New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-12-26
PROF. THOROLD ROGERS.
urs METHODS AS A SCIENTIFIC INQUIRER
AND HIS TREATMENT OF PRACTl-
CAL QUESTIONS.

TIE ECONOMIC INTERPRETATION OF HISTORY 1,,sY
Nv James z Tborod Rogers Professor OF Polsca a,
ECONOMY IN the University OF oSior ra c S,I
f@ odo''' Sew.York: q. p. Putnam's Sons; Lon
don T Fisher Unwin 1888. svo, o4I PIP
The distinguished Oxford professor, whose iec'-
49,. in 1887 and 1883 form this work, attained a
rare and enviable reputation years ago oy I'M
covering the industrial life of England IN the
Middle Ages. Not only was the evidence wmcn
he discovered and has in part made pubic Oh
reat value, but he was highly honoreo ior Ills
acute Interpretation of facts and for the courage
with which he set forth important conclusions
which were peculiarly unwelcome to the Enghsn
ruNns classes and at war with the teachings OF
accepted leaders Of English economic thought
No. a few reckoned that Of the new and only
True economic science. which bases its dicta upon
ascertained facts, he was likely TO become the
foremost teacher. This attitude of independence
does not seem to have been at all unwelcome to
Professor Rogers In the preface Of this work
he says:
/ began to discover that much which popular
ecopomists believe TO be natural is highly artificial
s se and Inaccurate indctons and that much
which they consider to be demonstrably irreiutable
no. @ 4f SSS Sea and had G
been supremacy mischievous, and that In attempting
to sna BE- s saS esys that p
IS in bad way its authority is repudised its con
the dissertations held in Miltons Limbo It's practical
sugges tons conceived to be not much better than
those Of the philosopher In Iaputa and one OF It's
advised to betake himself to Saturn. Now all this
is very sad. The books which seemed to be wise
are often compared to those curious volumes OF which
the converts at Ephesus made h0l0 os, anu u
the Gny sre u2oaundv ignorant Of the social facts
on Which they profess to be dogmatic man VIII VII
chatter the margin of cultivation who does not
exhaustion Of coal deposits, when he docs not know
their extent and not aware OF the economies OF
entirely unacquainted with the fact that they were
cruelty oppressed up TO recent times st swaPPs sba
have the heartiest contempt
Hundreds of quotations expressing this contempt
could be selected from his work: in fact. the
reader begins 10 be little weary OF their
frequency. But he grows puzzled also when he
finds the Professor who scornfully censures others
for accepting theories without adequate basis of
fact himself adopting some of the worst and
weakest of these theories without any effort to
reconcile them with well-lnown events and
uttsring them with all the dogmatic intolerance
which in others he finds so Objectionable.
The tides Of the twenty two lectures embraced
in this volume give little idea of their scope for
they treat of almost every department of economic
inquiry. The history of England, especially as
enlightened by Professor Rogerss researches, and
the contemporaneous history Of other countries
are reviewed under different aspects and in con-
nection with the different branches of economic in
JQuiry This method involves not little repe-
tition Of facts which bear upon various problems
But the intense earnestneSs, the grim humor and
frequent flashes Of wit. and the remarkable com
mand of facts which enrich these lectures, make
the work both interesting and highly valuable,
Gov bn poau fail n
satisfactory. 1t is not work without blemish.
Sipshod expressions are not infrequent. Thus
the writer says:
BY wages ! mean, as l have previously explained,
the labor of the Capitalist as well as the labor Of the
II is upon his (the Turks exploits that the history
Of Central and Western EOps tuTS ssi' the old
Many Years aS collected the rent o paid so{
w %Ay h.vs population and industry DO
All the savasse collected BY Jipghis Khan Tanner
lane and the dSmanli TURKS together would have been
ssn4g q or 'A''' 'a''a'0H' OF 0a'rn IN
Looscness Of expression which is unhappily
TOO frequent, would be of little consequence if it
were never sign of loose thinking. But Pro
lessor Rogers has slap-dash style of referring to
persons and works, classes and races, statesmen
and writer's of distinction. which does not help one
10 regard him as man of precise habits of thought
A few out of very many illustrations may be peril
nent:
The late Mr.. MacCulloch, whose opinions on sconom-
zeal subjects were never Of much consequence, and are
Pcei's plea for reimposine this detestable and in
trinsically Ubiquitous 1hcome) tax, formulated by
Mr.. Gladstone was II is doubt. par
tculsry sSpodient in the hands Of stupid nan-
The patriot king of Mr.. Froude appears TO me, who
. sT d @So Of s Gnsi on to ss the
could 90 through whole host of these inventions,
leisure " Of Mr. 9V smes and the leisure Of Mr. smiles
was very respectfully employed. P 2s7.I
fSs tariff aGl Of casa through the
Congress BY Mr. Morrill, The price 6 may be feared,
To Sensible man. convinced that he has no preju-
dlces, but only facts before him which he is bound to
. SS%suy sspssss s from daily or weekly
a famous passage In Mr. Mills Political Econ
which eas 90 mSGS
nature and 50 much Ignorance S q isS sor Ss9
invented something besides metaphysics and testi
monials. Up. 41oJ
Scientific calmness is usually thought essential
10 accuracy. But whatever else Professor Rogers
may be, he is not calm. Witty he is often; sheer
ing at other people frequently; in dreadful state
of mind occasionally about this or that person,
living or dead; but dispassionate, never II de-
tracts not little from the weight of his remarks
10 find him in almost every lecture referring Ia
what did in Parliament" as if he really
the central figure there, and the fate Of nations
hung ON his words :" / challenged the Govern
ment" (p 446) he says: this motion / carried
by majority Of forty. after prolonged debate
In less than three months, the decision of the
House Of Commons was followed by a political
catacysm" Up 5000 These references are 50
frequent as to suggest mind not entirely we'll
balanced
The blemishes mentioned are enough to make
attentive readers ask with some Seriousness whether
Professor Rogers can be quite as reliable-not TO
say nfallible-in the peculiarly difficult task of in
vestigating and reporting historical facts as he
wishes to be considered For the value OF his
laborous researches after all must largely depend
upon his accuracy and dispassonateness as re.