The Scope And Method Of Political Economy Classic Reprint PDF Download

Excerpt from Dictionary of Political Economy, Vol. 1 The stream of existence, if the simile may he permitted, reaches us deeply coloured by the soil of the fields through which it has flowed, by the varied strata of the cliffs - some of them undermined by it - that have bounded its long and devious course. Considerations of space have necessarily confined the scope of the work mainly to the developments of economic study in England, the United States, and our English-speaking colonies - and, in regard to these, an endeavour has been made to present under all the subjects treated an account of the beat and most recent authorities; whilst the opinions hold in other countries have also, as far as the required limits allowed, been considered and mentioned. The biographies introduced have been selected with the same end. They show what has actually been written in former times, and hence will enable the reader to trace the progress of economic thought. Much attention has been given to the less-known writers. It is difficult for the student under ordinary circumstances to trace out when such authors lived, the surroundings which influenced their lives, and the opinions they held. While the oversights in science are sometimes as remarkable as the discoveries, these earlier labourers have not unfrequently been the precursors of other and better-known men, and have sometimes anticipated opinions that have held sway for long periods after them. The different economic schools in the principal countries of the world are also described. Thus this volume contains notices of the American, Austrian, Dutch and English schools, and the French, German, Italian, and Spanish schools will follow in due course. A work extending over so wide a range of subjects is, necessarily, the production of many minds, of writers whose pursuits, occupations, and studies are very diverse and varied. I desire to record my warm thanks to the contributors to the book, which is, I think, in itself an almost unique example of economic cooperation. Where all have assisted so heartily, it is less easy to select individual names; but I wish to be allowed to express my special thanks to Professor Dunbar, Dr. Keynes, Professor Marshall, Professor Montague, Professor Nicholson, Signor M. Pantaleoni, Mr. L. R Phelps, Mr. L. L. Price, Mr. E. Schuster, Professor H. Sidgwick. and General Walker for valuable assistance in different directions, and particularly to Dr. Bonar, Professor Edgeworth, Mr. Henry Higgs, and Mr. H. R Tedder, who have kindly helped in the more arduous labour of the preparation of the work for the press. This is but an act of justice, that readers may know to whom they are specially indebted. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.