The Freeman 1972 - The Ludwig von Mises Institute

600 THE FREEMAN Octoberwhile the war was not continuousduring this period, it was alwaystoo close for comfort. Furthermore,it was a global conflict, (Wesometimes forget that our ownWar of 1812 was just an extensionof the one in Europe.) Needless tosay, a war of this ferocity andduration impoverished the participantsgreatly, and the postwar depressionwas very severe. Nor isit necessary to point out that freedomwas severely curtailed duringthis quarter-century of conflict, inspite of the early French slogan,"Liberty, Equality and Fraternity."Both the English and Napoleonwhose Empire included most ofWestern Europe - and even Russiawith the Czar's cooperation fora time - blockaded each other'scoastline, although much of it wasa "paper blockade," particularlyfor the French who lost control ofthe seas after Lord Nelson's victoryat Cape Trafalgar in 1805.The United States, a young nationheavily dependent on foreigntrade, found herself in a mostawkward position with both sidespreying on her commerce.With Napoleon his ContinentalSystem, as he called it, was a "CoprosperitySphere," a managed"European Market" with Englandexcluded, not unlike Clay's "AmericanSystem" for the United Statesa couple decades later. While theseblockades can be passed off as warmeasures, Napoleon's commitmentto his brand of mercantilism seemsto be more than mere expediency.After all, an important reason forhis costly expedition into Spainwas to put down opposition to hisContinental System and even hisdisastrous invasion of Russia wascertainly in part to compel theCzar to continue to adhere to hisprotectionist policies. As an Englishwriter 7 of the last centurytells us, "It is well known thatNapoleon Bonaparte... entertaineda rooted antipathy to politicaleconomy. It was a saying ofhis that 'if an empire were madeof adamant, the economists couldgrind it to powder.' "In the meantime, the Englishwere not doing much better. Gettingone's daily bread had alwaysbeen a great problem for ordinaryworking people. In 1770 a bushelof wheat cost an English laborerabout five days' pay, but the warwith Napoleon and bad harvestsdrove the price to the equivalentof nearly two weeks' wages in1813. With famine upon themParliament 8 met and - you won'tbelieve it - they increased the importduty on grain even more. Theargument of the landed aristocratswho then ran England was thatthis increase would stimulate domesticproduction. Evidently, theEnglish ruling class was as far