§1.1257aἣν ὡς μίαν καὶ τὴν αὐτὴν τῇ λεχθείσῃ πολλοὶ νομίζουσι διὰ τὴν γειτνίασιν· ἔστι δʼ οὔτε ἡ αὐτὴ τῇ εἰρημένῃ οὔτε πόρρω ἐκείνης.
people believe this art of finance to be one and the same as the one previously mentioned, because of their proximity; but it is neither the same as the one spoken of, nor far from it.
ἔστι δʼ ἡ μὲν φύσει ἡ δʼ οὐ φύσει αὐτῶν, ἀλλὰ διʼ ἐμπειρίας τινὸς καὶ τέχνης γίνεται μᾶλλον.
One of them is by nature, and the other is not by nature, but rather arises through a certain experience and art.
λάβωμεν δὲ περὶ αὐτῆς τὴν ἀρχὴν ἐντεῦθεν.
Let us take our starting point concerning it from here.
ἑκάστου γὰρ κτήματος διττὴ ἡ χρῆσίς ἐστιν, ἀμφότεραι δὲ καθʼ αὑτὸ μὲν ἀλλʼ οὐχ ὁμοίως καθʼ αὑτό, ἀλλʼ ἡ μὲν οἰκεία ἡ δʼ οὐκ οἰκεία τοῦ πράγματος, οἷον ὑποδήματος ἥ τε ὑπόδεσις καὶ ἡ μεταβλητική.
For of every possession there is a double use, and both of these belong to the thing itself, but not in the same way, for one is proper and the other is not proper to the thing; as for instance, of a shoe, both wearing it and exchanging it.
ἀμφότεραι γὰρ ὑποδήματος χρήσεις· καὶ γὰρ ὁ ἀλλαττόμενος τῷ δεομένῳ ὑποδήματος ἀντὶ νομίσματος ἢ τροφῆς χρῆται τῷ ὑποδήματι ᾗ ὑπόδημα, ἀλλʼ οὐ τὴν οἰκείαν χρῆσιν· οὐ γὰρ ἀλλαγῆς ἕνεκεν γέγονε.
For both are uses of a shoe; for even he who exchanges a shoe with someone who needs it, in return for money or food, uses the shoe as a shoe, but not for its proper use, since it was not made for the sake of exchange.
τὸν αὐτὸν δὲ τρόπον ἔχει καὶ περὶ τῶν ἄλλων κτημάτων.
And it is the same way with other possessions too.
ἔστι γὰρ ἡ μεταβλητικὴ πάντων, ἀρξαμένη τὸ μὲν πρῶτον ἐκ τοῦ κατὰ φύσιν, τῷ τὰ μὲν πλείω τὰ δὲ ἐλάττω τῶν ἱκανῶν ἔχειν τοὺς ἀνθρώπους (ᾗ καὶ δῆλον ὅτι οὐκ ἔστι φύσει τῆς χρηματιστικῆς ἡ καπηλική· ὅσον γὰρ ἱκανὸν αὐτοῖς, ἀναγκαῖον ἦν ποιεῖσθαι τὴν ἀλλαγήν).
For the art of exchange belongs to all things, having begun in the first place from what is according to nature, due to the fact that human beings have some things in greater quantity and others in less than what is sufficient (from which it is also clear that retail trade is not by nature a part of the art of finance; for it was necessary to make the exchange only up to what was sufficient for them).
ἐν μὲν οὖν τῇ πρώτῃ κοινωνίᾳ (τοῦτο δʼ ἐστὶν οἰκία) φανερὸν ὅτι οὐδὲν ἔστιν ἔργον αὐτῆς, ἀλλʼ ἤδη πλειόνων τῆς κοινωνίας οὔσης.
In the first community, then, which is the household, it is obvious that it has no function, but only when the community has already become larger.
οἱ μὲν γὰρ τῶν αὑτῶν ἐκοινώνουν πάντων, οἱ δὲ κεχωρισμένοι πολλῶν πάλιν καὶ ἑτέρων, ὧν κατὰ τὰς δεήσεις ἀναγκαῖον ποιεῖσθαι τὰς μεταδόσεις, καθάπερ ἔτι πολλὰ ποιεῖ καὶ τῶν βαρβαρικῶν ἐθνῶν, κατὰ τὴν ἀλλαγήν.
For the former shared all the same things, while the latter, being separated, in turn shared many different things, of which it was necessary to make shares according to their needs, just as many barbarian nations still do, by way of exchange.
αὐτὰ γὰρ τὰ χρήσιμα πρὸς αὑτὰ καταλλάττονται, ἐπὶ πλέον δʼ οὐθέν, οἷον οἶνον πρὸς σῖτον διδόντες καὶ λαμβάνοντες, καὶ τῶν ἄλλων τῶν τοιούτων ἕκαστον.
For they exchange useful things themselves for other useful things, and nothing more, as for instance giving and receiving wine for wheat, and each of the other such things.
ἡ μὲν οὖν τοιαύτη μεταβλητικὴ οὔτε παρὰ φύσιν οὔτε χρηματιστικῆς ἐστιν εἶδος οὐδέν (εἰς ἀναπλήρωσιν γὰρ τῆς κατὰ φύσιν αὐταρκείας ἦν)· ἐκ μέντοι ταύτης ἐγένετʼ ἐκείνη κατὰ λόγον.
This kind of exchange, then, is neither contrary to nature nor is it any species of the art of finance (for it was for the satisfaction of natural self-sufficiency); however, the latter arose from the former in accordance with reason.
ξενικωτέρας γὰρ γενομένης τῆς βοηθείας τῷ εἰσάγεσθαι ὧν ἐνδεεῖς ἦσαν καὶ ἐκπέμπειν ὧν ἐπλεόναζον, ἐξ ἀνάγκης ἡ τοῦ νομίσματος ἐπορίσθη χρῆσις.
For as assistance became more foreign by importing what they were in need of and exporting what they had in excess, the use of money was of necessity devised.
οὐ γὰρ εὐβάστακτον ἕκαστον τῶν κατὰ φύσιν ἀναγκαίων· διὸ πρὸς τὰς ἀλλαγὰς τοιοῦτόν τι συνέθεντο πρὸς σφᾶς αὐτοὺς διδόναι καὶ λαμβάνειν, ὃ τῶν χρησίμων αὐτὸ ὂν εἶχε τὴν χρείαν εὐμεταχείριστον πρὸς τὸ ζῆν, οἷον σίδηρος καὶ ἄργυρος κἂν εἴ τι τοιοῦτον ἕτερον, τὸ μὲν πρῶτον ἁπλῶς ὁρισθὲν μεγέθει καὶ σταθμῷ, τὸ δὲ τελευταῖον καὶ χαρακτῆρα ἐπιβαλλόντων, ἵνα ἀπολύσῃ τῆς μετρήσεως αὑτούς· ὁ γὰρ χαρακτὴρ ἐτέθη τοῦ ποσοῦ σημεῖον.
For each of the naturally necessary things is not easily portable; wherefore, for the purpose of exchanges, they agreed with one another to give and receive something of such a kind which, being itself of the useful things, had a utility easily manageable for life, such as iron and silver or any other such thing, which at first was determined simply by size and weight, but at last they also put a stamp on it, so that they might free themselves from measuring; for the stamp was placed as a sign of quantity.