histofthought1

412 Economic thought before Adam SmithThus, too, he strikes at the root of many of the prevailing theories of value, whichare based upon labour; he says that people pay for things because they value them,and they do not value them because they pay for them, as is commonly supposed.This is exactly the doctrine of Dr. [Archbishop Richard] Whately, when he saysthat people dive for pearls because they fetch a high price, and they do not fetch ahigh price because people dive for them...that it is not labour that is the cause ofvalue, but value that attracts labour.Macleod concludes his discussion with a rhetorical flourish. Noting thatCondillac and Smith's classic works were published in the same year, hecontrasted Smith's 'universal celebrity' with Condillac's neglect, but thennotes that the world is rediscovering Condillac and learning of the superiorityof his conception of economics to that of Smith. And, besides, Macleodwrote not without justification, 'the beautiful clearness, and simplicity' ofCondillac contrasts notably with 'the incredible confusions and contradictionsofAdam Smith'. However, 'at length he will receive justice...' .19 If wecontrast, however, the hypertrophy of Smith's bicentennial celebration withthe non-existence of Condillac's, we might not be so quick to conclude thathistory has yet judged correctly.14.9 Notes1. The 'Elegy' was prepared by Turgot in a few days as material for Gournay's officialeulogist, the writer Jean Fran~ois Marmontel. Marrnontel simply took extracts from Turgor'sessay and published them as the official eulogy.2. In the course of arguing for free trade in iron in this letter, Turgot anticipated the great'Ricardian' doctrine of comparative advantage, in which each region concentrates onproducing that commodity it can make efficiently relative to other regions.3. Although the incomplete article remained unpublished for decades, it was written for anaborted dictionary of commerce to be edited by Turgot's lifelong friend and fellowGournay disciple, the Abbe Andre Morellet (1727-1819). Morellet published a prospectusfor the new dictionary in the same year, a prospectus that repeated Turgot's model ofisolated exchange very closely. It is known, furthermore, that this prospectus was ownedby Adam Smith.4. The 'Reflections' (1766), remarkably, were 'scribbled' hastily in order to explain to twoChinese students in Paris questions Turgot was preparing to ask them about the Chineseeconomy. Rarely has a work so important arisen from so trivial a cause!5. In an illuminating recent work on the history of the theory of the entrepreneur, ProfessorsHebert and Link examine the problem of whether an entrepreneur is only a capitalist orwhether everyone, including workers without capital, is an entrepreneur. Turgot is consideredas retreating from Cantillon's wider concept of entrepreneurship. But the importantpoint here is that the capitalist-entrepreneur is the motor force of the market economy,and that by focusing for the first time on this vitally important figure, Turgot made anenormous stride forward. And we can hail this achievement even if it is also true thatTurgot neglected the wider, less important areas of entrepreneurship. See Robert F. Hebertand Albert N. Link, The Entrepreneur: Mainstream Views and Radical Critiques (NewYork: Praeger, 1982), pp. 14-29 and passim.6. Bert F. Hoselitz, 'The Early History of Entrepreneurial Theory', in J. Spengler and W.Allen (eds), Essays in Economic Thought (Chicago: Rand McNally and Co., 1960),p.257.