78/ 975 [Economics]. Smith, A. An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations. Dublin, W. Porter for G. Burnet a.o., 1793, 5th ed., 2 vols., (III-)XIII,(1),498; VIII,489,(60)p., contemp. unif. calf w. 2 contrasting letterpieces.

- Vol. 1 lacks (as usual) htitle; frontcover and first 2 lvs. loose; partly sl. dogeared; both vols. first and final 2 lvs. (sl.) soiled/ dam. Bindings worn/ dam.

= First published 1776. Cf. Kress B2209; Goldsmiths 14612. PMM 221: "Where the political aspects of human rights had taken two centuries to explore, Smith's achievement was to bring the study of economic aspects to the same point in a single work. The Wealth of Nations is not a system, but as a provisional analysis it is completely convincing. The certainty of its criticism and its grasp of human nature have made it the first and greatest classic of modern economic thought."