An Essay Towards Regulating the Trade, and Employing the Poor of This Kingdom

Long before Adam Smith revolutionized economic thought, John Cary made a bold argument: a nation's wealth cannot be separated from the welfare of its poorest citizens. Written in the turbulent early 18th century, this treatise proposes nothing less than a complete restructuring of how England trades, employs, and cares for its people. Cary advocates for regulated commerce that serves national interests, practical workhouses that transform idle hands into productive labor, and a national credit system to stabilize public debt and fuel industrial growth. What makes this work remarkable is not merely its prescience, but its fundamental premise: that economic policy and social compassion are not opposing forces, but necessary partners. For anyone curious about where modern economic thinking began, or how early modern policymakers grappled with the same questions of trade, poverty, and national prosperity that dominate headlines today, Cary's essay offers a surprising window into the origins of the economic worldview that shaped the Western world.