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Oberlin. Sociology bibliography by John R. Commons, 1891-1892

 

The core of this post is a twelve printed page bibliography of sociology prepared by the institutional economist, John R. Commons (1862-1945), during the one year he taught at his alma mater, Oberlin College in 1891-92. I have been able to provide links to close to 100% of the items he has listed. From the Oberlin College catalogue for that year I have transcribed the course offerings and their brief descriptions. A brief chronology of Commons’ education and professional career was put together from his very readable autobiography, Myself (1934) for this post.

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John Rogers Commons
Education and Professional Career

John R. Commons graduated from Oberlin College with an A.B. in 1888; A.M. (honorary) awarded in 1890.

1888-1890. Two trustees of Oberlin College lent Commons a total of $1,000 to finance his first two years of graduate work at Johns Hopkins University.

“Within a year and a half came my usual fate. I failed completely on a history examination. This ruined my hopes of a fellowship to carry me through the third year. So I had only two years of graduate work and never reached the degree of Ph.D., the sign manual of a scholar.” Myself, p. 42.

1890-91. Taught at Wesleyan ($1000 salary). Commons’ contract was not renewed, he was considered a poor teacher.

“Three months before the year was ended President Raymond notified me that I would not be needed the next year, because I was a failure as a teacher. My students were not interested.” Myself, p. 45.

1891-92. Associate Professor of Political Economy at Oberlin. The salary at Oberlin $1,200 “would not pay expenses, to say nothing of debts”.  Sociology bibliography from that time transcribed below.

1892-95. Indiana University. Increase in salary of $800 to $2,000 was his reason to leave Oberlin to move to Bloomington, Indiana. There he received a job offer for $2,500 at Syracuse in 1895 and went to the president of Indiana, hoping to negotiate a counter-offer. “Evidently he [the President] was loaded, for he immediately pulled the trigger: ‘Accept the offer at once.’”

1895-99. Syracuse University. Mr. Huyler of “Huyler Candy” fame established a chair in sociology at Syracuse.

“Afterwards, when sociology was separated from political economy in university teaching, charity was transferred to sociology. I never could reconcile myself to this separation. I taught “sociology” at Syracuse University and got out a book in 1895 on machine politics, which was to be cured, I thought, by proportional representation.” Myself, p. 43.

“I taught ethnology, anthropology, criminology, charity organization, taxation, political economy, municipal government, and other things, all under the name of sociology.” Myself, p. 53.

The chair for sociology was abolished after the university was confronted with serious resistance from donors who wanted Commons fired for having taken a public stand both against professional baseball with ticketed admission on Sundays and for the right of workers to play baseball on their day off, i.e. Sunday.

1899-1904. Odd jobbing.

Set up a Bureau of Economic Research in New York. Published the first weekly index of wholesale prices. Commons’ sponsor, George Shipley, did not like the fact that the index number stopped showing  a decline in prices and cancelled Commons’ contract with him in September 1900. The index number project was discontinued but within a few weeks a former student, E. Dana Durand, hired Commons to finish a report on immigration for the Industrial Commission.

“It was a comparison of ten to fifteen races of immigrants from Eastern and Southeastern Europe, where they knew only dictatorship, in two great American industries to which they had come for what they thought was liberty. In one of these industries, clothing, they knew, at that time, only the cycle of revolution and dissolution. In the other, coal mining, they were learning fidelity to contracts—their trade agreements—in forming which they themselves had participated through representative government. It was their first lesson in Americanization, the union of Liberty and Order. Afterwards I wrote a series of articles for the Chautauqua Magazine and revised them at Madison for a book on Races and Immigrants in America, which was the title of one of my first courses of lectures at the University.” Myself, pp. 73-74.

Commons participated  as immigration and labor expert in the writing of the Final Report of the Industrial Commission, Vol. XIX (1902).

Move back to New York, hired as an assistant to the secretary of the National Civic Federation, Ralph M. Easley. Worked on taxation and labor conciliation.

“It was here that I first learned to distrust the ‘intellectuals’ as leaders in labor movements. I have known scores of them since then and have found other scores in my long study of the history of labor movements. Gompers, the clearest and most outspoken of all trade unionists, denounced them as the ‘fool friends’ of labor. I always look for them and try to clear them out from all negotiations between capital and labor, and from the councils of labor. My friends, the economists, often deplored this antagonism of American labor organizations toward the intellectuals. But they simply did not know the kind of intellectuals that come to leadership in labor movements. The kind is not the studious economist and statistician who cannot make an oratorical public speech, and who takes a broad social point of view which neither capitalists nor laborers understand. Such an intellectual is discarded and overwhelmed by the passions and cheers for a speaker who can hold a great audience. I have tried it and know. Such intellectuals are ‘class conscious’ instead of ‘wage conscious,’ to use the distinction proposed by my friend Selig Perlman. But the studious economist is nearly always ‘social conscious.’” Myself, p. 87.

1904-33. University of Wisconsin.

This period is worth its own post, sometime.

Source: John R. Commons, Myself, New York: Macmillan, 1934.

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Course Offerings at Oberlin 1891-1892

Political Science and Sociology.

  1. Political Economy.—Ely’s Introduction to Political Economy, and monographs on special topics. Professor Commons.
    Spring Term. Mo., Tu., Th., Fr., Sa. 55 hours.
    Elective for Sophomores.

This course is mainly historical and descriptive, showing the development of modern industrial conditions and the significance of modern problems. It serves as a necessary introduction to the courses in sociology and economics.

  1. Sociology.—Lectures and Recitations on assigned readings. Professor Commons.
    Through the year. We., Fr. 71 hours.
    Elective for Juniors and Seniors who have taken Political Science 1.

This course is introductory to Courses 4 and 5 of the Senior year. In the Fall term primitive society is studied with reference to beliefs, the institutions of the family, clan and tribe, and the origins of property and social classes. In the Winter and Spring terms social classes and institutions are traced through English history from the Saxon invasion to the present time. In the latter part of the Spring term the same line of study is followed in the American field. The aim is to show the evolution of modern social classes, and the development of poor laws and class legislation. Students will be examined upon the outlines of English history. It is expected that those who elect the course will continue it through the year.

  1. American Institutional History.—Fiske’s Civil Government in the United States. Professor Commons.
    Spring Term. We., Fr. 22 hours.
    Elective for Juniors who have taken Political Science 2.

The work is a continuation of the political side of Sociology into American History. Students are examined upon the outlines of American History.

  1. General Sociology.—Lectures, Readings, and Recitations. Professor Commons.
    Fall Term. Tu., Th., Sa. 38 hours.
    Elective for Seniors who have taken Political Science 1 and 2.

The attempt is here made to formulate the general principles of social organization and evolution. Attention is given to the history of social and political theories, and the works of the principal sociologists are studied and compared.

  1. Social Problems.—Lectures and Recitations. Professor Commons.
    Winter Term. Tu., Th., Sa. 35 hours.
    Elective for Seniors who have taken Political Science 1, 2, and 4.

The study of Charities, Pauperism, Intemperance, Penology, Education, Immigration, Race Problems, the Family, and Plans for social reform. Reports are made by students on assigned readings and investigations.

  1. Finance.—Ely’s Taxation in American States and Cities. Adams’ Public Debts, with lectures. Professor Commons.
    Fall and Winter Terms. Tu., Th., Sa. 73 hours.
    Elective for Juniors and Seniors who have taken Political Science 1.

Attention is given to the history and practice of taxation, to Public Debts and Public Industries. Students are required to consult public documents and to make reports on assigned topics. Those who elect the course are required to continue it through both terms.

  1. Corporations and Railways.—Lectures, Readings, and Reports. Professor Commons.
    Fall Term. Tu., Th., Sa. 38 hours.
    Omitted in 1892-93.
    Elective for Juniors and Seniors.

The history of corporation laws is studied, and the laws of the United States are compared with those of other countries. Railways are then studied in the same manner.

  1. Financial History of the United States.—Lectures, Readings, and Reports. Professor Commons.
    Winter Term. Tu., Th., Sa.
    Omitted in 1892-93.
    Elective for Juniors and Seniors.

Historical investigations are made of the different sources of income of the National Government, of the public debt and paper money.

  1. Economic Investigations.—Two hours per week through the year, counting as a three hours’ course. Professor Commons.
    Elective for Seniors who have shown proficiency in economic studies and are able to read German.

The investigations of students are guided by the instructor. Reports on the progress of work are made, and informal discussions and lectures are conducted by both instructor and students. The College libraries are well supplied with material for original study. In 1892-93, the investigations are concerned with economic theories and the distribution of wealth.
Students electing this course are required to continue it through the year.

  1. Advanced Political Economy.—Lectures with discussions. Professor Monroe.
    Original papers by the class.
    Spring Term. Tu., We., Th., Fr., Sa. 54 hours.
  2. English Constitution and Government.—The English and American governmental institutions compared. Lectures. Professor Monroe.
    Winter Term. Tu., We., Th., Fr., Sa. 58 hours.

Source: Catalogue of Oberlin College for the year 1891-1892, pp. 79-81.

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A POPULAR BIBLIOGRAPHY OF SOCIOLOGY
JOHN R. COMMONS,
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF POLITICAL ECONOMY,
OBERLIN COLLEGE.

OBERLIN, OHIO: THE OBERLIN NEWS PRESSES, 1892.

 

A POPULAR BIBLIOGRAPHY OF SOCIOLOGY.

The aim in compiling this Bibliography has been to furnish the general reader, especially the Christian minister and worker, a list of the best available books on important Sociological problems. Specialists, or those who desire to carry their studies further, can find extensive references in many of the books here mentioned to works in English and other languages. A more complete bibliography is the “Readers’ Guide in Economic, Social, and Political Science,” published by the Society for Political Education, New York.

Useful suggestions have been received from Gen. R. Brinkerhoff, of Mansfield, Ohio; Rev. Samuel W. Dike, LL. D., secretary of the National Divorce Reform League; Prof. Richard T. Ely, of Johns Hopkins University; Mr. W. B. Shaw, of the State Library, Albany, N. Y.; A. G. Warner, Ph. D., Superintendent of Charities of the District of Columbia.

The prices given are the publishers’ retail prices. Re ductions can usually be secured from any bookseller.

This is the first of a series of bulletins which the library of Oberlin College hopes to publish from time to time. It can be obtained free of charge on application to A. S. Root, Librarian of Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio.

GENERAL SOCIOLOGY.

Ely, Professor Richard T. Social Aspects of Christianity. N. Y., T. Y. Crowell & Co. 132 pages, price 90 cents.

This is the first book recommended for study by the Christian Social Union. It is a reprint of essays given at different times and places. It gives a forcible statement of the present attitude of the church toward social problems, and suggests principles and plans for social reform. It is well suited to arouse interest in, and show the importance of, Christian Sociology.

Ely, Professor Richard T. An Introduction to Political Economy. N. Y., Chautauqua Press, Hunt & Eaton, 1889. 358 pages, price $1.

A solid basis for studies in Sociology can be obtained only by beginning with that branch of Sociology which has reached most scientific development — Political Economy. This book is historical and descriptive, and furnishes an admirable introduction to Sociology. It contains selected bibliographies.

Ward, Lester F. Dynamic Sociology. N. Y., D. Appleton & Co., 1883. 2 vols., price $5. [Volume I; Volume II]

The ablest systematic treatise in English on Sociology. Superior to Comte or Spencer. The author, however, is biassed by grossly materialistic views of Christianity. He should be read with constant reference to works like those of Fremantle and Westcott, mentioned below.

Fremantle, Canon W. H. The World as the Subject of Redemption. N. Y., 1885. 443 pages, price $3.50. A cheaper edition is announced to appear soon by Longmans, Green & Co., N. Y.

“A magnificent description of the purpose of Christianity.” — Professor Ely. It should be in the hands of every minister of the gospel. The author discusses admirably the fundamental principles involved in the practical application of Christianity to Sociology.

Westcott, Canon B. F. Social Aspects of Christianity. London and N. Y., Macmillan & Co., 1887. 202 pages, price $1.50.

Sermons delivered at Westminster in 1886. Many good points.

Crooker, J. H. Problems in American Society. Boston, G. H. Ellis & Co. 293 pages, price $1.25.

Contains chapters on education, scientific charity, temperance, politics, religion. Good.

Social Science Library of the best authors. Edited by Rev. W. D. P. Bliss. N. Y., Humboldt Publishing Co. There have been issued seven numbers, as follows: (1) Rogers, Six Centuries of Work and Wages; (2) the Socialism of John Stuart Mill; (3) and (4) The Socialism and Unsocialism of Thomas Carlyle [Volume I; Volume II]; (5) William Morris, Poet, Artist, Socialist; (6) The Fabian Essays; (7) The Economics of Herbert Spencer. Price, paper cover, 25 cents each, or $2.50 a year for twelve numbers. Cloth extra, 75 cents each, or $7.50 a year for twelve numbers.

Public Opinion. Washington, D. C., Public Opinion Co. Weekly, price $3 per year.

Contains well-selected extracts from representative periodicals, giving all sides of current social and economic discussions. Sample copies may be obtained free on application.

Economic Review. Published quarterly for the Oxford University Branch of the Christian Social Union. First number, January, 1891. American agents, James Pott & Co., N Y. Subscription $2.50, single copies 75 cents.

The Christian Social Union is an organization inside the Established Church for the study of social questions. The Economic Review has been also adopted as the organ of the American Branch of the Union.

 

THE STATE.

Bluntschli, J. K. Theory of the Modern State. Translated from the sixth German edition. London and N. Y., Macmillan, 1885. 518 pages, price $ 3. 25.

This book is for the Modern State what Aristotle’s Politics is for the Ancient. It cannot be too highly praised, both for its historical and its philosophical insight. It presents the State as the outcome of social and economic forces, and in this regard its discussion of social classes is especially able and important.

Wilson, Woodrow. The State. Boston, D. C. Heath & Co., 1890. 686 pages, price $ 2.

A condensed description of the origin and growth of political institutions, and comparisons of Ancient and Modern States. Able chapters on law and the functions of government.

Adams, Henry C. The Relation of the State to Industrial Action. Baltimore, American Economic Association, 1888. 85 pages, price $1. (Vol. I, No. 6 of its “Publications.”).

An able presentation of fundamental principles regarding the industrial activities of the State.

Bryce, James. The American Commonwealth. [Volume I; Volume II, 3rd ed., 1897)] N. Y., Macmillan & Co., 1891. 2d edition, price $ 2.

 

THE FAMILY.

Westermarck, E. The History of Human Marriage. London, Macmillan, 1891. 664 pages, price 145.

“The best single book on the history of the Institution.” — Dr. Dike.

Starcke, C. N. The Primitive Family. Translated. N. Y., D. Appleton & Co., 1889. 315 pages, price $ 1. 75.

A valuable collection of facts and review of theories.

The English Bible for the family in Hebrew life.

Coulanges, Fustel de. The Ancient City. Translated from the French by Willard Small. Boston, Lee & Shepard, 1874. 529 pages.

Best for the family in Greco-Roman life.

Report of the United States Commissioner of Labor on Marriage and Divorce. Washington, 1889. 1074 pages.

The most complete source of information regarding the law and statistics of Marriage and Divorce in the United States and Europe. A second edition is already nearly exhausted.

Reports of the National Divorce Reform League contain useful discussions and references to literature. Published annually, 1886 to date. Rev. Samuel W. Dike, LL. D., corresponding secretary, Auburndale. Mass.

Reference should be made to chapters in other works. To writers on Social Ethics: Lotze, Practical Philosophy, translated and edited by Prof. G. T. Ladd, Ginn & Co. Hegel, edited by Prof. S. P. Morris. Wuttke, Christian Ethics, [Volume 1 History of Ethics; Volume II Pure Ethics] American edition. Writers on Political Science: Mulford, The Nation; Bluntschli, The Theory of the State; Woolsey, Political Science [Volume I; Volume II]. Writers on Law and Social Institutions: Sir Henry Maine’ s works, Gomme, Village Communities, Seebohm, The English Village Community. Law Books: Gray, Husband and Wife; Franklin, Marriage and Divorce.

 

LABOR.

Besides the following, there are also books mentioned under the heading “Remedies,” which describe the history and present conditions of the working classes.

Ely, Richard T. The Labor Movement in America. N. Y., T. Y. Crowell & Co., 1886. 383 pages, price $1.50.

A historical account of Labor organizations and communistic and socialistic movements in the United States. An Appendix gives platforms of Labor organizations and illustrative extracts from labor literature. The best.

Rogers, J. E. Thorold. Work and Wages. N. Y., Putnam. 591 pages, price $3. London, Swan Sonnenschein & Co. Abridged edition, 206 pages, price 25. 6d. Also abridged edition edited by Rev. W. D. P. Bliss, Humboldt Publishing Co., New York. Price, cloth 75 cents, paper 25 cents.

A history of English labor during the past six centuries, condensed by the author from his original investigations. A standard work.

Toynbee, Arnold. Industrial Revolution in England. London, Rivington, 1884. N. Y., Humboldt Publishing Co., 1890. Paper 60 cents, cloth $1.

Contributes admirably to a clear understanding of the rise and causes of present industrial problems.

Booth, C., ed. Labour and Life of the People. London, Williams & Norgate, 1889-’91. 2 vols. Vol. 1, East London, 10s. 6d; vol. 2, London, 215.

By far the most comprehensive and scientific investigation yet made into the actual conditions of a city’ s working population. No student of social science can dispense with it.

Riis, Jacob A. How the Other Half Lives. N. Y., Scribner, 1889. 304 pages, price $ 2.50.

The best description of New York tenements.

Campbell, Helen. Prisoners of Poverty. Boston, Roberts Bros., 1887. 257 pages, price $1.

A startling revelation of the life of women wage -workers in New York city, “based upon the minutest personal research.”

Campbell, Helen. Prisoners of Poverty Abroad. Boston, Roberts Bros., 1890. 248 pages, price $1.

A useful book.

Willoughby, W. F., and Graffenried, Miss Clare de. Child Labor. American Economic Association, 1890. 149 pages, price 75 cents. (Publications of the Am. Econ. Ass’n, vol. 5, No. 2.)

Two prize essays. The first is historical, and deals with general principles. The second gives the results of personal observations. The best.

Smith, R. M. Emigration and Immigration. N. Y., Scribner, 1890. 316 pages, price $1.40.

The best work on an important subject. Contains extensive bibliography.

Howell, George. The Conflicts of Capital and Labour. London and N. Y., Macmillan. 2d edition, revised, 1890, 536 pages, price $2.50.

The best description of trade-unions. Written by a trade-unionist and labor representative in Parliament. The author is not in sympathy with the “new trades unions” and the socialistic movements.

McNeill, Geo. E., ed. The Labor Movement, the Problem of To-day. Boston, A. M. Bridgman & Co., 1886. 650 pages, price $3.75

A co-operative work. Professor E. J. James contributes three chapters on the history of labor and labor legislation in Europe. The editor gives the history of labor in the United States. Leading representatives of labor organizations describe the growth of their own organizations. There are also chapters on arbitration, co -operation, industrial education, the land question and “army of the unemployed.” An important work.

Lloyd, H. D. Strike of Millionaires against Miners, the story of Spring Valley. N. Y., Belford, Clarke & Co., 1890. 264 pages, price $ 1; paper, 50 cents.

A good instance of evasion of responsibility on the part of stockholders for corporate management.

Burnett, John and others. The Claims of Labour. Edinburgh, Co-operative Printing Co., 1886. 275 pages, price 1s.

Contains an able chapter on “Irregularity of Employment and Fluctuations of Prices,” by H. S. Foxwell, professor of economics, University College, London.

Clark, J. B. The Philosophy of Wealth. Boston, Ginn & Co., 1889. 239 pages, price $1.10.

A thoughtful work. Treats of the functions of the church.

Gunton, G. Wealth and Progress. N. Y., Appleton, 1887. 382 pages, price $1; paper, 50 cents.

A discussion of the law of wages and an argument for eight -hour legislation.

Journal of the Knights of Labor. 841 North Broad street, Philadelphia. Price $1 per year.

The best of the labor press. Indispensable for the student of current labor problems.

Reports of Labor Bureaus, especially Massachusetts and the United States Department of Labor. Valuable reprints from Massachusetts reports can be obtained on payment of postage. Reports of the United States Department of Labor are free. Write to the Commissioner of Labor, Washington, D. C., and to the Chiefs of the Bureaus of Labor Statistics of the States, at the State Capitals.

Reports of Factory Inspectors of Ohio, New York, New Jersey and Massachusetts. Can be obtained on payment of postage by writing to the Factory Inspectors at the Capitals of the States.

 

PAUPERISM. CHARITIES.

Dugdale, R. L. The Jukes; a story in Crime, Pauperism and Heredity. N. Y., G. P. Putnam, 1888, 4th edition. 121 pages price $1.

A wonderful book. Well worth careful study. Shows by personal investigations of a single pauper tribe, traced back a hundred and fifty years, the relations of heredity and crime.

McCulloch, Rev. Oscar C. The Tribe of Ishmael; a story of Social Degradation. With diagram. Indianapolis, Ind., Charity Organization Society. 8 pages, price 50 cents.

A striking summary of investigations into two hundred and fifty related pauper families, extending through five generations. Based on personal investigations and the records of the Charity Organization Society, of Indianapolis.

Loch, C. S. Charity Organization. London, Swan Sonnenschein & Co., 1890. 106 pages, price 2s. 6d.

The best description of the principles and methods of organized charity.

Lowell, Josephine Shaw. Public Relief and Private Charity. N. Y., G. P. Putnam, 1884. 111 pages; price, paper, 40 cents.

An excellent little manual.

Fields, Mrs. James T. How to Help the Poor. Boston, Houghton, Mifflin & Co., 1883. Price 60 cents; paper, 20 cents net.

Describes the work of the Boston Associated Charities. Practical and Helpful.

Peek, F. Social Wreckage; Laws of England as they Affect the Poor. London, Isbister, 1889. Price 3s. 6d.

A short work, but valuable.

Hill, Florence Davenport. Children of the State. Edited by Fanny Fowke. N. Y., Macmillan & Co., 1889. 2d edition. Price $1.75.

Treats of the important subject of the care of dependent and delinquent children. Gives experience in different countries. Opposes “institutions.”

Reports of the National Conference of Charities and Corrections, Mrs. I. C. Barrows, ed., 141 Franklin street, Boston, Mass. Published annually, 1876 to date. The earlier numbers are out of print. Price $1.50; paper, $1.25 each.

“Its sixteen volumes constitute a library upon these subjects of more practical value than all others combined.’—Gen. Brinkerhoff.

Reports of the Boards of State Charities, especially of Ohio, Illinois and New York, which should be secured from the beginning, and Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania. These reports can be obtained by asking for them of the secretaries of the boards, at the State Capitals.

Charities Review, A Journal of Practical Sociology. Published for the Charity Organization Society, of the City of New York. The Critic Co. First number, November, 1891. Price $1 per year.

Contains contributions from the ablest specialists in sociological work and study.

 

CRIME AND PRISONS.

Baker, T. B. L. War with Crime. London and New York, Longman’s, 1890. 300 pages, price $4.

This book is a posthumous edition made up of papers and pamphlets published during the lifetime of the writer, and does not present a digested system, but it is a mine of gold. No other man in England in this generation is the peer of Baker. — Gen. Brinkerhoff.

Winter, Alexander. The New York State Reformatory at Elmira. London, Swan Sonnenschein & Co., 1891. 172 pages, price $1.

This reformatory has done more than any other institution in the world for the solution of the problem of the proper treatment of criminals. Eighty-three per cent. of its commitments are cured. This book well describes the institution and its methods.

Ellis, Havelock. The Criminal. New York, Scribner & Welford, 1890. 337 pages, price $1.

An able summary of recent investigations in criminal anthropology. The best in English.

Morrison, W. D. Crime and Its Causes. London, Swan Sonnenschein & Co., 1890. Price 2s. 6d.

A work of special value. The author antagonizes some of the current opinions. He has had an experience of fourteen years in connection with H. M. Prison at Wandsworth, England.

Wines, E. C. The State of Prisons and Child-Saving Institutions. Cambridge, Mass., J. Wilson & Son., 1880. 919 pages, price $5.

The most comprehensive and exhaustive work extant. Indispensable for a wide knowledge of the subject.

Du Cane, Sir Edmund F. The Punishment and Prevention of Crime. English Citizen Series. London and New York, Macmillan, 1885. 255 pages, price $1.

The writer for years past has had the charge of the entire prison system of England.

Tallack, W. Penological and Preventive Principles. London, Howard Association, Wertheimer, Lea & Co., 1889. 414 pages, price 8s.

A standard work on prison management, yet lagging behind in some lines of progress and to be accepted with allowance.

Rylands, L. G. Crime, Its Causes and Remedy. London, T. Fisher Unwin, 1889. 264 pages, price 6s.

An interesting work. There is a chapter on the prevention of drunkenness. The writer lays special emphasis on the care of children.

Brace, Charles Loring. The Dangerous Classes of New York and Twenty Years Work Among Them. Third edition. New York, Wynkoop & Hallenbeck, 1880. 468 pages, price $1.25.

Mr. Brace was founder of the New York Childrens’ Aid Society. This book, though written in 1872, is still valuable in many points. It deals especially with juvenile delinquents.

Round, W. M. F. Our Criminals and Christianity. New York, Funk & Wagnalls, 1888. 16 pages; price, paper, 15 cents.

Encyclopedia Britannica. Ninth edition. Also American Supplement.

The articles on “Prison Discipline” and “Reformatories” give the best birds-eye view of the whole subject.

Reports of the National Prison Association. W. M. F. Round, secretary, 35 E. 15th street, New York. Published annually, 1885 to date. Price $1.25 each. [Index to the Reports of the national Prison Association, 1870, 1873, 1874, 1883-1904. Washington, D. C.: Government Printing Office, 1906.]

Lalor’s Cyclopedia of Political Science.

Contains a valuable article on “Prisons and Prison Discipline,” by F. H. Wines.

 

INTEMPERANCE.

This subject has received indifferent scientific treatment. The best attempts are here given.

Mitchell, Kate, M. D. The Drink Question. London, Swan Sonnenschein & Co., 1891. Price 25. 6d.

A useful discussion.

Richardson, B, W., M. D. Ten Lectures on Alcohol. N. Y., National Temperance Society, 1883. 190 pages, price $1; paper, 50 cents.

Describes the physiological effects of alcohol.

Kerr, Norman, M. D. Inebriety; Its Etiology, Pathology, Treatment and Jurisprudence. London, H. K. Lewis, 1888. 415 pages, price 12s. 6d.

Clum, Franklin D., M. D. Inebriety; Its causes, Its Results, Its Remedy. Philadelphia, Lippincott Company, 1888. 248 pages, price $1.25.

A careful discussion of the causes of intemperance, and interesting suggestions for its cure.

 

REMEDIES.

Price, L. L. F. R. Industrial Peace; its advantages, methods and difficulties. N. Y., Macmillan, 1887. 127 pages, price $1.50.

Describes the practical workings of arbitration.

Weeks, Joseph D. Labor Differences and their Settlement. N. Y., Society for Political Education. Price 25 cents.

Favors arbitration.

Gilman, N. P. Profit Sharing Between Employer and Employee. Boston, Houghton, Mifflin & Co., 1889. 460 pages, price $1.75.

The standard work on this subject.

History of Co-operation in the United States. Baltimore, Johns Hopkins University Studies in Historical and Political Science, vol. 6, 1888. 540 pages, price $3.

A comprehensive work. The best covering the entire field in the United States.

Dexter, Seymour. Co-operative and Loan Associations. N. Y., D. Appleton & Co., 1889. 299 pages price $1.25.

The best treatise on Building and Loan Associations. Explains their advantages and workings, tells how to organize them, and gives the laws of several states.

Schaeffle, A. Quintessence of Socialism. Translated from the German, London, Sonnenschein & Co. 1891. 127 pages, price 25. 6d. N. Y., The Humboldt Publishing Co., paper, 15 cents.

“The clearest account of Socialism that can be obtained in anything like the same compass.” — The translator.

Kirkup, T. Inquiry into Socialism. London and New York, Longmans, 1887. 188 pages, price $1.50.

The best presentation of a reasonable and moderate kind of Socialism.

Bellamy, Edward. Looking Backward, 2000. 1887. Boston, Houghton, Mifflin & Co. Price $1; paper, 50 cents.

Has had greater influence in propagating socialistic views among English-speaking people than any other book.

Hyndman, H. M. Historical Basis of Socialism in England. London, Kegan Paul, 1883. 492 pages, price 8s. 6d.

A summary of the works of Karl Marx and Rodbertus. The best introduction to the theories of Socialism.

Gronlund, Laurence. The Co-operative Commonwealth; an Exposition of Modern Socialism. Boston, Lee & Shepard, 1884. Price $1. Also N. Y., G. W. Lovell & Co., paper, 30 cents; London, Swan Sonnenschein & Co., 2s. 6d.

An explanation of Socialism as applied to the United States.

Laveleye, Emil de. The Socialism of To-day. Translated by G. H. Orpen. London, Field & Tuer, 1885. 331 pages, price 6s.

A valuable history of European Socialism, and a lucid statement of Socialistic doctrines.

Marx, Karl. Capital. Translated from the third German edition by Samuel Moore and Edward Aveling. N. Y., Appleton & Co., 1889. Price $3.

The “Bible of Socialism.” Very difficult reading, except in the historical parts. Marx’s arguments are summarized by other writers, especially Hyndman.

Barnett, Rev. and Mrs. Samuel A. Practicable Socialism; essays on social reform. London and New York, Longmans, Green & Co., 1888. 212 pages, price $1.

Reprints of magazine articles which appeared during the years 1879 to 1887. The authors are devoted workers in Whitechapel, London. The book gives a vivid picture of their life and work among the poor.

George, H. Progress and Poverty, an inquiry into the causes of industrial depressions, and of the increase of want with the increase of wealth. N. Y., Henry George & Co., 1888. 250 [sic] pages, price $1; paper, 35 cents.

A remarkable extension of the older economic theory, and a proposition to impose a “single tax” on land -values in order to appropriate for the public the “unearned increment.”

Ely, Professor R. T. Taxation in American States and Cities. N. Y., T. Y. Crowell & Co., 1888. 544 pages, price $1.75

Contains descriptions of the present systems and suggestions for better equalization of taxes.

Ely, R. T. Problems of To-day. N. Y., T. Y. Crowell & Co., 2d edition, 1890. Price $1.50.

Reprint of newspaper and magazine articles on protection and natural monopolies. Contains suggestions for reform.

U. S. Department of State. Consular Report No. 117, June, 1890, contains a valuable description, with illustration, of the municipal artisan’s dwellings of Liverpool. The report of October, 1888, No. 98, contains “Homes of the German Working People.” Washington, D. C., Department of State. Free on application.

Woodward, C. M. The Manual Training School. Boston, D. C. Heath & Co., 1887. Price $2.

The best. Contains exposition of the methods and scope of manual training, and discusses its educational, social and economic bearings.

Abel, Mary Hinman. Practical Sanitary and Economic Cooking, adapted to persons of moderate and small means. Rochester, N. Y., American Public Health Association. 182 pages, price 40 cents; paper, 35 cents.

Contains analyses of foods showing nutritive value, and suggestions for varying the diet at small expense.

Booth, General W. In Darkest England and the Way Out. N. Y., Funk & Wagnalls, 1890. 300 pages, price $1; paper 50 cents.

A notable scheme for rescuing the “submerged tenth” of England by means of city refuges, farm colonies, colonies over the sea, and other agencies, to be administered by the Salvation Army.

Loomis, S. L. Modern Cities and their Religious Problems. Introduction by J. Strong. New York, Baker & Taylor, 1887. 219 pages, price $1.

The results of personal study and experience. A useful book.

Gladden, Rev. W. Applied Christianity; moral aspects of social questions. Boston, Houghton, Mifflin & Co, 1886. 320 pages, price $1.25.

Sensible chapters on the relations of Christianity to the problems of the distribution of wealth.

Gladden, Rev. W., ed. Parish Problems. N. Y., The Century Co., 1887. 479 pages, price $2.

An useful hand-book for Christian workers. Valuable chapters by eminent writers on the relations of pastor and people to the community.

Reports of the Convention of Christian Workers of the United States and Canada. Rev. John C. Collins, secretary, New Haven, Conn., price $1. Published annually since 1886.

Valuable reports and discussions on methods of Christian work.

Reports of the Evangelical Alliance, especially the report of the meeting at Washington in 1887, published under the title “National Perils and Opportunities.” Price $ 1.50, paper $1. Parts of this report have been printed in two separate volumes by The Baker & Taylor Co., N. Y., the first entitled “Problems of American Civilization,” the second, “Co-operation in Christian Work.” Price 60 cents each, paper 30 cents. The Report for the meeting at Boston in 1890, entitled “National Needs and Remedies.” Same publishers and prices.

Leaflets of the Christian Social Union in the United States. Professor Richard T. Ely, secretary, Baltimore, Md. Free on application.

 

Source: Oberlin College Library Bulletin. January, 1892. Volume I, No. 1. Oberlin, Ohio: The Oberlin News Presses, 1892.

Image Source: John R. Commons in the Oberlin College yearbook Hi-oh-hi, 1892 (page 43).

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Amherst Barnard Berkeley Brown Chicago Colorado Columbia Cornell Dartmouth Duke Harvard Illinois Indiana Iowa Johns Hopkins Kansas M.I.T. Michigan Michigan State Minnesota Missouri Nebraska North Carolina Northwestern NYU Ohio State Pennsylvania Princeton Radcliffe Rochester Stanford Swarthmore Texas Tufts UCLA Vassar Virginia Washington University Wellesley Williams Wisconsin Yale

U.S. Bureau of Education. Contributions to American Educational History, Herbert B. Adams (ed.), 1887-1903

 

I stumbled across this series while I was preparing the previous post on the political economy questions for the Harvard Examination for Women (1874). I figured it would be handy for me to keep a list of links to the monographs on the history of higher education in 35 of the United States at the end of the nineteenth century. Maybe this collection will help you too.

Contributions to American Educational History, edited by Herbert B. Adams

  1. The College of William and Mary. Herbert B. Adams (1887)
  2. Thomas Jefferson and the University of Virginia. Herbert B. Adams (1888)
  3. History of Education in North Carolina. Charles L. Smith (1888)
  4. History of Higher Education in South Carolina. C. Meriwether (1889)
  5. Education in Georgia. Charles Edgeworth Jones (1889)
  6. Education in Florida. George Gary Bush (1889)
  7. Higher Education in Wisconsin. William F. Allen and David E. Spencer (1889)
  8. History of Education in Alabama. Willis G. Clark (1890).
  9. History of Federal and State Aid to Higher Education. Frank W. Blackmar (1890)
  10. Higher Education in Indiana. James Albert Woodburn (1891).
  11. Higher Education in Michigan. Andrew C. McLaughlin. (1891)
  12. History of Higher Education in Ohio. George W. Knight and John R. Commons (1891)
  13. History of Higher Education in Massachusetts. George Gary Bush (1891)
  14. The History of Education in Connecticut. Bernard C. Steiner (1893)
  15. The History of Education in Delaware. Lyman P. Powell (1893)
  16. Higher Education in Tennessee. Lucius Salisbury Merriam (1893)
  17. Higher Education in Iowa. Leonard F. Parker (1893)
  18. History of Higher Education in Rhode Island. William Howe Tolman (1894)
  19. History of Education in Maryland. Bernard C. Steiner (1894).
  20. History of Education in Lousiana. Edwin Whitfield Fay (1898).
  21. Higher Education in Missouri. Marshall S. Snow (1898)
  22. History of Education in New Hampshire. George Gary Bush (1898)
  23. History of Education in New Jersey. David Murray (1899).
  24. History of Education in Mississippi. Edward Mayes (1899)
  25. History of Higher Education in Kentucky. Alvin Fayette Lewis (1899)
  26. History of Education in Arkansas. Josiah H. Shinn (1900)
  27. Higher Education in Kansas. Frank W. Blackmar (1900)
  28. The University of the State of New York. History of Higher Education in the State of New York. Sidney Sherwood (1900)
  29. History of Education in Vermont. George Gary Bush (1900)
  30. History of Education in West Virginia. A. R. Whitehill (1902)
  31. The History of Education in Minnesota. John N. Greer (1902)
  32. Education in Nebraska. Howard W. Caldwell (1902)
  33. A History of Higher Education in Pennsylvania. Charles H. Haskins and William I. Hull (1902)
  34. History of Higher Education in Colorado. James Edward Le Rossignol (1903)
  35. History of Higher Education in Texas. J. J. Lane (1903)
  36. History of Higher Education in Maine. Edward W. Hall (1903)

Image Source: Cropped from portrait of Herbert Baxter Adams ca. 1890s. Johns Hopkins University graphic and pictorial collection.

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Indiana Undergraduate

Indiana. Undergraduate coursework in economics and commerce, C.F. Zierer (A.B.), 1922

 

 

Scrounging through the economics department archival records at the University of Chicago, I came across the 1925 case of a geography graduate student who petitioned to waive the economics examination required for his degree based upon his extensive undergraduate coursework in economics and commerce at Indiana University. The file includes a hand-written list of the courses and titles of the texts/readings used at Indiana University (1919-22). The student, Clifford M. Zierer went on to teach in the UCLA Department of Geography for forty years (see In Memoriam, below).

I find this list to be an interesting artifact for a variety of reasons: it helps to document what the key texts were in teaching economics at a public university right after WWI; Zierer enrolled as an undergraduate at Indiana University just as the School of Commerce and Finance was established; journalism and advertising can be seen to have been born-together-at-the-hip. I was also struck at just how much business and economics course work Zierer brought with him before entering graduate school in geography.

___________________

The University of Chicago
Department of Political Economy

March 14, 1925

Mr. C. W. Wright
Faculty Exchange

I failed to get the accompanying material from Mr. C. M. Zierer before the departmental meeting on Thursday. Will you raise it next Thursday? The essential facts are these:

  1. The Department of Geography now requests every candidate for the doctorate to meet certain qualifications in the field of Economics. The accompanying carbon of a letter to Mr. J. W. Coulter shows what these qualifications are and also shows a special suggestion for meeting them in the case of Mr. Coulter.
  2. Sometime since, a Mr. Appleton presented himself to me, showing credentials covering a wide range of work in Economics at the London School of Economics. At that particular time there was a good deal of work ahead of the Department on various matters and I conducted a little quiz of my own orally. It was such a clear case that I did not hesitate to certify to Mr. Barrows that Mr. Appleton was qualified in the field of Economics.
  3. This may or may not have set a bad precedent. Certainly Mr. Zierer now points out that he took his Bachelor’s degree at the University of Indiana, graduated with distinction, and received the Phi Beta Kappa. He majored in Economics. His dissertation was the “Industrial Study of Scranton, Pennsylvania.”
    Zierer would be glad to be excused from a written examination, but I think I made it clear to him that there is no precedent in the matter and that it rested entirely with the Department.
  4. In view of the rather wide range of work that he has had in Economics (for which he showed sufficient credentials from the University of Indiana) I think it would be reasonable to excuse him, maybe with an oral quiz added to protect us.

Yours very sincerely,
[signed]
L C Marshall

Handwritten note: Voted to excuse him from exam if agreeable to Barrows. Barrows had no objections. Notified he was excused Apr.3, 1925.   C.W.W.

___________________

Handwritten List of Economics/Commerce Courses
Taken by Clifford M. Zierer at Indiana University
[corrections/additions in square brackets]

Economics 1

 

[E1. Political Economy]

Principles of Economics by F. W. Taussig.
Outlines of Economics by Richard T. Ely
Selected Readings in Economics, [Charles Jesse] Bullock
American Economic Review; Journal of Pol Economy; Quarterly Jour of Economics
J.B. Clark

Journalism 2 Advertising.

Principles of Adv., D. Starch
P. T. Cherington, Advertising as a Business Force;
W. D. Scott, [The Theory of] Advertising;
A. P. Johnson, Library of Advertising

Economics 3 Public Finance [3a] & Taxation [3b. Special Tax Problems]:

[Introduction to] Public Finance by Carl Plehn
[Selected] Readings in Public Finance by [Charles Jesse] Bullock
[The Elements of] Public Finance by W. M. Daniels

Economics 16 Statistics & Graphics [Introduction to Statistics]:

[Horace] Secrist: [An Introduction to] Statistical Methods.
[Willard C.] Brinton: Graphic Methods for Presenting Facts.
Bowley, A. L.,
[D. B.] Copland,
Fields

Economics 7a Principles of Sociology [(a) Social forces] ([Instructor] Weatherly)

[William Graham] Sumner;
[Franklin H.] Giddings
American Journal of Sociology

Economics 6a Money [(6a)]] & Banking [(6b)]]

Horace White; Moulton;
Jevons, W.S., Money [and the] Mechanism of Exchange;
Irving Fisher, Purchasing Power of Money;
J. L. Laughlin, [The] Principles of Money;
Moulton, H.G., [Principles of] Money and Banking;
C. A. Phillips, Readings in Money and Banking;
Kemmerer, F. W., Money & Prices [Money and Credit Instruments in their Relation to General Prices]
Commercial and Financial Chronicle

Economics 5 Advanced Political Economy. [Advanced Economics]

Marshall
[The] Trust Problem, [Jeremiah Whipple] Jenks;

Commerce 11 Business Finance

W. H. Lough [Business Finance, A Practical Study of Financial Management in Private Business Concerns (1917)].
Monopolies & Trusts; Ely, Laughlin, Seligman

Commerce 14 [Principles of] Salesmanship

Norval [A.] Hawkins [The Selling Process, A Handbook of Salesmanship Principles]
J. W. Fisk, Retail Selling;
C. S. Duncan, Marketing [: Its Problems and Methods];
Nystrom, P. H. [The] Economics of Retailing:
Printers Ink

Commerce 22 [sic, “23” is correct] Foreign Trade

[Howard Carson] Kidd [Kidd on Foreign Trade];
B. O. Hough;
C. F. Bastable [The Theory of Foreign Trade];
Ford;
Pepper

Economics 8 Seminar [Seminary in Economics and Sociology]
Commerce 13 Business Organization and Management

D. S. Kimball [Exter S. Kimball, Principles of Industrial Organization (1913)];
[Norris A.] Brisco, Economics of Business;
J. R. Smith, [The] Elements of Industrial Management;
Demer [sic, Hugo Diemer], Factory Organization and Management [sic, Factory Organization and Administration (1910)];
[Frank B.] Gilbreth, [Primer of] Scientific Management;
T. Veblen, Theory of Business Enterprise.
Industrial Management; Administration Magazine

Commerce 15 Railroad [sic, “Railway”] Transportation

Johnson and Van Metre, Principles of Railroad Transportation;
W.Z. Ripley, Railroad Problems;
H. G. Moulton, Railroads vs. Waterways [sic, title is “Waterways versus Railways”];
Dunn, S. O. American Railroad Question;
C. F. Adams, History of Railroads [Charles Francis Adams, Jr., Railroads: Their Origin and Problems (1878)];
McPherson, L. G. Rates and Regulation;
Sprague;
Kemmerer.

Economics 11 History of the Growth of Economic Thought [sic, only “Growth of Economic Thought”]:

Haney [Lewis H. Haney. History of Economic Thought].
Ricardo: Principles of Ec [Principles of Political Economy and Taxation];
Malthus: Population Studies
[John Kells] Ingram: [A] History of Political Economy
Smith: Wealth of Nations

Commerce 23 [sic, 22 is the correct course number] Marketing:

C. S. [Carson Samuel] Duncan [Marketing, its problems and methods]
[The] Elements of Marketing, Paul T. Cherington;
Methods of Marketing [Paul D. Converse, Marketing Methods and Policies (1921)] P. D. Converse;
[Melvin Thomas] Copeland, Marketing Problems;
[Fred E.] Clark, Principles of Marketing

Commerce 12 [Principles of] Investments 

Hough.
R. W. Babson: Business Barometers [used in the Accumulation of Money. A Text Book on Fundamental Statistics for Investors and Merchants (1909)].

Source: University of Chicago Archives. Department of Economics Records. Box 38, Folder 5.
Bracketed additions/corrections by Irwin Collier.

______________________

Clifford M. Zierer
1898-1976
Professor Emeritus

Clifford M. Zierer was born in Batesville, Indiana on July 4, 1898, and attended local schools through high school. For three years, following graduation, he taught in Indiana public schools and spent his summers attending different colleges to improve his teaching background. In 1919 he enrolled at Indiana University and completed an A.B. in economics in 1922. Transferring to geology, he earned an M.A. at Indiana in 1923 and, transferring again, he earned a Ph.D. in geography at the University of Chicago in 1925. Work in three disciplines provided a broad base for his later teaching and research in mineral industries, agricultural land use, and urban geography. Clifford Zierer and Milla Martin, a student at Indiana University, married in June 1925 and in the fall of 1925 the couple came to Los Angeles, where Clifford entered upon his lifetime career of teaching in the UCLA Department of Geography, a career that spanned forty years until his retirement in 1965.

Recent generations of faculty and students cannot appreciate the labors of the developmental building of a university, work that occupied those faculty members whose service began on the Vermont Avenue campus. Years were spent on committees dealing with budgets, buildings, programs, curricula, courses, and course structures. Beyond such service, Zierer not only taught a wide range of courses but he also initiated many of the courses that became standard elements in the departmental program. He spent years with the Library Committee to enlarge the facilities and holdings of the University Library. Clifford and Milla Zierer were both quiet, modest, and soft-spoken members of a small university community that laid the groundwork for the growth of the University, and both participated in their own quiet ways toward that growth. Clifford Zierer was instrumental in developing the departmental program as graduate work was added and, as chairman from 1942 to 1949, he largely structured the expansion of the doctoral program rounding out the departmental offering. A Phi Beta Kappa upon earning his A.B. at Indiana, Clifford also became a member of Sigma Xi at Indiana in 1923, and at UCLA he spent years working with both groups, including a term as president of each.

Zierer’s early years in southern California were spent studying aspects of changing land use and urban expansion. A wide range of research papers broadened into a book, California and the Southwest, of which he was the organizer, editor, and contributor of several chapters. During the middle 1930s he also undertook field studies on several themes in Australia, which resulted in professional papers and in the first course on the geography of Australia to be taught in any American university. In his own quiet way, he was something of an innovator and a pioneer.

Clifford never aspired to immense popularity as an undergraduate lecturer, and his insistence upon quality scholarship often caused the casual enrollee to shun his classes; but there were rewards of insight for those who persevered. For years his seminar students, meeting in the attic library-study-recreation room of his Brentwood home, were treated to provocative intellectual experiences. Students and associates were often surprised at the breadth of his knowledge, the keenness of his mind, and the private enthusiasm for his subject.

Milla Zierer passed away in 1951; thereafter Clifford slowly withdrew from his former active participation in broad University affairs and handed over to newcomers the concerns that had so long engaged him. The large Brentwood home was given up for a smaller house not far away, and Zierer’s last years were spent quietly. He died on October 6, 1976, survived by two sons, Robert and Paul.

Henry J. Bruman J.E. Spencer

 

Source: In Memoriam, September 1978, posted in University of California, Calisphere

Image Source: Clifford M. Zierer’s Indiana University Yearbook picture, The Arbutus 1922, p. 105.

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Berkeley Carnegie Institute of Technology Chicago Cornell Duke Economics Programs Harvard Illinois Indiana Iowa Johns Hopkins M.I.T. Michigan Minnesota Northwestern NYU Ohio State Pennsylvania Princeton Stanford UCLA Vanderbilt Wisconsin Yale

Economics Departments and University Rankings by Chairmen. Hughes (1925) and Keniston (1957)

 

The rankings of universities and departments of economics for 1920 and 1957 that are found below were based on the pooling of contemporary expert opinions. Because the ultimate question for both the Hughes and Keniston studies was the relative aggregate university standing with respect to graduate education, “The list did not include technical schools, like the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the California Institute of Technology, nor state colleges, like Iowa State, Michigan State or Penn State, since the purpose was to compare institutions which offered the doctorate in a wide variety of fields.” Hence, historians of economics will be frustrated by the conspicuous absence of M.I.T. and Carnegie Tech in the 1957 column except for the understated footnote “According to some of the chairmen there are strong departments at Carnegie Tech. and M.I.T.; also at Vanderbilt”.

The average perceived rank of a particular economics department relative to that of its university might be of use in assessing the negotiating position of department chairs with their respective university administrations. The observed movement within the perception league tables over the course of roughly a human generation might suggest other questions worth pursuing. 

Anyhow without further apology…

______________________

About the Image: There is no face associated with rankings so I have chosen the legendary comedians Bud Abbott and Lou Costello for their “Who’s on First?” sketch.  YouTube TV version; Radio version: Who’s on First? starts at 22:15

______________________

From Keniston’s Appendix (1959)

Standing of
American Graduate Departments
in the Arts and Sciences

The present study was undertaken as part of a survey of the Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania in an effort to discover the present reputation of the various departments which offer programs leading to the doctorate.

A letter was addressed to the chairmen of departments in each of twenty-five leading universities of the country. The list was compiled on the basis of (1) membership in the Association of American Universities, (2) number of Ph.D.’s awarded in recent years, (3) geographical distribution. The list did not include technical schools, like the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the California Institute of Technology, nor state colleges, like Iowa State, Michigan State or Penn State, since the purpose was to compare institutions which offered the doctorate in a wide variety of fields.

Each chairman was asked to rate, on an accompanying sheet, the strongest departments in his field, arranged roughly as the first five, the second five and, if possible, the third five, on the basis of the quality of their Ph.D. work and the quality of the faculty as scholars. About 80% of the chairmen returned a rating. Since many of them reported the composite judgment of their staff, the total number of ratings is well over 500.

On each rating sheet, the individual institutions were given a score. If they were rated in order of rank, they were assigned numbers from 15 (Rank 1) to 1 (Rank 15). If they were rated in groups of five, each group alphabetically arranged, those in the top five were given a score of 13, in the second five a score of 8, and in the third five a score of 3. When all the ratings sheets were returned, the scores of each institution were tabulated and compiled and the institutions arranged in order, in accordance with the total score for each department.

To determine areas of strength or weakness, the departmental scores were combined to determine [four] divisional scores. [Divisions (Departments): Biological Sciences (2), Humanities (11), Physical Sciences (6), Social Sciences (5)]….

… Finally, the scores of each institution given in the divisional rankings were combined to provide an over-all rating of the graduate standing of the major universities.

From a similar poll of opinion, made by R. M. Hughes, A Study of the Graduate Schools of America, and published in 1925, it was possible to compile the scores for each of eighteen departments as they were ranked at that time and also to secure divisional and over-all rankings. These are presented here for the purpose of showing what changes have taken place in the course of a generation.

The limitations of such a study are obvious; the ranks reported do not reveal the actual merit of the individual departments. They depend on highly subjective impressions; they reflect old and new loyalties; they are subject to lag, and the halo of past prestige. But they do report the judgment of the men whose opinion is most likely to have weight. For chairmen, by virtue of their office, are the men who must know what is going on at other institutions. They are called upon to recommend schools where students in their field may profitably study; they must seek new appointments from the staff and graduates of other schools; their own graduates tum to them for advice in choosing between alternative possibilities for appointment. The sum of their opinions is, therefore, a fairly close approximation to what informed people think about the standing of the departments in each of the fields.

 

OVER-ALL STANDING
(Total Scores)

1925

1957

1.

Chicago

1543

1.

Harvard

5403

2.

Harvard

1535

2.

California

4750

3.

Columbia 1316 3. Columbia 4183
4. Wisconsin 886 4. Yale

4094

5.

Yale 885 5. Michigan 3603
6. Princeton 805 5. Chicago

3495

7.

Johns Hopkins 746 7. Princeton 2770
8. Michigan 720 8. Wisconsin

2453

9.

California 712 9. Cornell 2239
10. Cornell 694 10. Illinois

1934

11.

Illinois 561 11. Pennsylvania 1784
12. Pennsylvania 459 12. Minnesota

1442

13.

Minnesota 430 13. Stanford 1439
14. Stanford 365 14. U.C.L.A.

1366

15.

Ohio State 294 15. Indiana 1329
16. Iowa 215 16. Johns Hopkins

1249

17.

Northwestern 143 17. Northwestern 934
18. North Carolina 57 18. Ohio State

874

19.

Indiana 45 19. N.Y.U. 801
20. Washington

759

 

ECONOMICS

1925

1957

1. Harvard 92 1. Harvard

298

2.

Columbia 75 2. Chicago 262
3. Chicago 65 3. Yale

241

4.

Wisconsin 63 4. Columbia 210
5. Yale 42 5. California

196

6.

Johns Hopkins 39 5. Stanford 196
7. Michigan 31 7. Princeton

184

8.

Pennsylvania 29 8. Johns Hopkins 178
9. Illinois 27 9. Michigan

174

10.

Cornell 25 10. Minnesota 96
11. Princeton 23 11. Northwestern

70

12.

California 22 12. Duke 69
13. Minnesota 20 13. Wisconsin

66

14.

Northwestern 18 14. Pennsylvania 45
15. Stanford 17 15. Cornell

32

16.

Ohio State 15 16. U.C.L.A.

31

According to some of the chairmen there are strong departments at Carnegie Tech. and M.I.T.; also at Vanderbilt.

 

Source:  Hayward Keniston. Graduate Study and Research in the Arts and Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania (January 1959), pp. 115-119,129.

 

 

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Columbia Economic History Economists Germany Illinois Indiana Princeton

Halle (Germany). 1897 economics PhD alumnus and later Illinois professor, Ernest L. Bogart

 

Today’s post provides some biographical information about the American economic historian and long-time University of Illinois economics professor, Ernest L. Bogart. I might have begun my search beginning from the fact that Bogart was the 1931 President of the American Economic Association, but no, I stumbled across his name during an examination of the Columbia University Quarterly of March, 1899 where I read “Mr. E. L. Bogart, graduate student in 1897-98, has been appointed Professor of Political Economy at Indiana University”.  I could find no record of Bogart actually completing a degree at Columbia, so I slipped on my gum shoes and proceeded to do a background check. It wasn’t hard and again found an example of an economist who had lived a very successful academic life but has become dependent on the helping hand of a historian of economics to be dusted off, properly preserved, and displayed in a collection of artifacts. 

Ernest L. Bogart began his academic life as a Princeton man (A.B., 1890; A.M.,1896) and went on to the Johannes Conrad Seminar in Halle Germany to write a doctoral dissertation published as Die Finanzverhältnisse der Einzelstaaten der Nordamerikanischen Union [in Sammlung nationalökonomischer und statistischer Abhandlungen des staatswissenschaftlichen Seminars zu Halle a.d.S. herausgegeben von Johannes Conrad. Vol. 14. Jena: Gustav Fischer, 1897]. He passed through Columbia University for one year in what we would today call a post-doc, then on to appointments at Smith College (probably filling in for Henry L. Moore on leave), then University of Indiana, Oberlin College, back to Princeton, and then to the University of Illinois in 1909.

__________________

MEET THE FACULTY: ERNEST L. BOGART

After serving the University and his country—and even acting in an international capacity—for nearly a third of a century, Ernest L. Bogart, head of the department of economics from 1920 until the beginning of the current school year, and now professor of economics, emeritus, has retired, and, with Mrs. Bogart, is residing temporarily in New York City.

Mr. Bogart, whose notable, writings in the field of economics, are numerous and whose service to the nation has been wide and varied, assisted the Persian government in 1922-23. He was adviser on banking and currency to that Government and is credited with having aided materially in Persian monetary matters.

Born March 16, 1870 in Yonkers, N.Y., Mr. Bogart received his A.B. degree in 1890 and his A.M. degree in 1896, both from Princeton University. In 1897 he obtained his Ph.D. degree from the University of Halle, German.

Two years as an assistant professor of economic and social science at Indiana University were followed by five years service—1900-05—at Oberlin College. He then returned to his alma mater and for four years was assistant professor of economics. In 1909, he came to the University as professor of economics, a position he held until this year.

In addition to his service here, Mr. Bogart was professor of banking and finance, Georgetown School of Foreign Service, 1919-20, professor of economics, Claremont College, 1929-30 professor of economics during the summer sessions at Columbia University, University of California, University of Texas, and Southern California.

Mr. Bogart’s government service includes membership on the committee of public information, 1918, in charge of commodity studies bureau of research, War Trade Board, 1918, regional economist, foreign trade advisor, State Department, 1919-20, advisory committee, National Economic League since 1920, delegate of State Department to convention of foreign trade council, 1920, advisory committee, Stable Money Association since 1924, committee on monetary policy of the U. S. Chamber of Commerce, 1933, government’s commission on unemployment, 1933, and economists’ national monetary commission since 1934.

The economist is a member of the National Park Association, Econometric Society (British), Foreign Policy Association, Persian-American Association, American Economic Association, Phi Beta Kappa, Beta Gamma Sigma, Delta Sigma Pi, and Phi Kappa Epsilon.

Source: From the Daily Illini, November 29, 1938, p. 3. Transcription also found at: University of Illinois. Conference on Iran’s Economy, December 11-13, 2008.

Image Source: Ernest L. Bogart, Historical faculty, department of economics, University of Illinois.

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Berkeley Carnegie Institute of Technology Chicago Columbia Cornell Duke Economist Market Harvard Illinois Indiana Iowa Johns Hopkins M.I.T. Michigan Minnesota Northwestern Princeton Salaries Stanford UCLA Virginia Wisconsin Yale

Economics Faculty Salaries for 15 U.S. universities. Hart Memo, April 1961

 

Here we have a memo written by member of the Columbia University economics department executive committee, Albert G. Hart, that presents the results of what appears to be his informal polling of the chairpersons of 21 departments. Fifteen of the departments provided the salary ranges at four different ranks. No further details are provided, this one page memo was simply filed away in a folder marked “memoranda”. Maybe there is more to be found in Hart’s papers at Columbia University. Up to now I have only sampled Hart’s papers for teaching materials and perhaps next time, I’ll need to look into his papers dealing with departmental administrative affairs.

For a glance at salaries about a half-century earlier:  Professors and instructors’ salaries ca. 1907

________________

AGH [Albert Gailord Hart] 4/21/61

CONFIDENTIAL information on economic salaries, 1960-61, from chairmen of departments

Institution

Professors Associate professors Assistant professors

Instructors

Harvard

$12,000-22,000

$9,000-12,000 $7,500-8,700

$6,500

Princeton

$12,000-…?…

$9,000-11,500 $7,000-8,750

$6,000-6,750

California

$11,700-21,000

$8,940-10,344 $7,008-8,112

$5,916-6,360

MIT

$11,000-20,000

$8,000-11,000 $6,500-9,000

$5,500-5,750

Minnesota

$11,000-18,000

$8,500-11,000 $6,800-8,400

?

COLUMBIA

$11,000-20,000

$8,500-10,000 $6,500-7,500

$5,500-5,750

Northwestern

$11,000-…?…

$8,000-11,000 $6,800-7,500

?

Duke

$11,400-16,000

$8,200-10,000 $7,200-8,200

$5,800-6,500

Illinois

$11,000-15,000

$7,500-10,000 $6,900-8,600

$6,500-7,100

Cornell

$10,000-15,000

$8,000-10,000 $6,500-7,500

$5,500-6,500

Indiana

$10,000-14,800

$8,300-10,000 $6,500-7,500

?

Michigan

$10,000-…?…

$8,700-..9,500 $6,600-8,000

$5,000

Virginia

$..9,800-15,000

$7,800-..9,800 $6,600-7,800

?

Wisconsin

$..9,240-16,150

$8,000-..9,000 $6,550-8,460

$5,250-5,450

Iowa State (Ames)

$..8,500-13,000

$7,500-..8,500 $6,700-8,000

$4,700-6,600

[…]

Note: The following institutions for which data were not included in the source materials are believed to pay their economists at scales at or above the Columbia level:

Carnegie Tech
Chicago
Johns Hopkins
Stanford
Yale
UCLA

[…]

 

Source:  Columbia University Archives. Columbia University, Department of Economics Collection. Carl Shoup Materials: Box 11, Folder: “Economics—Memoranda”.

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Size distribution of graduate and undergraduate programs in economics. U.S., 1963-65

 

 

These are the last two statistical tables from the so-called “Cartel” summary report from December 1965 of leading economics departments in the U.S. intended to provide orientation for departmental chairpersons in salary negotiations. Today’s posting gives the numbers of undergraduate and graduate majors reported by 29 departments. 

Earlier postings gave the distribution for full-professors, the distribution for associate professors, and the distribution for assistant professors across departments. Two previous postings have the actual distributions for entering salaries for new Ph.D.’s for 1964-65 and 1965-66 and the anticipated range of salary offers for new Ph.D.’s for 1966-67. Those first five reports from The Cartel provide distributions of median or average incomes or ranges of salary offers by ranks across departments. Table 6c from the summary report that gives the salary distributions by rank for 335 professors, 143 associate professors and 185 assistant professors from all 27 departments.

Refer to the first posting in this series of tables for information about the compiler Professor Francis Boddy of the University of Minnesota and a list of the 30 departments belonging to the Chairmen’s Group.

____________________

 

TABLE 7c
Graduate majors in Economics – 29 institutions:

 

1963-64 1964-65 1965-66
(Estimate)
300 and over 2 2

1

200-299

0 0 2
150-199 3 4

5

100-149

6 5 6
80-99 4 4

3

60-79

5 7 5
40-59 6 4

4

20-39

2 1 0
1-19 1 1

1

Number of departments reporting:

29

28

27

Total number of students:

2,963

3,057

3,118

____________________

 

TABLE 8C
Undergraduate majors in Economics – 29 institutions

 

1963-64 1964-65
300 and over 4

4

250-299

1 1
200-249 3

2

150-199

4 6
100-149 8

5

80-99

1 1
60-79 2

1

40-59

2 3
20-39 1

1

1-19

1

1

Number of departments reporting:

27

25

Total number of students:

4,550

4,312

 

Source: Johns Hopkins University. The Ferdinand Hamburger, Jr. Archives. Department of Political Economy, Series 5, Box 6, Folder 2 “Statistical Information”.

Image Source: quick meme website.

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Economics Professors’ Salaries by Rank (6), 1965-66

 

 

This is the sixth table from the so-called “Cartel” summary report from December 1965 of 9-10 month salaries paid in U.S. economics departments. In the previous five tables The Cartel reports median or average incomes or ranges of salary offers by ranks across departments. In this posting we have Table 6c from the summary report that gives the salary distributions by rank for 335 professors, 143 associate professors and 185 assistant professors from all 27 departments.

Earlier postings gave the distribution for full-professors, the distribution for associate professors, and the distribution for assistant professors across departments. Two previous postings have the actual distributions for entering salaries for new Ph.D.’s for 1964-65 and 1965-66 and the anticipated range of salary offers for new Ph.D.’s for 1966-67.

Refer to the first posting in this series of tables for information about the compiler Professor Francis Boddy of the University of Minnesota and a list of the 30 departments belonging to the Chairmen’s Group.

Using the BLS web CPI Inflation calculator, one can inflate nominal levels (say for December 1965, the date of the report) to April 2017 using a factor of 7.69.

 

____________________

TABLE 6c

Salaries of Economists (9-10 month, academic year, 1965-66) in 27 of the 29 Departments of Economics (The Cartel):
N = Number of Persons

MID POINT OF RANGE PROFESSORS ASSOCIATE PROFESSORS ASSISTANT PROFESSORS
26,750/and over 2
26,500 0
26,000 2
25,500 1
25,000 8
24,500 0
24,000 4
23,500 2
23,000 7
22,500 2
22,000 12
21,500 7
21,000 10
20,500 5
2,0000 22
19,500 10
19,000 13
18,500 11
18,000 24
17,500 8
17,000 19
16,500 23
16,000 27
15,500 20 1 0
15,000 21 2 1
14,500 14 2 0
14,000 22 10 0
13,500 10 12 0
13,000 10 13 1
12,500 7 18 2
12,000 6 20 1
11,500 3 21 7
11,000 3 13 9
10,500 0 18 18
10,000 0 9 35
9,750 1 9
9,500 2 28
9,250 1 11
9,000 0 24
8,750 0 8
8,500 0 13
8,250 2
8,000 15
7,750 1
N=335 N=143 N=185

 

Source: Johns Hopkins University. The Ferdinand Hamburger, Jr. Archives. Department of Political Economy, Series 5, Box 6, Folder 2 “Statistical Information”.

Image Source:  “Me and my partner” by C. J. Taylor on cover of Punch, December 25, 1889. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

 

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Expected New PhD Starting Salaries in U.S. Economics Departments (5), 1966/67

 

 

This is the fifth table from the so-called “Cartel” summary report from December 1965 of 9-10 month salaries paid in U.S. economics departments. Table 5c give figures for the anticipated range of salaries for “freshly completed PhD’s” for the coming academic year (1966-67) across the departments reporting. Earlier postings gave the distribution for full-professors, the distribution for associate professors, and the distribution for assistant professors. The previous posting has the actual distributions for entering salaries for new Ph.D.’s for 1964-65 and 1965-66. Refer to the first posting in this series of tables for information about the compiler Professor Francis Boddy of the University of Minnesota and a list of the 30 departments belonging to the Chairmen’s Group.

The copy of this table in the Johns Hopkins University archives has a useful handwritten addition. It is noted that the median lower bound of the range is $9,250 and the median higher bound of the range is $10,000. Thus one might say a measure of the range of the anticipated, as of December 1965), 9-10 month salary offers for “freshly completed PhDs” for 1966-67 was ($9,250 — $10,000), though such a range was not necessarily anticipated by any one of the 27 departments responding to that question.

Compared to Table 4c, this table tells us that the range of offers for “freshly completed PhDs” was anticipated to move up $250 about a 2.67% nominal increase from 1965-66 to 1966-67.

Using the BLS web CPI Inflation calculator, one can inflate nominal levels (say for December 1965, the date of the report) to April 2017 using a factor of 7.69.

 

____________________

TABLE 5c
Departments Expect to Have to Offer to Get
“Freshly Completed PhD’s for Next Year, 1966-67

 

MID-POINT OF RANGE

FROM TO
13,000 0

0

12,500

0 0
12,000 0

1

11,500

0 0
11,000 0

6

10,500

0 7
10,000 5

6

9,750

0 0
9,500 8

4

9,250

1 0
9,000 8

2

8,750

1 0
8,500 1

1

8,250

0 0
8,000 3

0

N=

27

27

 

Source: Johns Hopkins University. The Ferdinand Hamburger, Jr. Archives. Department of Political Economy, Series 5, Box 6, Folder 2 “Statistical Information”.

Image Source:  Caption under the drawing: “No class of labor feels the grip of grinding monopoly more than our underpaid, overworked ball-players.”  “The base-ball Laocoon” by L. M. Glackens. Cover of Punch, May 14, 1913. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

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New PhD Starting Salaries in U.S. Economics Departments (4), 1964/5-1965/66

 

 

This is the fourth table from the so-called “Cartel” summary report from December 1965 of 9-10 month salaries paid in U.S. economics departments. Table 4c give figures for the distribution of salaries for “freshly completed PhD’s” across the departments reporting. Previous postings gave the distribution for full-professors, the distribution for associate professors, and the distribution for assistant professors. The next posting has the anticipated (as of December 1965) range of salaries to hire freshly completed PhD’s for the coming academic year, 1966-67. Refer to the first posting in this series of tables for information about the compiler Professor Francis Boddy of the University of Minnesota and a list of the 30 departments belonging to the Chairmen’s Group.

Using the BLS web CPI Inflation calculator, one can inflate nominal levels (say for December 1965, the date of the report) to April 2017 using a factor of 7.69.

______________________

TABLE 4c
Entering Salaries of “Freshly Completed PhD’s” of New Staff Members
in the Fall of 1965-66 1964-65

 

MINIMUM MEDIAN MAXIMUM
MID-POINT OF RANGE 1965-66 1964-65 1965-66 1964-65 1965-66

1964-65

Over 10,999

0 0 0 0 1 0
10,500 0 0 0 0 2

1

10,000

2 0 4 3 7 0
9,750 2 0 4 0 1

0

9,500

4 1 2 0 2 4
9,250 1 2 3 3 1

3

9,000

3 6 0 5 3 6
8,750 1 1 3 5 0

1

8,500

4 5 3 5 2 5
8,250 1 1 0 2 0

1

8,000

2 3 1 0 1 0
7,750 0 0 0 0 0

1

7,500

0 1 1 2 0 1
7,250 1 1 0 0 0

0

N=

21 21 21 25 20 23
Median $9,000 $8,500 $9,250 $8,750 $9,750

$9,000

Mean

$8,952 $8,583 $9,190 $8,820 $9,600

$8,913

 

Source: Johns Hopkins University. The Ferdinand Hamburger, Jr. Archives. Department of Political Economy, Series 5, Box 6, Folder 2 “Statistical Information”.