Today is the bicentennial of the birth of Richard Cobden, founder of The Economist, a founder of the Anti-Corn Law League, and partner in this League with John Bright in successfully campaigning for Britain’s great move toward free trade in 1846. (It wasn’t a completely successful campaign, however. See Nye.) Cobden was one of history’s greatest advocates of free trade – hence, he was one of history’s greatest advocates of civilization.
Happy birthday, Mr. Cobden.
I thank John Blundell for alerting me to this nice remembrance of Cobden, by Peter Clarke, in The Scotsman.
