310 LAISSEZ FAIRE 
The changes which have taken place in England, during the 
last hundred and thirty years, at least suggest the direction 
of the movements which may be expected in other lands, as 
they are drawn more and more to adapt themselves to modern 
conditions. The time has not yet come to write the History 
of the Industrial Revolution in its broader aspects, for we 
only know the beginning of the story; we can trace the 
origin and immediate results in England, but we cannot yet 
gauge its importance for the world as a whole. 
It was not an accident that England took the lead in 
this matter; the circumstances of the day afforded most 
favourable conditions for the successful introduction of new 
fechanical appliances. Inventions and discoveries often seem to be 
rs merely fortuitous ; men are apt to regard the new machinery as 
oractical the outcome of a special and unaccountable burst of inventive 
genius in the eighteenth century. But we are not forced to 
be content with such a meagre explanation. To point out 
shat Arkwright and Watt were fortunate in the fact that 
the times were ripe for them, is not to detract from their 
merits. There had been many ingenious men® from the 
time of William Lee and Dodo Dudley, but the conditions of 
their day were unfavourable to their success. The introduc- 
tion of expensive implements, or processes, involves a large 
outlay; it is not worth while for any man, however energetic, 
to make the attempt, unless he has a considerable command 
of capital, and has access to large markets. In the eighteenth 
century these conditions were being more and more realised. 
The institution of the Bank of England, and of other banks, 
had given a great impulse to the formation of capital ; and it 
was much more possible, than it had ever been before, for 
a capable man to obtain the means of introducing costly 
improvements in the management of his business. It had 
become apparent, too, that the long-continued efforts to build 
ap the maritime power of England had been crowned with 
success; she had established commercial connections with all 
parts of the globe, and had access to markets that were prac- 
tically unlimited. Under these circumstances, enterprising 
men were willing to run the risk of introducing expensive 
A.D. 1776 
—1850. 
wherever 
It spreads. 
1 Calendars S. P. D. 1690—1692, s.v. Inventions.