THE EARLY TEACHING OF ECONOMICS IN THE UNITED STATES 297 
son was translated in 1784 to the chair of moral philosophy and 
political economy, and taught The Wealth of Nations from that 
time on. This understanding of the subject has been generally 
accepted. 
It may be well to analyze the authorities for the above state- 
ments. In the first place we are told that a copy of the Wealth 
of Nations, belonging to a student of the College, bears the 
inscription of 1798. This is indeed a fact. Mr. W. G. Stanard, 
Librarian of the Virginia Historical Society, was good enough 
to write to us on October 16th, 1925: “Mr. Robert Stanard was 
my grandfather. The book of Smith, which came almost acci- 
dentally into my hands, contained the inscription ‘Robert Stan- 
ard, Wm. and Mary College, 1798." I unfortunately lent it to 
a man who was preparing to deliver an address on education for 
a considerable period, and when I asked for it, he claimed to have 
no recollection of my lending it. But there is no question about 
he inscription. I have a copy made a long time ago.” While the 
fact, therefore, is undoubted, it is nevertheless no proof of any 
thing except that a student at the college owned such a book. 
More significant seem to be the forty-three pages of questions 
on Smith’s work found in the correspondence of Mr. Reid. But 
Andrew Reid was a student in 1806, and his statement can there- 
ore tell us nothing as to what happened during the eighteenth 
entury. We come next to the assertion of Bishop Meade tha 
President Madison first introduced the subject into the College. 
But Bishop Meade made this assertion in 1846, and tells us noth- 
ng as to when this introduction is supposed to have happened. 
As Madison remained professor until 1812 it does not follow that 
he taught political economy in the eighteenth century. Now 
follows the letter from Mr. Brock, who owned a three-volume 
edition of Adam Smith, published in 1796. On turning to the 
assage in question, however, it will be found that according to 
Ir. Brock’s statement the first volume of the work bears the 
name of the owner and the date 1820. Finally, the statement 
by Mr. Rogers, made in 1845, also says nothing about the time 
hen this alleged first course on political economy was given. 
We are thus reduced to the assertion of Mr. Tyler that President 
Madison had, after 1784, charge of the departments of natural 
nd political philosophy, international law and political economy. 
a a matter of fact, however, the term political economy is