Pièce 62 - William Whewell to Richard Jones

4 pp.

London - WW gives his positive opinion of John Herschel's recent bride [Margaret Herschel]. WW was safely elected to the University Club [see WW to RJ, 19 Feb. 1829]. He has 'been putting on paper and reading at the Philosophical Society my mathematico-politico-economics, and I am really rather pleased with the look of my lucubrations. I shall privately have it finished (as one of our papers) and send it to the Economists whom I know by way of challenge. It does not much interfere with your speculations but I know very much that it will bear traces of what I have learnt from you, especially in the boldness with which I doubt the accuracy of the orthodox economists. It is in fact for the most part Thompson's [Thomas Perronet Thompson] book on Rent translated into formula' ['The True Theory of Rent, in Opposition to Mr. Ricardo and Others', 1826]. WW's 'object is to shew the mode of applying mathematics so as to separate difficulties of calculation from difficulties of moral reasoning - to keep apart the business of reasoning up to principles and down from them'. He wants some statements concerned with land, produce and rent: 'I have told you I do not want accuracy but definiteness'.