226 ADAM SMITH. 



error, and regarding specie as alone constituting wealth, 

 further urged that the direct prohibition to export them 

 could scarce ever be effectual, on account of the small 

 bulk of the metals and their easy smuggling, the evil 

 of evading the law adding to the cost of getting the 

 metal ; but they represented the true policy to consist 

 in so regulating the balance of trade, as to make the 

 exports exceed the imports of goods generally, the 

 difference being of course paid in gold ancf silver. 

 These arguments prevailed generally, both with spec- 

 ulative men and with practical statesmen ; the home- 

 trade, by far the most important of all in every country, 

 was undervalued ; foreign commerce was regarded as 

 the great source of wealth ; and positive restraints were 

 imposed upon importation, while direct encouragements 

 were given to exportation. The restraints were of two 

 kinds, restraints upon foreign goods, which were or 

 could be manufactured at home, and this was a restraint 

 on trade in these particular commodities with all coun- 

 tries indiscriminately and restraints upon almost all 

 goods from countries with which the balance of trade 

 was supposed unfavourable. Encouragement to ex- 

 portation was given in four ways, by drawbacks of the 

 excise imports, or certain duties imposed ; by actual 

 bounties on exportation or on home manufactures, by 

 treatise of commerce to obtain commercial privileges 

 or favours, by planting colonies and monopolizing 

 their trade. These are the six grand resources of the 

 Mercantile System its great expedients for obtaining 

 an increase of the precious metals by making the coun- 

 try export much and import little. Accustomed as we 

 now are to the plain and obvious consideration, that 

 those metals, like all other merchandise, can only be 

 bought with other merchandise, that when this mer- 

 chandise exists, it will obtain the metals ; that unless 

 it exists none can by any means be procured ; that the 

 natural industry of the country can alone give it exist- 

 ence ; that this industry, if cramped by regulations, 



