The Economist’s Original Prospectus From Its Founding

And now we beg to submit the following detail of the plans which we have thoroughly organised to carry into effect these objects of our ardent desires, in the following

PROSPECTUS

of a weekly paper, to be published every Saturday, and to be called

THE ECONOMIST,

which will contain—

First.—ORIGINAL LEADING ARTICLES, in which free-trade principles will be most rigidly applied to all the important questions of the day—political events—and parliamentary discussions; and particularly to all such as relate immediately to revenue, commerce, and agriculture; or otherwise affect the material interests of the country.

Second.—Articles relating more especially to some practical, commercial, agricultural, or foreign topic of passing interest; of the state of the revenue, foreign treaties, &c.

Third.—An article on the elementary principles of political economy, applied in a familiar and popular manner to practical experience; especially in relation to the laws of price—wages—rent—exchange—revenue—taxes—and the relation between producers and consumers abroad and at home; proved and illustrated by the experience of this and other countries.

Fourth.—PARLIAMENTARY REPORTS: Giving at greater length all discussions peculiarly interesting to commerce and agriculture, and especially involving the principles of Free Trade.

Fifth.—POPULAR MOVEMENTS: A report and account of all popular movements throughout the country in favour of Free Trade.

Sixth.—GENERAL NEWS: A summary of all the news of the week,—the Court—the Metropolis—the Provinces; Scotland and Ireland.

Seventh.—COMMERCIAL: Under this head a careful and elaborate account will be given of the trade of the week; with special notices of changes in fiscal regulations; state and prospects of the markets, especially indicating the progress of stocks and consumption; of imports and exports; latest Foreign News, likely to influence future supply; the state of the manufacturing districts; notices of important new mechanical improvements; shipping news; an account of the money market, and of the progress of railways and public companies.

Eighth.—AGRICULTURAL: Under this head we will give frequent articles on improvements in agriculture; on the application of geology and chemistry; on new and improved implements; and in every way, to the utmost of our power, assist that true and independent spirit which is everywhere rising among the best landlords and farmers, to rely on the only safe support agriculture can have—intelligence, ingenuity, and perseverance, instead of deceptive protection. We will give a general detail of incidents, state of crops, markets, prices, foreign markets and prices converted into English money; and we have made an arrangement to communicate, from time to time, in some detail, the plans pursued in Belgium, Switzerland, and other well-cultivated countries.

Ninth.—COLONIAL AND FOREIGN: In which we will furnish the earliest information respecting the trade, produce, political and fiscal changes, and other matter interesting; and, particularly, we will endeavour to expose the evils of restriction and protection, and the advantages of free intercourse and trade.

Tenth.—LAW REPORTS: These we will confine chiefly to such as are particularly important to commerce, manufactures, and agriculture.

Eleventh.—NOTICE OF BOOKS: Confined chiefly, but not so exclusively, to such as treat of the foregoing subjects; including all treatises on political economy, finance, or taxation.

Twelfth.—COMMERCIAL GAZETTE: Price currents and statistics of the week.

Thirteenth.—CORRESPONDENCE, INQUIRIES, &c.: Under this head we especially invite every one to apply for information on all the topics herein enumerated, which we do not furnish, or which is not given in such details as may be required. We have made an arrangement by which inquiries shall be replied to in the next number, if received by Thursday morning, on all subjects enumerated in this prospectus:—POLITICAL ECONOMY AND COMMERCE; FOREIGN COMMERCIAL REGULATIONS; TARIFFS, RATES OF DUTIES, AND PORT REGULATIONS; EXISTING COMMERCIAL TREATIES; POINTS OF COMMERCIAL LAW; GENERAL STATISTICS, connected with our trade for the last twenty years, or earlier, when they exist; AGRICULTURAL STATISTICS AND IMPROVEMENTS; and on other practical and economical subjects required.

EXTRA MONTHLY STATISTICAL AND PARLIAMENTARY PAPER NUMBER:—In each month we will publish an extra number, devoted exclusively to statistics, and the preservation of the statistical parts of documents laid before parliament; many of which, of great value, never at present reach the public eye, or at least in a very limited way. There can be no question that, whether we speak of the economist, the legislator, the merchant, or the trader, statistics must form the most important ground-work of the whole of his reasonings, opinions, and actions; they are, in short, the fundamental facts on which all his opinions and actions must be based to be true; it is difficult to estimate their importance. At the same time we must remark, that however powerful and useful they may be as an instrument, they cannot be used with safety without considerable knowledge of the peculiar subjects, and without the exercise of great discretion in drawing results. This we will endeavour to aid by explanatory notes and observations in the collection and arrangement. Our plan is,—to divide this monthly number into two parts, one for permanent statistics, in which we will commence and collect together in alphabetical order the statistics of our revenue and trade, including exports and imports, navigation, agriculture, and currency for the last twenty years:—the trade with our colonies, and of our colonies with each other, and with this country:—and various interesting statistical statements which we can get relating to the same subjects in foreign countries: the other part we will apply to the statistics of the day: the comparison of our trade, imports, exports, consumption, stocks, &c., of all the leading articles of commerce, between the current year and the corresponding period of the preceding year: and other matters useful and interesting to the material interests of the country.

And at the end of each year, we will furnish a title-page and general index to the whole paper, including the statistical numbers, so that the whole may form a useful volume of reference to the economist, the politician, the merchant, and manufacturer, the agriculturalist, and the general reader.

We have made such arrangements and under such superintendence, as will secure the accomplishment of all that we propose, in a way which we trust will render our objects and exertions useful to the country: we have no party or class interests or motives; we are of no class, or rather of every class: we are of the landowning class: we are of the commercial class interested in our colonies, in our foreign trade, and in our manufactures: but our opinions are that not one part of these can have any lasting and true success that is not associated and co-existing with the prosperity of all.

And lastly—if we required higher motives than bare utility, to induce that zeal, labour, and perseverance against all the difficulties which we shall have to encounter in this work—we have them. If we look abroad, we see within the range of our commercial intercourse whole islands and continents, on which the light of civilization has scarce yet dawned; and we seriously believe that FREE TRADE, free intercourse, will do more than any other visible agent to extend civilization and morality throughout the world—yes, to extinguish slavery itself. Then, if we look around us at home, we see ignorance, depravity, immorality, irreligion, abounding to an extent disgraceful to a civilized country; and we feel assured that there is little chance of successfully treating this great national disease while want and pauperism so much abound: we can little hope to improve the mental and moral condition of a people while their physical state is so deplorable:—personal experience has shown us in the manufacturing districts that the people want no acts of parliament to coerce education or induce moral improvement when they are in physical comfort—and that, when men are depressed with want and hunger, and agonized by the sufferings of helpless and starving children, no acts of parliament are of the slightest avail. We look far beyond the power of acts of parliament, or even of the efforts of the philanthropist or the charitable, however praiseworthy, to effect a cure for this great national leprosy; we look mainly to an improvement in the condition of the people. And we hope to see the day when it will be as difficult to understand how an act of parliament could have been made to restrict the food and employment of the people, as it is now to conceive how the mild, inoffensive spirit of Christianity could ever have been conceived into the plea of persecution and martyrdom, or how poor old wrinkled women, with a little eccentricity, were burned by our forefathers for witchcraft.