Johnnie Ellington II January 2, 2015 at 8:19pm · The Doctrine of Adam Smith The ideas of Adam Smith represented more than just the first systematic treatise on economics; they were a frontal attack on the doctrines of mercantilism. Like the physiocrats, Smith tried to show the existence of a “natural” economic order, one tha t would function most efficiently if the state played a highly limited role. Unlike the physiocrats, however, Smith did not believe that industry was unproductive or that only the agricultural sector was capable of producing a surplus above the subsi stence needs of society. Rather, Smith saw in the division of labor and the extension of markets almost limitless possibilities for society to expand its wealth through manufacture and trade. Thus, both the physiocrats and Smith contributed to the belief that the economic powers of governments should be limited and that there existed a natural order of liberty applicable to the economy. It was Smith, however, far more than the physiocrats , who opened the way for industrialization and the emergence of modern capitalism in the 19th century.