Whence it follows that the bad economist pursues a small present good that will be followed by a great evil to come, while the good economist pursues a great good to come, at the risk of a small present evil. The same thing, of course, is true of health and morals. When a man is impressed by the effect that is seen and has not yet learned-to discern the effects that are not seen, he indulges in deplorable habits, not only through natural inclination, but deliberately. This explains man's necessarily painful education. It is only after a long time that he learns to take account of the others.
Experience teaches efficaciously but brutally.
It instructs us in all the effects of an act by making us feel them, and we cannot fail to learn eventually, from having been burned ourselves, that fire burns. For that reason I shall investigate the consequences of several economic phenomena, contrasting those that are seen with those that are not seen. Such accidents keep industry going. Everybody has to make a living. Now, this formula of condolence contains a whole theory that it is a good idea for us to expose, flagrante delicto, in this very simple case, since it is exactly the same as that which, unfortunately, underlies most of our economic institutions.