82. THE PROBLEM PRIOR TO THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION.--The distribution
of industrial income has to do with dividing the products of industry,
or the money which represents those products, among the various
individuals who have aided in their creation.

The problem of distribution has existed ever since men first combined
for purposes of production, but until the period of the Industrial
Revolution the question was relatively unimportant. When, three
hundred years ago, most necessities were produced within the family
circle, there was little or no question as to whether or not
individuals outside the family ought to be rewarded for having helped
in the production of those commodities. If one member of the family
made an entire pair of shoes, for example, he was clearly entitled to
those shoes, at least so far as economic principles are concerned.
Even where different members of the family combined to produce a pair
of shoes or an article of clothing, the small number of persons
involved, as well as the close identity of interests among the family
members, kept the problem of distribution from becoming a serious one.

83. EFFECT OF THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION UPON THE PROBLEM.--The
Industrial Revolution greatly increased the importance of the problem
of distribution. Indeed, the growth of the factory system, and the
greater and greater complexity of the division of labor, have made the
distribution of industrial income the basic problem in our economic
and social life. Many commodities are still produced by individuals
working independently, or by the joint efforts of the members of a
family, but the vast majority of commodities are now produced by the
joint efforts of numerous individuals who are not bound together by
family ties. The production of a factory-made shoe, for example,