Categories
Exam Questions Harvard Public Finance

Harvard. American Taxation, course description, enrollment, and final exam. Bullock and Huse, 1909-1910

Time to add more economics course artifacts from Harvard in the early 20th century. By 1910 the division of labor regarding the economics curriculum was well-established with Charles Jesse Bullock serving as point man in public finance, especially for taxation.

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Readings

Cf.  “Taxation” bibliography by Charles Jesse Bullock in Francis G. Peabody, et al. A Guide to Reading in Social Ethics and Allied Subjects, Lists of Books and Articles Selected and Described for the Use of General Readers. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University, 1910, pp. 54-56.

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Previously posted material
from earlier years

1906-07
1907-08
1908-09
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Course Announcement and Description
1909-10

*16 1hf. American Taxation. Half-course (first half-year). Mon., Wed., Fri., at 9. Professor Bullock.

This course is designed for graduate students and for undergraduates who are especially interested in public finance. It cannot be elected by students who have taken Economics 7 [Public Finance course exclusively offered to undergraduates], except by express consent of the instructor.

The course is devoted to American Taxation, — federal, state, and local. One or more reports calling for independent investigation will ordinarily be required. Special emphasis will be placed upon questions of American finance.

Source: Official Register of Harvard University, Vol. VI, No. 29 (23 July 1909). History and Political Science Comprising the Departments of History and Government, and Economics, 1909-10, p. 60.

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Course Enrollment
1909-10

Economics 16 1hf. Professor Bullock and Dr. [Charles Phillips] Huse. — American Taxation.

Total 31: 6 Graduates, 12 Seniors, 10 Juniors, 2 Sophomores, 1 Other.

Source: Harvard University. Report of the President of Harvard College, 1909-1910, p. 45.

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ECONOMICS 16
THE THEORY AND METHODS OF TAXATION
Mid-year Examination, 1909-10

  1. On what two distinct grounds has progressive taxation been advocated? Give your opinion of each.
  2. Discuss the incidence of a tax on the gross profits of a monopoly; on a real estate mortgage; on the land and buildings in a decadent city.
  3. Describe the Massachusetts method of taxing personal property, mortgages, income.
  4. What are the defects of the general property tax as administered in Massachusetts? What remedies have been suggested to correct these?
  5. Compare the British and the Prussian income taxes, pointing out similarities and differences. What lessons can be learned from a study of these taxes?
  6. What has been the experience of the United States with income taxes?
  7. Compare the customs systems of the United States and England. Write a brief history of each since 1890, for the purpose of bringing out its merits or defects.
  8. Describe the Massachusetts method of taxing corporations. How does the rate of the Massachusetts tax compare with that of the Federal corporation tax?

Source: Harvard University Archives. Harvard University, Examination Papers, 1873-1915. Box 9, Bound vol. Examination Papers 1910-11; Papers Set for Final Examinations in History, Government, Economics,…,Music in Harvard College (June, 1910), p. 50.

Image Source: No Income Tax! by Charles Jay Taylor, a scene at the Income Tax Office with a crowd clamoring at the door where a notice states “One at a Time”; inside, a wealthy man is standing by a desk, on the floor at his feet, in his hat, are papers labeled “Personal Property Tax Sworn Off”, “Tax on Capital Sworn Off”, and “Tax on Investments”, he kisses the Bible while a government official sits at the desk with his right hand raised. Cover of Puck, v. 34, no. 881, (1894 January 24). Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

Categories
Exam Questions Harvard History of Economics

Harvard. History of Economics up to the Physiocrats. Description, enrollment, final exam. Bullock, 1909-1910

During the first quarter of the 20th century at Harvard, the academic study of the history of economics extended back to ancient Greece. Charles Jesse Bullock brought enough classics cred to teach such a course, having himself taught Greek and Latin in New England schools before going off to get his Ph.D. (1895) at the University of Wisconsin.

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Earlier versions of the course
by year and instructor

1899-1900. The History and Literature of Economics to the close of the Eighteenth Century. [William James Ashley]

1901-02. History and Literature of Economics, to the opening of the Nineteenth Century. [Charles Whitney Mixter]

1903-04. History and Literature of Economics to the opening of the Nineteenth Century [Charles Jesse Bullock]

1904-05. History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848. [Charles Jesse Bullock]

1905-06. History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848. [Charles Jesse Bullock]

1906-07. History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848 [Charles Jesse Bullock]

1907-08. History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848 [Charles Jesse Bullock]

1908-09. History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848 [Charles Jesse Bullock]

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Course Description
1909-10

151. History and Literature of Economies to the year 1848. First half-year. Mon., Wed., Fri., at 11, and two additional hours to be arranged by the instructor. Professor Bullock.

The purpose of this course is to trace the development of economic thought from classical antiquity to the middle of the nineteenth century. Emphasis is placed upon the relation of economics to philosophical and political theories, as well as to political and industrial conditions.

A considerable amount of reading of prominent writers will be assigned, and opportunity given for the preparation of theses. Much of the instruction is necessarily given by means of lectures.

No undergraduates will be admitted to the course who are not candidates for honors in economics.

Source: Official Register of Harvard University, Vol. VI, No. 29 (23 July 1909). History and Political Science Comprising the Departments of History and Government, and Economics, 1909-10, p. 54.

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Course Enrollment
1909-10

Economics 151. Professor Bullock. — History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848.

Total 6: 6 Graduates.

Source: Harvard University. Report of the President of Harvard College, 1909-1910, p. 44.

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ECONOMICS 15
Mid-year Examination, 1909-10

  1. Discuss Aristotle’s criticism of Plato’s communism.
  2. Give an account of Xenophon’s “Revenues of Athens.”
  3. At what points were the economic theories of the Schoolmen most influenced by Aristotle’s economic theories?
  4. What do you think of Ingram’s account of the economic ideas of the Middle Ages?
  5. Name six of the more important mercantilist writers and summarize the views of the one you consider to be most representative.
  6. “The earth is the source or matter whence all riches are produced. … The intrinsic worth of everything is proportioned to the value of the land, labor, risk and time necessarily had in producing it into use and form.”
    Who wrote this and how do you classify him?
  7. State the doctrine of the wage fund as you have found it in the writings of its leading exponents. Why and in what sense was it given up, and how is it related to more recent theories of wages?
  8. So far as you have read the evidence, to what extent was Adam Smith indebted to the Physiocrats, and to what extent did he make original contributions in the field of economics?

Source: Harvard University Archives. Harvard University, Examination Papers, 1873-1915. Box 9, Bound vol. Examination Papers 1910-11; Papers Set for Final Examinations in History, Government, Economics,…,Music in Harvard College (June, 1910), p. 49.

Image Source: Portrait of Saint Thomas Aquinas in the Demidoff Altarpiece by Carlo Crivelli (1476). The National Gallery website.

Categories
Exam Questions Harvard Principles

Harvard. Enrollment and semester examinations for principles of economics. Carver and Bullock, 1909-1910

After a long break to finish the draft of a paper and a couple of weeks of vacation, your Economics in the Rear-view Mirror’s curator is back in action. We resume with the transcription of the 1909-10 Harvard economics course examinations. Economics 1, Principles of Economics is the subject of this post. Professors Carver and Bullock covered the course for Frank Taussig in 1909-10 due to a last-minute leave of absence taken by Taussig (undoubtedly related to the ill-health of his wife [Tuberculosis?]).

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Exams for principles (a.k.a. outlines)
of economics at Harvard
1870/71-1908/09

1871-75

1880-81 1890-91 1900-01
1881-82 1891-92

1901-02

1882-83 1892-93 1902-03
1883-84 1893-94

1903-04

1884-85 1894-95 1904-05
1885-86 1895-96

1905-06

1876-77

1886-87 1896-97 1906-07
1877-78 1887-88 1897-98

1907-08

1878-79

1888-89 1898-99 1908-09
1879-80 1889-90 1899-00

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Frank Taussig on Leave, 1909-1910

Owing to the absence of Professor Taussig, the following changes in the courses in Economics will be made:

Economics 1 will be conducted by Professors Bullock and Carver; Economics 2 will not be given; Economics 14a and 14b will be given as hitherto, but will be starred,–that is, may not be taken without the consent of the instructor; Economics 23 will not be given; Economics 4, which was announced to be given as a half-course only, in the first half-year, will be given as a full course, by Professor Ripley; Economics 9b, which was announced to be omitted, will be given; Economics 20d will not be given.

Source: The Harvard Crimson (29 September 1909).

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

“The work that gave final form to the Principles was done in an atmosphere of sorrow. Mrs. Taussig’s health had given cause for anxiety for some time. In 1909-1910 he took a year’s leave of absence, which they spent in Saranac [Lake], N.Y., and there she died on April 15, 1910.”

Source: J. A. Schumpeter, A. H. Cole, and E. S. Mason, “Frank William Taussig”, Quarterly Journal of Economics (May, 1941), p. 352.

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Course Announcement and Description
1909-10

  1. Principles of Economies. Tu., Th., Sat., at 11. Professor Taussig, assisted by Dr. Huse and Messrs. M. T. Copeland, Holcombe, Sharfman, and Usher.

Course 1 is introductory to the other courses. It is intended to give a general survey of the subject for those who take but one course in Economics, and also to prepare for the further study of the subject in advanced courses. It is usually taken with most profit by undergraduates in the second year of their college career. Students who plan to take it in their first year are strongly advised to consult the instructor in advance. History 1 or Government 1, or both of these courses, will usually be taken to advantage before Economics 1.

Course 1 gives a general introduction to economic study, and a general view of Economics for those who have not further time to give to the subject. It undertakes a consideration of the principles of production, distribution, exchange, money, banking, international trade, and taxation. The relations of labor and capital, the present organization of industry, and the recent currency legislation of the United States will be treated in outline.

The course will be conducted partly by lectures, partly by oral discussion in sections. A course of reading will be laid down, and weekly written exercises will test the work of students in following systematically and continuously the lectures and the prescribed reading.

Source: History and Political Science, Comprising the Departments of History and Government and Economics, 1909-10. Published in the Official Register of Harvard University. Vol. VI, No. 29 (July 23, 1909).

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Course Enrollment
1909-10

Economics 1. Professors [Thomas Nixon] Carver and [Charles Jesse] Bullock, assisted by Drs. [Charles Phillips] Huse [Ph.D., 1907] and [Arthur Norman] Holcombe [Ph.D., 1909], Messrs. [Melvin Thomas] Copeland [Ph.D., 1910], [Isaiah Leo] Sharfman [LL.B., 1910], and [Abbott Payson] Usher [Ph.D., 1910] . — Principles of Economics.

Total 423: 15 Seniors, 83 Juniors, 193 Sophomores, 80 Freshmen, 52 Others.

Source: Harvard University. Report of the President of Harvard College, 1909-1910, p. 43.

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ECONOMICS 1
Mid-year Examination, 1909-10

  1. Distinguish between free goods and economic goods; between productive labor and unproductive labor; between wealth and capital.
  2. State the law of diminishing returns from land and explain its relation to the intensive and extensive margins of cultivation.
  3. If you were to find that all the land of a country had been brought under cultivation, what should you say would be the conditions which would permit a further increase of population?
  4. What are the chief advantages of a division of labor and what determines the extent to which the division of labor can be carried out?
  5. Name the great mechanical inventions since 1750 which have brought about a change in the form of industrial organization. What has been the character of this change?
  6. Can the value of a commodity depend both on demand and supply and on cost of production? If so, how? Can it ever depend on demand and supply and not on cost of production? Can it ever depend on cost of production and not on demand and supply? Explain?
  7. What will be the probable effect of the present meat boycott on the price of meat, other food products, cattle, hides, assuming the boycott to be permanent?
  8. Outline briefly the principal acts of congress relating to the coinage of money in the United States, explaining particularly those acts which produced effects illustrating Gresham’s Law.
  9. Compare the Bank of England, the Bank of Germany and the national banks of the United States as to (1) security of note issue; (2) elasticity of note issue.

Source: Harvard University Archives. Harvard University. Mid-year Examinations, 1852-1943. Box 8, Bound Volume: Examination Papers, Mid-Years 1909-10.

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ECONOMICS 1
Year-end Examination, 1909-10

    1. Distinguish between elastic and inelastic demand; between total and marginal utility.
    2. Can the value of any commodity depend both on marginal utility and on cost of production today it ever depend on one and not on the other? Explain carefully.
  1. What are the methods by which a bank may sell its credit? What provisions in the national banking law of the United States serve as a safeguard against the over-extension of credit?
  2. A has a piece of land which produces 100 bushels of wheat at an average cost of 60 cents a bushel. The cost of producing a bushel of wheat on the extensive margin of cultivation is 90 cents. What elements does this marginal cost of production include? Calculate the selling price of A’s land, the current rate of interest being 5%.
  3. Suppose that every person engaged in agriculture owned the land which he cultivated, and that all advantages of superior fertility were exactly offset by greater costs of transportation, would rent arise under any conditions? If so, how would it be determined? If not, would the land have any exchange value? Give reasons.
    1. Suppose that every person made and used his own tools, would interest exist? Give reasons.
    2. Is the payment of interest at the current rate to a multi-millionaire for the use of his capital justifiable? Give reasons.
  4. What are net profits? To what are they due? Are they a factor in determining price? Give reasons.
  5. What effect upon wages would you expect as a result of:—
    1. the extension of industrial education;
    2. immigration;
    3. the limitation of the output by labor unions;
    4. an increase in the supply of capital;
    5. the introduction of socialism?
  6. Discuss briefly:—
    1. overcapitalization.
    2. Rochdale Pioneers.
    3. Knights of Labor.
    4. Single Tax.
    5. “Gold points.”

Source: Harvard University Archives. Harvard University, Examination Papers, 1873-1915. Box 9, Bound vol. Examination Papers 1910-11 (HUC 7000.25) Papers Set for Final Examinations in History, Government, Economics,…,Music in Harvard College (June, 1910), pp. 38-39.

Image Source: Charles Jesse Bullock and Thomas Nixon Carver portraits in the Harvard Class Album 1915.

Categories
Exam Questions Harvard Public Finance

Harvard. Examinations in Public Finance, especially Taxation. Bullock, 1908-1909

In addition to his instructional responsibility for the history of economic thought, Charles Jesse Bullock was the faculty member with expertise in the applied economics field of taxation. 

Fun fact: Charles Jesse Bullock edited Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations, Volume 10 in the series The Harvard Classics, a.k.a., “Five-foot Shelf of Books” (New York: P. F. Collier and Sons, Co., 1909).

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Bullock’s earlier public finance exams
at Harvard

1901-02. Economics 7a and 7b. Financial administration; taxation [undergraduate]

1903-04. Economics 16.  Financial history of the United States

1904-05. Economics 7a. Introduction to public finance [undergraduate]

1904-05. Economics 7b. Theory and methods of taxation [undergraduate]

1904-05. Economics 16. Financial history of the United States.

1905-06 Economics 7.  Public finance [undergraduate]

1905-06 Economics 16. Public finance [advanced]

1906-07 Economics 16. Public finance and taxation

1907-08 Economics 16. Public finance and taxation

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

From 1906: Selected Readings in Public Finance edited by Charles Jesse Bullock (Boston: Inn & Company).

From 1910: Short bibliography on public finance “for serious minded students” by Bullock

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Course Enrollment
1908-09

Economics 16. Professor Bullock. —Public Finance (advanced course).

Total 11: 7 Graduates, 1 Senior, 1 Junior, 2 Others.

Source: Harvard University. Report of the President of Harvard College, 1908-1909, p. 68.

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Course Announcement
1908-09

[Economics] 16. Public Finance (Advanced Course). Mon., Wed., Fri., at 9. Professor Bullock.

This course is designed for graduate students and for undergraduates who are especially interested in public finance. It cannot be elected by students who have taken Economics 7, except by express consent of the instructor.

The course is devoted to the examination of the financial institutions of the principal modern countries, in the light of both theory and history. One or more reports calling for independent investigation will ordinarily be required. Special emphasis will be placed upon questions of American finance.

Source: Official Register of Harvard University, Vol. V, No. 19 (1 June 1908). History and Political Science Comprising the Departments of History and Government, and Economics, 1908-09, pp. 55-56.

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ECONOMICS 16
THE THEORY AND METHODS
OF TAXATION

Mid-year Examination, 1908-09
  1. Discuss briefly the writings of Carafa, Bodin, Petty, and the Cameralists.
  2. Discuss briefly the views of Adam Smith concerning public revenues.
  3. Discuss the following: “A government, unlike an individual or a private corporation, regulates its receipts by its expenditures.”
  4. Discuss the financial significance of the post-office, state railroads, and municipal industries.
  5. What can be gained by a careful study of public expenditures?
  6. What is the theoretical outcome of the discussion of the normal source of taxation? Has the discussion any practical value?
  7. What does Adam Smith say about the incidence of taxes on wages, profits, and rent?
  8. State and criticize three methods of classifying public revenues?

Source: Harvard University Archives. Harvard University. Mid-year Examinations, 1852-1943. Box 8, Bound Volume: Examination Papers, Mid-Years 1908-09.

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ECONOMICS 16
THE THEORY AND METHODS
OF TAXATION

Year-end Examination, 1908-09 
  1. What are the arguments for and against a federal inheritance tax?
  2. Describe three different methods of taxing railroads, and state the advantages or disadvantages of each method.
  3. What methods of taxing mortgages are employed in the United States? What do you think of each method?
  4. Write a brief account of national and local taxation in France.
  5. Compare English national and local taxation with French.
  6. Discuss the financial situation of the German Empire.
  7. What constitutional difficulties do the American States encounter in taxing corporations?
  8. Discuss the subject of the national debts of Great Britain, France, the German Empire, and the United States at the present time.

Source: Harvard University Archives. Harvard University, Examination Papers, 1873-1915. Box 8, Bound vol. Examination Papers 1908-09; Papers Set for Final Examinations in History, Government, Economics,…,Music in Harvard College (June, 1909), p. 46.

Categories
Exam Questions Harvard History of Economics

Harvard. Exams for the history of economics up to 1848. Bullock, 1908-1909

“Economic Theory and its History” was the designation of the only mandatory subject for the economics Ph.D. general examination at Harvard in the early 20th century [there were still another five elective subjects to be examined in!] so it is not surprising that this full year course taught by Charles J. Bullock actually went all the way back to Aristotle and Xenophon. 

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Earlier versions of the course
by year and instructor

1899-1900. The History and Literature of Economics to the close of the Eighteenth Century. [William James Ashley]

1901-02. History and Literature of Economics, to the opening of the Nineteenth Century. [Charles Whitney Mixter]

1903-04. History and Literature of Economics to the opening of the Nineteenth Century [Charles Jesse Bullock]

1904-05. History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848. [Charles Jesse Bullock]

1905-06. History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848. [Charles Jesse Bullock]

1906-07. History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848 [Charles Jesse Bullock]

1907-08. History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848 [Charles Jesse Bullock]

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Course Enrollment
1908-09

Economics 15. Professor Bullock. — History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848.

Total 6: 6 Graduates.

Source: Harvard University. Report of the President of Harvard College, 1908-1909, p. 67.

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Course Announcement
1908-09

[Economics] 15. History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848. Mon., Wed., and (at the pleasure of the instructor) Fri, at 11. Professor Bullock.

The purpose of this course is to trace the development of economic thought from classical antiquity to the middle of the nineteenth century. Emphasis is placed upon the relation of economics to philosophical and political theories, as well as to political and industrial conditions.

A considerable amount of reading of prominent writers will be assigned, and opportunity given for the preparation of theses. Much of the instruction is necessarily given by means of lectures.

No undergraduates will be admitted to the course who are not candidates for honors in economics.

Source: Official Register of Harvard University, Vol. V, No. 19 (1 June 1908). History and Political Science Comprising the Departments of History and Government, and Economics, 1908-09, p. 50.

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ECONOMICS 15
THE HISTORY AND LITERATURE OF ECONOMICS

Mid-Year Examination, 1908-09
  1. By what processes did the western world’s stock of economic ideas grow during the period you have studied?
  2. Compare the economic opinions of Xenophon with those of Aristotle.
  3. What did the Roman Law derive from previous economic thought and what did it contribute to subsequent thought?
  4. What do you think of Ingram’s account of economic thought during the Middle Ages?
  5. Where would you look for materials relating to the economic ideas of Europe from 500 A.D. to 1100 A.D.?
  6. What traces of the influence of Aristotle do you find in the economic doctrines of the Schoolmen?
  7. Describe the progress of economic thought in Italy from 1300 A.D. to 1500 A.D.
  8. What opinions concerning commercial policy do you find in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries?

Source: Harvard University Archives. Harvard University. Mid-year Examinations, 1852-1943. Box 8, Bound Volume: Examination Papers, Mid-Years 1908-09.

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ECONOMICS 15
HISTORY AND LITERATURE OF ECONOMICS.
Year-end Examination, 1908-09
  1. Write an essay of about 1,000 words upon the progress of economic thought in England from 1500 to 1770.
  2. What were the elements that contributed to Smith’s system of economic thought?
  3. Compare briefly the development of economic thought in France from 1500 to 1770 with the development of English thought during the same period.
  4. What is the attitude of Schmoller and Oncken toward the mercantilists?
  5. What significance have the Physiocrats for the history of economic thought?

Source: Harvard University Archives. Harvard University, Examination Papers, 1873-1915. Box 8, Bound vol. Examination Papers 1908-09; Papers Set for Final Examinations in History, Government, Economics,…,Music in Harvard College (June, 1909), p. 46.

Image Source: Xenophon. From the statue of Xenophon by Hugo Haerdtl that is located on the southern entry ramp to the Austrian Parliament (Dr.-Karl-Renner-Ring 3, im 1. Wiener Gemeindebezirk Innere Stadt).

Categories
Exam Questions Harvard Public Finance

Harvard. Undergraduate public finance exam. Bullock, 1908-1909

Another project and some travel have kept me busy since the last post. At last I have some time to get back to producing a flow of new content for Economics in the Rear-view Mirror. I’ll pick up where I left off posting exam questions for courses at Harvard in the academic year 1908-09.

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Charles J. Bullock’s earlier public finance exams at Harvard

1901-02. Economics 7a and 7b. Financial administration; taxation [undergraduate]

1903-04. Economics 16.  Financial history of the United States

1904-05. Economics 7a. Introduction to public finance [undergraduate]

1904-05. Economics 7b. Theory and methods of taxation [undergraduate]

1904-05. Economics 16. Financial history of the United States.

1905-06 Economics 7.  Public finance [undergraduate]

1905-06 Economics 16. Public finance [advanced]

1906-07 Economics 16. Public finance and taxation

1907-08  Economics 16. Public finance and taxation

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

From 1906: Selected Readings in Public Finance edited by Charles Jesse Bullock (Boston: Inn & Company).

From 1910: Short bibliography on public finance “for serious minded students” by Bullock

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Course Enrollment
1908-09

Economics 7 2hf. Professor Bullock, assisted by Mr. Harrison. — Public Finance considered with special reference to the Theory and Methods of Taxation.

Total 110: 22 Seniors, 38 Juniors, 41 Sophomores, 5 Freshmen, 4 Others.

Source: Harvard University. Report of the President of Harvard College, 1908-1909, p. 67.

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Course Description
1908-09

7 2hf. Public Finance, considered with special reference to the Theory and Methods of Taxation. Half-course (second half-year). Mon., Wed., Fri., at 10. Professor Bullock.

This course is for undergraduates exclusively, and cannot be elected by graduates. As stated in the title, much attention is given to the subject of taxation, which will occupy about one half of the time of the course and will be studied with special reference to federal, state, and local taxation in the United States. The remainder of the time will be given to such topics as governmental expenditures, governmental industries (including some study of the relation of the state to railways and other public-service industries), public debts, and financial administration.

The course may, with the consent of the instructor, be elected by students who are taking Economics 1 in the same year.

Source: Official Register of Harvard University, Vol. V, No. 19
(1 June 1908). History and Political Science Comprising the Departments of History and Government, and Economics, 1908-09,
p. 48.

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ECONOMICS 7
Year-end Examination, 1908-09

  1. What causes are tending to increase municipal expenditures in the United States?
  2. What can be said for and against the proposition that increasing public expenditures are a sign of advancing civilization?
  3. In what actual cases has public ownership and operation of industries tended to reduce the burden of taxation? What do you consider the probable financial result of public ownership and operation?
  4. Describe the experience of the United States with income taxes.
  5. Write a brief history of the federal tax on spirits in the United States.
  6. By what criteria would you determine the justice of a proposed tax law?
  7. Why should a national debt be paid?
  8. Give a detailed account of the present method of taxing personal property in Massachusetts.

Source: Harvard University Archives. Harvard University, Examination Papers, 1873-1915. Box 8, Bound vol. Examination Papers 1908-09; Papers Set for Final Examinations in History, Government, Economics,…,Music in Harvard College (June, 1909), p. 39.

Categories
Brown Economists Harvard

Harvard. Application for PhD candidacy. John H. Williams, PhD 1919

John Henry Williams was in his day a colossus whose feet were squarely planted in macroeconomic research and macroeconomic policy. Many posts here at Economics in the Rear-view Mirror include material from his Harvard courses. The particular contribution of this post is found in the transcriptions of the graduate course records from the Division of History, Government and Economics that document Williams’ own pursuit of the Ph.D. Not essential to any understanding of the development of modern economics is the flurry of letters, cards and telegrams required to coordinate the time of Williams’ Special Examination that followed the acceptance of his doctoral thesis. Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.

A timeline of his life and career has been appended to the post below.

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Current Literature

Pier Francesco Asso’s chapter “John Henry Williams (1887–1980)” in The Palgrave Companion to Harvard Economics edited by Robert A. Cord (1924), pp. 197-220.

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Ph.D. in Economics, 1919

JOHN HENRY WILLIAMS, A.B. (Brown Univ.) 1912, A.M. (Harvard Univ.) 1916.

Subject, Economics. Special Field, International Trade. Thesis, “Argentine International Trade under Inconvertible Paper Money, 1880-1900.” Assistant Professor of Economics, Princeton University.

Source: Harvard University. Report of the President of Harvard College, 1918-19, p. 82.

_______________________

HARVARD UNIVERSITY
DIVISION OF HISTORY, GOVERNMENT, AND ECONOMICS

Application for Candidacy for the Degree of Ph.D.

[Note: Boldface used to indicate printed text of the application; italics used to indicate the handwritten entries]

I. Full Name, with date and place of birth.

John Henry Williams. June 21, 1887. Ystrad, Wales.

II. Academic Career: (Mention, with dates inclusive, colleges or other higher institutions of learning attended; and teaching positions held.)

Brown University. 1909-12.
Harvard University. 1915 to present.
Brown University. Instructor in English, 1912-15.

III. Degrees already attained. (Mention institutions and dates.)

A.B. Brown University, 1912.
A.M. Harvard, 1916.

IV. General Preparation. (Indicate briefly the range and character of your undergraduate studies in History, Economics, Government, and in such other fields as Ancient and Modern Languages, Philosophy, etc.)

General course in European history; English Constitutional history; European history since 1815; American history.
Elementary course in Economic Theory; Labor Problems;
Elementary courses in Political Science & in Sociology.
History of Philosophy. English composition (2
 year courses).
Anglo-Saxon; English literature (two year courses); French (two years); German (two years); Latin & Greek (one year each). I obtained credit for a course in Spanish by special examination.

V. Department of Study. (Do you propose to offer yourself for the Ph.D., “History,” in “Economics,” or in “Political Science”?)

Economics.

VI. Choice of Subjects for the General Examination. (State briefly the nature of your preparation in each subject, as by Harvard courses, courses taken elsewhere, private reading, teaching the subject, etc., etc.)

  1. Economic theory, and the history of economic thought.
    Economics 11, Economics 14: – Harvard.
    (Elementary course in theory at Brown.)
  2. Economic history.
    Economics 2: – Harvard.
  3. Public Finance.
    Economics 31: – Harvard.
  4. Labor Problems.
    Economics 34: – Harvard.
    (one course at Brown.)
  5. Political Theory.
    Govt. 6a; Govt 6b: – Harvard.
  6. International Trade. Special Field
    Economics 33.
    Economics 20(a) (Research full course) 

VII. Special Subject for the special examination.

International Trade

VIII. Thesis Subject. (State the subject and mention the instructor who knows most about your work upon it.)

The Foreign Trade of Argentina in the Period of Inconvertible Paper Money (1880-19009.
Professor F. W. Taussig.

IX. Examinations. (Indicate any preferences as to the time of the general and special examinations.)

For the general examination. Early May, 1917.

X. Remarks

[left blank]

Signature of a member of the Division certifying approval of the above outline of subjects.

[signed] Charles J. Bullock

*   *   *   [Last page of application] *   *   *

[Not to be filled out by the applicant]

Name: John Henry Williams

Approved: Jan 23 1917

Ability to use French certified by C. J. Bullock. 18 December 1916 – D.H.

Ability to use German certified by  C. J. Bullock. 18 December 1916 – D.H.

Date of general examination Passed – May 7, 1911 – D.H.

Thesis received [left blank]

Read by [left blank]

Approved [left blank]

Date of special examination [left blank]

Recommended for the Doctorate [left blank]

Degree conferred [left blank]

Remarks.  [left blank]

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Record of JOHN HENRY WILLIAMS
in the Harvard Graduate
School of Arts and Sciences

Grades
1915-16 Course Half-Course
Economics 2a1 A
Economics 2b2 A
Economics 11 A
Economics 13 B plus
Economics 31 A minus
Economics 34 A

 

1916-17 Course Half-Course
Economics 14 “Credit”
Economics 20a A
Economics 332 abs.
Economics 351 A
Government 6a1 A
Government 6b2 abs.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Certification of reading knowledge
of French

HARVARD UNIVERSITY
Department of Economics

F. W. Taussig
T. N. Carver
W. Z. Ripley
C. J. Bullock
E. F. Gay
W. M. Cole
O. M. W. Sprague
W.E. Rappard
H.L. Gray
E. E. Day

Cambridge, Massachusetts
December 18, 1916.

This is to certify that I have examined Mr. J. H. Williams and found that he has a satisfactory reading knowledge of French and German.

[signed]
C. J. Bullock

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

General examination passed

HARVARD UNIVERSITY
Department of Economics

F. W. Taussig
T. N. Carver
W. Z. Ripley
C. J. Bullock
E. F. Gay
W. M. Cole
O. M. W. Sprague
E. E. Day
B. M. Anderson, Jr.

Cambridge, Massachusetts
May 9, 1917.

Dear Haskins:

Mr. J. H. William passed his general examination for the doctor’s degree on May 7th. He did pretty well in all subjects, and the vote of the Committee was unanimous. The examination was not, however, a brilliant one.

Sincerely yours,
[signed]
Charles J. Bullock

Dean C. H. Haskins

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Willing to take a professorship at Lafayette College if offered.

Department of Commerce
Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce
Washington

June 20, 1918

I have your letter of June 17th, forwarded from the Cambridge Y.M.C.A., stating that I have been recommended for a professorship in economics and government at Lafayette College at $2,000. That prospect seems to me highly desirable and I hope I may get it. I am writing today to Dr. MacCracken.

For the past two weeks, as a result of your kind mention of me to Dr. Klein, I have been doing Latin American research work in the Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce. My present appointment is temporary and in no way binding on either side. I understand, however, that I may arrange for a permanent appointment if I desire. The salary is about the same as that of the teaching position, but the cost of living here in Washington is terrific! I feel too that I should prefer teaching to this work, provided the salary were satisfactory, as it is in the case of this position at Lafayette College. If, therefore, you could assist me in any way to secure the place, I should be very grateful.

I take this opportunity to explain what is the present status of my thesis. Save for some minor changes it is completed, and is now in Professor Taussig’s hands. He hopes to have an opportunity to read it during his vacation, which I undertand is to begin soon. Once the thesis is returned to me I mean to put it into final shape and forward it to you. Do you not think that it might be examined by a committee in the late summer or early fall, and that, if it is satisfactory, arrangement might be made for me to take the final examination in October?

With many thanks for your kind letter, I am

Very truly yours,
[signed]
John H. Williams

Dean Charles H. Haskins.

(My safest address is the Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce, Latin American Division, Washington, D.C. I am advising the Appointments Office of this address.)

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Dean Haskins reply to Williams

22 June 1918

Dear Mr. Williams:

I am glad to learn from your letter of 20 June that you are interested in the place at Lafayette. Your letter to President MacCracken will put you in touch with him; I had already given him the only address I conld get, 1937 Calvert Street.

In regards your thesis, I will undertake to see what we can do when it reaches me in final shape. It is hard to find men free to read theses during the summer, but at least it can be read early in the academic year, so that your special examination need not go far into the autumn.

Let me know if I can do anything about the place at Lafayette, or elsewhere. I mentioned Professor Bullock in writing to President MacCracken.

Very truly yours,
[unsigned copy]

Mr. John H. Williams.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Undated File Note
Presumably late June 1918.

Miss Ham has telphoned that J. H. Williams wishes to take his special examination next fall. Professor Taussig has received his thesis and has read it. Who are to be the other members of the committee?

[Handwritten notes added:]
Bullock, Sprague, Klein, Carver.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Division asks Carver
to Read Williams’ thesis

7 October 1918

Dear Carver:

Will you serve as one of the committee to read the Ph.D. thesis of J. H. Williams, on “Foreign Trade of Argentina in the Period of Inconvertible Paper Money (1880-1900)”? The thesis will be sent to you.

Yours sincerely,
[unsigned copy]

Professor T. N. Carver

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Taussig’s Daughter to wed in November 1918. Good time to schedule Williams’ Special Examination

HARVARD UNIVERSITY
Department of Economics

F. W. Taussig
T. N. Carver
W. Z. Ripley
C. J. Bullock
E. F. Gay
W. M. Cole
O. M. W. Sprague
E. E. Day
B. M. Anderson, Jr.
J. S. Davis
H. H. Burbank
E. E. Lincoln

Cambridge, Massachusetts
October 14, 1918.

Dear dear Haskins:

Taussig writes that he is going to be in Cambridge about November 10th to attend his daughter’s wedding, and obviously that will be the best time for having Williams’s final examination. Let us tentatively put that down for November 9th, 10th, or 11th, the exact date to be fixed after the date of the wedding is definitely set.

Williams’s thesis will undoubtedly be accepted. Taussig and I are now ready to approve it, and find it a very excellent piece of work. Carver is now reading it.

Sincerely yours,
[signed]
Charles J. Bullock

Dean C. H. Haskins

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Dean Haskins Begins to Assemble Special Examination Committee

HARVARD UNIVERSITY
Division of History, Government, and Economics

16 October 1918

My dear Sir:

Can you serve as a member of the committee for the special examination of John Henry Williams for the Ph.D. in Economics, which is provisionally fixed for November 9 or 11? Mr. Williams’s special field is International Trade, and his thesis subject is Foreign Trade of Argentina in the Period of Inconvertible Paper Money (1880-1900). The committee consists of Professors Taussig (chairman), Bullock, Carver, and Persons.

Yours sincerely,
[unsigned copy]
CHARLES H. HASKINS

[To: Taussig, Bullock, Carver, Persons]

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Division sets tentative dates for
Special Examination

16 October 1918

Dear Mr. Williams:

Your special examination has been fixed provisionally for November 9 or 11. The committee consists of Professors Taussig (chairman), Bullock, Carver, and Persons.

Sincerely yours,
[unsigned copy]

Mr. J. H. Williams.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Division checking whether
Taussig would be available for the Special Examination

16 October 1918

Dear Taussig:

I understand from Bullock that you are to be here these days. Can you indicate so far in advance whether you could act on Williams’s examination and what hour would be convenient for you?

Sincerely yours,
[unsigned copy]

Professor F.W. Taussig.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Persons can serve on
Special Examination Committee

My dear Dean Haskins:

I will be able to serve on the committee to examine J. H. Williams on Nov 9 or 11.

[signed]
Warren M. Persons

Oct. 18–1918

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

UNITED STATES TARIFF COMMISSION
WASHINGTON

F. W. Taussig, Chairman
Thomas walker Page, Vice Chairman
David J. Lewis
William Kent
William S. Culbertson
Edward P. Costigan
Wm. M. Steuart, Secretary

Address reply to
United States Tariff Commission

October 18, 1918.

Dear Bullock:

I enclose the certificate on Williams’s thesis, duly signed. I should hope to be able to get to Cambridge about November 12th. I can make no unqualified promises, but just now there is something of a let up, and prospects for an easier year are good.

Sincerely yours,
[signed]
F. W. Taussig

Professor C. J. Bullock,
Department of Economics
Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Enclosure.

[Short-hand note at bottom of page]

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

UNITED STATES TARIFF COMMISSION
WASHINGTON

F. W. Taussig, Chairman
Thomas walker Page, Vice Chairman
David J. Lewis
William Kent
William S. Culbertson
Edward P. Costigan
Wm. M. Steuart, Secretary

Address reply to
United States Tariff Commission

October 19, 1918.

Dear Haskins:

I have your letter of the 16th. I could take part in Williams’ examination about November 12th or 13th. It will be a pleasure to have a hand again in Cambridge doings.

Sincerely yours,
[signed]
F. W. Taussig

Mr. Charles H. Haskins,
Harvard University,
Cambridge, Massachusetts.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Bullock has Taussig’s letter to him
forwarded to Dean Haskins

HARVARD UNIVERSITY
Department of Economics

F. W. Taussig
T. N. Carver
W. Z. Ripley
C. J. Bullock
E. F. Gay
W. M. Cole
O. M. W. Sprague
E. E. Day
B. M. Anderson, Jr.
J. S. Davis
H. H. Burbank

Cambridge, Massachusetts
October 21, 1918.

Dear Dean Haskins:

Professor Bullock wished me to send you the enclosed letter from Professor Taussig, and to suggest that you provisionally set November 12th as the date for Mr. Williams’s examination and find out whether Professor Taussig now can agree to come at that time.

Very truly yours,
[signed]
A. Pauline Ham

Dean C. H. Haskins

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Special Examination Date Change
(to the Committee)

21 October 1918

Dear Bullock:

Mr. Williams’s examination has been changed to Tuesday, November 12, at 3 p.m. I hope that this will be convenient for you.

Sincerely yours,
[unsigned copy]

Professor C. J. Bullock
Professor T. N. Carver
Dr. W. M. Persons.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Special Examination Date Change
(to Williams)

21 October 1918

My dear Mr. Williams:

It has been found necessary to change your examination, and it has been set provisionally for Tuesday, November 12, at 3 p.m.

Sincerely yours,
[unsigned copy]

Mr. John H. Williams.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Special Examination Date Change
(to Taussig)

21 October 1918

Dear Taussig:

I have arranged Mr. Williams’s examination for Tuesday, November 12, at 3 p.m. I hope that hour will be convenient for you.

Sincerely yours,
[unsigned copy]

Professor F. W. Taussig.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Carver agrees to serve on Williams’ Special Examination Committee

HARVARD UNIVERSITY
Department of Economics

F. W. Taussig
T. N. Carver
W. Z. Ripley
C. J. Bullock
E. F. Gay
W. M. Cole
O. M. W. Sprague
E. E. Day
B. M. Anderson, Jr.
J. S. Davis
H. H. Burbank
E. E. Lincoln

Cambridge, Massachusetts
October 22, 1918.

Dean Charles H. Haskins,
Cambridge, Mass.

Dear Sir:

I can serve as a member of the committee for the examination of Mr. Williams on either date, given, preferably on November 9.

Very sincerely yours,
[signed]
T. N. Carver (P)

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Bullock can’t make
the new Special Examination date

HARVARD UNIVERSITY
Department of Economics

F. W. Taussig
T. N. Carver
W. Z. Ripley
C. J. Bullock
E. F. Gay
W. M. Cole
O. M. W. Sprague
E. E. Day
B. M. Anderson, Jr.
J. S. Davis
H. H. Burbank
E. E. Lincoln

Cambridge, Massachusetts
October 23, 1918.

My dear Haskins:

It now appears that I shall be away from Cambridge the week of November 10-16 in attendance at the annual conference of the National Tax Association. Since Taussig is going to be here that week, I think it would be better to adhere to your date of Noverber 12th for Williams’s examination. You have Taussig, Carver, and Persons, so that you could perfectly well replace me by Burbank or some historian or a government man. It is more important that Taussig should be on hand than that I should be there.

Sincerely yours,
[signed]
Charles J. Bullock

Dean C. H. Haskins

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Carver agrees to new date for
Williams’ Special Examination

HARVARD UNIVERSITY
Department of Economics

F. W. Taussig
T. N. Carver
W. Z. Ripley
C. J. Bullock
E. F. Gay
W. M. Cole
O. M. W. Sprague
E. E. Day
B. M. Anderson, Jr.
J. S. Davis
H. H. Burbank
E. E. Lincoln

Cambridge, Massachusetts
October 24, 1918.

Dean Charles H. Haskins,
Cambridge, Mass.

Dear Dean Haskins:

The date for Mr. Williams’s examination, November 12, at 3 p.m. is satisfactory to me.

Very sincerely yours,
[signed]
T. N. Carver

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

UNITED STATES TARIFF COMMISSION
WASHINGTON

F. W. Taussig, Chairman
Thomas walker Page, Vice Chairman
David J. Lewis
William Kent
William S. Culbertson
Edward P. Costigan
Wm. M. Steuart, Secretary

Address reply to
United States Tariff Commission

October 24, 1918.

Dear Haskins:

I have your note concerning Williams’ examination on Tuesday, November 12th. I will be on hand.

Very truly yours,
[signed]
F. W. Taussig

Mr. Charles H. Haskins,
Harvard University,
Cambridge, Massachusetts.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Asking Burbank to substitute for Bullock

25 October 1918

Dear Burbank:

Could you serve as a member of the committee for the special examination of J. H. Williams on Tuesday, November 12, at 3 p.m.? Professor Bullock, who was to serve, is obliged to be out of town that week, and the date of the examination has to be fixed with regard to Professor Taussig’s presence in Cambridge. Mr. Williams’s special field is International Trade, and his thesis is on Foreign Trade in Argentina, 1880-1900. The other members of the committee are Professors Taussig (chairmen), Carver, and Persons.

Sincerely yours,
[unsigned copy]

Dr. H. H. Burbank.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Bullock informed

25 October 1918

Dear Bullock:

I have asked Burbank to serve in your place at Williams’s examination.

Sincerely yours,
[unsigned copy]

Professor C. J. Bullock.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Taussig needs to postpone
the Special Examination

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Dean Agrees to Postponing Special Examination

6 November 1918

Professor F. W. Taussig, U. S. Tariff Commission, Washington, D.C.

Examination can be changed to Friday fifteenth if your presence assured then. Telegraph.

Charles H. Haskins

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Williams informed of Special Examination date change

7 November 1918

Dear Mr. Williams:

It has been found necessary to change your examination to Friday, November 15, at 4 p.m. in Widener U.

Sincerely yours,
[unsigned copy]

Mr. J. H. Williams.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Committee members informed of
Special Examination date change

7 November 1918

My dear Sir:

It has been found necessary to change Mr. Williams’s examination to Friday, November 15, at 4 p.m. in Widener U. I trust this hour will be convenient for you.

Sincerely yours,
[unsigned copy]

[Carver, Persons, Burbank]

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Special examination passed

HARVARD UNIVERSITY
Department of Economics

F. W. Taussig
T. N. Carver
W. Z. Ripley
C. J. Bullock
E. F. Gay
W. M. Cole
O. M. W. Sprague
E. E. Day
B. M. Anderson, Jr.
J.S. Davis
H.H. Burbank
E.E. Lincoln

Cambridge, Massachusetts
November 16, 1918.

Dear Sir:

I beg to report, in behalf of the Committee appointed to conduct the special examination of J. H. Williams, that he passed the examination by unanimous vote of the Committee.

Very truly yours,
[signed]
F. W. Taussig

Dean C. H. Haskins

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Notice to President’s Office
of the Award of Ph.D.

[Format matches the listing in the Annual Report of the President of Harvard College]

3 December 1918

The Division of History, Government, and Economics reports that the following candidate for the degree of Doctor of philosophy has presented a satisfactory thesis and passed his final examination successfully:

John Henry Williams,

A.B. (Brown Univ.) 1912, A.M. (Harvard Univ.) 1916.

Subject, Economics. Special Field, International Trade.

Thesis. “The Foreign Trade of Argentina in the Period of Inconvertible paper Money (1880-1900).”

[unsigned copy]
Chairman

Source: Harvard University Archives. Division of History, Government & Economics, Ph.D. 1923-24. (UA V 453.270), Box 05, Folder “Degree Granted”.

__________________________

Course Names and Instructors

1915-16

Economics 2a 1hf. European Industry and Commerce in the Nineteenth Century. Professor Gay assisted by Mr. A.H. Cole and Ryder.

Economics 2b 2hf. Economic and Financial History of the United States. Professor Gay assisted by Mr. A.H. Cole and Ryder.

Economics 11. Economic Theory. Professor Taussig.

Economics 13. Statistics: Theory, Methods, Practice. Asst. Professor Day.

Economics 31. Public Finance. Professor Bullock.

Economics 34. Problems of Labor. Professor Ripley.

1916-17

Economics 14. History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848. Professor Bullock.

Economics 20a. Economic Research (Economic Theory and International Trade and Tariff Problems). Professor Taussig.

Economics 332International Trade and Tariff Problems. Professor Persons (Colorado College).

Economics 351. Problems of Business Cycles. Professor Persons (Colorado College).

Government 6a1. History of Political Theory. Asst. Professor Holcombe.

Government 6b2. Political Theories of Modern Times. Asst. Professor Holcombe.

Source: Harvard University. Report of the President of Harvard College for 1915-16, 1916-17.

__________________________

John Henry Williams
Timeline of his life and career

1887. Born June 21 in Ystrad, Wales.

1889. May. Family emigrates to the United States, settling in the Blackinton section of North Adams, Massachusetts.

1900. October 13. Became a naturalized citizen of the United States.

 1908[est.] Graduated from Drury High School, North Adams, Massachusetts.

1912. A.B. Brown University.

1912-15. English instructor at Brown University.

1915. Married Jessie Isabelle Monroe (she died in 1960). Two daughters.

1916. A.M. in economics, Harvard.

1917-18. July to May, Sheldon Travelling Fellow to Buenos Aires.

1918-19. Instructor of Economics. Harvard. Also assistant editor of the Review of Economic Statistics.

1919. Ph.D. in economics, Harvard. Thesis awarded the Wells Prize.

1919. Accompanied Professor Edwin Walter Kemmerer of Princeton University, who was serving as adviser to the Guatemalan government in currency matters, to Guatemala and Cuba. (They departed July 12 from New Orleans). Williams traveled as secretary to Kemmerer.

1919-20. Assistant professor of economics, Princeton University.

1920. Publication of the doctoral thesis, Argentine International Trade Under Inconvertible Paper Money, 1880-1900.

1920-21. Associate Professor of Banking, Northwestern University.

1921-25. Assistant Professor of Economics, Harvard University.

1925-26. Westinghouse professor in Italy.

1925-29. Associate Professor of Economics, Harvard University.

1929-33. Professor of Economics, Harvard University.

1933-57. Nathaniel Ropes Professor of Political Economy, Harvard University.

1932-33. Delegate to the Commission that prepared the World Monetary and Economic Conference.

1933. Spring. Joined the Federal Reserve Bank of New York as Assistant Federal Reserve Agent. Full-time until October 1934.

1936-47. Vice-president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. In charge of the Research Function.

1937-47. First Dean of the Harvard Graduate School of Public Administration.

1944. First edition of Postwar Monetary Plans and Other Essays published. Second edition (1945). Third edition (1947). Fourth edition (1949).

1947-52. Economic Advisor to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

1948-51. Member of the European Cooperation and Administration advisory committee on fiscal and monetary problems.

1951. President of the American Economic Association.

1952-ca.1963. Consultant to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

1953Economic stability in a changing world; essays in economic theory and policy.

1953. One of seven named by President Eisenhower to a commission to study foreign economic policy.

1953-54. Member of the United States Commission on Foreign Economic Policy.

1957. Retires from Harvard University.

1957-63. William L. Clayton Professor of International Economic Affairs at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University.

1962. Married second wife, Katherine R. McKinstry
[note: she was thanked for her editorial help in preparing the publication of Postwar Monetary Plans and Other Essays (1944); also in Economic stability in a changing world; essays in economic theory and policy (1953)]

1980. December 24. Died in Southbridge, Massachusetts.

Timeline sources: Obituary in North Adams Transcript (Jan 5, 1981), p. 12; FRBNY Quarterly Review (Winter, 1980-81), pp. 1-2Who’s Who in America 1952, p. 2622.

Image Source: Passport picture from John Henry Williams’ passport application July 8, 1919. Low resolution scan enhanced by Economics in the Rear-view Mirror.

Categories
Exam Questions Harvard History of Economics

Harvard. Final exam for Adam Smith and Ricardo course. Bullock, 1907-1908

 

I suppose that a graduate course dedicated to the works of Smith and Ricardo between historical bookends of Physiocracy and Karl Marx should come as no surprise from that era over a century ago when the history of economic ideas was firmly embedded in the theory taught to apprentice economists. But like Gay’s attempt to bring a deep reading of French and German economics (not in translation) into the curriculum in the previous year, Bullock’s course of was not met with an overwhelming demand.

________________________

Course Enrollment
1907-08

Economics 25 2hf. Professor Bullock — Adam Smith and Ricardo.

Total 6: 4 Graduates, 1 Senior, 1 Other.

Source: Harvard University. Report of the President of Harvard College, 1907-1908, p. 67.

________________________

ECONOMICS 25
ADAM SMITH AND RICARDO.
Year-end Examination, 1907-07

  1. Trace the development of the doctrine of rent in the writings of the Physiocrats, Smith, and Ricardo.
  2. What were the opinions of Smith and Ricardo concerning the measure of value?
  3. Discuss the fundamental doctrines of the Physiocrats and Smith concerning capital.
  4. Compare Marx’s theory of value with the theories of Smith and Ricardo.
  5. What are the fundamental contentions of Smith in his attack upon the Mercantilists?
  6. Compare the general doctrines of the Physiocrats, Smith, and Ricardo concerning the incidence of taxation.
  7. Compare Ricardo’s doctrine of foreign trade with that of Smith.
  8. What were the views of Smith and Ricardo concerning the effect of the increase of capital upon profits?

Source: Harvard University Archives. Harvard University, Examination Papers, 1873-1915. Box 8, Bound vol. Examination Papers 1908-09 (HUC 7000.25), p. 46.

Image Sources: Adam Smith by James Tassie in the National Galleries of Scotland. David Ricardo by William Holl Jr, after Thomas Phillips stipple engraving, published 1839 in the National Portrait Gallery.

 

Categories
Brown Economists Harvard

Harvard. Economics Ph.D. alumnus Harry Edward Miller, 1923

Today we meet the economics Ph.D. alumnus Harry Edward Miller who was an Allyn A. Young dissertation student awarded a Harvard Ph.D. in 1923. Miller went on to become the Eastman professor of political economy at Brown University. He was only forty years old at the time of his death that resulted from hemorrhaging, a complication from a pancreaticoduodenectomy, probably attempted because of pancreatic cancer (cause of death information from death certificate).

This post provides the entire record for Harry Edward Miller found in the files of the Division of History, Government and Economics at Harvard. Bonus content includes the identification of all his graduate school courses and instructors plus a chronology of Miller’s life and career.

_______________________

HARVARD UNIVERSITY
DIVISION OF HISTORY, GOVERNMENT, AND ECONOMICS

Application for Candidacy for the Degree of Ph.D.

[Note: Boldface used to indicate printed text of the application; italics used to indicate the handwritten entries]

I. Full Name, with date and place of birth.

Harry Edward Miller, born October 11, 1897 at Boston Mass.

II. Academic Career: (Mention, with dates inclusive, colleges or other higher institutions of learning attended; and teaching positions held.)

Boston University, 1915-19
Harvard University, Graduate School of Arts & Sciences 1919-21

III. Degrees already attained. (Mention institutions and dates.)

A.B., Boston University, 1919
A.M., Harvard University, 1920

IV. General Preparation. (Indicate briefly the range and character of your under-graduate studies in History, Economics, Government, and in such other fields as Ancient and Modern Languages, Philosophy, etc. In case you are a candidate for the degree in History, state the number of years you have studied preparatory and college Latin.)

Full-year courses in Modern & Medieval European History, American History, Comparative Government. Full-year courses in Principles of Economics, and half-year courses in Public Finance, Economic History of the U.S., Socialism, History of Economic Theory.
4 years of high-school Latin and one of college.
3 years of high-school French and one of college.
2 years of high-school German and 3 of college.

V. Department of Study. (Do you propose to offer yourself for the Ph.D., “History,” in “Economics,” or in “Political Science”?)

Economics.

VI. Choice of Subjects for the General Examination. (State briefly the nature of your preparation in each subject, as by Harvard courses, courses taken elsewhere, private reading, teaching the subject, etc., etc.)

  1. Economic Theory and Its History. (Econ. 11, 14, and 15. Half-year undergraduate course at Boston University in the history, full-year course in the theory.
  2. Economic History since 1750 (Econ. 2 with additional reading and a half-year undergraduate course at Boston Univ.).
  3. Statistical Method and its Application (Econ. 41).
  4. Public finance (Econ 31 and a half-year undergraduate course at Boston University).
  5. History of Political Theory. (Gov’t 6).
  6. Money, Banking and Commercial Crises (Econ. 3 with additional reading, and Econ 382 hf. (to be taken during second semester of this year))

VII. Special Subject for the special examination.

Money, Banking and Commercial Crises. (Econ.3)

VIII. Thesis Subject. (State the subject and mention the instructor who knows most about your work upon it.)

To be determined.
[added by someone else] “Theories of Banking in the United States before the Civil War.” (with Professor Young)

IX. Examinations. (Indicate any preferences as to the time of the general and special examinations.)

I should prefer the general examination in the late spring of this year.

X. Remarks

[left blank]

Signature of a member of the Division certifying approval of the above outline of subjects.

[signed] Edmund E. Day

*   *   *   [Last page of application] *   *   *

[Not to be filled out by the applicant]

Name: Harry E. Miller.

Approved: January 25, 1921.

Ability to use French certified by C. J. Bullock, March 28, 1921.

Ability to use German certified by C. J. Bullock, March 28, 1921.

Date of general examination Thursday, 3 November 1921, passed – A.A. Young

Thesis received April 1, 1923

Read by Professors Young, Sprague and

Approved Bullock

Date of special examination May 25, 1923. Passed – A.A. Young

Recommended for the Doctorate June 5, 1923

Degree conferred 21 June 1923

Remarks.  [left blank]

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Certification of reading knowledge
of French and German for Ph.D.

HARVARD UNIVERSITY
Department of Economics

F. W. Taussig
T. N. Carver
W. Z. Ripley
C. J. Bullock
A. A. Young
W. M. Persons
E. E. Day
J. S. Davis
H. H. Burbank
A. S. Dewing
E. E. Lincoln
A. E. Monroe
A. H. Cole

Cambridge, Massachusetts
March 28, 1921

My dear Haskins:

I have this morning examined Mr. Henry E. Miller, and find that he has such a knowledge of French and German as we require of candidates for the doctorate.

Very sincerely yours
[signed]
Charles  J. Bullock

Dean C. H. Haskins

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Miller provides title of his dissertation

Apr. 11, 1921

Division of Hist., Govt. and Economics
Mrs. Dorothy Cogswell Sec’y.

My dear Mrs. Cogswell:

The title of my Ph.D. thesis is to be, “The History of Banking Theory in America before 1860.” I informed the secretary of the Dept. of Economics to that effect and am sorry it did not occur to me that you might not be advised through her.

Sincerely yours,
[signed] Harry E. Miller

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

General Exam Postponed

COPY

HARVARD UNIVERSITY
DIVISION OF HISTORY, GOVERNMENT,
AND ECONOMICS

20 May, 1921

My dear Sir:

The General Examination of Mr. Harry E. Miller, which was scheduled for Wednesday, 25 May, has been postponed until next year.

Very truly yours,
CHARLES H. HASKINS

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Request to Professors to join general examination committee

Copy

8 October 1921

My dear Sir:

Can you serve as one on the committee for the general examination of Harry Edward Miller? The committee will consist of Professor Young, Chairman, Professor Bullock, Professor McIlwain, Professor Usher and Professor Taussig. The examination will be on Tuesday, November 3.

The subjects which Mr. Miller offers are

Theory and its History
Economic History since 1750
Statistical Method and its Application on Public Finance
History of Political Theory
Money, Banking and Commercial Crises.

Very truly yours,

Professor [“Young”, “Bullock”,“Usher”, “Taussig”,“McIlwain” added here to the individual letters]

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Bullock declares willingness to serve on the general exam committee

HARVARD UNIVERSITY
Committee on Economic Research
Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S.A.

Charles J. Bullock, Chairman
W. M. Persons, Editor
A. E. Monroe, Asst. Editor
F. Y. Presley, Business Mgr.
Charles F. Adams
Nicholas Biddle
Frederic H. Curtiss
Wallace B. Donham
Ogden L. Mills
Eugene V. R. Thayer

October 10, 1921

Professor Charles H. Haskins,
24 University Hall,
Cambridge, Massachusetts.

My dear Sir:

In reply to your letter of October 8th I may say that I will serve on the committee for the general examination of Henry Edward Miller on November 3rd.

Very truly yours,
[signed] Charles J. Bullock/A.H.C.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Usher declares willingness to serve on the general exam committee

THE COLLEGE OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
OF
BOSTON UNIVERSITY
525 Boylston Street
Boston

Department of Economics

Oct 11, 1921

Dear Prof. Haskins:

I shall be glad to serve on the committees for the general examinations of Mr. Miller and Mr. Bober; though on Tuesday Nov. 3 I should not be able to attend earlier than 3.30 P.M.

As no date has apparently been set for Mr. Bober’s examination, I may say that my class obligations here would make it impossible to attend either on Tuesdays or Fridays before 3.30.

Sincerely yours,
[signed] Abbott Payson Usher

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Young available for the proposed dates of the general exams

6 Hilliard Street, Cambridge, Mass.,
October 11, 1921.

Dear Haskins,

I have your notes informing me of the dates set for the general examinations of Miller and Bober. I have set aside the two dates mentioned, Tuesday, [marginal note “/Thursday?”] November 3, and Thursday, October 27

Yours sincerely,
[signed]
Allyn A. Young

Dean Charles H. Haskins
Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
University Hall,
Cambridge, Mass.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Miller informed of date
for his general examination

Copy

13 October 1921

My dear Mr. Miller:

Your general examination will take place on Thursday, 3 November. I am very sorry that it was impossible to arrange for this earlier in the week as you desired.

Very truly yours,
[unsigned]

Mr. H. E. Miller

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Passed General Examination

6 Hilliard Street, Cambridge, Mass.,
November 5, 1921.

Dear Dean Haskins,

On behalf of the committee in charge of the general examination of Mr. Harry Edward Miller for the degree of Ph.D., I beg to report that Mr. Miller passed the examination, which was held on Thursday, November 3.

Yours sincerely,
[signed]
Allyn A. Young

Dean Charles H. Haskins
Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
University Hall,
Cambridge, Mass.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Dean Haskins asking Young about the general quality of Miller’s general exam

Copy

8 November 1921

Dear Young:

I have your letter of 5 November, notifying me that H. E. Miller passed his general examination.

Could you without inconvenience let me know about the general quality of the examination and whether he had any margin. The Division desires a record of this kind for reference when a candidate comes to the later stages of his work, particularly the special examination, when the Committee may have no personal recollection of the general examination.

Sincerely yours,
[“x” for Haskins]

Professor A. A. Young

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Supplementary Information for
General Examination of H. E. Miller

6 Hilliard Street, Cambridge, Mass.,
November 21, 1921.

Dear Haskins:

I have your note of November 8 asking for supplementary information respecting H. E. Miller’s general examination for the Ph.D. degree.

It was the unanimous opinion of the committee that Miller’s examination was unusually creditable. He showed himself well prepared in each of the subjects offered; he thought clearly; and he was always in command of himself and of his information. In several fields the examination could easily be called brilliant; in all fields it showed unusual competence.

Yours sincerely,
[signed]
Allyn A. Young

Professor Charles H. Haskins, Dean
Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
24 University Hall,
Cambridge, Mass.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Request to Prof. Vanderblue to join special examination committee

Copy

14 May 1923

My dear Professor Vanderblue:

Will it be possible for you to serve as a member of the committee for the special examination of H. E. Miller for the Ph.D. in Economics, to be held on Friday, 25 May, at 4 p.m., to take Professor Dewing’s place? Professor Dewing is to be away on that date, and so is unable to attend. I am sending you an examination pamphlet herewith. You will find Mr. Miller’s name on page 20.

Very truly yours,
Secretary of the Division

Professor H. B. Vanderblue

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Request to Prof. Vanderblue to join special examination committee

Copy

17 May 1923

My dear Professor Young:

Mr. H. E. Miller’s examination is on Friday, the 25th, but his thesis is not in yet. I gave it to Professor Sprague to read first, and Professor Bullock’s secretary tells me that it is in her office, signed by Professor Bullock and yourself. Can you tell me when it will be ready to come back to this office?

Very truly yours,
Secretary of the Division

Professor A. A. Young

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Reminder to Young: special examination

HARVARD UNIVERSITY
Division of history, Government, and Economics

Cambridge, Massachusetts
22 May 1923

My dear Professor Young:

This is to remind you that you are chairman of the committee for the special examination of H. E. Miller for the Ph.D. in Economics, to be held on Friday, 25 May, at 4 p.m., in Widener U. I enclose Mr. Miller’s papers herewith, also an envelope for their return.

Very truly yours,
[signed]
Esther W. Hinckley
Secretary of the Division

P.S. Professor Vanderblue is to take Professor Dewing’s place on the committee.

Professor A.A. Young

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Reminder to Miller: special examination

Copy

Cambridge, Massachusetts
22 May 1923

My dear Mr. Miller:

This is to remind you that your special examination for the Ph.D. in Economics, to be held on Friday, 25 May, at 4 p.m., in Widener U. Professor Vanderblue is to take Professor Dewing’s place on the committee.

Very truly yours,
Secretary of the Division

Mr. H. E. Miller

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Passed Special Examination

6 Hilliard Street,
Cambridge, Massachusetts
May 26, 1923.

My dear Haskins,

On behalf of the committee appointed to conduct the special examination of Mr. Harry E. Miller for the degree of Ph.D., I beg to report that Mr. Miller passed the examination. He made a very creditable showing, – distinctly above the average.

Yours sincerely,
[signed]
Allyn A. Young

Professor Charles H. Haskins, Dean
Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
University Hall.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

Record of Harry Edward Miller

Grades
1919-20 Course

Half-Course

Economics 2a1

B plus

Economics 2b2

A minus

Economics 11

A

Economics 31

B plus

Economics 41

A

 

1920-21 Course

Half-Course

Economics 14

A minus

Economics 15

A

Economics 382

A

Government 6

A

 

1921-22 Course

Half-Course

Economics 20 (2 co.)

AA

 

1922-23 Course

Half-Course

Economics 20

[left blank]

Source: Harvard University Archives. Division of History, Government & Economics, Ph.D. Degrees Conferred 1929-30. (UA V 453.270), Box 09.

__________________________

Course Names and Instructors

1919-20

Economics 2a 1hf. European Industry and Commerce in the Nineteenth Century. Dr. E. E. Lincoln.

Economics 2b 2hf. Economic History of the United States. Dr. E. E. Lincoln.

Economics 11. Economic Theory. Professor Taussig.

Economics 31. Public Finance. Professor Bullock.

Economics 41. Statistical Theory and Analysis. Asst. Professor Day

1920-21

Economics 14. History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848. Professor Bullock.

Economics 15. Modern Schools of Economic Thought. Professor Young.

Economics 382. Selected Monetary Problems. Professor Young.

Government 6. History of Political Theory. Professor McIlwain.

1921-23

Economics 20. Research Seminars.

Source: Harvard University. Report of the President of Harvard College for 1919-20, 1920-21.

__________________________

Harry Edward Miller
Timeline of his life and career

1897. Born [Aaron Miller] on October 10 in Boston.

1918. Military service.

1919. A.B. Boston University.

1920. A.M. in economics Harvard University.

1923. Ph.D. in economics, Harvard. (Report of the President of Harvard College, 1922-23, p. 52)

1923-24. Assistant Professor, Clark University. Cf. Holyoke Daily Transcript (18 Aug 1923). [Note: Unable to find mention of Harry Edward Miller in the relevant Clark University catalogues.]

1924. Joins the Brown economics department at the rank of assistant professor.

1927. Banking Theories in the United States before 1860. Harvard University Press. Revision of Ph.D. thesis.

1928. Appointed associate professor on the Eastman Foundation, Brown University.

1930. Appointed Eastman Professor of Political Economy, Brown University.

1931. Chairman of the Rhode Island special commission for liquor legislation.

1935. Married Rosabelle Winer of New York.

1937. Died November 14 at Beth Israel Hospital in Brookline, Mass.

Sources:  Obituary published in The New York Times (November 15, 1937) and the article “Harry Edward Miller” at online Encyclopedia Brunoniana.

Image Source: The Third Seal of Brown University (1834). The seal is still in use today.

Categories
Exam Questions Harvard History of Economics

Harvard. Exams for history of economics to 1848. Bullock, 1907-1908

The semester exam questions for the fifth time Charles Jesse Bullock taught this history and literature of economics through 1848 at Harvard. He also covered the field of public finance. Guess which field is not really taught much any more…

__________________________

Earlier versions of the course
by year and instructor

1899-1900. The History and Literature of Economics to the close of the Eighteenth Century. [William James Ashley]

1901-02. History and Literature of Economics, to the opening of the Nineteenth Century. [Charles Whitney Mixter]

1903-04. History and Literature of Economics to the opening of the Nineteenth Century [Charles Jesse Bullock]

1904-05. History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848. [Charles Jesse Bullock]

1905-06. History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848. [Charles Jesse Bullock]

1906-07. History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848 [Charles Jesse Bullock]

__________________________

History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848

Course Enrollment
1907-08

Economics 15. Asst. Professor Bullock. — History and Literature of Economics to the year 1848.

Total 7: 7 Graduates.

Source: Harvard University. Report of the President of Harvard College, 1907-1908, p. 67.

ECONOMICS 15
HISTORY OF ECONOMIC THEORY
Mid-Year Examination, 1907-08

  1. Describe the development of theories of commerce from the time of Aristotle to that of the Schoolmen.
  2. Compare the Republic of Plato with More’s Utopia.
  3. Give an account of the economic opinions of Xenophon.
  4. Describe the development of the doctrine of usury from the time of Aristotle to the year 1500.
  5. What do you think of Ingram’s treatment of the economic thought of the Middle Ages?
  6. How did Aristotle classify the various branches of the art of acquisition?
  7. How far would Aristotle’s classification of the various branches of the art of acquisition harmonize with the views of the Schoolmen concerning the various branches of industry and trade?
  8. What is your opinion of the Scholastic doctrine concerning usury?

Source: Harvard University Archives. Harvard University. Mid-year Examinations, 1852-1943. Box 8, Bound Volume: Examination Papers, Mid-Years 1907-08.

ECONOMICS 15
HISTORY AND LITERATURE OF ECONOMICS.
Year-end Examination, 1907-08

  1. What connection can be traced between the economic thought of the sixteenth century and that of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries?
  2. What traces of Aristotle’s influence can be seen in the political and economic theories of Adam Smith?
  3. What doctrines concerning money can be found in the writings of Aristotle, the Schoolmen, Davanzati, and Hume?
  4. Write a brief account of economic thought in England, France, and Italy from 1540 to 1590.
  5. Write a brief survey of the condition of economic thought in England, France, Germany, and Italy about the middle of the eighteenth century.
  6. Compare the opinions of Thomas Mun with those of two earlier and two later English Mercantilists.
  7. What was Turgot’s theory of distribution?
  8. At what points did Smith’s theory of distribution differ from that of Turgot?
  9. Describe the progress of Smith’s doctrines in France and Germany up to the year 1850.

Source: Harvard University Archives. Harvard University, Examination Papers, 1873-1915. Box 8, Bound vol. Examination Papers 1908-09 (HUC 7000.25), pp. 38-39.

Image Source: Jean-Antoine Houdon’s bust of Anne Robert Jacques Turgot (1727-1781). Boston, Massachusetts, Museum of Fine Arts.