ABSTRACT
The government which, by oppression of its subjects, by its contempt for justice and order, by the shackles it puts on agriculture and industry, condemns fertile countries to be deserts, sins not against its own subjects alone; its tyranny is a crime against human society, on the whole of which it inflicts suffering; and it weakens its rights over the country occupied by it, and as its troubles the enjoyment of all other states. The French term used is “renchérissant” for ‘prohibiting’. The sense is slightly altered; the proper word would have been ‘make prohibitive’. While the beginning of the sentence echoes Adam Smith, its end is more in keeping with cameralistic philosophy. Sismondi reflects his familiarity with French etatisme, even though he condemned the total control over economic activity practiced by Colbert.
