2015 Reprint of 1953 Edition. Full facsimile of the original edition, not reproduced with Optical Recognition Software. Von Mises edited the Smith's magnum opus to make it both more accessible and clearer for the modern reader. The ideas that found their expression in "The Wealth of Nations" demolished the traditional philosophy of mercantilism and opened the way for capitalist mass production and modern institutional democracy. Von Mises himself was a staunch defender of the capitalist free enterprise system and saw Smith as its founding father. A thoughtful and useful abridgement of an otherwise unwieldy classic.