ABSTRACT
Is this waste of labour-power arising from chronic insufficiency or from irregularity of employment tending to increase? The question is often put and answered in the affirmative or negative with equal confidence. As we possess no just measure of present “unemployment,” and no measure at all of past “unemployment,” no direct evidence can decide the point. There are, however, some considerations derived from knowledge of the changes in the character of different industries and the proportion of those employed in these several industries, which will lead us to believe that the general condition of employment in England is one of greater irregularity, and that the waste of time and energy is larger than it was half a century ago or during the 18th century.
