employment depends not only on laborers, but also upon having the capital stock to support productive activity.
The third book considers the application of theories, which can be favorable or unfavorable to the productive output of a nation. Most nations seek to improve the state of their economy, but undertake different means of doing so. Some consider the welfare of the nation as a whole, others take a more regional focus; some seek to encourage manufacturing, others agriculture, other commerce. (EN: The author seems to be speaking in terms of culture, as government is addressed separately, in the next passage.)
The fourth book seeks to explore the various political attempts to foster the economy of a nation. The plans noted above are considered to be the result of "private interests." As government seeks to improve the general welfare of a society, it implements economic policies on various levels - from a single town to the entirety of a nation - and to implement their designs by means of force to compel men to act against their own better judgment, and their own interests, for the alleged greater good.
The fifth book considers the wealth of the government itself: the degree to which production is consumed by the state for its own purposes. At its best, government seeks to undertake actions for the benefit of the whole of society, and seeks to obtain the resources for such action from those who benefit from it. At its worst, government seeks to act for the benefit of some at the expense of others - or seeks to provide an immediate benefit by incurring a national debt, the balance of which will be borne by future generations.