Austrian Perspective on the History of Economic Thought Murray
N. Rothbard The appearance of the famous (and massive) volumes
of Rothbard's History of Economic Thought in a new edition is
cause for great celebration. They have been out of print for
many years, and were previously only available at a price
exceeding $200 for the set. They are at last accessible again,
in beautiful hardcover, and at an affordable price. In Economic
Thought Before Adam Smith, Murray Rothbard traces economic ideas
from ancient sources to show that laissez-faire liberalism and
economic thought itself began with the scholastics and early
Roman, Greek, and canon law. He celebrates Aristotle and
Democritus, for example, but loathes Plato and Diogenes. He is
kind toward Taoism and Stoicism. He is no fan of Tertullian but
very much likes St. Jerome, who defended the merchant class.
Now, that takes us only to page 33, just the beginning of a wild
ride through the middle ages and renaissance and modern times
through 1870. Classical Econo