ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses J.S. Mill's treatment of mining and considers the Mill's assessment of Henry Carey's argument for increasing return on the extensive margin in agriculture. Mill's discussion of return in mining is followed by a static analysis of the rent of mines which is unremarkable and which represents no advance from David Ricardo's earlier treatment. Although Mill makes no reference to Carey's treatment of mining, it is clear that his own suggestion of the possibility of increasing returns on the extensive margin in mining closely parallels Carey's treatment of both mining and agriculture. The chapter suggests that two different models of the nature of the mineral industries can be distilled from Mill's work. In the first, diminishing returns on the extensive margin prevail and user cost is likely to be relatively high; in the second, increasing returns are experienced on the extensive margin and user cost is likely to be relatively low or even zero.
