1

Excess Postage

By Sir Rowland Hill

Rowland Hill calculated that a lower, flatter rate of postage would not only make the public better off and better read, but increase the Revenue.

2

Question More

By NL Clay

Ordinary people put too much faith in the judgment of experts, which is bad for us and bad for the experts.

3

The Rochdale Pioneers

By Isa Nicholson

In 1843, a group of working men gathered in Rochdale to discuss how to ease the cost of living for their families, and the Co-op was born.

4

A Conflict of Interest

By Adam Smith

Economist Adam Smith warned that when Western commercial interests get involved in policy-making abroad, war and want are sure to follow.

5

Unsuitable for Export

By Mandell Creighton

Our peculiar brand of democracy and liberty is a noble thing, but we should be wary of recommending it to other countries.

6

Dane-Geld

By Rudyard Kipling

Three years before the Great War, Rudyard Kipling recalled how one English king simply paid his bullying neighbours to stay at home.