An Essay on the External Corn Trade: With an Appendix on the Means of Improving the Condition of the Labouring Classes

An Essay On The External Corn Trade: With An Appendix On The Means Of Improving The Condition Of The Labouring Classes by Robert Torrens. This work surveys the general principles of corn trading, comparing internal and external commerce, and arguing for free trade in corn with a gradual, prudent transition away from protectionist measures. Torrens explains how an unfettered external trade would stabilize subsistence across countries and seasons, reduce famines, encourage private stores, and promote wealth and production by aligning capital with the most productive uses. The text analyzes how the corn trade influences the value of commodities, wages, profits, and rent, and critiques early 19th-century economists, including Ricardian and Malthusian ideas, praising gradual reform and the use of graduated duties and export bounties to ease the transition. The Appendix extends the discussion to improving the condition of the labouring classes, addressing wages, currency, usury laws, banking, and social measures. Overall, Torrens advocates a free external corn trade as essential to national prosperity, while recognizing the need for measured steps to prevent economic shocks during reform.