Abstract
Reflection on strategies for escape from poverty into wealth has been, from its beginning, an integral theme of liberal political philosophy. All the early modern political thinkers considered in one way or another the stages of wealth generation. The authors' aim in this article is not completeness, but rather coherence and concision, so they focus on the seminal thought of John Locke and Adam Smith, with a passing nod to Immanuel Kant. The controlling idea is that some institutional arrangements are more conducive to economic development than are others. Liberal political philosophy suggests a simple recipe: establish and protect private-property rights; honor contractual agreements; and require mutual consent for transfers of property. Smith refers to this formula as the system of natural liberty. Its great virtue is that it allows people to coordinate their affairs with each other in ways that tend to their mutual betterment.