ECONOMICS  (from the Gr. oiaovogLK1, sc . TEXvrn, from OtKOS, a See also:

• HOUSE
• HOUSE (O. Eng. hiss, a word common to Teutonic languages, cf. Dut. huis, Ger. Haus; in Gothic it is only found in gudhiss, a temple; it may be ultimately connected with the root of " hide," conceal)

house, and vh,uos, See also:

• RULE

rule,—the " See also:

• ART

art of See also:

• HOUSEHOLD, ROYAL

household I management "), the See also:

• GENERAL
• GENERAL (Lat. generalis, of or relating to a genus, kind or class)

general See also:

• TERM

term, with its synonym " See also:

• POLITICAL

political See also:

• ECONOMY

economy," for the See also:

• SCIENCE (Lat. scientia, from scire; to learn, know)

science or study of See also:

• WEALTH

wealth (welfare) and its See also:

• PRODUCTION (Lat. productionem, from producere, to pro-duce)

production, applicable either to the individual, the See also:

• FAMILY

family, the See also:

• STATE
• STATE, GREAT OFFICERS OF

State, or in the widest sense, the See also:

• WORLD

world . How far the same considerations apply to all these See also:

• SPHERES, MUSIC OF THE

spheres—la—one of the problems of economic thought in its widest sense . The term " economy " (q.v.) by itself, which should strictly mean the art of applying See also:

• MONEY

money (or wealth) wisely, has commonly come to mean the art of saving money, or spending as .little as possible . In practice the study of " political " economy is mainly devoted to the See also:

• SPHERE (Gr. vclsa?pa, a ball or globe)

sphere of the State; the welfare of the individual as a member of the State, and of the State in its relation to the world, being See also:

• INTERNAL

internal aspects of the prosperity of the State itself . Economics thus includes the discussion of all the numerous factors which make See also:

• LIFE

life profitable, whether to the nation or to the business, or to the individual See also:

• MAN
• MAN, ISLE OF (anc. Mona)

man . It may be conceived either as an See also:

• HISTORICAL

historical science (What principles have in fact paid ?), or as an abstract science (What are the true principles which must pay, presupposing an ideal ?) . Economists at different times have studied both aspects, according to their See also:

• LIGHTS, CEREMONIAL USE OF

lights, and influenced by historical conditions of philosophic thought . A See also:

• TEXT (Lat. textum, woven fabric, from texere, to weave)

text-See also:

• BOOK

book on economics necessarily deals, therefore, with the whole subject in a manner which need not here be followed, since See also:

• SEPARATE

separate articles are devoted in this See also:

• WORK

work to the See also:

• BIOGRAPHIES

biographies of writers on economics, and also to the See also:

• PRINCIPAL

principal economic questions involved, under their own headings . In this See also:

• ARTICLE (from Lat. articulus, a joint)

article we propose therefore to confine ourselves to discussing the See also:

• CHARACTER (Gr. xapareri7p, from xap&crew, to scratch)

character and subject-See also:

• MATTER

matter of the science, indicating its relation to other sciences, and explaining the methods by which economists reach their conclusions . We understand by economics the science which investigates the manner in which nations or other larger or smaller communities, and their individual members, obtain See also:

• FOOD
• FOOD (like the verb " to feed," from a Teutonic root, whence O. Eng. foda; cf. " fodder "; connected with Gr. lrareicOae, to feed)

food, clothing, shelter and whatever else is considered desirable or necessary for the See also:

• MAINTENANCE (Fr. maintenance, from maintenir, to maintain, support, Lat. manu tenere, to hold in the hand)

maintenance and improvement of the conditions of life . It is thus the study of the life of communities with See also:

• SPECIAL

special reference to one See also:

• SIDE
• SIDE (mod. Eski Adalia)

side of their activity .

It necessarily involves the scientific examination of the structure and organization of the community or communities in question; their See also:

• HISTORY

history, their customs, See also:

• LAWS

laws and institutions; and the relations between their members, in so far as they affect or are affected by this See also:

• DEPARTMENT (Fr. departement, from departir, to separate into parts)

department of their activity . At the See also:

• ROOT (late O.E. rot, adopted from Scand., cf. Norw. and Swed. rot, Dan. rod; the true O.E. word was wyrt, plant, represented in Ger. Wurz or Wurzel; the ultimate root is the same in both words, and is seen in Lat. radix)
• ROOT, ELIHU (1845– )

root of all economic investigation lies the conception of the See also:

• STANDARD
• STANDARD, BATTLE OF THE

standard of life of the community . By this expression we do not mean an ideal mode of living, but the habits and requirements of life generally current in a community or grade of society at a given See also:

• PERIOD
• PERIOD (Gr. irepioSos, a going or way round, circuit, aepi, round, and &Sis, way, road)

period . The standard of life of the See also:

• ORDINARY (med. Lat. ordinarius, Fr. ordinaire)

ordinary well-to-do See also:

• MIDDLE

middle class in See also:

• ENGLAND
• ENGLAND, THE CHURCH OF

England, for example, includes not only food, clothing and shelter of a See also:

• KIND (O. E. ge-cynde, from the same root as is seen in " kin," supra)

kind different in many respects from that of a similar class in other countries and of other classes in England, but a highly complicated mechanism, both public and private, for ministering to these See also:

• PRIMARY

primary needs, habits of social intercourse, educational and sanitary organization, recreative arrangements and many other elements . Many influences operating for a See also:

• LONG, GEORGE (1800-1879)
• LONG, JOHN DAVIS (1838– )

long period of See also:

• TIME (0. Eng. Lima, cf. Icel. timi, Swed. timme, hour, Dan. time; from the root also seen in " tide," properly the time of between the flow and ebb of the sea, cf. O. Eng. getidan, to happen, " even-tide," &c.; it is not directly related to Lat. tempus)
• TIME, MEASUREMENT OF
• TIME, STANDARD

time on the character and "the environment of a class go to determine its standard of life . In a See also:

• MODERN

modern See also:

• INDUSTRIAL

industrial community it is possible to See also:

• EXPRESS (through the French from the past participle of the Lat. exprimere, to press out, by transference used of representing objects in painting or sculpture, or of thoughts, &c. in words)

express this standard fairly accurately for the purposes of economic investigation in terms of money (q.v.) . But it is doubtful whether the most See also:

• COMPLETE

complete investigation would ever enable us to include all the elements of the standard of life in a money estimate . The character, tastes and capacity for management of different individuals and See also:

• GROUPS
• GROUPS, THEORY

groups differ so widely that equal incomes do not necessarily imply identity of standard . In the investigation of past times, the incommensurate elements of well-being are so numerous that merely money estimates are frequently misleading . The conception of the standard of life involves also some estimate of the efforts and sacrifices See also:

• PEOPLE

people are prepared to make to obtain it; of their ideals and character; of the relative strength of the different motives which usually determine their conduct . But no carefully devised calculus can take the See also:

• PLACE (through Fr. from Lat. platea, street; Gr. IrAar6s, wide)

place of insight, observation and experience . The economist should be a man of wide sympathies and See also:

• PRACTICAL

practical sagacity, in See also:

• CLOSE
• CLOSE (from Lat. clausum, shut)
• CLOSE, MAXWELL HENRY (1822-1903)

close See also:

• TOUCH (derived through Fr. toucher from a common Teutonic and Indo-Germanic root, cf. " tug," " tuck," O. H. Ger. zucchen, to twitch or draw)

touch with men of different grades, and, if possible, experienced in affairs .

It is evident that no permanent See also:

• CLASSIFICATION (Lat. classis, a class, probably from the root cal-, cla-, as in Gr. icaMce, clamor)

classification is possible of what is or is not of economic significance . No general rules, applicable to all times, can be laid down as to what phenomena must be examined or what may be neglected in economic inquiry . The different departments of human activity are organically connected, and all facts See also:

• RELATING

relating to the life of a community have a near or remote economic significance . For See also:

• SHORT, FRANCIS JOB (1857– )

short historical periods, indeed, many phenomena, are so remotely connected with the ordinary business of life that we may ignore them . But at any moment special causes may bring into the See also:

• FIELD (a word common to many West German languages, cf. Ger. Feld, Dutch veld, possibly cognate with O.E. f olde, the earth, and ultimately with root of the Gr. irAaror, broad)
• FIELD, CYRUS WEST (1819-1892)
• FIELD, DAVID DUDLEY (18o5-1894)
• FIELD, EUGENE (1850-1895)
• FIELD, FREDERICK (18o1—1885)
• FIELD, HENRY MARTYN (1822-1907)
• FIELD, JOHN (1782—1837)
• FIELD, MARSHALL (183 1906)
• FIELD, NATHAN (1587—1633)
• FIELD, STEPHEN JOHNSON (1816-1899)
• FIELD, WILLIAM VENTRIS FIELD, BARON (1813-1907)

field of economic inquiry whole departments of life which have hitherto been legitimately ignored . In times past, biblical exegesis, religious ideals, and ecclesiastical organization, the purely political aims of statesmen, See also:

• CHANCE (through the O. Fr. cheance, from the Late Lat. cadentia, things happening, from cadere, to fall out, happen; cf. " case ")

chance combinations of party politics and the intrigues of diplomatists, class See also:

• PREJUDICE (Lat. praejudicium)

prejudice, social conventions, apparently sudden changes of economic policy, capricious changes of See also:

• FASHION (adapted from Fr. facon, agon, Lat. factio, making, facere, to do or make)

fashion —all these causes and many others have exerted a See also:

• DIRECT

direct and immediate See also:

• INFLUENCE (Late Lat. influentia, from influere, to flow in)

influence on the economic life of the community . In our own See also:

• DAY (O. Eng. dreg, Ger. Tag; according to the New English Dictionary, " in no way related to the Lat. dies")
• DAY, JOHN (1574-1640?)
• DAY, THOMAS (1748-1789)

day we have had many illustrations of the manner in which special circumstances may at once bring an almost unnoticed See also:

• SERIES (a Latin word from serere, to join)

series of scientific investigations into direct and vital relation with the business world . The economist must, therefore, not only be prepared to take See also:

• ACCOUNT
• ACCOUNT (through O. Fr. acont, Late Lat. comptum, cornputare, to calculate)

account of the See also:

• PHYSICAL

physical features of the world, the general structure and organization of the See also:

• INDUSTRY (Lat. industria, from indu-, a form of the pre, position in, and either stare, to stand, or struere, to pile up)

industry and See also:

• COMMERCE
• COMMERCE (Lat. commercium, from, cum, together, and rnerx, merchandise)

commerce of different states, the character of their See also:

• ADMINISTRATION (Lat. administrare, to serve)

administration and other important causes of economic See also:

• CHANGE (derived through the Fr. from the Late Lat. cambium, cambiare, to barter; the ultimate derivation is probably from the root which appears in the Gr. «a urmu', to bend)

change . He must be in touch with the actual life of the community he is studying, and cultivate " that openness and alertness of the mind, that sensitiveness of the See also:

• JUDGMENT

judgment, which can rapidly grasp the significance of at first sight unrelated discoveries or events." Some people are of See also:

• OPINION (Lat. opinio, from opinari, to think)

opinion that the factors to be taken account of in economic investigation are so numerous that progress on these lines is impossible . It would certainly be impossible if we had to begin de novo to copstruct the whole fabric of economic science . But, as we shall see, it is no more necessary to do this in the world of science than it is in the world of business or politics . There is in existence a vast See also:

• STORE (from O. Fr. estor or estoire, Late Lat. staurum or instaurum, stock, provisions, supply, from the late use of instaurare, to provide, properly to construct, renew, restore)

store of accumulated knowledge, and few, if any, departments of economics have been See also:

• LEFT

left quite unilluminated by the researches of former generations .

Progress is the result of See also:

• ADAPTATION (from Lat. adaptare. to fit to)

adaptation rather than reconstruction . It must be remembered also that economic work in modern times is carried on by consciously or unconsciously associated effort, and although it must always require high qualities of judgment, capacity and See also:

• ENERGY (from the Gr. ivipyela; iv, in, ipyov, work)

energy, many of the difficulties which at first sight appear so insuperable give way when they are attacked . In some ways also the study of highly See also:

• DEVELOPED

developed organizations like the modern industrial state is simpler than that of earlier forms of society . In the earliest times for which we have abundant material the economic life of England had already reached in certain directions a high degree of complexity . Even in the rural districts, manorial records reveal the existence of a See also:

• GREAT

great variety of classes and groups of persons engaged in the performance of economic functions . The See also:

• LORD
• LORD (O. Eng. hldford, i.e. hldfweard, the warder or keeper of bread, hlIf, loaf; the word is not represented in any other Teutonic language)
• LORD, JOHN (1810-1894)

lord of the See also:

• MANOR

manor with his officials and retainers, the peasantry See also:

• BOUND, or BOUNDARY (from O. Fr. bonde, Med. Lat. bodena or butina, a frontier line)

bound to him by ties of See also:

• PERSONAL

personal dependence and mutual rights and obligations, constituted a little world, in which we can See also:

• WATCH (in O. Eng. wcecce, a keeping guard or watching, from wacian, to guard, watch, wacan, to wake)

watch the See also:

• PLAY

play of motives and passions not so dissimilar as we are sometimes led to believe from those of the great modern world . In many a See also:

• COUNTRY (from the Mid. Eng. contre or contrie, and O. Fr. cuntree; Late Lat. contrata, showing the derivation from contra, opposite, over against, thus the tract of land which fronts the sight, cf. Ger. Gegend, neighbourhood)

country See also:

• DISTRICT

district the gradations of social See also:

• RANK (O.Fr. rant or rent, mod. rang, generally connected with the O.E. and O.H.G. bring, a ring)

rank were more continuous, the opportunities of intercourse more frequent, and the capacity for organization greater than in modern times . The manorial accounts were kept with precision and detail, and we are told that a skilled See also:

• OFFICIAL (Late Lat. QJicialis, for class. Lat. apparitor, from officium, office, duty)

official could estimate to the utmost See also:

• FARTHING (A.S. Jeortha, fourth, ring, diminutive)

farthing the value of the services due from the villein to his lord . The manor was indeed self-sufficient and See also:

• INDEPENDENT

independent in the sense that it could furnish everything required by the See also:

• MAJORITY (Fr. majorite; Med. Lat. majoritas; Lat. major, greater)

majority of the in-habitants, and that over the greater See also:

• PART

part of rural England production was not carried on with a view to a distant See also:

• MARKET (Lat. mercatus, trade or place of trade)

market . But in the earliest times the manor was subjected to See also:

• EXTERNAL

external influences of great importance . Vast areas of the country were in fact under the single See also:

• CONTROL (Fr. contrdle, older form contre rolle, from Med. Lat. contra-rotulus, a counter roll or copy of a document used to check the original; there is no instance in English of the use of " control " in this, its literal, meaning)

control of a territorial lord or an ecclesiastical See also:

• FOUNDATION (Lat. fundatio, from fundare, to found)

foundation . Every manor composing these great fiefs was likely to be affected by the policy or the character of the administration of the feudal lord, and he, again, by the policy or the difficulties, the strength or the weakness, of the central See also:

• GOVERNMENT
• GOVERNMENT (0. Fr. governement, mod. gouvernement, O. Fr. governer, mod. gouverner, from Lat. gubernare, to steer a ship, guide, rule; cf. Gr. xv(3epvav)

government .

See also:

• FOREIGN

Foreign See also:

• TRADE (O. Eng. trod, footstep, from tredan, to tread; in M. Eng. the forms teed, trod and trade appear, the last in the sense of a beaten track)
• TRADE, BOARD OF

trade and foreign intercourse were undeveloped, but their influence was in historical times never entirely absent, while the influence of See also:

• ROMAN

Roman See also:

• LAW
• LAW (0. Eng. lagu, M. Eng. lawe; from an old Teutonic root lag, " lie," what lies fixed or evenly; cf. Lat. lex, Fr. loi)
• LAW, JOHN (1671—1729)
• LAW, WILLIAM (1686-1761)

law and the See also:

• CHRISTIAN
• CHRISTIAN, WILLIAM (1608-1663)

Christian See also:

• CHURCH
• CHURCH (according to most authorities derived from the Gr. Kvpcaxov [&wµa], " the Lord's [house]," and common to many Teutonic, Slavonic and other languages under various forms—Scottish kirk, Ger. Kirche, Swed. kirka, Dan. kirke, Russ. tserkov, Buig. cerk
• CHURCH, FREDERICK EDWIN (1826-1900)
• CHURCH, GEORGE EARL (1835–1910)
• CHURCH, RICHARD WILLIAM (1815–189o)
• CHURCH, SIR RICHARD (1784–1873)

Church constantly tended to modify the manorial organization . In the towns the See also:

• DIVISION (from Lat. dividere, to break up into parts, separate)

division of labour had proceeded much further than in the rural districts, and there were in existence organized bodies, such as the Gild See also:

• MERCHANT (O. Fr. marcheant, modern marchand; from Lat. mercari, to trade, merx, goods, merchandise)

Merchant and the crafts, whose functions were primarily economic . But one of the most striking characteristics of See also:

• TOWN

town life in the middle ages was the manner in which municipal and industrial privileges and responsibilities were interwoven . In modern times the See also:

• ARTISAN, or ARTIZAN

artisan, however well trained, efficient and painstaking he may be,. does not, in virtue of these qualities, enjoy any municipal or political privileges . By means of his trade See also:

• UNION
• UNION (known locally as Union Hill and officially as Town of Union)

union, co-operative society or See also:

• CLUB (connected with " clump ")

club he may gain some experience in the management of men and business, and in so far as the want of a sufficient income does not constitute an insuperable difficulty, he may See also:

• SHARE (O. Eng. scearu, chiefly in compounds, e.g. land-scearu, a share of land, from sceran to cut; cf. " shear" )

share in the public life of the country . But in his character as Character of subJectmatter . See also:

• ANCIENT
• ANCIENT (also spelt ANTIENT; derived, through the Fr. ancien, old, from the late Lat. antianum, from ante, before)

Ancient and modern conditions in England . artisan he enjoys no municipal or political privileges . In the middle ages this differentiation of the industrial, municipal and political life had not taken place, and in See also:

• ORDER
• ORDER (through Fr. ordre, for earlier ordene, from Lat. ordo, ordinis, rank, service, arrangement; the ultimate source is generally taken to be the root seen in Lat. oriri, rise, arise, begin; cf. " origin ")
• ORDER, HOLY

order to understand the working of at first sight purely economic regulations it is necessary to make a close study of the functions of See also:

• LOCAL

local government . But this, after all, does not carry us very far . From the very nature of the records in which we study the town life of the middle ages, it follows that we obtain from them only a one-sided view . No one knows what proportion of the industrial See also:

• POPULATION (Lat. populus, people; populare, to populate)

population was included in the organized See also:

• GILDS, or GUILDS

gilds, or how complete was the control exercised by these bodies over their members .

Elaborate regulations were in force, but no one knows how elastic they were in practice . See also:

• MEDIEVAL

Medieval Englishmen were particularly See also:

• APT

apt to put their aspirations into a legal See also:

• FORM (Lat. forma)

form, and then See also:

• REST (O. Eng. rest, reste, bed, cognate with other Teutonic forms, e.g. Ger. Rast, Riiste, rest, and probably Gothic Rasta, league, i.e. resting or stopping place)

rest satisfied with their achievement . The number of regulations is scarcely to be regarded as a test of their administrative success . Further, as the country became more consolidated and the central government extended its authority over economic affairs, new regulations came into force, new See also:

• ORGANS

organs of government appeared, which were sometimes in conflict, sometimes in See also:

• HARMONY (Gr. dpµovia, a concord of musical sounds, dpA'ew to join; &plan midi (sc. TeXvil)

harmony, with the existing See also:

• SYSTEM

system, and it becomes for a time far more difficult to obtain a clear view of the actual working of economic institutions . Thus the study of the economic life of the middle ages is one of the most complicated subjects which can engage the See also:

• ATTENTION (from Lat. ad-tendo, await, expect; the condition of being " stretched " or " tense ")

attention of man . It is impossible to carry the See also:

• PROCESS

process of See also:

• ISOLATION

isolation very far . The different threads of social activity are so closely interwoven that we cannot follow any one for very long without forming wrong impressions, and it becomes necessary to turn back and study others which seemed at first sight unrelated to the subject of our investigations . Under an apparently See also:

• UNIFORM

uniform and See also:

• STABLE

stable system of social regulation there was much variation and See also:

• MOVEMENT

movement, the significance of which it is impossible to estimate . Materials for forming such an estimate no doubt exist, but before doing so we have to study in See also:

• INFINITE (from Lat. in, not, finis, end or limit; cf. findere, to deave)

infinite detail a vast number of separate manors, municipalities or other separate economic areas . This involves great industry on the part of many scientific workers . Meanwhile we can illustrate the economic life of the middle ages, describe its See also:

• MAIN (from the Aryan root which appears in " may " and " might," and Lat. magnus, great)
• MAIN (Lat. Moenus)

main features, indicate the more important See also:

• MEASURES

measures of public policy and draw attention to some of the main lines of development . It is only as we approach more modern times that the conditions of economic study are realized and economic science, conditions as we understand it, becomes possible .

Those condiof tions are: (i.) the life of the state or other community economic or communities we are studying must be so differen- adence. tiated that we can isolate those functions which are wholly or predominantly economic . The " separation of employments " is not only a See also:

• CONDITION (Lat. condicio, from condicere, to agree upon, arrange; not connected with conditio, from condere, conditum, to put together)

condition of economic efficiency; it was necessary before we could have an economic science . (ii.) We must be in a position so far to understand and estimate the character and motives of different classes and groups in these communities that we can rightly interpret their See also:

• ACTION

action . This condition cannot be realized without great difficulty, for " economic motives " are very different in different periods, nations and classes, and even for short periods of time in the same country are modified by the influence of other motives of an entirely different order . In studying the economic history of the 18th See also:

• CENTURY (from Lat. centuria, a division of a hundred men)

century, for example, it is not enough to assume with See also:

• DEFOE, DANIEL (c. 1.659—1731)

Defoe that " gain is the See also:

• DESIGN (Fr. desiin, drawing; Lat. designare, to mark out)

design of merchandise." We have to be saturated, as it were, with 18th-century influences, so that we can realize the conditions in which industry and trade were carried on, before we can rightly explain the course of development . In our own day labour disputes, to take another example, can scarcely ever be resolved into a question of merely pecuniary gain or loss . The significance of the amount of money involved varies greatly for different trades, and can only be understood by reference to the character and habits of the people concerned . But questions of sentiment, See also:

• SHOP

shop-feeling and trade customs invariably play an important part . (iii.) Economics can never See also:

• LEAD
• LEAD (pronounced iced)

lead to anything but hypothetical results unless we not only realize that we must " take account of " other than the purely economic factors, See also:

• BILL

bill also give due See also:

• WEIGHT

weight and significance to 90 I these factors . No explanation of the industrial situation in See also:

• GERMANY
• GERMANY (Ger. Deutschland)

Germany, for example, would be intelligible or satisfactory even from the economic point of view which ignored the significance of the political conditions which Germans have to See also:

• DEAL

deal with . So, again, it is impossible to make a useful See also:

• COMPARATIVE

comparative estimate of the advantages and disadvantages of the transport systems of England, the See also:

• UNITED

United States and Germany, unless we keep constantly in view the very different See also:

• GEOGRAPHICAL

geographical, military and political conditions which these systems have to satisfy . (iv.) Sufficient See also:

• INFORMATION (from Lat. informare, to give shape or form to, to represent, describe)

information must be available to enable us to test the validity of our hypotheses and conclusions .

Whatever . " method " of economic investigation we employ, we must at every See also:

• STAGE (Fr. 6/age; from Lat. stare, to stand)

stage see how far our reasoning is See also:

• BORNE, KARL LUDWIG (1786–1837)

borne out by the actual experience of life . This obvious condition of scientific inquiry is very far from being completely realized even at the See also:

• PRESENT

present time . It implies the existence of a well-trained class engaged in the work of See also:

• COLLECTING

collecting information, and much organization both by the state and private bodies . These four conditions can be reduced to two . The community we are studying must have reached such a stage of development that its economic functions and those immediately cognate to them form a well-defined See also:

• GROUP

group, and adequate means must be available so that we can, as it were, watch the performance of these functions and test our hypotheses and conclusions by observation and experience . It is easy to understand, therefore, why we trace the beginnings of economics, so far as England is concerned, in the 16th century, and why the application of strict scientific tests in this subject of human study has become possible only in comparatively See also:

• RECENT

recent times . Medieval economics was little more than a casuistical system of elaborate and somewhat artificial rules of conduct . From the close of the middle ages until the middle of the 18th century thousands of See also:

• PAMPHLETS

pamphlets and other See also:

• WORKS

works on economic questions were published, but the vast majority of the writers have little or no scientific importance . Their works frequently contain information given nowhere else, and throw much See also:

• LIGHT

light on the state of opinion in the See also:

• AGE (Fr. age, through late Lat. aetaticum, from aetas)

age in which they wrote . It is also possible to find in them many anticipations of the views of the economists of later times; but such statements were as a rule generated merely by the See also:

• HEAT (0. E. haktu, which like " hot," Old Eng. hat, is from the Teutonic type haita, hit, to be hot; cf. Ger. hitze, heiss; Dutch, hitte, heet, &c.)

heat of controversy on some measure or event of practical importance, and when the controversy died down were seldom regarded or incorporated in a scientific system . Trade See also:

• BIAS
• BIAS (from the Fr. biais, of unknown origin; the derivation from Lat. bifax, two-faced, is wrong)

bias, personal impressions and guess-work took the place of scientific method .

This was inevitable in the See also:

• ABSENCE (Lat. absentia)

absence of trustworthy information on an adequate See also:

• SCALE
• SCALE (1) A

scale, and from the immediately practical aims of the writers . But from the end of the 17th century economics has been definitely recognized as a subject of scientific study . In modern times the conditions which have made economic science possible have also made it necessary . While it is impossible to give a strictly economic See also:

• INTERPRETATION (from Lat. interpretari, to expound, explain, inter pres, an agent, go-between, interpreter; inter, between, and the root pret-, possibly connected with that seen either in Greek 4 p4'ew, to speak, or irpa-rrecv, to do)

interpretation See also:

• NECESSITY (Lat. necessitas)

Necessity of the earlier history of nations, economic interests of so govern the life and determine the policy of modern • economic states that other forces, like those of See also:

• RELIGION
• RELIGION, FOLKLORE, CUSTOM

religion and science. politics, seem to play only a subsidiary part, modifying here and there the view which is taken of particular questions, but not changing in any important degree the general course of their development . This may be, in the historical sense, merely a passing phase of human progress, due to the rapid See also:

• EXTENSION (Lat. ex, out ; tendere, to stretch)

extension of the industrial revolution to all the civilized and many of the uncivilized nations of the world, bringing in its See also:

• TRAIN (M. Eng. trayn or trayne, derived through Fr. from Late Lat. trahinare, to drag, draw, Lat. trahere, cf. trail, trace, ultimately from the same source)

train the consolidation of large areas, a similarity of conditions within them, and amongst peoples and governments a great increase in. the strength of economic motives . When the world has settled down to the new conditions, if it ever does so, we may be See also:

• CON

con-fronted with problems similar to those which our forefathers had to solve . But, for the time, if we know the economic interests of nations, classes and individuals, we can tell with more accuracy than ever before how in the long run they will See also:

• ACT (Lat. actus, actum)

act . Public policy therefore requires the closest possible study of the economic forces which are moulding the destinies of the great nations of the world . In most civilized countries except England this is recognized, and adequate See also:

• PROVISION (Lat. provisio)

provision is made for the study 902 of economic science . But the subject is not only of immediate concern to the state in its corporate and public capacity . The neglect of it in the domain of private business can now only lead to disastrous results . To quote from a useful work' (See also:

• NATIONAL

National See also:

• EDUCATION

Education: a See also:

• SYMPOSIUM (Gr. avyr6cnov, a drinking party, from avµirivecv, to drink together, abv, with, and 7rivecv, to drink, root 7ro, cf. Lat. potare, to drink, poculum, cup)

Symposium, 1901), " the commercial supremacy of England was due to a variety of causes, of which See also:

• SUPERIOR

superior intelligence, in the ordinary business sense, was not the most important .

Her insular position, continuity of political development and freedom from domestic broils played an important part in bringing about a steady and continuous growth of industry and manufactures for several generations before the modern era . The great See also:

• WARS

wars of the 18th and the beginning of the 19th century, which arrested the growth of See also:

• CONTINENTAL

continental nations, gave England the control of the markets of the world . When See also:

• PEACE
• PEACE, BREACH OF THE

peace was restored, England enjoyed something in the nature of a See also:

• MONOPOLY (Gr. govomeXla or govoircaXwv, exclusive sale, from govds, alone, and irwXeiv, to sell)

monopoly . The competition of See also:

• FRANCE
• FRANCE, ANATOLE (1844– )

France ceased for a time to be an important See also:

• FACTOR (from Lat. facere, to make or do)

factor . What is now the See also:

• GERMAN
• GERMAN, DUTCH AND SCANDINAVIAN

German See also:

• EMPIRE

empire was a See also:

• MERE
• MERE, ADALBERT (1838-1909)

mere congeries of small states, waging perpetual See also:

• TARIFF (adapted in English from the French; the word comes through the Spanish tarifa, a list or schedule of prices, from the Arabic, ta'rifa, information, an inventory, 'arf, know-ledge)

tariff wars upon each other . In' the old Prussian provinces alone there were fifty-three different customs frontiers, and German manufactures could not develop until the growth of the See also:

• ZOLLVEREIN (Ger. Zoll, toll, customs, and Verein, union)

Zollverein brought with it commercial consolidation, internal freedom and greater homogeneity of economic conditions . The See also:

• INDUSTRIES

industries of the United States were in their See also:

• INFANCY

infancy . Thus the productive See also:

• POWER [WILLIAM GRATTAN] TYRONE (1797-1841)

power of England was unrivalled, and her manufactures and business men, under a regime rapidly approximating to complete freedom of trade, could reap the full advantages to be derived from the See also:

• POSSESSION
• POSSESSION (Lat. possessio, possidere, to possess)

possession of great national resources and production by machinery . Commercial supremacy required not so much highly trained intelligence amongst manufacturers and merchants as keen business See also:

• INSTINCT

instinct and a certain See also:

• RUDE, FRANCOIS (1784–1855)

rude energy . In the last See also:

• GENERATION (from Lat. generare, to beget, procreate; genus, stock, race)

generation all that has changed, and the change is of a permanent character . The struggle of the future must inevitably be between a number of great nations, more or less equally well equipped, carrying on production by the same general methods, each one trying to strengthen its industrial and commercial position by the See also:

• ADOPTION (Lat. adoptio, for adoptalio, from adoptare, to choose for oneself)

adoption of the most highly developed machinery, and all the methods suggested by scientific See also:

• RESEARCH (O. Fr. recerche, from recercher, re- and cercer, mod. chercher, to search; Late Lat. circare, to go round in a circle, to explore)

research, policy or experience . ' Under these conditions, it is no longer possible for the individual merchant, or for small groups of merchants, to acquaint themselves, by personal experience alone, with more than a fractional part of the causes which affect the business in which they are engaged .

The spread of the modern industrial system has brought with it the modern state, with its millions of consumers, its vast See also:

• AREA

area, its innumerable activities, its complicated See also:

• CODE (Lat. codex)

code of industrial and commercial law . At the same time, the revolution in the means of transport and communication has destroyed, or is tending to destroy, local markets, and closely interwoven all the business of the world . Events in the most distant countries, industrial and commercial movements at first sight unrelated to the concerns of the individual merchant, now exert a direct and immediate influence upon his interests . The technical training of the factory or the See also:

• OFFICE (from Lat. officium, " duty," " service," a shortened form of opifacium, from facere, " to do," and either the stem of opes, " wealth," " aid," or opus, " work ")

office, the experience of business, the See also:

• DISCHARGE (adapted from the O. Fr. discharge, modern decharge, from a med. Lat. discargare, to unload, dis- and earn care, to load, cf. " charge ")

discharge of practical duties, necessary as they are, do not infallibly open the mind to the large issues of the modern business world, and can never confer the detailed acquaintance with facts and principles which See also:

• LIE, JONAS LAURITZ EDEMIL (1833—1908)
• LIE, MARIUS SOPHUS (1842–1899)

lie outside the daily routine of the individual, but are none the less of vital importance." Economics, therefore, under modern conditions, is not only a subject which may usefully occupy the attention of a leisured class of scientific men . It should form part of the training of educated men of all classes, on grounds of public policy and administrative and business efficiency . The relations between economics and other sciences cannot be 'stated in a very general form . They vary for different Relations periods, and are not the same for all branches of between economics . There is no subject of human study which economics may not be at some time or other of economic signifiand other See also:

• CANOE (from Carib. candoa, the West Indian name found in use by Columbus; the Fr. canot, boat, and Ger. Kahn, are derived from the Lat. canna, reed, vessel)

canoe, and anything which affects the character, the sciences ideals or the environment of man may make it necessary . to modify our assumptions and our reasoning with regard to his conduct in economic affairs . But if the economist,while studying one side of man's activities, must also cultivate all other branches of human learning, it is obvious that no substantial progress can be made . The economist frankly assumes the reality of the existing world and takes men as they are, or as they have been if he is studying past times . His assumptions are based upon ordinary observation and experience, and are usually accurate in proportion to his practical shrewdness and sagacity, so that he is not . interested in the speculative flights of See also:

• PHILOSOPHY (Gr. gthos, fond of, and vo4 (a, wisdom)

philosophy, except in so far as they influence or have influenced conduct . In times past, and to a less extent in our own day, philosophical conceptions have formed the basis of great systems of politics and economics .

The historical relations between philosophy and economics are of great importance in tracing the development of the latter, and have done much to determine its present form . But the modern conception of society or the state owes more to See also:

• BIOLOGY (Gr. Qios, life)

biology than philosophy, and actual research has destroyed more frequently than it has justified the assumptions of the older philosophical school . Experimental See also:

• PSYCHOLOGY
• PSYCHOLOGY (>Guxrl, the mind or soul, and X yos, theory)

psychology may in course of time have an important bearing on economics, but the older science cannot be said to be of much significance except in its historical aspects . See also:

• ETHICS
• ETHICS, SHAFTESBURY, HOBBES

Ethics is in much the same position . That is, it is possible to conceive of an ethical science which would ' extend considerably our knowledge of economic affairs, but no important new principle or See also:

• ORIGINAL

original See also:

• DISCOVERY

discovery, relevant to economic investigation, has come from that See also:

• QUARTER (through Fr. from Lat. quartarius, fourth part)

quarter in recent years, and at present ethics has more to learn from economics than the latter has from ethics . It is in the adaptation of biological conceptions and methods, in the See also:

• POSITIVE (or PORTABLE) ORGAN

positive contributions of See also:

• JURISPRUDENCE (Lat. jurisprudenlia, knowledge of law, from jus, right, and prudentia, from providere, to foresee)
• JURISPRUDENCE, COMPARATIVE

jurisprudence, law and history, in the rigorous application, where possible, of quantitative tests, that the explanation of the present position of economics, is to be found . See also:

• MATHEMATICS (Gr. /saBnµar1Kil, Sc. vOcvn or E7rlQTt'µn; from p iN.La, "learning" or "science ")

Mathematics has influenced the form and the terminology of the science, and has sometimes been useful in See also:

• ANALYSIS (Gr. avci and Meta, to break up into parts)

analysis; but mathematical methods of reasoning, in their application to economics, while possessing a certain See also:

• FASCINATION (from Lat. fascinare, to bewitch, probably connected with the Or. f3ao-Kaiveev, to speak ill of, to bewitch)

fascination, are of very doubtful utility . There is no method of investigation which is peculiarly economic or of which economics has the monopoly . In every age economists have applied the methods ordinarily Method of in use amongst scientific men . There would probably economic: have been no controversy at all on this subject but for investi- the fact that economics was elaborated into systematic gation. form, and made the basis of practical measures of the greatest importance, long before the remarkable development in the 19th century of historical research, experimental science and biology . The application of the a priori method in economics was an See also:

• ACCIDENT
• ACCIDENT (from Lat. accidere, to happen)

accident, due to its association with other subjects and the general backwardness of other sciences rather than any exceptional and See also:

• PECULIAR

peculiar character in the subject-matter of the science itself . The methods applied to economics in the 18th and the See also:

• EARLY
• EARLY, JUBAL ANDERSON (1816-1894)

early part of the 19th century were no more invented with a special view to that subject than the principles of early railway legislation, in the domain of practical policy, were devised with a special view to what was then a new means of transport .

As a matter of fact, discussions of method and the See also:

• CRITICISM
• CRITICISM (from the Gr. KpiTrlS, a judge, Kpivew, to decide, to give an authoritative opinion)

criticism of hypotheses and assumptions are very rarely found in early economic works . It is only by reference to the prevailing ideas in philosophy and politics that we can discover what was in the minds of their authors . The growth of a science is much like the growth of a constitution . It proceeds by adaptation and precedent . The scientific and historical movement of the 19th century was revolutionary in character . When it began to affect economics, many people were afraid that the whole fabric of science would be destroyed and the practical gains it had achieved, jeopardized . These fears were justified, in so far as those who entertained them shut their eyes to everything new and assumed an attitude of no See also:

• COMPROMISE (pronounced compromize; through Fr. from Lat. compromittere)

compromise . Where the newer methods were assimilated, the position of economics was strengthened and its practical utility increased . General discussion of method, however, is rarely profitable . In all branches of economics, even in what is called the pure theory, there is an implied reference to certain historical or existing conditio$ of a more or less definite character; to the established order of an organized state or other community, at a stage of development which in its main features can be recognized . In all economic investigation assumptions must be made, but we must see that they are legitimate in view of the actual life and character of the community or communities which are the subject of investigation . In See also:

• COMMON

common with other sciences, economics makes use of " abstractions"; but if for some problems we employ symbolic processes of reasoning, we must keep clearly in view the limits of their significance, and neither endow the symbols with attributes they can never possess, nor lose sight of the realities behind them .

Every See also:

• HYPOTHESIS (from Gr. inrorcOivat, to put under; cf. Lat. suppositio, from sub-ponere)

hypothesis must be tested by an See also:

• APPEAL

appeal to the facts of life, and modified or abandoned if it will not See also:

• BEAR
• BEAR, BLACK
• BEAR, BROWN
• BEAR, GRIZZLY
• BEAR, ISABELLINE
• BEAR, WHITE

bear examination, unless we are convinced on genuine See also:

• EVIDENCE (Lat. evidentia, evideri, to appear clearly)

evidence that it may for a time be employed as a useful approximation, without prejudice to the later stages of the investigation we are conducting . We shall best illustrate the character and method of economic reasoning by examples, and for that purpose let us take first of wn t~1ns- all a purely historical problem, namely, the effect on trauon of the wage-earners of the See also:

• WAGES (the plural of " wage," from Late Lat. wadium, a pledge, O. Fr. wagier, gagier)

wages clauses of the See also:

• STATUTE

Statute of economic See also:

• APPRENTICESHIP (from Fr. apprendre, to learn)

Apprenticeship (1563) . It is at once obvious that we method are dealing not with an abstract See also:

• SCHEME (Lat. schema, Gr. oxfjya, figure, form, from the root axe, seen in exeiv, to have, hold, to be of such shape, form, &c.)

scheme of regulation in a hypothetical world, but with an act of See also:

• PARLIAMENT (Anglo-Lat. parliamentum, Fr. parlement, from parler, to speak)

parliament nominally in force for two See also:

• HUNDRED

hundred and fifty years, and applicable to a great variety of trades whose organization and history can be ascertained . The conclusions we reach may or may not modify any opinions we have formed as to the manner in which wages are determined under modern conditions . For the time being such opinions are irrelevant to the question we are investigating, and the less they are in our minds the better . There is no See also:

• REASON (Lat. ratio, through French raison)

reason why we should apply to this particular act a different method of inquiry from that we should apply to any other of the numerous acts, of more or less economic importance, passed in the same session of parliament . The first step is to see whether there is a prima facie See also:

• CASE
• CASE, JOHN (d. 1600)

case for inquiry, for many acts of parliament have been passed which have never come into operation at all, or have been administered only for a short time on too limited a scale to have important or lasting results . The justices were authorized to See also:

• FIX, THEODORE (180o-1846)

fix wages at the See also:

• EASTER

Easter quarter sessions . Did they exercise their See also:

• POWERS, HIRAM (1805-1873)

powers ? To See also:

• ANSWER (derived from and, against, and the same root as swear)

answer this question we must collect the wages assessments sanctioned by the magistrates . This is a perfectly See also:

• SIMPLE

simple and straightforward operation, involving nothing more than familiarity with records and industry in going through them . Without having recourse to any elaborate process of economic reasoning, by confining our attention to one simple question, namely, what happened, we can establish conclusions of the greatest See also:

• INTEREST

interest to economic historians and, further, define the problem we have to investigate .

We can show, for example: (r) that the Statute of Apprenticeship did not stand alone; it was one of a long series of similar measures, beginning more than two centuries before, which in their turn join on to the municipal and gild regulations of the middle ages; one of an important group of statutes, more or less closely interwoven throughout their history, administered by local authorities whose functions had grown largely in connexion with this legislation and the See also:

• GRADUAL (Med. Lat. gradualis, of or belonging to steps or degrees; gradus, step)

gradual differentiation of the trades and callings to which it related . (2) That wages were regulated with much greater frequency during the reigns of See also:

• ELIZABETH
• ELIZABETH (1533-1603)
• ELIZABETH (1596-1662)
• ELIZABETH (1635–1650)
• ELIZABETH [ AMELIE EUGENIE ] (1837—1898)
• ELIZABETH [1lisabeth Philippine Marie Helene of France] (1764—1794)
• ELIZABETH [PAULINE ELIZABETH OTTILIE LOUISE] (1843– )
• ELIZABETH [PETROVNA] (1709-1762), EMPRESS
• ELIZABETH, SAINT (1207-1231)

Elizabeth, See also:

• JAMES
• JAMES (Gr. 'IlrKw,l3or, the Heb. Ya`akob or Jacob)
• JAMES (JAMES FRANCIS EDWARD STUART) (1688-1766)
• JAMES, 2ND EARL OF DOUGLAS AND MAR(c. 1358–1388)
• JAMES, DAVID (1839-1893)
• JAMES, EPISTLE OF
• JAMES, GEORGE PAYNE RAINSFOP
• JAMES, HENRY (1843— )
• JAMES, JOHN ANGELL (1785-1859)
• JAMES, THOMAS (c. 1573–1629)
• JAMES, WILLIAM (1842–1910)
• JAMES, WILLIAM (d. 1827)

James I. and See also:

• CHARLES
• CHARLES (1270-1325)
• CHARLES (1421-1461)
• CHARLES (1525-1574)
• CHARLES (c. 1319-1364)
• CHARLES (Fr. Charles; Span. Carlos; Ital. Carlo; Ger. Karl; derived from O.H.G. Charal,latinized as Carolus, meaning originally " man ": cf. Mod.Ger., Kerl," fellow," A.S. ceorl, Mod. Eng. " churl ")
• CHARLES (KARL EITEL ZEPHYRIN LUDWIG; in Rum. CAROL)
• CHARLES [KARL ALEXANDER] (1712-1780)
• CHARLES, ELIZABETH (1828-1896)
• CHARLES, JACQUES ALEXANDRE CESAR (1746-1823)
• CHARLES, THOMAS (1755-1814)

Charles I. than at any later period . (3) That they were regulated in some counties and not in others . (4) That in the counties and towns where they were regulated the action of the magistrates was in general spasmodic, and rarely continuous for a long series of years . (5) That the magistrates used their powers sometimes to raise wages, sometimes to force them down . (6) That the local See also:

• VARIATIONS
• VARIATIONS, CALCULUS
• VARIATIONS, CALCULUS OF

variations of wages and prices were what we should See also:

• CALL (from Anglo-Saxon ceallian, a common Teutonic word, cf. Dutch kallen, to talk or chatter)

call excessive, so that the standard of comfort in one district was very different from that of others . (y) That the wages assessments group themselves See also:

• ROUND (O. Fr. rond, Lat. rotundus, the Fr. is the source also of Du. rond; Ger., Swed., Dan. and Nor. rond)

round certain short periods, coincident in many instances with high prices, increase of poverty, and other causes of exceptional action . (8) That what we may call, with the above limitations, the effective period of the act terminates with the outbreak of the See also:

• CIVIL

Civil See also:

• WAR
• WAR (O. Eng. werre, Fr. guerre, of Teutonic origin; cf. O.H.G. werran, to confound)

War . (q) Thatsubsequent to that period organic changes in the industries affected, coupled with the incompetence of parliament to adapt the old legislation to new,conditions, and the growing See also:

• ACCEPTANCE (Lat. acceptare, frequentative form of accipere, to receive)

acceptance of the See also:

• DOCTRINE

doctrine of laissez faire, brought about a general disuse of the statute, though isolated attempts to enforce it were made and new acts applicable to certain trades were passed in the 18th century . (to) For more than one hundred years before the See also:

• REPEAL (O.F. rapel, modern rappel, from rapeler, rappeler, revoke, re and appeler, appeal)

repeal of the act, trade unions and other forms of voluntary association amongst wage-earners, combinations amongst employers, collective agreements, customary regulations, were established in many of the important trades of the country . But these conclusions, after all, suggest more difficulties than they remove, for they show that our inquiry, instead of presenting certain well-marked features which can be readily dealt with, has to be split up into a number of highly specialized studies: the investigation of rates of wages, prices and the standard of comfort in different localities, bye-industries, regularity of employment, the organization of particular trades, the economic functions of local authorities, apprenticeship and a See also:

• HOST

host of other subjects . Moreover, all these subjects hang together, so that it seems impossible to come to a decision about one of them without knowing all about the others .

It is a comparatively simple thing to state the , question to which we want an answer, but extremely difficult to define the exact nature of the evidence which will constitute a See also:

• GOOD, JOHN MASON (1764-1827)

good answer; easy enough to say we must try hypothesis after hypothesis, and test each one by an appeal to the facts, but a man may easily spend his life in this sort of thing and still leave to his descendants nothing more than a See also:

• LEGACY (Lat. legatum)

legacy of rejected hypotheses . Every See also:

• VOLUME

volume of records we look through contains a See also:

• MASS (O.E. maesse; Fr. messe; Ger. Messe; Ital. messa; from eccl. Lat. missa)
• MASS, IN

mass of detailed information on the economic life of England in the period we are studying . How much of it is relevant to the subject of inquiry ? What is to be the principle of selection ? How shall we determine the relative weight and importance of different kinds of relevant evidence ? As in modem problems, so in those of past times, a man requires for success qualities quite distinct from those conferred by merely See also:

• ACADEMIC

academic training and the use of scientific methods . A correct sense of proportion and the See also:

• FACULTY (through the French, from the Lat. facultas, ability to do anything, from facilis, easy, facere, to do; another form of the word in Lat. facilitas, facility, ease, keeps the original meaning)

faculty of seizing upon the dominant factors in an historical problem are the result partly of the possession of certain natural gifts in which many individuals and some nations are conspicuously wanting, partly of general knowledge of the working of the economic and political institutions of the period we are studying, partly of what takes the place of practical experience in relation to modem problems, namely, detailed acquaintance with different kinds of original See also:

• SOURCES

sources and the historical See also:

• IMAGINATION

imagination by which we can realize the life and the ideals of past generations . These qualities are required all the more because, in order to make any further progress with such an inquiry, as we have' suggested, we have deliberately to make use of See also:

• ABSTRACTION (Lat. abs and trahere)

abstraction as an See also:

• INSTRUMENT (Lat. instrumentum, from insincere, to build up, furnish, arrange, prepare)

instrument of investigation . Let us see how this will work out . Suppose we have selected one of the numerous subsidiary problems suggested by the general inquiry, and obtained such full and complete The See also:

• PLAN
• PLAN (from Lat. planes, flat)

plan information about one particular industry that we of a can tabulate the wages of the workers for a long series moral of years . We may do the same for other industries, '?' some of them coming under the Statute of Apprenticeship, others not . If all the industries belong to one economic area over which, so far as we can tell from general See also:

• STATISTICS

statistics of wages and prices, and other information, fairly homogeneous conditions prevailed, we may be able to reach some useful conclusions as to the operation of the act .

But it would be absurd to suppose that we could reach those conclusions by simple reference to the trades themselves . We cannot assume that the fluctuations in wages were due to the action or inaction of magistrates without the most careful examination of the other influences affecting the trades . In economic affairs the See also:

• ARGUMENT

argument See also:

• POST

post hoc propter hoc never leads to the whole truth, and is frequently quite misleading . We cannot suppose that the policy of the Merchant Adventurers' See also:

• COMPANY

Company had nothing to do with the woollen industry; that the export trade in woollen See also:

• CLOTH

cloth was quite -independent of the 904 foreign exchanges and See also:

• INTERNATIONAL, THE

international trade relations in those times; that the effect on wages of the state of the currency, the influx of new See also:

• SILVER

silver, the character of the harvests, and many other influences can be conveniently ignored . In studying, therefore, such an apparently simple question as the effect of an act of parliament on wages in a small group of trades we want a general theory which we can use as a kind of See also:

• INDEX

index of the factors we have to consider . Assuming that we have in our minds this safeguard against loose thinking and neglect of important factors, the investigation DIM of the special problems arising out of the general citifies due inquiry resolves itself into a careful See also:

• DEFINITION (Lat. definitio, from de-finire, to set limits to, describe)

definition of each to want of problem we wish to deal with, and the collection, evidence. tabulation and interpretation of the evidence . In most cases the interpretation of the facts is far from obvious, and we have to try several hypotheses before we reach one which will bear the See also:

• STRAIN (through O. Fr. straindre, estraindre, mod. i treindre, from Lat. stringere, to draw tight, related to stress, stretch, string, &c.)

strain of a See also:

• CRITICAL (in alphabetical order of authors)

critical examination in the light of further evidence . But at this stage in historical investigation it is generally the want of evidence of a sufficiently complete and continuous character, rather than difficulties of method, which forces us to leave the problem unsolved . It is, for instance, practically impossible to obtain reliable evidence as to the regularity of employment in any industry in the 17th century, and the best approximations and devices we can invent are very poor substitutes for what we really want . For this reason guess-work must continue to play an important part in economic history . But every genuine See also:

• ATTEMPT (Lat. adtemptare, attentare, to try)

attempt to overcome its difficulties brings us into closer touch with the period we are examining; and though we may not be able to throw our conclusions into the form of large generalizations, we shall get to know something of the operation of the forces which determined the economic future of England; understand more clearly than our fore-fathers did, for we have more information than they could command, and a See also:

• FULLER, ANDREW (1954-1815)
• FULLER, GEORGE (1822—1884)
• FULLER, M
• FULLER, MARGARET, MARCHIONESS
• FULLER, MELVILLE WESTON (1833-1910)
• FULLER, THOMAS (16o8-1661)
• FULLER, WILLIAM (1670--c. 1717)

fuller appreciation of the issues, the broad features of See also:

• ENGLISH

English development, and be in a position to See also:

• JUDGE (Lat. judex, Fr. juge)

judge fairly well of the measures they adopted in their time . By comparing England with other countries we may be able in the distant future to reach conclusions of some generality as to the laws of growth, maturity and decay of industrial nations .

But like the early statisticians of the 17th century, economic historians are the " beginners of an art not yet polished, which time may bring to more perfection." When we come to exclusively modern questions, there is no reason or necessity for a fundamental change of method . We The haves- cannot suppose that there occurred, at or about the illation of commencement of the 19th century, a See also:

• BREACH (Mid. Eng. breche, derived from the common Teutonic root brec, which appears in " break," Ger. brechen, &c.)

breach of modern historical continuity of such a character that in-questions. stitutions, customs, laws and social conventions were suddenly swept away, the bonds of society loosened, and the state an