Principles of Political Economy considered with a view to their practical application.

First edition. 8vo. 601, [1, blank] pp. Early twentieth century half calf with brown cloth covered boards, spine with five single raised bands outlined in blind, second and third panels lettered in gilt, top edge in gilt, fore and bottom edges untrimmed, with the original printed label tipped-in to the inside rear pastedown (armorial bookplate of Iain Ramsay of Kildalton to front pastedown, some light spotting to title page and terminal leaves, otherwise generally internally clean; modest wear to extremities, still a very good, wide margined copy). London, John Murray. A series of tracts on political economy written by Malthus to establish his own position against that of his friend and intellectual rival David Ricardo, with whom Malthus had been engaged in an ongoing debate about the nature of labour, demand and profit. In particular, in his Principles of Political Economy, 'Malthus was proposing investment in public work and private luxury as a means of increasing effective demand, and hence as a palliative to economic distress. The nation, he thought, must balance the power to produce and the will to consume' (DSB). 'The Principles had only a limited impact at the time, and was severely criticised by J. R. McCulloch and Ricardo; the latter prepared extensive critical notes. But more recently it has received greater recognition, largely as a result of the comments by J. M. Keynes in the 1930s. Keynes argued that Malthus's theory of effective demand provided a scientific explanation of unemployment, and that the hundred-year domination of Ricardo over Malthus had been a disaster for the progress of economics. Keynes believed that if economics had followed Malthus instead of being constrained by Ricardo in an artificial groove, the world would be a much wiser and richer place' (ODNB). Goldsmiths' 22767; Kress C.577. …