“…it took the economic shocks of the 1830s and 1840s to weaken his attachment to laissez-faire and convert him to protective tariffs. As the owner of a paper mill and coal mine, Carey had firsthand experience of the devastating impact of the Panic of 1837 on commerce. From 1848 onwards, Carey started to argue that free trade did more to facilitate British economic superiority and left America vulnerable. Instead, he argued, America should develop its home market and diversify its industries as means of achieving economic independence.

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