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European Journal of Political Economy

Vol. 20 (2004) 69–71

Discussion

Comment on academic exclusion: the case of

Alexander Del Mar

Lawrence R. Klein*,1

Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6297, USA

Received 8 April 2003; accepted 8 April 2003

Abstract

Del Mar made intellectual contributions that one would have thought merited at least the

recognition, and if not more, that was given to other 19th century economists such as for example

Henry George. The academic exclusion of Del Mar described by Joseph Aschheim and George

Tavlas can be compared with the 20th century and with the intellectual openness of early 21st

century academia.

D 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

JEL classification: B22; B31; E12; E40

Keywords: Alexander Del Mar; Academic exclusion; Prejudice in academia; History of monetary theory;

Plagiarism

1. Introduction

Joseph Aschheim and George S. Tavlas have made an important contribution to the

History of Economic Thought by uncovering the writings of Alexander Del Mar and

bringing Del Mar’s main ideas forward from the second half of the 19th century for our

professional scrutiny in the 21st century. I fully appreciate their historical research efforts,

in particular having published a collection of ‘‘Landmark’’ papers of the 20th century

(Klein, 2001) that led me to look more carefully into the writings of Knut Wicksell and

Irving Fisher, who dealt with some of the same monetary theory and practice that occupied

0176-2680/$ - see front matter D 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

doi:10.1016/j.ejpoleco.2003.04.001

* Tel.: +1–215–898–7701; fax: +1–215–573–2057.

E-mail address: econ@econ.sas.upenn.edu (L.R. Klein).1 Editor’s note: Lawrence R. Klein was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1980.

L.R. Klein / European Journal of Political Economy 20 (2004) 69–7170

the mind of Del Mar in a previous century. Aschheim and Tavlas carefully look at the

relationship between the views of Fisher and Del Mar.

It is not my intention to examine the detail and substance of Del Mar’s ideas about

money in the economy at an early stage of development of these topics, which was in itself

a thoughtful achievement, but to remark that Del Mar tackled an impressive number of

complex issues such as:

The nature of money and its functions as a medium of exchange and unit of account.

The physical nature of money at a time when metallism in its various forms was being

debated.

The relation of money to prices, wages, interest rates, and expectations (these are issues

that Fisher and Wicksell took up in the early 20th century).

The relevance of the real economy in terms of long-run sustainable growth rates

(concepts that concern modern central banks, in the form of economic ‘‘speed limits’’,

built around such ideas as the potential rate of growth).

Aschheim and Tavlas have every reason to ask why such an imaginative and

perceptive thinker as was Del Mar was largely neglected by historians of thought and

researchers of the evolution of economic policy. The work of Del Mar as Director of the

Bureau of Statistics (1866) in the Treasury Department is also interesting, in that he

aimed to systematize important data collection at an early stage of the country’s

economic development, a task for which quantitative economics should be very grateful.

2. Bigotry and discrimination

A central theme of the paper by Aschheim and Tavlas (2004) is that indirect evidence

suggests that discriminatory attitudes of David A. Wells and Francis A. Walker, among

others, may have held back recognition of Del Mar’s work, and his professional career. Del

Mar certainly deserves more serious consideration than does Henry George. The facts

concerning these matters may be non-recoverable, and I have no quarrel with the

inferences that have been made. The inferences are plausible. I do have more detailed

knowledge about specific instances of bigotry and discrimination in a later period, and the

evolution into the present situation that prevails in American scholarly and professional

circles.

There was discrimination in the past, and it became quite uneven by the 20th century.

By the early 21st century, the situation is quite different. On the whole, America has

handled its problems of diversity quite well.

It has not always been so, but there are long-lasting trends that are working toward

objectivity. There have been well-known cases of discrimination in the 20th Century, but

the defeat of the Nazi regime in Germany, the effects of singular events (World War II,

the recognition of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr, the absorption of vast waves of

immigrants into many levels of society, and other stepping stones) have transformed

the population and opportunities for success. We are on a good path in America at the

present time.

L.R. Klein / European Journal of Political Economy 20 (2004) 69–71 71

As far as scholarly achievement is concerned, one of the greatest steps forward was the

escape of leading thinkers of the world from Continental Europe in the 1920s and,

especially, the 1930s. Some of the greatest developments in science, engineering,

medicine, arts, and humanities came from the transplantation of these remarkable groups

of immigrants into America (both the United States and Canada). Other homelands played

important roles, but, in relation to the article on Del Mar by Aschheim and Tavlas, I am

concentrating on the American situation.

My first- and second-hand knowledge is sharpest for the field of econometrics, which

started from a new scholarly society in the 1920s and 1930s. Eventually, America

became a new homeland for the flowering of a society that had its origin in Europe.

There were some rocky periods, discernible from correspondence among the founding

group, which singled out some Jews who were thought to be unsatisfactory for

leadership positions. This is truly a thing of the past now. The participatory facts speak

for themselves.

The same can be said for American university positions, not only in econometrics but

also across the entire spectrum of subjects. There is true competition for the best

teachers and researchers in universities, think tanks, learned societies, and other bodies.

There were hold-out institutions along the way towards achievement of nondiscrimina-

tion, and there may still be some obscure pockets of resistance to change, but such cases

are now anomalies that will surely disappear. Quality will prevail. The issue of

discrimination is relevant not only for Jews, but all immigrant groups as well as for

blacks and possibly Native American Indians. Training facilities are open, and positions

are available for those who meet the qualifications for their chosen areas of professional

activity.

It took 100 years, or more, for scholarly achievement to be broadly recognized, without

bigotry or discrimination playing a role, but this refers to groups of people who are

disadvantaged. This involves elimination of socio-economic barriers to choice making by

individuals, but, in principle, any individual can succeed if the input that he or she makes

is first-class. I doubt that we are now failing to recognize cases like that of Alexander Del

Mar as a result of discrimination.

References

Aschheim, J., Tavlas, G.S., 2004. Academic exclusion: the case of Alexander Del Mar. European Journal of

Political Economy 20, 31–60 (this issue).

Klein, L.R., 2001. Landmark Papers in Economic Fluctuations: Economic Policy and Related Subjects Edward

Elgar, Cheltenham, UK.