The movement at first followed the lines of the mercantile school.Thus，in Antonio Broggia's Trattati dei tributi e dellemonete e del governo politico della societá(1743)，and Girolamo Belloni's Dissertazione sopra il commercio (1750)，whichseems to have had a success and reputation much above its merits，mercantilist tendencies decidedly preponderate.But themost distinguished writer who represented that economic doctrine in Italy in the last century was Antonio Genovesi，aNeapolitan (1712-1769).He felt deeply the depressed intellectual and moral state of his fellow-countrymen，and aspiredafter a revival of philosophy and reform of education as the first condition of progress and well-being.With the object ofprotecting him from the theological persecutions which threatened him on account of his advanced opinions，BartolomeoIntieri，of whom we shall hear again in relation to Galiani，founded in 1755，expressly for Genovesi，a chair of commerce andmechanics，one of the conditions of foundation being that it should never be filled by a monk.This was the firstprofessorship of economics established in Europe；the second was founded at Stockholm in 1758，and the third in Lombardyten years later，for Beccaria.The fruit of the labours of Genovesi in this chair was his Lezioni di commercio，ossia dieconomia civile (1769)，which contained the first systematic treatment of the whole subject which had appeared in Italy.Asthe model for Italian imitation he held up England，a country for which，says Pecchio，he had a predilection almostamounting to fanaticism.He does not rise above the false economic system which England then pursued；but he rejects someof the grosser errors of the school to which he belonged；he advocates the freedom of the corn trade，and deprecatesregulation of the interest on loans.In the spirit of his age，he denounces the relics of medieval institutions，such as entailsand tenures in mortmain，as impediments to the national prosperity.Ferdinando Galiani was another distinguished disciple ofthe mercantile school.Before he had completed his twenty-first year he published a work on money (Detta moneta libricinque ，1750)，the principles of which are supposed to have been dictated by two experienced practical men，the MarquisRinuccini and Bartolomeo Intieri，whose name we have already met.But his reputation was made by a book written inFrench and published in Paris，where he was secretary of embassy，in 1770，namely，his Dialogues sur le commerce des blés .
This work，by its light and pleasing style，and the vivacious wit with which it abounded，delighted Voltaire，who spoke of itas a book in the production of which Plato and Molière might have been combined！(14)The author，says Pecchio，treated hisarid subject as Fontenelle did the vortices of Descartes，or Algarotti the Newtonian system of the world.The question atissue was that of the freedom of the corn trade，then much agitated，and，in particular，the policy of the royal edict of 1764，which permitted the exportation of grain so long as the price had not arrived at a certain height.The general principle hemaintains is that the best system in regard to this trade is to have no system --countries differently circumstanced requiring，according to him，different modes of treatment.This seems a lame and impotent conclusion from the side of science；yetdoubtless the physiocrats，with whom his controversy lay，prescribed on this，as on other subjects，rules too rigid for the safeguidance of statesmen，and Galiani may have rendered a real service by protesting against their absolute solutions ofpractical problems.He fell，however，into some of the most serious errors of the mercantilists --holding，as indeed did alsoVoltare and even Verri，that one country cannot gain without another losing，and in his earlier treatise going so far as todefend the action of Governments in debasing the currency.
