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Columbia Fields Harvard Suggested Reading

Harvard. Reading List in Public Finance. Bullock and Burbank, 1934.

In an earlier posting I posted the public finance reading list for the Ph.D. field exam in public finance prepared some time during the fall semester 1933-34 which was in a Harvard economics department folder along with reading lists for other fields (railroads, corporations, and banking). In this posting we find the identical reading list along with a cover letter from Professor Charles Bullock of Harvard to Prof. Haig, the public finance expert, at Columbia asking for comments. I have added Haig’s suggestions for deletions and additions in blue-boldface.

___________________________________

[Bullock to Haig, 15 January 1934]

HARVARD UNIVERSITY
DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMICS

CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS
January 15, 1934

Prof. R. M. Haig
Columbia University
New York City

My dear Haig:

Burbank and I have been conferring recently about the reading that ought to be done by our graduate students who offer public finance as their special field for the doctorate. After considering books and the results students apparently get from reading them, we have got up the enclosed list. If you would be interested in reading it and commented commenting upon it, I should be greatly indebted to you.

In particular I would be glad to have you note any books which you have found useful for your students but which we have omitted.

Some of the books we list, like Miss Comstock’s “Taxation in the Modern State”, are pretty light-weight affairs; but they have some information in them which students can’t readily get elsewhere; also, of course, some misinformation.

If there are any books listed here that you would strike out, I should be very glad if you would indicate deletions.

Another question is that of the division of the books into the three groups. The first group mostly is intended to give the general approach, though the last thing in it, the Colwyn Report, is put there because Burbank has found it extremely useful with his students. Mine have not found it so useful; and I would have preferred to put that title in Group II.

I would be glad to have your comments also on the amount of reading. I am inclined to think the requirement of all the books in Group I, six or eight books in Group II, and three or four books in Group III is excessive; but the first two titles in Group I are really read in class. Do you think the total amount of reading excessive?

For your convenience I am sending along two copies, so that you can jot down in lead pencil on one of them additions, deletions, criticisms, and any other comment, and then mail the damned thing back to me without even going to the trouble of dictating a letter. In the present state of the literature in public finance, I have found it very difficult to know what to do; and so has Burbank. Perhaps you may be sufficiently in the same frame of mind so that you will not find this polite request I make too much of an imposition!

Yours sincerely,

[signed]

Charles J. Bullock

 

CJB/AMB

___________________________________

Readings in Public Finance for General and Special Examinations

Students preparing for the special examination in public finance should read all the references listed under I. In II the student should read a substantial portion of six or eight books, selecting topics which he considers of most interest and value to him. In III the student should read a substantial portion of three or four of the books listed, again following his own requirements or interests.

 

I. Required Reading

A. Smith Wealth of Nations, Book 5
J. S. Mill Principles of Political Economy, Book 5, ch. 1-8
C. F. Bastable Public Finance (3rd edition). Read pages: 1-149; 153-257; 261-421; 425-442; 443-464; 465-468; 469-494; 504-573; 611-711.
H. L. Lutz Public Finance
C. J. Bullock Selected Readings in Public Finance (3rd edition). Read pages: 1-51; 76-147; 156-268; 278-379; 445-490; 533-607; 755-902; 921-982
A. Wagner Finanzwissenschaft, Vol. II. Read all the coarse print; use judgment on the fine print.
P. Leroy-Beaulieu Traité des Finances, Vol. I (8th edition, 1912). Read pages: 1-10; 28-92; 92-133; 134-143; 172-249; 367-387; 394-437; 439-482; 483-517; 539-626; 626-703
[Haig note: Substitute Allix]
D. R. Dewey Financial History of the United States
The Colwyn Report Great Britain: Report of the Committee on National Debt and Taxation, 1927. Read pages: 73-244. (Cmd. 2800; Econ. 5389.27)

[Haig note: Add.—H. Dalton—Principles of Public Finance]

 

 

II. Reading Recommended

Mills and Starr Readings in Public Finance and Taxation. Read Pages: 41-150; 168-195; 205-264; 369-453; 482-607; 763-808
A. C. Pigou A Study in Public Finance
B. Moll Lehrbuch der Finanzwissenschaft (1930)
[Haig note: I was surprised by the low rating given Moll’s Lehrbuch by his German colleagues]
E. Allix

 

Traité élementaire de Science des Finances (6th edition, 1931). Read pages: 1-81; 151-204; 216-256; 285-312; 341-382; 437-573; 870-902; 910-958; 1011-1050;1091-1134.
L. Suret Théorie de l’Impôt progressif
[Haig note: Subsitute Seligman]
J. Stamp Fundamental Principles of Taxation
T. G. Shearman Natural Taxation
[Haig note: “?” (a question mark)]
H. L. Lutz State Tax Commissions
S. Leland The Classified Property Tax
A. L. Harding Double Taxation of Property and Income
E. Cannan History of Local Rates
A. F. Macdonald Federal Aid
J. W. Grice National and Local Finance
A. E. Buck Municipal Finance
The May Report Great Britain: Report of the Committee on National Expenditure, 1931 (Cmd. 3290; Econ. 5389.31)
National Tax Association Proceedings, 1933, Report of Committee on Model System of State and Local Taxation

 

 

III. Other Reading

G. F. Shirras Science of Public Finance
[Haig note: Elim. in view of incl. of Bastable]
E. R. A. Seligman Progressive Taxation
——————— Essays in Taxation
——————— Income Tax (chapters on Great Britain, Germany, France, U.S.A.)
——————— Shifting and Incidence of Taxation
H. A. Silverman Taxation, Its Incidence and Effects
A. Comstock Taxation in the Modern State
J. P. Jensen Property Taxation in the United States
W. G. Schultz Taxation of Inheritances
R. G. Blakey Taxation in Minnesota
[Haig note: Eliminate]
R. M. Haig The Taxation of Excess Profits in Great Britain
National Industrial Conference Board General Sales or Turnover Taxation
National Industrial Conference Board Sales Tax
A. G. Buehler General Sales Taxes
[Haig note: Substitute C. Shoup: Sales Tax in France]
R. Magill, editor Lectures on Taxation
R. Stourm The Budget
W. F. Willoughby The National Budget System
H. S. Adams
[Haig note: “C” (i.e. not S.)]
Public Debts
M. L. Walker Municipal Expenditure
Britain’s Industrial Future, pp. 426-447.
H.U. Library, Econ 6069.28.5
Joseph Sykes British Public Expenditures, 1921-1931
Report of New York Commission for Revision of the Tax Laws, 1932, Part III.

[Haig note:  Add.

W. F. Willoughby. The Financial Condition and Operations of the National Government.
H. C. Adams, Science of Finance.
H. Higgs. The Financial System of the UK.
Taxation of Foreign and National Enterprises. Fiscal Commission, League of Nations.]

 

Source:   Columbia University Libraries, Manuscript Collections. R. M. Haig Collection, Box 15, “Lecture Notes”; Folder, “Reading—Suggestions—Econ.101”.

Image Source:  Harvard Album 1932.

Categories
Economists Harvard

Harvard. Graduates’ Magazine reports on Economics Dept. 1892-1904.

The Harvard Graduates’ Magazine. Vol. 1, October, 1892, pp. 116-117.

ECONOMICS.

Ten years ago, the Department of Political Economy had one professor and one instructor, neither giving all of his time to the subject. At present, the Department of Economics has three professors and two instructors. The change in name, from Political Economy to Economics, indicates of itself an enlargement of the range of subjects. The number of courses offered has grown from two to a dozen, with a corresponding development in the variety of topics treated. The increase in the number of students is indicated by the fact that the first course, introductory to the rest, which was taken ten years ago by perhaps fifty students, now has over three hundred. This striking development is significant of the rapid increase in the attention given to economic problems by the public and by our institutions of learning. The staff now consists of Professors Dunbar, Taussig, and Ashley, and Messrs. Cummings and Cole. Professor Ashley enters upon his duties for the first time this autumn, his chair being a newly created one of Economic History. Professor Dunbar continues to edit the Quarterly Journal of Economics, which was established by the University in 1886 with the aid of a fund contributed by John Eliot Thayer, ’85, and which has an established position among the important periodicals on economic subjects. The Department has recently done service to economic students by a reprint, under Professor Dunbar’s care, of Cantillon’s Essai sur le Commerce, a rare volume of importance in the history of economic theory; and it has now in press a volume of State Papers and Speeches on the Tariff, meant to aid students of the tariff history of the United States. For its growth in the past the Department has depended wholly on the expenditure by the Corporation of unpledged resources. No doubt the increasing sense of the importance of economic study will in time change the situation in this regard, and will make this department as attractive for benefactors as those which are older and more familiar.

F. W. Taussig, 79.

 

 _____________________________

The Harvard Graduates’ Magazine. Vol. 1, July, 1893, p. 576.

[Birth of a semester system, emphasis added]

The elective pamphlet announcing the courses to be offered in 1893-94 by the Faculty of Arts and Sciences contains few striking changes. There is a tendency manifested in it to increase the number of half-courses beginning or ending in February, at the time of the mid-year examinations. Thus History 12 is split into two halves, the first half being on the recent history of Continental Europe, and the second half on the recent constitutional history of England; Economics 7 is cut in two, and Economics 12 is established as two half-courses, one on International Payments and the Flow of Precious Metals, and the other on Banking and the History of the Banking Systems. Other examples might be given to emphasize the drift towards something akin to a division of the year into two semesters, particularly for the convenience of graduate students. 

_____________________________

The Harvard Graduates’ Magazine. Vol. 1, July, 1893, p. 590.

ECONOMICS.

In the department of Economics several new courses are offered for 1893-94. Professor Dunbar offers two half-courses, one on international payments and the flow of the precious metals from country to country, the other on banks and the leading banking systems. The two half-courses come at the same hours in the first and second half-years, and, when taken together, form a convenient full course running through the year. This new course will alternate with Course 7, on taxation and finance, which is to be omitted in 1893-94, and will be resumed in 1894-95. — Professor Ashley offers a course on Economic History, from the Middle Ages to modern times, which will take the place of the former Course 4, on the economic history of Europe and America since the middle of the eighteenth century. The new course covers a longer period than was covered in Course 4, and will supplement effectively the instruction in history as well as in economics. Professor Ashley also offers a new half-course, intended mainly for advanced and graduate students, on land tenure and agrarian conditions in Europe. — Professor Cummings offers a half-course, also intended for advanced students, on schemes for social reconstruction from Plato’s Republic to the present time, including the proposals of Bellamy and Hertzka. The course is meant to give opportunity for the discussion of social and political institutions and of socialist theories. — Economics 1, the introductory course in the department, will be remodeled in part in the coming year. A somewhat larger proportion of the exercises will take the form of lectures to all members of the course. Professor Taussig will lecture on distribution and on financial subjects, Professor Ashley on economic development, Professor Cummings on social questions.

F. W. Taussig, ’79.

_____________________________

The Harvard Graduates’ Magazine. Vol. 3, March, 1895, pp. 383-384.

ECONOMICS.

The matter that has of late most engaged the attention of the Department has been the welcome and yet embarrassing growth in the number of students taking the introductory course known as Economics 1. This has risen from 179 in 1889-90 to 201 in ’90-91, 288 in ’91-92, 322 in ’92-93, 340 in ’93-94, until in the present year it is 398. Such an increase necessarily raises grave questions both of educational method and of academic discipline. Those professors to whose labors in past years the success of the course has been due are still of opinion that the recitation method, in its best form, — the discussion day after day and chapter by chapter of some great treatise like the work of John Stuart Mill, — furnishes a mental training such as no other plan can provide. But for its successful practice it is necessary either that the class should be quite small, or that, if divided, the sections should be few and small. Accordingly it became evident that some modification of plan was necessary; and last year the arrangement was hit upon of retaining the section work for the greater part of the year, but diversifying it with three months of set lectures at different periods by Professors Taussig, Ashley, and Cummings. The experiment was so satisfactory that it has been repeated this year; and, in the absence of Professor Taussig, Professors Ashley and Cummings have each lectured for six weeks. If the numbers continue to grow, it may seem advisable in the future to take further steps in the same direction. But Upper Massachusetts, in spite of its historical associations, has abominable acoustic properties; the room in Boylston, which was suggested as an alternative, is redolent of Chemistry; and it may ultimately become necessary to invade the sacred precincts of Sanders Theatre. — In the absence of Professor Taussig upon his sabbatical, before referred to, his course on Economic Theory (Econ. 2) has been divided into two half-courses, and undertaken by Professor Ashley and Professor Macvane. Professor Macvane’s action will do something to break down that middle wall of partition between departments which is sometimes so curiously high and strong in this University of free electives. It need scarcely be added that to those who know how considerable have been Professor Macvane’s contributions to economic theory, and how great his reputation is with foreign economists, he seems altogether in place when he takes part in the economic instruction of Harvard University. — Professor Taussig’s course on Railway Transportation (Econ. 5) has been assigned for the present year to Mr. G. O. Virtue, ’92; his other courses have been suspended. — Mr. John Cummings, ’91, has returned, with a year’s experience as instructor and his doctorate, from the University of Chicago, and is now an Assistant in Econ. 1; he is also offering a new course on Comparative Poor Law and Administration. — The instructors in this, as in other Departments, find themselves increasingly hampered by the difficulty of providing the necessary books for the use of students. Oxford and Cambridge Universities, with hardly more students than Harvard, have libraries in every college, together with the Union libraries and the University libraries; here in Harvard, if an instructor in class mentions any but the best known of books, the chances are that there is only one copy in the place,— that in the University Library; and unless he has been provident enough to have that book “reserved,” some undergraduate promptly takes it out, and nobody else can see it. It is true that undergraduates ought to buy more books; but frequently there is not a copy to be had even in the Boston bookstores. It would certainly be a great relief if the societies could see their way to create, each for itself, a modest working library of a few hundred books. Meanwhile something may be done by strengthening the Departmental Library in University Hall. This, which owes its creation to the generosity of some of the members of the Class of 1879, is in urgent need of enlargement; and the professors in the Department will be glad to hear from any graduate whose eye this happens to catch. — Finally, it may be advisable to mention that, as the result of careful deliberation on the part of the members of the Division Committee, a detailed statement of requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Political Science was drawn up last spring, and will now be found at the end of the Division pamphlet This Statement is noteworthy in that it defines for the first time the “general” examination, and the examination on “a special field;” and also for the stress it lays upon “a broad basis of general culture ” as the foundation of specialist work. “A command of good English, spoken and written, the ability to make free use of French and German books, and a fair acquaintance with general history ” are mentioned as “of special importance.”

W. J. Ashley.

_____________________________

The Harvard Graduates’ Magazine. Vol. 4, December, 1895, pp. 242-243.

ECONOMICS.

The Department of Economics began its work for the year under unfortunate circumstances. Professor Dunbar, its honored head, was compelled by ill-health to withdraw from academic work for the year, and was given leave of absence by the Corporation. His withdrawal rendered necessary changes in the courses of instruction. Of those announced to be given by Professor Dunbar, course 7, on Financial Administration and Public Debts, was undertaken by Dr. John Cummings, and course 12, on Banking and the History of the Leading Banking Systems, by Professor Taussig. The additional work thus assumed by Professor Taussig was made possible through the aid of Professor Macvane, who will conduct during the second half-year that part of Economics 2 which had been announced to be given by Professor Taussig. Course 8, on the History of Financial Legislation in the United States, has been shifted to the second half-year, and will then be given by Dr. Joseph A. Hill, A. B. ’86, Ph. D. ’92. By this rearrangement all the courses originally announced will be given, and no diminution in the Department’s offering results from Professor Dunbar’s absence. — Another change has taken place, affecting course 1. The numbers in this introductory course have grown steadily of late years, and it is now taken annually by about 400 men. It had been the policy of the Department to conduct it not by lectures, but mainly by face to face discussion, in rooms of moderate size, the men being divided into sections for this purpose. As the numbers grew, however, it became more and more difficult to keep the sections at a manageable size, to find convenient rooms for them, and to secure efficient instructors. The alternative of lecturing to the men in one large room had long presented itself, but the probable educational advantages of instruction in smaller rooms by sections caused this alternative to be avoided. For the present year, however, the withdrawal of Professor Dunbar rendered some economizing of the force of the Department necessary, and it has been accordingly determined to try the lecture plan for the current year. All the members of the course meet in Upper Massachusetts, — a room which, by the way, proves reasonably well adapted for this use, — and there are given lectures by the various instructors who take part in the course. By way of testing their reading and securing for the instructors some evidence as to their attainments, a system of weekly written papers has been introduced. On a given day of each week the students write answers to questions bearing upon the work of that week and of previous weeks. These answers are examined and corrected, and serve as a means of estimating the diligence and attainments of the students. Whether this radical change of plan will prove to be advantageous remains to be decided by the year’s experience; but it indicates a change in the methods of college work which is making its way in all directions, and which presents new and difficult problems to instructors. — The Seminary in Economics opens the year with sixteen advanced students of good quality, and promises well. Two are Seniors in Harvard College; the remainder are members of the Graduate School. Four are candidates for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the close of the current year. The growth of the Seminary in numbers and the better organization of its work are part of the general advance of the Graduate School, which is now reaping the fruits of the marked gains it has made in recent years.

F. W. Taussig, 79.

_____________________________

The Harvard Graduates’ Magazine. Vol. 7, March, 1899, pp. 427-8.

ECONOMICS.

Like other departments, that of Economics finds itself confronted with the problem of the best mode of dealing with large numbers of students in the courses much sought for, and especially in the general introductory course. Economics 1 is now regularly chosen by from 450 to 500 students. Well-nigh every undergraduate takes it at some stage of his college career, and the question of its numbers seems to be simply a question of the number of students in the College and Scientific School. This great demand for general training in the subject has imposed on the Department an obligation to make its instruction as stimulating and efficient as may be, and yet has made this task more difficult than ever before. Inevitably, the old method of dividing the course into sections for all of the instruction has been abandoned. Its place has been taken by a mixed method of lectures and oral exercises. Twice a week, lectures are given to the whole course in one large room. Upper Massachusetts, remodeled, reheated, and reseated, serves for these lectures, — not well, but not unendurably ill; there is great need, for the use of the large courses, of a new and well-equipped building. The lectures are largely in the nature of comment on assigned reading. The third hour in the week is then given to meetings in sections of moderate size, in which the lectures and the reading are subject to test and discussion. The course is divided into some fifteen sections, each of which meets its instructor once a week. At these exercises, a question is first answered in writing by each student, twenty minutes being allowed for this test; the remainder of the hour is used in oral discussion. Some continuous oversight of the work of students is thus secured, and opportunity is given for questions to them and from them. A not inconsiderable staff of instructors is necessary for the conduct of the sections, and a not inconsiderable expenditure by the Corporation for salaries; but some such counter-weight on the lecture system pure and simple is felt to be necessary. The Department has been fortunate in securing trained and competent instructors for this part of the work; and the new method, if not definitively adopted, is at least in the stage of promising experiment. — During the second half year of 1898-99, the place of Professor Ashley, who is absent on leave, is taken by Dr. Wm. Cunningham, of Trinity College (Cambridge, England). Dr. Cunningham and Professor Ashley are easily the leaders among English-speaking scholars on their subject, economic history; and the Department has cordially welcomed the arrangement by which the scholar from the Cambridge of England fills the place, for the time being, of the scholar of the American Cambridge. Dr. Cunningham gives two courses in the current half year, — one on Western Civilization in its Economic Aspects, Mediaeval and Modern, the other on the Industrial Revolution in England.

F. W. Taussig, ‘79.

_____________________________

The Harvard Graduates’ Magazine. Vol. 8, December, 1899, p. 223.

ECONOMICS.

The Department finds, as usual, large numbers of students to deal with during the current year. In the introductory course, Economics 1, nearly 500 students are enrolled, and once again it appears that the University has no good lecture room adequate for the accommodation of such numbers. The system of instruction which has been in use in this course for several years is continued. For part of the time, lectures are given to all members of the course; for the remainder of the time, it is split into small sections for question and discussion. So long as lectures are given at all, there is little gain from splitting the course into two or more parallel courses, as has sometimes been proposed; but the absence of a good lecture room for the whole number makes the present situation trying. In its advanced courses, the Department has again the services of Prof. Ashley, who returns after a year’s leave of absence, and finds large numbers enrolled in his course on modern economic history. His advanced course, on the history and literature of economics to the close of the 18th century, also attracts a satisfactory number of mature students. Prof. Cummings omits for the year his course on the labor question; but compensation for this is found in Philosophy 5, a course having a similar range of subjects, which is again given by Prof. Peabody, who has returned from his year’s leave of absence. Professors Dunbar and Taussig give, without material change, the courses usually assigned to them. — The Department assumes some additional burden through a change in its plans for the publication of the Quarterly Journal of Economics. That journal, whose 14th volume begins with the opening issue of this year, is hereafter to appear in more ambitious form. Its size will be somewhat increased, the departments varied, and the elaborate bibliography of current publication will be strengthened. At the same time the price goes up from $2 to $3 a year, — a change which, it is hoped, can be carried out without a loss of subscribers.

F. W. Taussig, 79.

_____________________________

The Harvard Graduates’ Magazine. Vol. 10, December, 1901, pp. 261-2.

ECONOMICS.

An unusual number of changes have to be noted in this Department. Prof. Taussig’s leave of absence, and Prof. Ashley’s recent resignation, have made it necessary to call in several men from the outside to give instruction during the present year. Prof. Taussig’s work is provided for in part by Prof. C. J. Bullock, of Williams College, who is giving the courses on finance and taxation, — and in part by a redistribution of the work among the members of the regular teaching staff. Dr. Andrew has charge of Economics 1, and Dr. Sprague of Economics 6, on the Economic History of the United States. Prof. Ashley’s courses, as announced for the year, have been provided for as follows: Prof. Wm. Z. Ripley, of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is giving course 5 on Statistics, and is to give the latter half of course 17 on the Economic Organization and Resources of European Countries, Mr. Meyer having charge of it during the first half year. Dr. C. W. Mixter is giving course 15 on the History and Literature of Economics to the opening of the 19th century. In addition, Prof. Ripley is giving course 5a on Railway Economics. In the second half year, Mr. W. F. Willoughby is to give courses 9 and 9a on Problems of Labor. — The courses preparing for a business career have been extended somewhat. Mr. W. M. Cole continues his course on the Principles of Accounting, and Prof. Wambaugh his course on Insurance. In addition to these, Mr. Bruce Wyman is conducting a new course on the Principles of Law in their Application to Industrial Problems, using the case method as it has been developed in the Law School. The popularity of these courses, in spite of the unusual severity of the examinations, is some indication of their success, and suggests, at least, the practicability of still further extensions. While there is a tendency in some quarters to carry the idea of commercial education to extremes, it is to be noted that these courses neither pretend to take the place of business experience, nor to teach those things which can be learned better in a business office than in any institution of learning. Moreover the work is confined to a mastery of principles and not to the gaining of general information. — The number of students in the Department continues large, there being upward of 480 in course 1, and about 1100 in the Department as a whole, not excluding those counted more than once. The housing of Economics 1 continues to be a problem, as Upper Massachusetts is uncomfortably packed at each meeting. More difficult, however, is the problem of finding small rooms for the 11 sections into which this class is divided for discussion and consultation once each week. — The Board of Overseers have confirmed the appointment of Dr. A. P. Andrew, Dr. O. M. W. Sprague, and Mr. H. R. Meyer as instructors without limit of time. — The change from two dollars to three dollars per year in the subscription price of the Quarterly Journal of Economics has been followed by no diminution in the number of subscribers, and the hope of the editors that the Journal might be conducted on a somewhat more ambitious scale is being realized.

T. N. Carver.

_____________________________

The Harvard Graduates’ Magazine. Vol. 11, December, 1902, pp. 247-248.

ECONOMICS.

Prof. Taussig’s continued absence has occasioned some readjustment of work within the Department during the present year. Dr. A. P. Andrew has full charge of Course I, Dr. O. M. W. Sprague of Course 6, and Prof. T. N. Carver of Course 2, while Prof. Taussig’s course on Adam Smith and Ricardo has been combined with Dr. C. W. Mixter’s course on Selected Topics in the History of Economic Thought since Adam Smith. Prof. W. Z. Ripley, formerly of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has accepted a professorship in our Department, and is giving Course 9 on Problems of Labor and Industrial Organization, the first half of Course 3, on the Principles of Sociology, the second half of Course 17, on the Economic Organization and Resources of European Countries, and Course 4, on the Theory and Method of Statistics. Dr. E. F. Gay, who has spent several years in Europe investigating in the field of economic history, has accepted an instructorship here, and is giving Courses 10 and 11, on the Economic History of Mediaeval and Modern Europe.

The interest in the work of the Department continues to grow. Economics I has 542 students, as compared with about 480 at this time last year. Mr. Wyman’s course (21), on The Principles of Law in their Application to Economic Problems, now contains over 60 students, as compared with 38 last year. Other courses show no great variation one way or the other, except Prof. Ripley’s course in Statistics. The interest which is being revived in this too much neglected field promises well for the future of economic studies in Harvard.

The change in the hour of Economics I from Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, at 9, to Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, at 11, was necessary in order to find a suitable room. This makes it possible for a larger number of Freshmen to elect the course, since it no longer conflicts with History I. Whether this is going to prove advantageous or not remains to be seen. At present the policy is to discourage Freshmen from electing this course. If there should be a considerable increase in the number of men who complete the college course in three years, it may be advisable to allow some of the more mature members of the Freshman Class to take Economics I. In that case it will be necessary to increase the number of courses which are somewhat general in their scope. Thus the course on Economic Theory (2) might be made somewhat less special than it now is, and a new course covering the general field of Practical Economics might be started. In this way the evils of too early specialization might be avoided. However, no definite policy has as yet been decided upon.

The Department has secured the use of Room 24, University Hall, as headquarters. In this room the mail of the Department and of the Quarterly Journal of Economics will be received, and the exchanges will be available for immediate inspection. This room has also been fitted up with drawing tables and other apparatus necessary for practical work in statistics. It is the purpose to make it a statistical laboratory.

The accounts of the Quarterly Journal of Economics are satisfactory, and the subscription list is making slow but substantial gains.

T. N. Carver.

_____________________________

The Harvard Graduates’ Magazine. Vol. 11, June, 1903, pp. 560-562.

ECONOMICS.

An interesting comparison between the allied departments of History and Economics is shown below on the basis of the number of students electing such courses. Some of the novel problems entailed by the rapid growth of the very large courses are now being considered by both departments. This rapid growth in large courses, coupled with the increase in the number of highly specialized courses, is bound to make necessary a constant increase in the instructing staff, if full justice to the work is to be done. Among the new courses offered for next year are the following: Economics of Agriculture, by Prof. Carver; Corporation Finance, by Prof. Ripley; Outlines of Agrarian History, by Prof. Gay; and American Competition in Europe since 1873 and The Indirect Activities of the State in Australasia and in Europe, by Mr. Meyer. A general revision of the methods of the Seminary is also under consideration, although plans in that direction are not as yet completed,

 

1902-3. STUDENTS IN ECONOMICS.

ECONOMICS.

HISTORY.

1st half year 1st half year

Econ.

5 60 Hist. 12a 93

7b 21 16a 151 244
8a

100

2d half year

12a 10 Hist. 12b 79

10 16 16b

148

18 45 252 29 86

313

2d half year ½ course thro yr.

Econ.

8b 152 Hist. 17 4

4

11b

19

Whole courses.

12b 43 Hist. 1

506

16 29 243 3

6

½ course thro yr.

4

7

Econ.

4 15 15 6

19

Whole courses.

8

8

Econ.

1 519 9 36

2 26 10 188

3 45 11 67
6 122 13

214

9 111 15 13
14 15 20d

3

17 9 20e 12
20 11 21

1

20a 5   25

3

21 60 26 11

22 6(?) Hist. of Relig. 2 50

1144

Deduct 50 given by another Faculty

1705

1655

________________________________________
Whole courses

11

Whole courses

16

Half-courses

11

5 ½

Half-courses

6

3

16 ½

19

Including 5 courses of over 100 students, of which 2 are half courses. Including 5 courses of over 100 students, of which 2 are half courses.

A prompt response to suggestions made to the committee on instruction in economics of the Board of Overseers, as to the needs of the Department, has been made by Mr. Arthur T. Lyman in the shape of a gift of $500, to be expended in the preparation of charts, maps, and other illustrative material. The courses in general descriptive economics, it was felt, can be very greatly improved by the use of such material. Chart cases had already been installed in the new department headquarters, but this will enable the services of an expert draftsman for commencing the preparation of a suitable collection.

Among the other needs of the Department expressed at this meeting was that of an adding and computing machine for use in connection with the courses in Finance and Statistics. It was felt that the so-called “Burroughs Adder,” so generally in use in banking houses and statistical offices, could be utilized to great advantage in the prosecution of original work. The cost of such a machine is approximately $350. It is also to be hoped in the course of time that a collection of illustrative material other than maps may be commenced. This would include, for example, samples of the leading raw materials whose classification enters into tariff discussions and debates, photographs of social and industrial establishments, and other material of this sort. Such a collection, within moderate limits, along the lines of the Philadelphia Commercial Museums, has already been begun at Dartmouth, Ann Arbor, and other places. It should be kept in mind as a possible department at Cambridge.

 

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The Harvard Graduates’ Magazine. Vol. 12, December, 1903, p. 246.

ECONOMICS.

Prof. Taussig has returned after an absence of two years, entirely restored in health. His resumption of work completes the working corps in the department, enabling it to offer its full list of announced courses. The number of graduate students is considerably increased over the preceding years, and there is every prospect of a successful resumption of the regular work in all lines.

The November number of The World’s Work contains the first of a noteworthy series of articles by Prof. Carver upon agricultural conditions in the West. Prof. Carver made a tour of some hundreds of miles on horseback during the summer, principally in the corn belt. It is his intention to supplement this tour by similar observations in other parts of the country in the coming years. This issue of The World’s Work forms distinctively a Harvard number, containing also an article on The Progress of Labor Organizations, by Prof. Ripley.

Among the new courses announced for this year are several by Prof. Bullock, one upon “The History and Literature of Economics,” with an additional research course entitled “Studies in American Finance.” Prof. Gay’s course upon ” The German Economists” last year met with so cordial a response that it has been expanded to a full course, covering the French as well as the German authorities. Mr. H. R. Meyer, having re- signed as an instructor, will continue as a lecturer, giving two courses upon “American Competition in Europe since 1873” and “The Industrial Activities of the State in Australasia and in Europe.”

W. Z. Ripley.

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The Harvard Graduates’ Magazine. Vol. 13, December, 1904, p. 278.

ECONOMICS.

Economics 1 opens with an enrolment of 491 students, and is again the largest elective course in College. Government 1 is a close second, with 481 students; History 1 has 436. The numbers in Economics 1 are distinctly less than last year, which doubtless reflects the decline in attendance in the College at large. More than half of the total are Sophomores (255) ; the Juniors number 102, and the Freshmen 73. The resort to these three courses shows how strong is the trend to ward instruction in subjects connected with political life, and how great is the need for careful teaching and careful organization. Economics 1 continues to be conducted on the system which has been in use for some years past, and has been followed also in Government 1 and History 1. Two hours of lectures are given each week; for the third hour the course is divided into sections, in which there is a weekly examination, coupled with oral discussion of the subjects taken up during the week. Five assistant instructors conduct these sections, and the system seems to solve the problem of large courses satisfactorily.

In line with the policy adopted last year in the Department of paralleling the various undergraduate courses with advanced courses for graduate students, involving more or less research in each special field, Prof. Andrew is this year giving an advanced course upon the theories of crises, as a continuation of his larger course upon crises and cycles of trade.

An experiment intended to deal with the increasing difficulty of giving required reading to constantly enlarging classes will be tried in Economics 9b, through the publication of a casebook in economics similar to those in use in the Law School. The plan is to reprint official documents and detailed descriptions of particular phases of corporate economics, leaving to the lectures the task of supplying the connecting links and of tracing the development of the subject as an organic whole.

A valuable collection of charts of railway mortgages has recently been acquired through the generosity of graduates. These charts, prepared for the different railway systems, illustrate the exact character and situs of the securities. The collection of other charts and diagrams, made possible through the generosity of Mr. Arthur T. Lyman, is also making progress.

Source:  See the listings for the Harvard Graduates’ Magazine at Hathitrust. These are some of the items found using the index for the first twenty volumes.

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INET Young Scholar Online Seminars

2016 Program Online Seminar in History of Economic Thought and Philosophy of Economic

The INET Young Scholar Online Seminar in History of Economic Thought and Philosophy of Economics is a monthly webinar held by the YSI History of Economic Thought Working Group. Each session is thematic and consists of presentations by two to three young scholars, followed by discussions by senior scholars and general discussion.

Wicksellian Monetary Theory and Contemporary Economics January 28,  11:00 – 1:00

The webinar will contain two young scholar presentations by Isabel Rodríguez Peña and Dirk Ehnts. Hans-Michael Trautwein and Marc Lavoie will discuss the papers followed by a general discussion.

 

Ethics and Morality in Early-20th Century Economic Thought, February 17, 10:00 – 13:00

The second webinar of the YSI History of Economic Thought Working Group will contain young scholar presentations by Danielle Guizzo, Erwin Dekker and Matias Petersen. Discussants are David Andrews, Harald Hagemann and David Colander.

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Courses Harvard Syllabus

Harvard. O.H. Taylor’s undergraduate course, Intellectual Background of Economic Thought, 1941

 

 

Starting in the academic year 1940-41, Harvard’s advanced undergraduate honors course in economic theory (Economics 1) was split into two semester courses Economics 1a (Chamberlin: Economic Theory) and 1b (This post. Taylor: Intellectual Background of Economic Thought). The last time Economics 1 was offered as a year course (1939-40), it was taught by Professor Chamberlin, Associate Professor Leontief and Instructor O.H. Taylor. Two years later, 1941-42, the second semester course 1b was taught by Professor Haberler and Associate Professor Leontief under the title “Theory of Production and Distribution of the National Income”. In 1942-43, Economics 1b as “Theory of Production and Distribution of the National Income” was taught a last time by Professor Leontief and Dr. Monroe.

Only for the second semester of 1940-41 was Dr. Overton Hume Taylor to offer Economics 1b according to the syllabus transcribed for this posting. Not a mover and shaker within the Harvard economics department, he was clearly a serious scholar-economist, though out of step with the economics profession of his day. Most historians of economics will recognize a soulmate in Taylor.

Overton Hume Taylor (1897-1987) was born in Colorado, received his B.A. at the University of Colorado in 1921 and Ph.D. from Harvard in 1928. He held the rank of instructor 1929-1960, promoted to professor, 1960-64. He retired from Harvard in 1964, going on to teach at Vanderbilt University.

Here is a link to Taylor’s A History of Economic Thought (1960). 

Recent addition: the final examination questions for “The Intellectual Background of Economic Thought” from the Spring term of 1940-41

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[Course Listing]

Economics 1b 2hf. The Intellectual Background of Economic Thought.

Half-course (second half-year). Mon., Wed., and (at the pleasure of the instructor) Fri. at 11. Dr. O. H. Taylor.

 

Source: Harvard University. Announcement of the Courses of Instruction Offered by the Faculty of Arts and Sciences for the Academic Year 1940-41, Second Edition, p. 55.

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[Course Enrollment]

[Economics] 1b 2hf. Dr. O. H. Taylor.—The Intellectual Background of Economic Thought.

14 Juniors, 1 Sophomore:   Total 15.

 

Source: Harvard University. Report of the President of Harvard College and Reports of Departments for 1940-41, p. 58.

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Economics 1b

The Intellectual Background of Economic Thought

Reading, Lectures, and Discussions. February – May, 1941

 

Read during semester

G. H. Sabine: A History of Political Theory

 

During February

Morris Cohen: Reason and Nature, pp.
A. N. Whitehead: The Function of Reason
Carl Becker: The Heavenly City of the 18th C. Phil’s
O. H. Taylor: Two Articles, Econ. and Nat. Law, Q.J.E. vol. 44, p. 1 and 205.

 

During March

Crane Brinton: The Pol. Ideas of the Eng. Romanticists
Othmar Spann: A History of Econ. Theory
Sidney Hook: The Meaning of Marx
and others

 

During April

Crane Brinton: Eng. Pol. Thought in the 19th Cent. Sections (see Table of Contents) on Bentham, Coleridge, Mill, Cobden, Carlyle, Bagehot, T.H. Green, Spencer.
Alexander Gray: The Development of Econ. Doctrine
R. G. Tugwell and Others: The Trend of Economics. Chapters by Mitchell, Tugwell, Wolfe, Clark, and Knight
Henry Simons: A Positive Program for Laissez-Faire

 

Lectures and Discussions

February 3. Introductory Lecture. Ideologies and Economics. Classical Economics and Liberalism, Marxism, Romantic Nationalism, Modern Liberalism and Positivism. General Background of Intellectual History. Beginnings of Modern Science, Liberalism, Positivism, and Romanticism.
February 5. Lecture. A Criticism of the Economic Interpretation of History.
February 7. Class Discussion of Two Previous Lectures.
February 10. Lecture. Classical Economics and the Moral Basis of Free Enterprise Liberalism.
February 12. Lecture. The Defects of the Old Liberalism, and the Present Crisis.
February 14. Class Discussion of Two Previous Lectures.
February 17. Lecture. Western Positivism and German Romanticism.
February 19. Lecture. Western Positivism and German Romanticism – continued.
February 21. Class Discussion.
February 24. Lecture. The Origins of Positivism and the Mechanistic Cosmology and Sociology.
February 26. Lecture. Teleology and Mechanism, Moral and Natural Science, Mediaeval and Modern Phil.
February 28. Class Discussion.
March 3. Lecture. The Transition from the Moral to the Social Sciences. Ambiguities in the Transition Period. Classical Economics and Liberalism.
March 5. Lecture. The recent Growth of Pure Positivism, and the Change in Liberalism.
March 7. Class Discussion.
March 10. Lecture. The Origins and Nature of the Romantic Movement.
March 12. Lecture. Kant, and Romanticism in German Philosophy and Social Science.
March 14. Class Discussion.
March 17. Lecture. Adam Mueller, Frederich List, and the Historical School: Organicism, Nationalism, and Historical Relativity.
March 19. Lecture. Spiritual-Cultural Science, Culture Epochs; Sombart and Weber; Spann and the Nazis.
March 21. Class Discussion.
March 24. Lecture. The Backgrounds of Marx: Utopian Socialism, Classical Economics, and Hegel. Contributions of Each.
March 26. Lecture. The Essentials of Marxism, and its Relations to the Liberal and Romantic Traditions.
March 28. Class Discussion.
April 7. Lecture. The Physiocrats and Adam Smith. Economic Self-Interest and a Moral, Social Order.
April 9. Lecture. Utilitarianism and Classical Economics.
April 11. Class Discussion.
April 14. Lecture. Ricardian Economics, Utility Economics, and Mathematical Economics.
April 16. Lecture. Marginal Productivity and Distributive Justice.
April 18. Class Discussion.
April 21. Lecture. Monopolistic Competition and its Implications for Public Policy.
April 23. Lecture. The Positivist—and—Modern-Liberal Trend in Monetary and Cycle Theory. J. M. Keynes.
April 25. Class Discussion.
April 28. Lecture. Capitalism, Democracy, Class Struggle, and Liberalism.
April 30. Lecture. Economic Planning in a Free Society.
May 2. Class Discussion.

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Reading Period
May 5-27, 1941

Economics 1b:   Read the following:

Robbins, Nature and Significance of Economic Science.

______________________________________

Source: Harvard University Archives (HUC 8522.2.1). Syllabi, course outlines and reading lists in Economics, 1895-2003: Box 2. Folder “1940-41”.

Image Source: Harvard Album, 1952.

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Bibliography Suggested Reading Syllabus

Marxism. Recommended sequence of readings. Dannenberg, 1918

While the outline of this posting was explicitly intended for independent self-study, it nonetheless provides a sequence of readings (i.e. a syllabus) for the study of Marxism recommended by someone who sees himself squarely in the orthodox Marxian tradition in 1918.  It is interesting to note that the outline is essentially cast as a preparation to read Capital seen as “an important and tedious[!] task”. Personally, I would be surprised if any university syllabus had actually been based on this outline, but one does get the sense that Karl Dannenberg thought long and hard about his choices and the optimal ordering of the readings which is what a course syllabus should be all about, so it could be a useful benchmark for comparing the actual course syllabi that we find. Besides correcting a few minor misspellings, I have added boldface to highlight the recommended readings.

For a briefing on the author and the periodical in which the outline first appeared, see the introduction to the reprint edition of seven issues of the American socialist periodical, The Radical Review by Joseph R. Conlin (1968). 

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[p. 85]

AN OUTLINE FOR THE STUDY OF MARXISM

[Karl Dannenberg,  originally published in The Radical Review, April 1918.  Pagination taken from the separate publication of his articles.]

AS a fitting supplement to the lectures published under this title in the first three numbers of this magazine, I will now endeavor to furnish the reader with a compilation of works which I deem absolutely essential for a serious and comprehensive study of Socialism. In the humble opinion of the writer, such a study must inevitably lead to a scientific understanding of Marxism — an understanding quite imperative to an intelligent and sound appreciation of Capitalism.

There is probably no social theory outside of the various religious conceptions, and no book except the Bible that can boast of more adherents and advocates the world over than Socialism and “Capital.” Socialism is to-day a factor in the social and political life of every nation, and the theoretical propositions and basic principles of Marxism are at this turbulent period the revolutionary force and intellectual standard around which the workers and all truly disinterested students of Sociology and Political Economy rally in their struggle against the debasing influences of the mercenary Social Sciences. Marxism can, therefore, and without indulging in exaggeration, lay claim to the legacy of Classical Political Economy, and consider itself the only legitimate heir to the scientific values of this science. And acting in accord with this dictate of social development, Marx has raised upon the solid foundation laid by a Petty, Smith, Ricardo and Mill a structure truly massive, colossal and inspiring in its mighty grandeur, and overpoweringly convincing, yes unassailable and irrefutable in the scientific profundity of its construction.

As has been amply elucidated and sufficiently explained, the two propositions upon which the theoretical system of Marx rests and whose proper appreciation is absolutely necessary for a [p. 86] thorough and rational understanding of Marxism are the Materialist Conception of History and the Socialist critique and analysis of capitalist production, or Capitalism. I have dwelt at length upon these two fundamental phases of Socialist letters in my lectures, and, therefore, do not consider it essential to enter upon a discussion of them here, or to even emphasize the importance of their proper study and assimilation.

Every scientist will concede that the basis for a competent understanding of or mastery over any branch of learning rests solely in systematic study and the well organized classification and application of the knowledge or subject matter absorbed. Socialism is no exception to the rule. For a thorough knowledge of the elements of Socialist Philosophy and Economics a well planned and systematically executed course of critical reading and diligent study is absolutely essential. Such a course of reading and study is, however, taking the present conditions in the field of Socialist literature as a criterion, not so easily compiled; especially, if the prospective student attempts to perform this task himself, i. e., without procuring the advice or counsel of a competent authority. In no field of intellectual endeavor or pursuit, in no science are there more snares, snags and traps awaiting the unwary and trusting student than in the field of theoretical Socialism. And when we view the innumerable collections of irresponsible, defective, yes in many cases fundamentally erroneous works which are daily offered to the public as “recognized textbooks” on Socialism, then we can easily account for this ungratifying situation and also readily explain the Babylonian confusion and criminal inconsistency at times rampant in the Socialist movement. Furthermore, when perceiving that such “textbooks,” which in the most cases are at best only unquestionable testimonials of their author’s ignorance of Socialism, are circulated by responsible agencies in the Socialist Party, then the unbiased Socialist, to whom clarity in Socialist letters is more than a cherished aspiration, must confess [p. 87] that it certainly is not such a simple task after all for the uninitiated seeker to arrive at a clear and scientific conception of Marxism.

I believe I am not exaggerating when I state that no movement has placed its founder upon a higher pedestal, or paid a greater tribute to its master than the Socialist movement. If anyone desires to view an example of deep gratitude and noble affection let him study the whole-hearted idolization of Karl Marx indulged in by the proletariat the world over. There is no civilized country upon the globe in which there are not hundreds of thousands of workingmen who proclaim themselves adherents to Marx’s teachings. The picture of this great thinker adorns the parlor of every Socialist home, and can be found in every Socialist or trades-union hall. His masterpiece and textbook of scientific Socialism, “Capital,” enjoys the undivided admiration of all Socialists. Be they orthodox revolutionists or plastic opportunists matters not, in the laudation of Marx and his works they are one and claim to be — Marxists. Another peculiarity, which has its origin in the object to exploit the international reputation of Marx for political purposes, is the persistency of Socialist organizations or factions with the most conflicting principles to proclaim their position to be in conformity with Marxian precepts, or to be the only “true” Marxian position. Consequently, since the death of Marx, the most farcical and disgusting political campaigns and pillaging expeditions have been labelled or masqueraded in the guise of Marxism, and are even at this late day usurping the name of the great master for the purpose of political capital. These unsavory tactics and ungratifying conditions are made possible and tolerated in the Socialist movement, because the reverence entertained for and unbounded confidence placed in Marx are not predicated upon a sound knowledge of or an even superficial familiarity with the actual works of this celebrated economist. There is probably no book in the scientific literature of the world that enjoys greater popularity, is more appealed to, [p. 88] oftener recommended and less read than “Capital.” In consequence, it will be difficult to find another science, enjoying the same popularity as Marxism, in whose name are propagated so many conflicting and erroneous views. As already insinuated, the cause for these ungratifying conditions can be traced to the colossal ignorance prevalent amongst so-called “Marxian” Socialists on matters Marxian. Therefore, the only force able to curb and eventually obliterate “these evil powers of darkness” is familiarity with the works of their idol, and an acquaintance with the lucid teachings of their much heralded leader, through a systematic study of Socialist classics. The organization of classes or circles for the study of Socialist classics should, consequently, be seriously taken in hand by all Socialists who have the healthy development of Marxism at heart. A vigorous, revolutionary political and industrial movement of Socialism can only flow from a sound theoretical conception of Marxism; no conscious, effective and revolutionary policy can be expected from the vast majority of the political and economic forces now operating under the banner of Socialism.

* * *

When a student enters upon the study of Socialism, the first truism he should remember is that Socialism as a science does not occupy itself nearly so extensively with the contemplation and elucidation of future society, as with the examination and economic analysis of the present one. Scientific Socialism is, therefore, not as it is generally and mistakenly assumed, a theoretical system dealing solely with the multifarious phases of the Cooperative Commonwealth, but one which constitutes primarily an inquiry into the origin, foundation, laws and tendencies noticeable in the development of capitalist production. In consequence, a knowledge of Socialism does not consist of an individual’s competence to memorize a definition formulating the economic and social basis of Socialist production, i. e., setting forth the economic groundwork of the Industrial Republic and the [p. 89] social consequences resulting therefrom, but rather of his ability to file a brief for Socialism, by convincingly pointing out the necessity for and inevitability of the Cooperative Commonwealth germinating in the womb of capitalist society. A knowledge of Socialism demands, therefore, in the first place not so much a study of future society as it does a thorough investigation of present social and economic life. In consequence, Socialism represents more an investigation of capitalist production and an exposition of the social and economic laws underlying the same than an abstract theory or speculation of Industrial Democracy. However, it must be also emphasized that in order to have a normal, that is scientifically sound conception of future society, and an understanding of the forces and social elements making for it, a deep and scientific appreciation of Capitalism is absolutely indispensable.

As an excellent introduction into the so-called mysteries of Economics and the peculiarities of the Socialist nomenclature, also as a textbook of Socialism unparalleled for lucidness, pithiness and accuracy I recommend a close study of “Das Erfurter Programm,” by Karl Kautsky, published in English complete under the name of “The Class Struggle” and translated by Wm. E. Bohn, or chapters of which are issued in pamphlet form under the titles of “The Working Class,” “The Capitalist Class,” “The Class Struggle” and “The Socialist Republic,” translated and adapted to American conditions by Daniel De Leon. There is probably no book in the by no means limited assortment of Socialist literature that equals this work in its scrupulous accuracy of exposition; an accuracy made doubly effective because it is coupled with a remarkable and rare simplicity in the presentation of Marxian fundamentals. Here we have a compendium of Socialism, written by a Marxian scholar of international repute, classical in its treatment of the subject matter, and truly deserving the widest possible circulation in the Socialist and labor movement. “Das Erfurter Programm,” as the German [p. 90] title of “The Class Struggle” suggests, was originally written to furnish a theoretical explanation and scientific elucidation of the programme of the German Social Democracy, adopted at Erfurt, 1891, to the workers. The very purpose and nature of such a work makes out of it a rich source of information for particularly the serious student ; because here the penetrating rays of Marxism are thrown upon the programmatic demands and principles of a political party of Socialism, and employed or utilized to verify the same before the bar of science. “Das Erfurter Programm” (”The Class Struggle”) succeeds admirably in presenting and explaining Socialist fundamentals to the novice or uninitiated. However, in doing this, it claims to be, as already stated, substantiating the demands and theoretical propositions laid down in the Erfurt programme of the Social Democratic Party. In the opinion of the writer, the object of this splendid work has been only partially fulfilled, at least the object of its publishers, because as an advocate of sound, scientific fundamentals it has no rival in Socialist literature, in consequence, neither can it find its equal as a repudiator of palliatives and so-called immediate demands, so popular in the German Social Democracy and with which the Erfurt programme is overloaded.

Possessing a working knowledge of the genesis and character of capitalist production, also of the economic and social status of the various classes in present society, the student should now seek to familiarize himself more thoroughly with the Socialist conception of social evolution, i. e., with the philosophical foundation of scientific Socialism. Familiarity with the elements and propositions of Historical Materialism will also lead to a better understanding and more competent appreciation of social phenomena, and simultaneously equips the reader with the knowledge that will henceforth enable him to differentiate intelligently between Utopian and Scientific Socialism. An intensive study of Frederick Engels’ masterpiece “Development of Socialism from Utopia to a Science” is now recommended. In conjunction with these philo-[p. 91]sophical studies, the student ought to read the “Preliminary Remarks” to “Principles of Political Economy,” by John Stuart Mill. In this introduction the great English Economist gives in a lucid and brilliant form a short resume of the principal stages in the evolution of the human race. If this work is not procurable, then the student can commence immediately with the “Evolution of Property,” by Paul Lafargue. However, a diligent perusal of Mill’s “Preliminary Remarks” can not be too strongly recommended.

In order to develop and broaden the student’s knowledge of Political Economy, the study of the following works is now opportune and must be carried out in the order they are listed: “Wage, Labor and Capital,” by Karl Marx; “High Cost of Living,” by Arnold Petersen; “Value, Price and Profit,” by Karl Marx.

Knowing the economic and social forces underlying social development, also possessing a scientific conception of social phenomena and historical manifestations; furthermore, being somewhat familiar with the general phases of social evolution, it is now desirable and quite essential that the student begin a somewhat systematic study in Ethnology, Sociology and History. As an introduction to this interesting course of reading, the student should slowly and patiently explore that treasure island of facts, that monumental work in Ethnology, “Ancient Society,” by Lewis H. Morgan. A thorough and diligent study of this classic is absolutely imperative and will greatly assist in the proper understanding of the subsequent periods in historical development. A study of the following works is now recommended : “The Ancient Lowly,” by C. Osborne Ward; “Two Pages from Roman History,” by Daniel De Leon; “Crises in European History,” by Gustav Bang; “An Introduction to the Study of the Middle Ages” and “Medieval Europe,” by Ephraim Emerton; “The Middle Ages,” by Henry Hallam; “History of European Morals,” by William Edward Hartpole Lecky; “General History [p. 92] of Civilization in Europe,” by Francois Pierre Guillaume Guizot; “History of Civilization in England,” by Henry Thomas Buckle; and as supplementary reading “The Mysteries of the People, or History of a Proletarian Family Across the Ages,” by Eugene Sue, translated from the original French by Daniel De Leon. The last work by Sue in this series consists of 21 volumes, and is really a universal history in itself, depicting the class struggle as it has raged through the ages and under the different social systems. For a study of social development in America the works listed below will be found suitable ; these works are written by scholars well ground in the theories of Historical Materialism, and, consequently lay bare the actual driving forces responsible for and behind social change in this country: “American Industrial Evolution from Frontier to Factory,” by Justus Ebert; “Social Forces in American History,” by A. M. Simons; and “The Workers in American History,” by James Oneal.

It is now also necessary that the student acquaint himself with the inception and growth of the Socialist movement, a growth, however, that has not always kept abreast with the development of theoretical Socialism. The following classics of Socialist literature and historic documents should now be critically read: “The Communist Manifesto,” by Karl Marx and Frederick Engels; “Revolution and Counter-Revolution, or Germany in 1848,” erroneously credited to and published under the name of (Karl Marx, but actually written by Frederick Engels; “The Class Struggle in France 1848-1850,” by Karl Marx; “The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Napoleon,” by Karl Marx; and “The Civil War in France” (“The Paris Commune”), by Karl Marx. In conjunction with the foregoing the following works, dealing in the main with American conditions and problems, may be profitably read: “History of Socialism in the United States,” by Morris Hillquit; “Proceedings of the Ninth Convention of the S. L. P.”; “Proceedings of the Tenth National Convention of the S. L. P., 1900”; “New Jersey Socialist Unity Conference”; [p. 93] “Flashlights of the Amsterdam Congress,” by Daniel De Leon; “Launching of the I. W. W.,” by Paul F. Brissenden; and “Proceedings of the First Convention of the Industrial Workers of the World, Chicago, 1905.”

Fully equipped with the various subjects and phases constituting the theoretical system of Marxism, and being also somewhat familiar with the various stages and periods of social development, the student is now amply prepared to take up the study of works usually considered too ponderous or “academic” for the unprepared worker. These works form the basis of the theoretical structure of Marxism, and their study is, therefore, synonymous with imbibing the Socialist philosophy at its “original sources.” The first of this class of works to be assiduously studied is Frederick Engels’ “Landmarks of Scientific Socialism” (Anti-Duehring). In conjunction with this invaluable gem of Socialist literature “Feuerbach, Roots of Socialist Philosophy,” by the same author; and “A Critique to Political Economy” and “Poverty of Philosophy,” by Karl Marx should be read; special attention being given to the Preface of the “Critique.” In this connection “The Theoretical System of Karl Marx,” by Louis B. Boudin, will also serve as very effective and profitable supplementary reading.

The next and final work to be taken up in this course of reading will be the study of “Capital,” the so-called foundation or basic work of Socialist Political Economy. Before, however, commencing this important and tedious task, the student should do some additional preliminary reading and rehearse his studies in Economics. He should, for example, reread “Wage, Labor and Capital,” “Value, Price and Profit,” etc., and particularly seek to master the contents of Marx’s “A Critique to Political Economy,” already referred to above. Furthermore, a perusal of works of a critical and more or less controversial nature, occupying themselves with the various phases of Marxism as formulated and substantiated in “Capital,” will be of great assistance [p. 94] to a proper understanding of this masterpiece. For this purpose, the following brochures are recommended as collateral reading: “Vulgar Economy,” by Daniel De Leon; “Marx on Mallock, or Facts versus Fiction,” by the same author; “Was Marx Wrong?”, by I. M. Rubinow; and “Karl Marx and Boehm-Bawerk, Vulgar Economy Illustrated,” by W. H. Emmett.

The study of “Capital” can now be taken up, and in this connection the following suggestions should be observed. The social and historical significance of this work has been, I believe, sufficiently emphasized and dealt with in the lectures proper and, therefore, requires no further elucidation. What is now of prime importance to the prospective reader or student of “Capital” is a plan or course of procedure netting the best possible results with the smallest expenditure of energies. It can not be denied, all popular assertions notwithstanding, that “Capital” is to the average workingman, unaccustomed to scientific works, quite a tedious and ponderous volume; furthermore, that an indiscriminate and unsystematic reading of this book is not very conducive to either the spirit and future efforts of the reader, or to an intelligent appreciation of the work itself. As underscored in this article before, in the humble opinion of the writer, an EXHAUSTIVE course of preliminary reading and study is absolutely essential, yes, a prerequisite, for a proper understanding of “Capital.” Hence if classes or individuals, not equipped with the aforementioned knowledge so necessary for a proper perception or understanding, i. e., unprepared and untrained to assimilate or digest the intellectual food offered in this monumental work, give up their studies in despair, then the reason should not be ascribed to the “ponderous form of presentation in ‘Capital’,” but to the insufficient preparation and inability of these students to understand the nature and mode of Marx’s investigations and deductions. However, those who have diligently followed the lecturer through his discourses and studied the books recommended in this Outline need have no fears on this [p. 95] score, and will experience no difficulties in understanding “Capital.”

To the student desirous of conserving energy, also to the teachers of “Capital” I would suggest and warmly recommend that they begin the study of the book not in the customary way, but commence with Part VIII, The So-Called Primitive Accumulation. This section deals with and graphically depicts the social and economic origin of capital and capitalist production, and shatters once and for all time that well-known myth of capital being the result or fruit of abstinence. In a powerful and highly fascinating style, Marx unrolls before the eyes of the reader a picture vividly showing the birth, development and culmination of Capitalism. Here we have a history of the capitalistic stage in the endless chain of social development, a history written by the formulator of Historical Materialism, and it is truly a presentation throbbing with the creative vitality only inherent in convincing and irrefutable arguments : arguments taken from and corresponding with the indisputable facts of historic data and events. In this section of the book the secret of primitive accumulation, the expropriation of the peasants and their dispossession from the soil, the bloody and barbarous legislation against the expropriated in the 15th, 16th and 17th Centuries, the genesis of agrarian and industrial capital, and the historical tendencies of capitalist accumulation are exposed and dispassionately analyzed ; including a scientific dissection of our modern theory of colonization — an examination that will prove to be particularly Interesting when read in the light of the present war.

From this part of the book turn to Part III, Chapter X, on The Working Day, and read Section 1, The Limits of the Working Day, Section 2, The Greed for Surplus Labor. — Manufacturer and Boyard, Section 3, Branches of English Industries without Legal Limits to Exploitation, Section 4, Day and Night Work. — The Relay System, Section 5, The Struggle for a Normal Working Day, — Compulsory Laws for the Extension of the Working [p. 96] Day from the Middle of the 14th to v the End of the 17th Century, Section 6, The Struggle for the Normal Working Day — Compulsory Limitation by Law of the Working Time.— The English Factory Acts, 1833 to 1864, Section 7, The Struggle for a Normal Working Day.— Reaction of the English Factory Acts on Other Countries. As the sub-headings sufficiently indicate, this chapter deals solely with the historical growth of and tendencies developed by capitalist exploitation, and thus furnishes an indictment of fact fearlessly laying bare the revolting, barbarous and anti-social character of the capitalist system of production.

In order to refresh the student’s memory along the lines of the Materialist Conception of History, and for the purpose of familiarizing him with a brilliant piece of applied Historical Materialism, he should turn to Part IV, and assiduously peruse Chapter XV, dealing with Machinery and Modern Industry. In this chapter the following interesting problems are taken up: The Development of Machinery, The Value transferred by Machinery to the Product, The Proximate Effects of Machinery on the Workman (Appropriation of Supplementary Labor- Power by Capital, The Employment of Women and Children, Prolongation of the Working Day, Intensification of Labor), The Factory, The Strife between Workman and Machinery, The Theory of Compensation as regards Workpeople displaced by Machinery, Repulsion and Attraction of Workpeople by the Factory System, Revolution effected in Manufacture, Handicrafts, and Domestic Industry by Modern Industry, The Factory Acts, etc., and Modern Industry and Agriculture.

Being fully acquainted with the origin, development and tendencies of Capitalism, also quite familiar with the historical role assumed by it in the process of social evolution, the student is now sufficiently equipped to study the economic structure and laws of the capitalist system of production. And to this phase of investigation the remaining and largest part of “Capital” is devoted. Having digested such works as “Value, Price and [p. 97] Profit,” “The Class Struggle,” “A Critique to Political Economy,” etc., the student is well ground and at home in the Socialist and scientific terminology, also in the elements of Marxian Economics, and should, therefore, experience no difficulties in the study of such portions of the work dealing primarily with the investigation and analysis of capitalist production in its pure economic form. The first Chapter of Part I can be defined as the bedrock of Socialist Economics. In the four sections composing this masterly treatise on Commodities, the basic principles and substance of Marxian Economics are laid down. In this chapter such highly important subjects as The two Factors of a Commodity, Use Value and Value (the Substance of Value and the Magnitude of Value), The Twofold Character of the Labor embodied in Commodities, The Form of Value or Exchange Value and The Fetishism of Commodities are subjected to an examination, the findings resulting therefrom elucidated and formulated in concise statements and accurate deductions. A mastery of the first ninety-six pages of “Capital” is, consequently, essential for an intelligent understanding of the remaining chapters in the book; because such a mastery equips the student with a faculty of scientific conception and differentiation quite conducive and necessary to further progress; again, the fact of being at home in the labyrinth of theoretical definitions and economic complexities constituting the groundwork of Marxian Economics is in itself an invaluable asset to the future intellectual labors of the student, and implies, without exaggeration, a knowledge of the quintessential principles of Marxism. Once the student has a correct conception of such familiar terms as Wealth, Value, Use Value, Exchange Value, Commodity, Labor Power, Surplus Value, Capital, etc., the hardest or most irksome part of the task can be considered accomplished. The remaining chapters in the work can now be taken up and studied in their regular order, including a re-reading of those previously studied, and the student should, relatively considered, experience no exceptional difficulties in his work.

[p. 98] To not a few readers this course of study will no doubt seem ponderous and unnecessarily voluminous. It will probably strike many as being too “academic,” “theoretical” and “impractical.” The absence of the current and popular works and tracts on Socialism may also seem inexplicable to some and earn for this course the reputation of being too “scientific” or “orthodox.” To all these antiquated and well known but superficial criticisms and stereotype platitudes the author has only one reply to make, namely: that the above is to be a course in Marxian Socialism, aiming solely to equip the students with a working knowledge of the fundamentals and basic elements of the Socialist philosophy. It is not to be a course in the various “adaptations” and “practical” revisions or abortions of Marxism, popularly taught to a naive and guileless public as “scientific” Socialism by a set of unscrupulous political fakirs. All the works listed and recommended in this course are recognized classics of Socialism, and can be considered as standing proof for the absolute superfluousness of the countless collection of books and pamphlets published on this subject, all claiming to be “popular expositions” of Socialism and “filling a long felt want.” Most of these works contain as a rule nothing else but the intellectual drivel of a coterie of, in many cases, well meaning but ignorant pseudo intellectuals, and in other instances may be classified as the output of a set of unprincipled mercenaries, who see in the labor and Socialist movement a lucrative field for the realization of their personal ambitions. Therefore, the author sincerely trusts that the perusal and diligent study of the works listed in this course will assist to create a sound conception of Marxism and a demand for scientific SOCIALIST literature in the Socialist movement.

 

Source: Karl Dannenberg. Karl Marx, The Man and His Work, and The Constructive Elements of Socialism. Three Lectures and Two Essays. New York: The Radical Review Publishing Association, 1918, pp. 85-99.

 

 

Categories
Gender Harvard

Harvard and Wellesley. Race and Gender. Dubois and Balch.

Categories
Economists Irwin Collier

Harvard. Edward Cummings, a brief biographical sketch. 1899

Earlier postings about Edward Cummings, a sociologist in the Harvard Economics department at the turn of the twentieth century, included a newspaper account of his resignation of his professorship to become Unitarian pastor and a link to his papers. Harvard was not to establish an independent department of sociology until 1931, which was much later than in other leading American universities. For more about Cummings and the pre-history of the Harvard Department of Sociology, see: “The Establishment of Sociology at Harvard” by Lawrence T. Nichols in Science at Harvard University: Historical Perspectives, edited by Clark A. Elliott and Margaret W. Rossiter. Bethlehem: Lehigh University Press, 1992.

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CUMMINGS, Edward, 1861-

Born in Colebrook, N. H., 1861; graduated at Harvard; Instructor in English at Harvard; appointed to the Robert Treat Paine Fellowship in Social Science; studied Sociological questions in Europe; Instructor in Sociology at Harvard; Assistant Professor; Associate Editor of The Quarterly Journal of Economics; member of the Council of American Economic Association; Director of the Massachusetts Prison Association; Director of the Boston Associated Charities; member of the American Statistical Association and other organizations.

EDWARD CUMMINGS, A.M., Assistant Professor of Sociology at Harvard, is the son of Edward Norris and Lucretia Frances (Merrill) Cummings, and was born in Colebrook, New Hampshire, April 20, 1861. The Cummings family, originally of Scottish origin, settled in Massachusetts about the middle of the seventeenth century. The Merrill family, of English origin, came to this country about the same time. Up to the age of twelve Mr. Cummings was educated in the private and public schools of New Hampshire. After that he attended the public schools of Woburn, Massachusetts, and fitted for College in the High School of that city. He graduated at Harvard in 1883, but continued with graduate work at the University until the spring of 1888, serving as Instructor in English during the latter part of this period, and receiving the degree of Master of Arts in 1885. In the spring of 1888 he resigned his position as Instructor to accept an appointment to the Robert Treat Paine Fellowship in Social Science. This was the first Fellowship in Social Science at Harvard, and his appointment was the first to that fellowship. During the following winter he was a resident of the University Settlement at Toynbee Hall, Whitechapel, London. For three years he continued sociological study in Europe as incumbent of the Paine Fellowship, spending a year in England and Scotland and two years in France, Italy and Germany. In 1891 he returned to America and was appointed Instructor in Sociology at Harvard. Two years later he became Assistant Professor. Professor Cummings is Associate Editor of The Quarterly Journal of Economics and a contributor to the literature of social and economic discussion. He is a member of the Council of the American Economic Association, a Director of the Massachusetts Prison Association, a Director of the Boston Associated Charities, and a member of the Executive Committee of the Massachusetts Reform Club, Secretary of the Advisory Committee appointed by the Mayor of Boston in 1899 to inquire into the penal aspects of drunkenness, besides holding membership in the American Statistical Association, the Twentieth Century Club, and the Round Table Club. He married June 25, 1891, Rebecca Haswell Clarke, and has one son: Edward Estlin Cummings [the poet E .E. Cummings].

 

Source: University and their Sons. History, Influence and Characteristics of American Universities with Biographical Sketches and Portraits of Alumni and Recipients of Honorary Degrees. Editor-in-chief, General Joshua L. Chamberlain, LL.D. Vol II (1899), pp. 155-156.

 

 

Categories
Chicago Economists Harvard

Chicago. J. Laurence Laughlin, brief biographical sketch, 1899

LAUGHLIN, James Laurence, 1850-

Categories
Harvard

Harvard. Economics Seminary Schedules. 1929-32.

An earlier posting provides lists of presenters for the Economic Seminary for the years 1891-1908.  This posting provides the lists of announced presenters for the final three years of the seminary.

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Seminary Meetings in 1929-30
Professor Bullock

Sept. 30          Harvard Union

Oct. 14            S.E. Harris, “Monetary Policy of the British Dominions since 1914.”

Oct. 28            W. E. Beach, “Bank Policy and Gold Movements in England from 1880 to 1914.”

Nov. 4              J. P. Wernette, “Fiscal Reorganization in the United States of Colombia.”

Nov. 25           F. W. Taussig, “German Economic Periodicals and Works of Reference.”

Dec. 9            H. D. White, “International Balance of Payments of France.”

Feb. 3             W. Z. Ripley, “Railroad Consolidation.”

Feb. 17           C. S. Joslyn, “A Proposed Statistical Measurement of Vertical Occupational Mobility.”

March 8          T. J. Kreps, “The Chemical Phase of the Industrial Revolution.”

March 31       D. V. Brown, “Family Allowances.”

April 28          J. H. Williams, “Reparations and the International Flow of Capital.”

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Seminary Meetings in 1930-31
Professor Gay

Sept. 29         Harvard Union

Oct. 15           University Film Foundation, “The Availability of Motion Pictures for Instruction in Economic History and Economic Resources”.

Oct. 29            O. H. Taylor, “The Present Position and Prospects of Economic Theory”.

Nov. 5            Professors Bullock, Ripley, and Black, “Graduate Study and Research in Economics”.

Nov. 19          H. D. White, “The American Rayon Industry, a Product of Protection”.

Dec.   3           Professor Schumpeter, “Financial Policy of Germany since 1919″.

Dec. 17           Professor W. E. Eckblaw, Professor of Economic Geography, Clark University, “Russia To-day”.

Jan. 7             A. E. Monroe, “Land as a Consumers’ Good”.

Jan. 21            (Reading period)

Feb. 4              (Exam. period)

Feb. 18           D. H. Wallace, “The Aluminum Monopoly in the U.S.”

March 4         W. C. Mitchell, “Cyclical Behavior of Factors in Business”.

March 11       L. B. Currie, “The Commercial Loan Theory of Banking”.

March 25       Dr. B. M. Squires, “The Administration of Public Employment Offices”.

April 1             Dr. J. J. de Stoop, “The Merger Movement in Belgium”.

April 8             Dr. Mabel C. Buer, Lecturer in Economics at the University of Reading, England, “The Relation between Industrial Development and Vital Statistics in England”.

April 22          Major Lyndall Urwick, Director of the International Management Institute at Geneva, “The International Organization of Economic Study”.

April 29          Professor T. S. Adams, Yale University, “The Treatment of Capital Gains and Losses under the Federal Income Tax”.

May 6            Professor J. D. Black, “Interregional Competition in Production”.

May 20          (Reading period)

Source: Harvard University Archives. Department of Economics, Correspondence & Papers 1902-1950 (UAV 349.10), Box 25. Folder “Economics Seminary 1925-33”.

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Seminary Meetings in 1931-32
Professor Carver

Second and fourth Monday of month

Oct. 5          Members of teaching staff

Oct. 19        Dr. E. Dana Durand, United States Tariff Commission, “The Business Depression”.

Oct. 26        Mr. J. P. Wernette, “Politics and Finance in Peru”.

Nov. 9          Mr. J. B. Crane, “Aviation”.

Nov. 23       Professor W. Z. Ripley, “National Economic Planning.”

Dec. 14        Dr. J. F. Normano, “South America Today: An Attempt at an Economic ‘Characteristique’.

Jan.  11        Dr. L. B. Currie, “The Nature of Credit”.

Feb.  8         Dr. B. C. Hunt, “The English Joint Stock Company 1800-1862”.

Feb. 15        Dr. Mordecai Ezekiel, Assistant Chief Economist of the Federal Farm Board, “Stability vs. Flexibility as Means to Economic Adjustment”.

Feb. 29       Dr. C. J. Ratzlaff, “The Theory and Practice of the International Labor Organization of the League of Nations”

Mar  14       Dr. Leontief, “Postive and Normative Approaches in Economic Theory”

Mar  28       Mr. K. L. Anderson, “Thornstein Veblen’s Economics”.

Apr.  11       Mr. Ejnar Jensen, “International Monetary and Technological Influences on European Agricultural Development since 1870”.

Apr.  18       Dr. Wilhelm Kromphardt, A. O. Professor of Economics, University of Münster, “The Relation of Economic Evolution to Economic Theory and Its Application”.

Apr. 25       Mr. N. R. Danielian, “Recent Developments in the Electric Light and Power Industry in the U.S.”

May 9          Professor Charles S. Collier, Professor of Law in George Washington University, “Public Utility Valuation.”

Source: Harvard University Archives. Department of Economics, Correspondence & Papers 1902-1950 (UAV 349.10), Box 25. Folder “Economics Seminary 1925-33”.

Categories
Courses Harvard

Harvard. Economics students petition for Karl Marx course. 1938

 

 

In the artifacts posted here we see how student demand for a course on Marxian economics at Harvard that had been dropped for the academic year 1938-39 resulted in the course being offered.

Three of the undersigned went on to receive Ph.D.’s in economics at Harvard:

  • Alexander, Sidney Stuart.D. 1946. Financial structure of American corporations since 1900.
  • Carlson, Reynold Erland.D. 1946. Block grants and central-local financial relations in Great Britain.
  • Vandermeulen, Daniel Carlson.D. 1947. Dissertation: Technological change in the paper industry—the introduction of the sulphate process.

A draft outline of the course exists in Wassily Leontief’s papers and has been transcribed at Economics in the Rear-View Mirror.

__________________________________

[Economics 117 Course Listing 1st edition, 1938-39]

[Economics 117 1hf. Karl Marx]

Half-course (first half-year). Mon., 4 to 6. Asst. Professor Leontief.
Omitted in 1938-39.

Source: Announcement of the Courses of Instruction offered by the Faculty of Arts and Sciences during 1938-39 (1st edition, p. 150.

__________________________________

[Student petition to “unbracket” Economics 117]

[typed] We, the undersigned, observe that Economics 117 is bracketed in the Course Catalogue for 1938-39, and we understand that the reason for this is the very small election that the course has received in past years. We should like to signify our desire to take Economics 117 next year, and we hope that this indication of a sizable demand will induce the competent authorities to reconsider the advisability of offering the course in the year 1938-39.

[signed] S. S. Alexander
[signed] D. C. Vandermeulen
[signed] Wm. Glazier
[signed] David Feller
[signed] R. E. Carlson
[signed] John D. Wilson

Source: Harvard University Archives. Department of Economics. Correspondence & Papers 1902-1950 (UAV.349.10). Box 23, Folder “Course Offerings 1937-39-42”

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[Economics 117 Course Listing 2nd edition, 1938-39]

Economics 117 1hf. Karl Marx

Half-course (first half-year). Mon., 4 to 6. Asst. Professor Leontief and Dr. P. M. Sweezy.

Source: Announcement of the Courses of Instruction offered by the Faculty of Arts and Sciences during 1938-39 (2nd edition). Official Register of Harvard University, Vol. 35, No. 42 (September 23, 1938), p. 150.

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[Economics 19 Course Enrollment, 1935-36]

[Economics] 19 1hf. Associate Professor Mason and Asst. Professor Leontief. –Karl Marx.

1 Radcliffe, 35 auditors. Total 36.

 

Source: Harvard University. Report of the President of Harvard College and Reports of Departments for 1935-36, p. 83.

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[Economics 117 Course Enrollment, 1936-37]

[Economics] 19 1hf. Associate Professor Mason and Asst. Professor Leontief. –Karl Marx.

1 Graduate, 1 Senior. Total 2.

Source: Harvard University. Report of the President of Harvard College and Reports of Departments for 1936-37, p. 93.

__________________________________

[Economics 117 not offered 1937-38]

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[Economics 117 Course Enrollment, 1938-39]

[Economics] 117 1hf. Asst. Professor Leontief and Dr. P. M. Sweezy. –Karl Marx.

4 Graduates, 4 Seniors. Total 8.

Source: Harvard University. Report of the President of Harvard College and Reports of Departments for 1938-39, p. 99.

__________________________________

[Economics 117 not offered 1939-40]

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