Profile Major Works Resources

Frank William Taussig, 1859-1940.

Portrait of F.W. Taussig

Early professor of economics at  Harvard.

Frank W. Taussig, was a student and later colleague of Charles Dunbar at Harvard.  He has come be regarded as the "American Marshall", not only for his affinity to the doctrines of Alfred Marshall, but also for his highly influential role in American economics.  Taussig's prime position at Harvard, his famous 1911 textbook and his control of the Quarterly Journal of Economics helped spread his version of  Neoclassicism throughout the United States.  Taussig was indisposed to the idea of a "Marginalist Revolution", stressing instead the congruity of Classical and Neoclassical economics. His 1896 attempt to resurrect the defunct "wages-fund" doctrine stands as an example of this.  Although sympathetic to some Austrian principles - notably Böhm-Bawerk's theory of capital -- Taussig was otherwise generally opposed to radical, high-theory Marginalism as well as American Institutionalism. 

Most of Taussig's contributions to economics have been on international trade, particularly on the issue of tariffs, on which Taussig was the foremost authority for decades.  He was a lukewarm free-trader, but his anti-union and monometallist positions set him out as a relatively conservative economist. With brief interruptions (notably, to serve as advisor to Wilson's government in 1917-9), Taussig held his powerful Harvard pulpit 1885 until 1935, when that chair was handed over to his more colorful successor, Joseph Schumpeter.

 

  

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Major works of Frank W. Taussig

  • Protection to Young Industries as Applied in the United States: A Study in Economic History, 1883 [bk], [repr]
  • "Prices from 1873 to 1884", 1885, Science, (v.6) p.365 [js]
  • "Review of Hadley's Railroad Transportation", 1886, Science (v.7), p.258 [js]
  • "Review of Rae's Country Banker", 1886, Science, p.425, [js]
  • "The State as an Economic Factor II: Reply", 1886, Science  (v.7) p.488 [js] (debate with E.J. James),
  • "Letter on R.T. Ely's New School of Economists and the History of Economics", 1886, Science (v.8)  p.33 [js]
  • The History of the Present Tariff, 1860-1883, 1886 [bk]
  • "The South-Western Strike of 1886", 1887, QJE (v.1, Jan), p.184-222 [js]
  • "A Suggested Rearrangement of Economic Study", 1888, QJE (v.2, Jan), p.228-32. [js]
  • "The Early Protective Movement and the Tariff of 1828", 1888, PSQ (Mar), p.17 [js], [repr]
  • "The Tariff of 1830-1860". 1888, QJE (Apr), p.314-46 [js] [repr]
  • The Tariff History of the United States: A series of essays, 1888. [bk]  [1910 5th ed.] [2010 repr]
  •  "Some Aspects of the Tariff Question", 1889, QJE (Apr),  p.259-92 [js]
  •  "The Silver Situation in the United States", 1890, QJE (Apr), p.291-315 [js]
  • "A Contribution to the Theory of Railroad Rates", 1891, Pub AEA (Jan-Mar) p.52-63 [js] (abstract & discusion)
  • "A Contribution to the Theory of Railway Rates",1891, QJE (Jul), p.438-65 [js]
  • "Review of Lewis's Our Sheep and the Tariff", 1891, AAPSS [js]
  • "La  Tariffa McKinley", 1891, GdE, p.1.
  • The Silver Situation in the United States, 1891.
  • "The Silver Situation in the United States", 1892, Pub AEA (Jan) p.1-100 [js]
  • "Review of Soetbeer's Litteraturnachweis über Geld- und Münzwesen", 1892, PSQ (Sep), p.558 [js]
  • "Reciprocity", 1892, QJE (Oct), p.26-39 [js] [repr]
  • "Discussion on Patten's Interpretation of Ricardo", 1893, Pub AEA (Jan), p.80, [js]
  •  "Value and Distribution as Treated by Professor Marshall", 1893, Pub AEA (Jan), p.95 [js]
  • "Recent Literature on Protection", 1893, QJE (Jan) p.162-76 [js] (review of Moffatt, Strange, Farquhar Atkinson, Schoenhof, Wise, Bastable, Patten)
  • "Review of Elliot's Tariff Controversy", 1893, PSQ [js]
  • "Review of Suess's Zukunft des Silbers", 1893, Science [js]
  • "Review of Hertzka's Das Internationale Wahrungsproblem and Suess's Zukunft des Silbers", 1893, PSQ  [js]
  • "Review of Cannan's History of the Theories", 1893, PSQ [js]
  •  "The Duties on Wool and Woollens", 1893, QJE (Oct),  p.1-39 [js]
  • "Results of Recent Investigations on Prices in the United States", 1893, Pub ASA [js]
  • "The Relation Between Interest and Profits", 1894, Pub AEA
  • "The Wages Fund Doctrine at the Hands of German Economists (Abstract & Discussion)", 1894, Pub AEA (Jan)  p.68  [js] (discussion by E.W. Bemis)
  • "The Wages Fund Doctrine at the Hands of German Economists", 1894, QJE (Oct), p.1-25 [js]
  • "Recent Discussions on Railway Management in Prussia", 1894, QJE (Oct), p.77-87 [js]
  • "The Tariff Act of 1894", 1894, PSQ (Dec)  [js]
  • "Review of Nicholson's Principles, vol. 1", 1894, PSQ [js]
  • "Review of Contento's Teoria del Salario", 1895, PSQ [js]
  • "Review of Loria's Problemi Sociali Contemporanei", 1895, PSQ [js]
  • "The Employer's Place in Distribution", 1895, QJE (Oct), p.67-94 [js]
  • "Rabbeno's American Commercial Policy", 1895, QJE (Oct), p.102-113 [js]
  • Wages and Capital: An examination of the wages fund doctrine, 1896. [bk], [1915 rep]
  • "The International Silver Situation", 1896, QJE (Oct) p.1-35 [js] [offp]
  • "The Tariff Act of 1897", 1897, QJE (Oct), p.42 [js]
  • "Review of Prager's Wahrungsfrage", 1898, PSQ [js]
  • "The United States Treasury in 1894-1896", 1899, QJE, (Jan) p.204 [js]
  • "Review of Nicholson's Principles, vol. 2", 1899, PSQ [js]
  • "The Taxation of Securities in the United States", 1899, PSQ [js]
  • "Review of Miller's Money and Bimetallism", 1899, PSQ [js]
  • "The Iron Industry in the United States I", 1900, QJE (Feb) p.143 [js]
  • "The Currency Act of 1900", 1900, QJE (Apr), p.394 [js]  with appendices: "The Currency Act of 1900" p.450 [js] & "Treasury Statement", p.457 [js]
  • "The Iron Industry in the United States II",1900, QJE (Aug), p.475 [js]
  • "Review of Letters of David Ricardo",1900, PSQ [js]
  • "Review of Jones's Economic Crises", 1901, PSQ [js]
  • "Charles Franklin Dunbar" by F.W.Taussig, 1900, Harvard Monthly [p.187]

  • "Charles Franklin Dunbar", 1901, Proc AEA [js]

  • "The End of Sugar Bounties", 1903, QJE [js]
  • "Review of Stanwood's American Tariff Controversies", 1904, PSQ [js]
  • "Introduction" to C.F. Dunbar's Economic Essays, 1904  [bk]
  • "The Present Position of the Doctrine of Free Trade", 1904, Pub AEA
  • "The Present Position and the Doctrine of Free Trade - Presidential Address", 1905, Pub AEA [js], [repr]
  • "Schmoller on Protection and Free Trade", 1905, QJE [js]
  • "Capital, Interest and Diminishing Returns", 1906, QJE
  • "The Love of Wealth and the Public Service - Presidential Address", 1906, Pub AEA [js]
  • "Review of Seligman's Principles of Economics", 1906, QJE [js]
  • "Wages and Prices in Relation to International Trade", 1906, QJE [js] [repr]
  • "Discussion on J.B. Clark's Wages adjusted by Arbitration", 1907, Pub of AEA [js]
  • "Review of Clark's Essentials", 1908, JPE [js]
  • "Review of Clark's Essentials", 1908, AEA Econ Bulletin [js]
  • "Capital, Interest and Diminishing Returns", 1908, QJE [js]
  • "Sugar: a lesson on reciprocity and the tariff", 1908, Atlantic Monthly, p.332
  • "The Burden of the Sugar Duty", 1909, QJE [js]
  • "The Tariff Debate of 1909 and the New Tariff Act", 1909, QJE [js]
  • "Outlines of a Theory of Wages, 1909, AEA Quarterly [js]
  • "The Tariff and the Tariff Commission", 1910, Atlantic Monthly [offp]
  • "Cost of Production and the Tariff", 1910, Atlantic Monthly [repr]
  • "Review of Nicholson's Project of Empire", 1910, AEA Econ Bulletin [js]
  • "How Tariffs Should Not Be Made", 1911, AER [js], [repr]
  • Principles of Economics, 1911, v.1, v.2  [2nd ed. 1915, v.1, v.2] [3rd ed. 1921, v.1, v.2]
  • "Discussion: Socialism", 1911, AER [js]
  • "Discussion: Money and Prices", 1911, AER [js]
  • "Reciprocity with Canada", 1911, JPE [js]
  • "Beet Sugar and the Tariff", 1912, QJE (Feb), p.189 [js]
  • "Review of Moore's Laws of Wages", 1912, QJE (May), p.511 [js]
  • "Dyer and Martin's Life of Edison", 1912, QJE (Aug), p.776 [js]
  • "The Conduct of a Seminary in Economics", 1912, JPE [js]
  • "Review of Tarbell's Tariff in Our Times", 1912,AER [js]
  • "Review of Moore's Law of Wages", 1912, AER [js]
  • "The Report of the Tariff Board on Wool and Woolens", 1912, AER [js], [repr]
  • "Review of Blakeley's Beet-Sugar", 1912, AER [js]
  • "Railway Rates and Joint Cost Once More, 1913, QJE [js] - reply to A.C. Pigou
  • "Discussion on C.W. Wright's Economics of Governmental Price Regulation", 1913, AER [js]
  • "The Plan for A Compensated Dollar", 1913, QJE [js]
  • "The Tariff Act of 1913", 1913, QJE [js]
  • "Abraham Lincoln on the Tariff: A myth", 1914, QJE [js], [repr]
  • "Lincoln and the Tariff: A sequel",1915, QJE [js]
  • "Review: Two Biographies of Inventors: Fulton and Morse", 1915, QJE [js]
  • "Review of H.G. Brown's International Trade and Exchange", 1915, JPE [js]
  • Inventors and Money-Makers: Lectures on some relations between economics and psychology, delivered at Brown University, 1915 [bk]
  • Some Aspects of the Tariff Question, 1915. [bk] [1924 repr]
  • "The Proposal for a Tariff Commission", 1916, NAR [js], [repr]
  • "Review of Donald's Canadian Iron and Steel Industry", 1916, AER [js]
  • "Price Maintenance", 1916, AER [js]
  • "Minimum Wages for Women", 1916, QJE [js]
  • "Exhaustion of the Soil and the Theory of Rent", 1917, QJE [js]
  • "Review of Girault's Colonial Tariff Policy", 1917, AER [js]
  • "International Trade under Depreciated Paper: A contribution to theory", 1917, QJE [js]
  • "Review of Kleene's Profits and Wages", 1917, QJE [js]
  • "The War-Tax Act of 1917", 1917, QJE [js]
  • "Rejoinder to Hollander", 1918, QJE [js]
  • "The Financial Situation: A general survey", 1918, AAPSS [js]
  • "How to Promote Foreign Trade", 1918, QJE [js] [repr]
  • (et al.) Report of the U. S. Tariff Commission Upon the Revision of the Customs Administrative Laws. [bk]
  • "Tariff Problems after the War", 1919, in American Problems of Reconstruction. [repr]
  • "How the Tariff affects Wages", 1919, Atlantic Monthly [repr]
  • "Price-Fixing as seen by a Price Fixer", 1919, QJE [js]
  • "The Present and Future of the International Trade of the United States", 1919, QJE [js]
  • "Review of Keynes's Economic Consequences of the Peace", 1920, QJE [js]
  • "Germany's Reparation Payments", 1920, AER [js]
  • Free Trade, the Tariff and Reciprocity, 1920 [bk]
  • "Review of Friedman's International Commerce", 1921, AER [js]
  • "Is Market Price Determinate?", 1921, QJE (p.394), [js]
  • "The Lincoln Tariff Myth finally disposed of", 1921, QJE (p.500)
  • "Review of Gregory's Tariffs", 1922, AER [js]
  • "The Tariff Act of 1922", 1922, QJE [js]
  • International Trade, 1927.
 
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Resources on F.W. Taussig

  • #"Review of Taussig, The History of the Present Tariff", 1886, The New Englander and Yale Review
  • #"Review of Taussig's Principles of Economics",  by Richard T. Ely, 1912, AER
  • #"Review of Taussig's Some Aspects of the Tariff Question" by H. R. Mussey, 1915, AER
  • "Review of Taussig's Tariff History", by Werner Sombart, 1889, SchmJGVV, p.432
  • "Review of Coperthwait's Money, Silver and Finance, Ehrich's Question of Silver and Taussig's Silver Situation", by C.B. Spahr, 1892, PSQ (Jun), p.330 [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Silver Situation in America", by J. Laurence Laughlin, 1892, JPE (Dec), p.127 [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Tariff History", by Adolph C. Miller, 1893, JPE [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Silver Situation and Hertzka's Das Internationale Wahrungsproblem", by W.M.D., 1893, AAPSS [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's State Papers and Elliott's Tariff Controversies", by D.K. 1893, AAPSS [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Wages and Capital", by William Hill, 1896, JPE [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Wages and Capital", by Sidney Sherwood, 1896, AAPSS (Nov), p.109 [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Wages and Capital", by Frank A. Fetter, 1897, PSQ [js]
  • "Review of Seligman's Principles", reply to Taussig by E.R.A. Seligman with rejoinder by F.W. Taussig 1906, QJE [js]
  • "Present Work and Present Wages" by J.G. Thompson, with rejoinder by F.W. Taussig, 1910, QJE,  [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Tariff History", 1911, JPE [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Principles" by Alvin S. Johnson, 1912, JPE [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Principles" by Lewis H. Haney, 1912, AAPSS [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Principles", by Richard T. Ely, 1912, AER  [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Principles", by R.C. McCrea, 1912, PSQ  [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Principles", by W.L. Bevan, 1912, Sewanee Review. [js]
  • "Railway Rates and Joint Costs" reply to Taussig by A.C. Pigou with rejoinder by F.W. Taussig 1913, QJE [js]
  • "Railway Rates and Joint Costs: Rejoinder", second reply by A.C. Pigou, 1913, QJE [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Some Aspects", by H.G.Brown, Pub of ASA [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Some Aspects", by H.R. Mussey, 1915, AER [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Inventors", by L.L. Bernard, 1916, AJS  [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Inventors", by H.D. Kitson, 1916, JPE [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Some Aspects", by A.B. Wolfe, 1916, AJS [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Some Aspects", by H. Parker Willis, 1917, JPE [js]
  • "International Trade under Depreciated Paper: A criticism" by Jacob H. Hollander, 1918, QJE [js]
  • "International Freight and Prices", by Knut Wicksell, 1918, QJE [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Free Trade", by F.W. Ryan, 1920, JPE [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Free Trade", by F.C. Mills, 1920, J of Phil, Psych & Scie Meth [js]
  • "Review of Taussig's Principles" by C.E. Persons, 1922, AER [js]
  • Taussig obituary in Harvard Crimson, 1940
  • Frank W. Taussig profile at OLL, Liberty Fund.
  • Taussig page at fff.org
  • Taussig entry at Britannica
  • Wikipedia

 

 

 
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