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… is from page 630 of Book IV, Chapter vii [2] of the 1981 Liberty Fund edition [3] of Adam Smith’s 1776 masterpiece, An Inquiry Into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations [4]:
Monopoly of one kind or another, indeed, seems to be the sole engine of the mercantile system.
DBx: Yes, without doubt. To oppose free trade is to oppose competition and the economic growth that it brings to the masses. To support protectionism – to support mercantilism, or what Smith called “the mercantile system” – is to support monopoly and the unearned riches that it captures for the few.