Papers I am working on:

1. A revised version of my "An Introduction to the Theory and History of the Classical Liberal Tradition".

Additions to the Library:

• updated: The Institut Coppet in Paris is in the process of publishing the Oeuvres complètes (Complete Works) of Gustave de Molinari (1819-1912) [brief bio and full bibliography]. They began this enormous task in 2019 (the 200th anniversary of the brith of Molinari) with a volume which covers his first foray into the world of journalism in Paris in 1842 (vol. 1: Avant la conversion (1842-1845)) and have recently published vol. 19: Nationalités et Sécession (1861-1862). In preparing his work for publication they (i.e. the editor Benoît Malbranque) have uncovered a huge number of his hard to find journalism, letters, asnd notes for public talks and lectures. Unfortunately, Coppet does not provide the volumes in HTML but the PDFs are available for download from their website. Nor do they provide a full table of contents. So I have created one myself here. There are 103 "items" according to their cataloguing system.
• new: the follow up set of "conversations" to Gustave de Molinari's Les Soirées de la rue Saint-Lazare (1849) between another group of political and ideological rivals. Then it was between "a conservative", "a socialist", and "an economist". In Conversations familières sur le commerce des grains (1855) it is between "a food rioter," "a trade protectionist," and "an economiste" (i.e. a free trader) on the issue of the grain trade. In facs. PDF and enhanced HTML; eBook HTML, PDF, and ePub (to come).
• new: François Quesnay (1694-1774), "Observations sur le droit naturel des hommes réunis en société" (Observations on the natural rights of human beings when they are part of society), Journal de l'agriculture, du commerce & des finances, tome II, Première Partie, septembre 1765, p. 4-35. In facs. PDF and enhanced HTML; eBook HTML, PDF, and ePub [to come]
• new: Gerrard Winstanley called himself a "Digger" or "True Leveller" because he advocated the right of ordinary people to "dig up" or farm common land, especially in times of economic hardship. His work is a darling of the Left because he experimented with communal living and the abolition of private property. The question is whether he was in fact making unowned land his own by "mixing his labour" with it in a Lockean way. See his The Law of Freedom in a Platform (1652) in enhanced HTML and facs. PDF. This is part of the Leveller Tracts Project. which now has 331 items listed, of which 153 are available online.
• new: Marchmont Nedham (1620-1678), The Excellencie of a Free-State: or, The right constitution of a Common-wealth (1656): facs. PDF and enhanced HTML; eBook HTML, PDF, ePub [to come]
  • see also the 1767 Hollis edition of this work in facs. PDF. It was one of the key texts in the Commonwealthman tradition.

Papers I am working on:

1. A talk to a meeting of the University of the Third Age, Newport, Sydney (5 Feb. 2025): "Donald Trump: Friend, Foe, or Schmo?" Lecture overheads [PDF] and Lecture notes and images/graphs [HTML]
2. A revised version of my "An Introduction to the Theory and History of the Classical Liberal Tradition"

Additions to the Library:

• updated: my version of the table of contents of the Encyclopedia of Libertarianism (Cato, 2008) organised thematically and as a sortable table, with links to the articles on their webisite libertarianism.org
• updated: three tracts by the pro-Leveller author John Warr (1642–1686) about whom very little is known. other than he was a passionate and elegant writer who was a great advocate for liberty:
  • Administrations Civil and Spiritual in Two Treatises. The First Entitled The Dispute betwixt Equity and Form. The Other The Dispute betwixt Form and Power (1648) in enhanced HTML; eBook HTML, PDF, and ePub [to come]
  • The Priviledges of the People, or Principles of Common Right and Freedome (5 February, 1649) in enhanced HTML; eBook HTML, PDF, and ePub [to come]
  • The Corruption and Deficiency of the Lawes of England (11 June, 1649) in enhanced HTML; eBook HTML, PDF, and ePub [to come]
• new: I have combined these three tracts into one file called "The Sparks of Freedom in the Minds of Men": Three Tracts by John Warr (1648-1649) in enhanced HTML; eBook HTML, PDF, and ePub [to come]
• see this example of his prose:

  In this designe God co-operates with Man and makes him instrumentall in the work, by clearing his principles, and stirring up his spirit. There are some sparkes of Freedome in the mindes of most, which ordinarily lye deep, and are covered in the Darke, as a spark in the ashes. This spark is the image of Go* in the mind, which is indeed the Man, (for the divine Image makes the Man.) This Man is hid in most persons, onely the Tyrant, the Beast, or the slavish principle appeares, and the whole bulk is hurried about by the motion of that principle, and the Man within us swimmes with the stream.