The Industrial Revolution

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Multivolume work

Identifikator:: 1892063557

Document type:: Multivolume work

Author:: Lamprecht, Karl http://d-nb.info/gnd/118569015

Title:: Deutsche Geschichte

Place of publication:: Berlin

Publisher:: Gaertner

Year of publication:: 1891-

Collection:: Economics Books

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Volume

Identifikator:: 1892064901

URN:: urn:nbn:de:zbw-retromon-238006

Document type:: Volume

Author:: Lamprecht, Karl http://d-nb.info/gnd/118569015

Title:: Urzeit und Mittelalter

Volume count:: Abt. 1

Place of publication:: Freiburg im Breisgau

Publisher:: Heyfelder

Year of publication:: 1904

Scope:: XIX, 488 S.

Digitisation:: 2022

Collection:: Economics Books

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Chapter

Document type:: Multivolume work

Structure type:: Chapter

Title:: Elftes Buch

Collection:: Economics Books

' 44. LAISSEZ FAIRE that the impulse was one that was susceptible of moral control. He has managed, however, to leave a somewhat different impression of his doctrine, that population tends to increase faster than the means of subsistence increase, by formulating it as if it were a law of physical nature. The preventive checks, which are brought to bear by rational self- control, do not occupy so prominent a place in his essay as to have sufficiently attracted the attention of his readers. At a time of rapid transition and extreme fluidity, rational foresight has little to go upon, and it could not prove an affective force during the Industrial Revolution. Hence it of the facts follows that Malthus, looking at the circumstances of his own his time. era, formulated the principles of population in terms which give an exaggerated impression of the remorselessness of the tendency for a redundant population to arise. What he said was fully justified in his day; but circumstances have so far changed since, that the mode of statement he adopted needs to be modified if we would put, in simplest form, the truth about the increase of population as it generally occurs? We may see that there were in his time unwonted obstacles to procuring food by human exertion, whether directed to industry or to tillage ; while there were, both in the develop- ment of the factories and in the nature of the poor-relief, anusual hindrances to the operation of the preventive checks. more interests and responsibilities in life, and allowing him to have, under proper nfeguards, the use of suitable land together with a cow. To Arthur Young, Malthus’ scheme seemed drastic (dnnals, xr1. 221) and impracticable; while Malthus contended that Arthur Young's suggestions gave no immunity (Essay, m1. 353) from the recurrence of the danger. It was obvious that in so far as the spirit of independence was not cultivated by giving the labourer land, his enlarged resources would only tend towards the increase of population in the same way as the parish allowances had done. From the premises he laid down Malthus’ argu- ment was sound : the mere fact that Arthur Young insisted on so many safeguards in connection with his proposal, shows that he did not regard it as a complete panacea. On the other hand Malthus had no practical suggestion to make with he view of cultivating the spirit on which he laid such stress. He had more sympathy with Arthur Young's proposals than might appear (tb. 365), but he wrgued that they were no complete remedy. His followers interpreted him how- over as if he had condemned benevolent action as such ; they feared that improve- ments in the labourers’ condition would be inevitably followed by an increase of population, and they desisted from the schemes on which Arthur Young had relied for improving, not merely the condition, but the character of the labourer (Annals, x1. 230). The admirable report of the committee on allotments in 1848 seems to have had no practical effect. See above p. 718. 3 See Cunningham, Path towards Knowledge, p. 25.

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