"The editors hope that this collection will help to bring about a deeper understanding of the process of transplanting English liberty to overseas colonies during the first centuries of English colonization, of the ideological context of the American Revolution, and of the formation of the political culture not only of the American nation and the states that composed it but also of those colonies that remained in the British Empire after 1776."--Page xx.

Exploring the Bounds of Liberty is an ideal introduction to the rich, hitherto only lightly examined literature produced in and about the British colonies between 1680 and 1770. It provides easy access to key but little-discussed political writings, illuminating important political debates in the early-modern British empire and giving crucial context for much better-known tracts of the American Revolution.

This book consists of articles reprinted from various journals of Acton, who was one of the great historians of the Victorian period and one of the greatest classical historians of all time. This work includes his other works include Lectures on Modern History and Historical Essays and Studies, which were brought to light after his death.

"The Limits of Liberty is concerned mainly with two topics. One is an attempt to construct a new contractarian theory of the state, and the other deals with its legitimate limits. The latter is a matter of great practical importance and is of no small significance from the standpoint of political philosophy."—Scott Gordon, Journal of Political Economy James Buchanan offers a strikingly innovative approach to a pervasive problem of social philosophy. The problem is one of the classic paradoxes concerning man's freedom in society: in order to protect individual freedom, the state must restrict each person's right to act. Employing the techniques of modern economic analysis, Professor Buchanan reveals the conceptual basis of an individual's social rights by examining the evolution and development of these rights out of presocial conditions.