| Witnesses |
| Karl Marx |
| Adam Smith |
| Sir Robert Peele |
| David Ricardo |
| Charles Dickens |
| Sarah Carpenter |
| Charles Darwin |
| George Hudson |
| Elizabeth Barrett Browning |
| David Rowland |
|
| Adam Smith |
|
Smith was an economic architect of capitalism's orderliness and
progress. He saw history as a succession of stages through which mankind traveled, moving
from early societies of hunters and gatherers to the final stage of a commercial society.
He published The Wealth of Nations in 1776, the year of the Declaration of Independence.
He argued that mercantilism was a terrible economic policy for England to pursue because
it left the mass of her citizens poor and wretched, a condition which undermined support
for the political community, its regime and authorities. Smith saw that the system of
"natural liberty" the market place, left to its own devices would grow, that the
wealth of such a nation would steadily increase. Smith, extolling the virtues of the
division of labor, argues that capitalism makes every sector of society happier and more
prosperous. In addition, free enterprise fosters social habits of justice, toleration,
moderation, and virtue, which are essential for governmental stability. According to
Smith, self-interest operating through the invisible hand of the market will work its
magic in the economic sphere. Because the market is its own regulator, Smith was opposed
to government intervention that would interfere with the workings of self-interest and
competition. He believed that the "invisible hand" of competition would regulate
the market place on its own and therefore was a strong proponent of laissez-faire
capitalism. Under this system the government would not regulate the market place, because
free competition would resolve any problems on its own. |
 |
To Trial Home |
 |
To Sir Robert Peele |
|
|
