Thomas Nixon Carver was granted a sabbatical leave from Harvard for the academic year 1906-07. Frank Albert Fetter from Cornell was hired to teach Carver’s course that covered economic utopias and proposed social reforms.
Inspecting university course catalogues from where Fetter had previously taught, I was able to find that he did indeed once teach a one term course at Cornell before teaching Carver’s course in 1906: “Political Science 55a: Socialism and Communism” that was given in the Fall term of a three term academic year 1894-95.
After Fetter returned to Cornell, it appears he then taught a course very similar to what he taught at Harvard: Political Science 66b Social Reforms. “History and growth of the more radical modern plans for changing industrial conditions; program and spirit of the socialistic parties in Europe and America.” (1907-08)
Here are the main dates in Fetter’s career:
1891 A. B. Indiana University
1892 Ph.M. Cornell University
1894 Ph.D. University of Halle
1894-1895 Instructor in Political Economy, Cornell University
1895-1898 Professor of Economics and Social Science, Indiana University
1898-1901 Professor, Stanford University
1901-1911 Professor, Cornell University
1911-1933 Professor, Princeton University
1912 President of the American Economic Association
Comparing this syllabus with those used by Carver before and after this year, one sees that Fetter essentially added items to Carver’s syllabus and made some minor rearrangements of the topics, e.g. anarchism moved to the end of the term.
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If you find this posting interesting, here is the complete list of “artifacts” from the history of economics I have assembled thus far. You can subscribe to Economics in the Rear-View Mirror below. There is also an opportunity for comment following each posting…
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[Course Enrollment First Half-year 1906-07]
[Economics] 14b 1hf. Professor Fetter (Cornell University).—Methods of Social Reform. Socialism, Communism, the Single Tax, etc.
4 Graduates, 8 Seniors, 10 Juniors, 3 Sophomores, 7 Other. Total 32.
Source: Harvard University. Reports of the President and the Treasurer of Harvard College, 1906-07, p.71.
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ECONOMICS 14b
METHODS OF SOCIAL REFORM
First Half-Year, 1906 – 07, F. A. Fetter.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
I. Evil’s and Discontent Portrayed.
Engels, F., Condition of the Working Class in England in 1844.
Rowntree, B. S., Poverty (a study of York, Eng.).
London, J., The People of the Abyss (in London).
Brooks, J. G., The Social Unrest (1903).
Hunter, R., Poverty (a pessimistic view of the U. S.).
Spargo, J., The Bitter Cry of the Children (1906).
II. Utopian Romances (chronological order of publication).
Plato, The Republic (4th century B.C.).
Morley, H. (ed.), Ideal Commonwealths (containing Plutarch’s Lycurgus, More’s Utopia (1516), Bacon’s New Atlantis (1629), Campanella’s City of the Sun (1520), Hall’s Mundus Alter et Idem (1607)).
Cabet, E., Voyage en Icarie (1839)
Bellamy, E., Looking Backward (1887).
Morris, W., News from Nowhere.
Hertzka, Freiland.
Bellamy, E., Equality (1897).
Wells, H. G., Anticipations (1902).
________, Mankind in the Making (1904).
Parry, The Scarlet Empire (1906, anti-utopian).
III. Communistic Experiments (American books in chronological order).
Kautsky, Karl, Communism in Central Europe in the Time of the Reformation.
Cabet, E., Icaria (history of the society in America, 1852).
Noyes, J. H., History of American Socialisms (1870).
Nordhoff, Charles, The Communistic Societies of the United States (1875).
Hinds, W. A., American Communities (1878, and later revised edition).
Shaw, Albert, Icaria, a Chapter in the History of Socialism (1884).
Codman, J. T., Brook Farm; Historic and Personal Memoirs (1894).
Randall, E. O., The Zoar Society (1899).
Landis, G. B., The Separatists of Zoar.
Lockwood, George B., The New Harmony Communities.
Broom, Isaac, The Last Days of the Ruskin Coöperative Association (1902).
Hillquist, M., History of Socialism in the United States (1903).
IV. Religious and Altruistic Socialism
Lamennais, Les Parole d’un Croyant.
Kaufman, Lamennais and Kingsley. Contemporary Review, April, 1882.
Kingsley, Charles, Alton Locke.
Stubbs, Charles Kingsley.
Woodworth, A. V., Christian Socialism in England (1903).
Gladden, Washington, Tools and the Man, A View of Christian Socialism.
Strong, Josiah, Our Country (1885), The New Era (1893).
Ballon-Adin, Practical Christian Socialism.
Nitti, F., Catholic Socialism (trans. 1895).
Carlyle, Thomas: “The Socialism and Unsocialism of Thomas Carlyle,” a selection of chapters by W. D. P. Bliss.
Ruskin, John: “The Communism of John Ruskin,” a selection by W. D. P. Bliss from Unto This Last, The Crown of Wild Olive, and Fors Clavigera.
“William Morris, Poet, Artist, Socialist,” a collection of his socialistic writings, by F. W. Lee.
V. History and Exposition of Collectivism (alphabetic by authors).
Dawson, W. H., German Socialism and Ferdinand Lassalle (1888).
Ely, R. T., French and German Socialism (1883); Socialism, an examination of its nature, strength, and weakness (1895).
Flower, B. O., How England Averted a Revolution of Force (1903).
Gonner, E. C. K., The Socialist Philosophy of Rodbertus (1899).
Graham, William, Socialism, New and Old.
Kirkup, Thomas, A History of Socialism.
Peixotto, Jessica B., The French Revolution and Modern French Socialism (1901).
Rae, John, Contemporary Socialism (2d ed. 1891).
Russell, Bertrand, German Social Democracy.
Schaeffle, Albert, The Quintessence of Socialism (1874).
Sombart, Werner, Socialism and the Social Movement in the 19th Century (1st ed. translated; 5th ed. revised, in German, 1905).
____________, Der moderne Capitalismus, 2 vols.
VI. Collectivist arguments.
German.
Karl Marx and F. Engels, The Communist Manifesto (1847).
Karl Marx, Das Kapital (1867).
Engels, F., Socialism: Utopian and Scientific.
Bebel, A., Woman in the Past, Present and Future (trans. 1894).
Kautsky, K., The Social Revolution (trans. 1903).
Bernstein, E., Ferdinand Lassalle (trans. 1893).
_________, Die Voraussetzungen des Sozialismus (1899).
_________, Zur Geschichte und Theorie des Sozialismus (2d ed. 1901).
English and American.
Hyndman, H. M., The Economics of Socialism (English of the Marxist school).
Webb, Sydney and Beatrice, Problems of Modern Industry.
Fabian Essay in Socialism, B. Shaw and others.
Fabian Tracts, 1-86 (1884-1899).
Blatchford, R., Merrie England (1895).
Gronlund, L., The Coöperative Commonwealth (1895).
_________, The New Economy (1898).
Bliss, W. P. D., A Handbook of Socialism (1895).
Vail, Modern Socialism (1899).
Ghent, W. J., Our Benevolent Feudalism.
_________, Mass and Class.
London, J., War of the Classes.
Spargo, John, Socialism (1906).
Various.
Selections from Fourier.
Jaures, J., Studies in Socialism (trans. 1906).
Ensor, R. C. K., Modern Socialism as set forth by Socialists (collection of 29 articles, 1904).
Labriola, A., Essays on the Materialistic Conception of History (trans. 1904).
Vandervelde, E., Collectivism.
VII. Anti-Collectivist Arguments.
Brunhuber, Dr. Robert, Die heutige Sozialdemokratie (1906).
Cathrein, Rev. Victor, Socialism Exposed and Refuted (trans. 1902).
______________, Socialism, its Theoretical Basis and Practical Application.
Gilman, N. P., Socialism and the American Spirit.
Gonner, E. C. K., The Socialist State.
Guyot, Y., The Tyranny of Socialism.
Le Bon, G., Psychology of Socialism (trans. 1899).
Mackay, T., A Plea for Liberty.
Malloch, W. H., Labor and the Popular Welfare (new ed., 1894).
___________, Classes and Masses.
___________, Aristocracy and Evolution (1898).
Menger, A., The Right to the Whole Produce of Labor (trans. 1899).
Sanders, G. A., Reality, or Law and Order vs. Anarchy and Socialism, a reply to E. Bellamy (1898).
Schaeffle, A., The Impossibility of Social Democracy (1884).
Simonson, G., A Plain Examination of Socialism (1900).
Spencer, H., The Coming Slavery.
VIII. Land Nationalization.
Favorable.
George, H., Progress and Poverty.
______________, Our Land and Land Policy.
Wallace, A. R., Studies, Scientific and Social (in Vol. II, articles on land nationalization).
Loria, A., Problèmes Sociaux Contemporains.
George, H., Jr., The Menace of Privilege.
Shearman, T. G., Natural Taxation.
Unfavorable.
Cathrein, Rev. Victor, The Champions of Agrarian Socialism, A Refutation of Lavelèye and George (trans. 1889).
Huxley, T. H., Evolution and Ethics (chs. on single tax, 1894).
_________, Social Diseases and Worse Remedies (1891).
Rae, John, Ch. 12 of Contemporary Socialism.
Smart, W., Taxation of Land Values (1900).
Walker, F. A., Land and Its Rent (1883).
General.
Epps, Land Systems of Australia.
Lefèvre-Shaw, English Commons and Forests.
IX. The Extension of State Action
Adams, H. C., The Relation of the State to Industrial Action.
Ely, R. T., Problems of To-day (chs. 17-23).
Hobson, J. A., The Social Problem, Life and Work (1901).
Jevons, W. S., Methods of Social Reform (last 5 chs.).
Ritchie, D. C., Principles of State Interference.
_________, Darwinism and Politics.
Taylor, F. M., The Right of the State to Be (1891).
Willoughby, W. W., Social Justice.
X. Anarchism and Nihilism.
Godwin, William, Political Justice; on Property.
Tolstoi, L., The Slavery of Our times (1900).
Kropotkin, The Scientific Basis of Anarchy. Nineteenth Century, 21: 238.
______________, The Coming Anarchy. Nineteenth Century, 22: 149.
Reclus, Elisée, Anarchy. Contemporary Review, 14: 627.
Source: Harvard University Archives. Syllabi, course outlines and reading lists in Economics, 1895-2003 (HUC 8522.2.1), Box 1, Folder “Economics, 1906-1907).