经济学人:公司理论:科斯集结令(4)

 　　Spot markets cover most transactions. 现货市场涵盖了大多数交易。

　　Once money is exchanged for goods, the deal is completed. 一旦货币被换成商品，交易即告完成。

　　The transaction is simple: one party wants, another supplies. 这种交易简单明了：一方需要，另一方供给。

　　There is little scope for dispute, so a written contract can be dispensed¹ with. 争议的余地很小，因而，成文合约可能被省去。

　　If one party is unhappy, he will take his business elsewhere next time. 如果一方不满意，他下次就会把业务带往他处。

　　Spot markets are thus largely self-policing. 因而，现货市场在很大程度上是自我管理。

　　They are well suited to simple, low-value transactions, such as buying a newspaper or taking a taxi. 它们非常适合买报纸和打的等简单和低价值的交易。

　　Things become trickier² when the parties are locked into a deal that is costly³ to get out of. 当参与者陷入放弃成本高昂的交易中时，事情就变得棘手了。

　　Take a property lease, for instance. 以房屋租赁为例。

　　A business that is evicted⁴ from its premises⁵ might not quickly find a building with similar features. 一家从其经营场所中被赶出来的公司不可能很快找到一处特点类似的建筑。

　　Equally, if a tenant⁶ suddenly quit, the landlord might not find a replacement⁷ straight away. 同样，如果租户突然退出，房主也不可能立即找到代替者。

　　Each could threaten the other in a bid for a better rent. 每一方都可能以更好的租金要挟对方。

　　The answer is a long-term contract that specifies⁸ the rent, the tenure⁹ and use of the property. 答案是一份标注出租金、租期和产权使用的长期合约。

　　Both parties benefit. 两方双双获益。

　　But for many business arrangements, it is difficult to set down all that is required of each party in all circumstances. 但是，对于许多商业安排而言，敲定为每一方在任何情况下所要求的一切就难了。

　　In such cases, formal contracts are by necessity “incomplete” and sustained largely by trust. 在这类例子中，正式合约势必是“不完整的”，而且主要是靠信任来维持。

　　An employment contract is of this type. 雇佣合同即是这种类型。

　　It has a few formal terms: job title, work hours, initial pay and so on, but many of the most important duties and obligations are not written down. 它有很多正式条目：工作职位、工作时间、初始工资等等。但是，最重要的责任和义务大都没有被写入。

　　It is thus like a “mini-society with a vast array of norms beyond those centred on the exchange and its immediate¹⁰ processes”, wrote Mr Williamson. 因而，它就像一个“规范繁多的微型社会”。

　　Such a contract stays in force mostly because its breakdown¹¹ would hurt both parties. 这类合约之所以有效，主要是因为违约会对双方造成伤害。

　　And because market forces are softened¹² in such a contract, it calls for an alternative form of governance: the firm. 而且，由于市场力量在这类合约中被软化了，它呼唤一种替代性的管理形式：公司。

　　One of the first papers to elucidate¹³ these ideas was published in 1972 by Armen Alchian and Harold Demsetz. 最早阐述这些观点的论文中的一篇是由阿门·阿尔奇安(Armen Alchian 又译艾智仁)和哈罗德·德姆塞茨(Harold Demsetz)在1972年发表的。

　　They defined the firm as the central contractor¹⁴ in a team-production process. 他们将公司定义为团队生产过程中的中心签约者。

1 dispensed   

v.分配( dispense的过去式和过去分词 )；施与；配（药）

参考例句：

• Not a single one of these conditions can be dispensed with. 这些条件缺一不可。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• They dispensed new clothes to the children in the orphanage. 他们把新衣服发给孤儿院的小孩们。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

2 trickier   

adj.狡猾的( tricky的比较级 )；（形势、工作等）复杂的；机警的；微妙的

参考例句：

• This is the general rule, but some cases are trickier than others. 以上是一般规则，但某些案例会比别的案例更为棘手。 来自互联网
• The lower the numbers go, the trickier the problems get. 武器的数量越低，问题就越复杂。 来自互联网

3 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

4 evicted   

v.（依法从房屋里或土地上）驱逐，赶出( evict的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• A number of tenants have been evicted for not paying the rent. 许多房客因不付房租被赶了出来。
• They had evicted their tenants for non-payment of rent. 他们赶走了未交房租的房客。

5 premises   

n.建筑物，房屋

参考例句：

• According to the rules,no alcohol can be consumed on the premises.按照规定，场内不准饮酒。
• All repairs are done on the premises and not put out.全部修缮都在家里进行，不用送到外面去做。

6 tenant   

n.承租人；房客；佃户；v.租借，租用

参考例句：

• The tenant was dispossessed for not paying his rent.那名房客因未付房租而被赶走。
• The tenant is responsible for all repairs to the building.租户负责对房屋的所有修理。

7 replacement   

n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品

参考例句：

• We are hard put to find a replacement for our assistant.我们很难找到一个人来代替我们的助手。
• They put all the students through the replacement examination.他们让所有的学生参加分班考试。

8 specifies   

v.指定( specify的第三人称单数 )；详述；提出…的条件；使具有特性

参考例句：

• The third clause of the contract specifies steel sashes for the windows. 合同的第三款指定使用钢窗。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The contract specifies red tiles, not slates, for the roof. 合同规定屋顶用红瓦，并非石板瓦。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

9 tenure   

n.终身职位；任期；(土地)保有权，保有期

参考例句：

• He remained popular throughout his tenure of the office of mayor.他在担任市长的整个任期内都深得民心。
• Land tenure is a leading political issue in many parts of the world.土地的保有权在世界很多地区是主要的政治问题。

10 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

11 breakdown   

n.垮，衰竭；损坏，故障，倒塌

参考例句：

• She suffered a nervous breakdown.她患神经衰弱。
• The plane had a breakdown in the air,but it was fortunately removed by the ace pilot.飞机在空中发生了故障，但幸运的是被王牌驾驶员排除了。

12 softened   

（使）变软( soften的过去式和过去分词 )； 缓解打击； 缓和； 安慰

参考例句：

• His smile softened slightly. 他的微笑稍柔和了些。
• The ice cream softened and began to melt. 冰淇淋开始变软并开始融化。

13 elucidate   

v.阐明，说明

参考例句：

• The note help to elucidate the most difficult parts of the text.这些注释有助于弄清文中最难懂的部分。
• This guide will elucidate these differences and how to exploit them.这篇指导将会阐述这些不同点以及如何正确利用它们。

14 contractor   

n.订约人，承包人，收缩肌

参考例句：

• The Tokyo contractor was asked to kick $ 6000 back as commission.那个东京的承包商被要求退还6000美元作为佣金。
• The style of house the contractor builds depends partly on the lay of the land.承包商所建房屋的式样，有几分要看地势而定。