SMITH, Adam.

Inquire · Offered by Peter Harrington

An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations. Second Edinburgh edition of the "first and greatest classic of modern economic thought" (PMM). This edition includes a 66-page Life of Smith and two essays by Germain Garnier (1754-1821) comparing Smithian economics with the contemporary approach of the French school.The British copyright for the Wealth of Nations expired in 1804. The following year, William Playfair (1759-1823) brought out in London an edition universally derided for its editorial liberties and for exorcising any suggestion of Smithian radicalism in the aftermath of the French Revolution. The first Edinburgh edition criticized Playfair extensively, but by 1809 the debate had moved on and these criticisms have been themselves been exorcised here.Following the first publication of the Wealth of Nations in 1776, Smith moved to Edinburgh to take up a post as commissioner of customs. He remained in the city until his death in 1790. Scotland informed much of his analysis in the Wealth of Nations, which was written in Kirkcaldy, 11 miles north of the capital. For Donald Winch, Smith was "a North Briton who regarded Scotland not merely as his home but as the best place from which to observe the affairs of the capital with the minimum of involvement in party politics" (ODNB).

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