l fact or two in confirmation of his argument; and
besides, when we refer to Pownall's pamphlet we find that their
differences were all about points on which Smith's views were mature
and the Governor's raw.

Smith probably remained most of the year 1777 in London, for, as we
have seen, one of his reasons for being there was to see the second
edition of his work through the press, and the second edition of his
work did not appear till 1778. But he was back in Kirkcaldy again
before December, and while there he received from Lord North the
appointment of Commissioner of Customs in Scotland, vacant through the
death of Mr. Archibald Menzies. The offence he unexpectedly gave to
the world's religious sensibilities by his account of Hume's last days
had not interfered, as he feared such an offence would, with his
prospects of employment in the public service, nor, what is quite as
remarkable, had his political opinions. For he was always a strong
Whig, and the preferment was bestowed by a Tory ministry. It is
usually attributed to the influence of the Duke of Buccleugh and Henry
Dundas, then a member of the ministry as Lord Advocate for Scotland,
and their word may no doubt have helped; but there is reason to
believe that the appointment was really a direct reward to the author
of the _Wealth of Nations_ for the benefit Lord North, who was
Chancellor of the Exchequer as well as Prime Minister, derived from
that book in preparing the budgets for the years 1777 and 1778. Smith
himself, in a letter to Strahan which will presently appear (p. 323)
attributes the appointment largely to the favour of Sir Grey Cooper,
who had been Secretary to the Treasury since 1765, and was naturally
Lord North's right-hand man in the preparation of his budgets. At the
time the _Wealth of Nations_ appeared the English Chancellor of the
Exchequer was at his wits' end for fresh and convenient and easy means
of increasing the revenue to carry on the American war, and the book
was a mine of suggestions to him. He imposed two new taxes in 1777, of
which he got the idea there,--one on man-servants, estimated by him to
bring in L105,000, though in the event it yielded only L18,000, and
the other on property sold by auction, which was to bring in L37,000;
but in the budget of 1778, which he would have under consideration at
the very moment of Smith's appointment, he introduced two new taxes
recommended by Smith,--the inhabited house duty, estimated to yie