Leon C. Marshall
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Leon Carroll Marshall (March 15, 1879 – March 1966) was an American economist, Professor of Political Economy and fourth dean of the Booth School of Business from 1909 to 1924, Professor at the Law School of the
Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...
, and Professor at the
American University The American University (AU or American) is a private federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Its main campus spans 90 acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, mostly in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Northwest D.C. AU was charte ...
. He is known for his works on our economic organization,
business administration Business administration, also known as business management, is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. From the point of view of management ...
, curriculum-making in the social studies and the divorce court.


Biography

Born in Zanesville, Ohio in 1879, Marshall in 1900 obtained his BA at the
Ohio Wesleyan University Ohio Wesleyan University (OWU) is a private liberal arts college in Delaware, Ohio. It was founded in 1842 by methodist leaders and Central Ohio residents as a nonsectarian institution, and is a member of the Ohio Five – a consortium ...
, and in 1902 his MA from
Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
, Later on in 1918 he obtained his law degree at the
Ohio Wesleyan University Ohio Wesleyan University (OWU) is a private liberal arts college in Delaware, Ohio. It was founded in 1842 by methodist leaders and Central Ohio residents as a nonsectarian institution, and is a member of the Ohio Five – a consortium ...
.L. C. Marshall Papers
at american.edu. Accessed Jan. 1, 2014.
Marshall started his academic career at the business school of the University of Chicago, the Booth School of Business, where he became Professor of Political Economy and was fourth dean of the business school from 1909 to 1924. Sequentially he moved to the
Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...
, where he was professor and director of its Institute of Law from 1928 to 1933. In 1934 Marshall was appointed by President
Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
as member of the National Labor Board and of the
National Recovery Administration The National Recovery Administration (NRA) was a prime agency established by U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) in 1933. The goal of the administration was to eliminate "cut throat competition" by bringing industry, labor, and governmen ...
to support Roosevelt's
New Deal The New Deal was a series of programs, public work projects, financial reforms, and regulations enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1939. Major federal programs agencies included the Civilian Cons ...
policies and the "measure and combat the effects of the
Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
." He also became a member of the
National Educational Association The National Education Association (NEA) is the largest labor union in the United States. It represents public school teachers and other support personnel, faculty and staffers at colleges and universities, retired educators, and college stude ...
. From 1936 to 1948 Marshall was Professor of Political Economy at
American University The American University (AU or American) is a private federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Its main campus spans 90 acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, mostly in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Northwest D.C. AU was charte ...
in Washington, D.C. Marshall wrote several textbooks on Social Studies topics at the secondary school and grade-school level, starting with ''Materials For the Study of Elementary Economics'' in 1913 coauthored with James A. Field (1879-1927) and
Chester Whitney Wright Chester Whitney Wright (1879–1966) was an American economic historian, and Professor at the University of Chicago, known for his works on the economic history of the United States. Biography Wright studied at the Harvard University, where he ...
(1880-1966).


Work

Marshall came into prominence in the years from 1913 to 1919, when he was involved with professor of Economics James A. Field and the economic historian Chester W. Wright in "attempts to move economics instruction away from the 'rigorous drill in orthodox theory' or the 'straight-jacket of conventional theory' to a method of instruction emphasizing the development of economic institutions, inquiry into current problems and issues, and fostering of creativity and originality (field 1917). To this end, they produced a book of readings to supplement the usual texts (Marshall, Wright, and Field 1913)."Malcolm Rutherford (2011). ''The Institutionalist Movement in American Economics.'' p. 132


''Readings in Industrial Society,'' 1918

In 1918 Marshall published his ''Readings in Industrial Society.'' This work had a heavy emphasis on the institutional development of industrial society, the money economy and financial organization, machine industry, the wage system and the worker, industrial concentration, competition, private property, and social control." The work contained reading from founders of the
institutional economics Institutional economics focuses on understanding the role of the Sociocultural evolution, evolutionary process and the role of institutions in shaping Economy, economic Human behavior, behavior. Its original focus lay in Thorstein Veblen's instin ...
such as Thorstein Veblen, Wesley Clair Mitchell,
Walton H. Hamilton Walton Hale Hamilton (October 30, 1881 – October 27, 1958) was an American law professor who taught at Yale Law School (1928–1948), although he was an economist, not a lawyer. In 1919, Hamilton coined the term " institutional economics". Li ...
,
Harold G. Moulton Harold Glenn Moulton (November 7, 1883, Le Roy, Michigan - December 14, 1965, Charles Town, West Virginia) was an American economist and longtime fellow at the Brookings Institution. He authored several dozen books and papers exploring timely soc ...
,
Robert F. Hoxie Robert Franklin Hoxie (April 29, 1868 – June 22, 1916) was an American economist, known for his work on labor history.Morgen Witzel Morgen Witzel (born 1960) is a Canadian historian, business theorist, consultant, lecturer and author of managemen ...
, John M. Clark,
Edwin Cannan Edwin Cannan (3 February 1861, Funchal, Madeira – 8 April 1935, Bournemouth), the son of David Cannan and artist Jane Cannan, was a British economist and historian of economic thought. He was a professor at the London School of Economics from 1 ...
, and
John A. Hobson John Atkinson Hobson (6 July 1858 – 1 April 1940) was an English economist and social scientist. Hobson is best known for his writing on imperialism, which influenced Vladimir Lenin, and his theory of underconsumption. His principal and e ...
. He also reprinted diagrams from the work of Henry Rogers Seager, picturing the economic production and distribution from 1904, and
Paul Nystrom Paul Henry Nystrom (January 25, 1878 – August 17, 1969) was an American economist, and professor of marketing at Columbia University. He is most known as pioneer in marketing, and for his ''The Economics of Retailing'' (1915) and his ''Economic ...
, picturing the channels of distribution for various lines of goods from 1915. Leon Ardzrooni, known as "Veblen's most faithful disciple", reviewed the book for '' Political Science Quarterly,'' and introduced the work as follows:
As indicated in the subtitle of this formidable volume, the author has brought together a large array of descriptive material for " a study in the structure and functioning of economic organization." Among a considerable number of students in the social sciences the feeling has been growing that economics, as studied in our colleges and universities, lacks the substance and security which is often obtained in other fields of intellectual endeavor by a happy coordination of historical perspective and speculative logomachy. With a view to attain such an end, there have appeared in recent years several volumes of " selected readings " for the study of economics and economic problems. The present one is a creditable addition to this goodly list in the publication of which the University of Chicago Press has taken a leading part.Leon Ardzrooni.
Reviewed Work: Readings in Industrial Society. by Leon Carroll Marshall
" in: ''Political Science Quarterly.'' Vol. 34, No. 3 (Sep., 1919), pp. 503-505
Clarence Edwin Ayres Clarence Edwin Ayres (May 6, 1891 – July 24, 1972) was the principal thinker in the Texas school of institutional economics during the middle of the 20th century. Life Ayres was born in Lowell, Massachusetts, the son of a Baptist minister. He g ...
explicitly regarded "Marshall's book as a contribution to the institutional type of economics."


''Our economic organization,'' 1921

In 1921 Marshall and Leverett S. Lyon (1885-1959) published their "Our economic organization." The main purpose of this book in the field of elementary economics is to present in systematic fashion the structure of economic society under the spur of competition.Everett W. Goodhue.
Reviewed Work: Our Economic Organization by Leon C. Marshall, Leverett S. Lyon
" in: ''The American Economic Review,'' Vol. 11, No. 4 (Dec., 1921), pp. 663-665.
The treatment is necessarily brief on account of the large number of topics to be covered, and also on account of the requirements of an elementary text book. The approach is functional. The authors stated in its preface the purpose is to present economic organization in its functional aspect, to show in some detail not so much what the organization is as how it operates.
The distinguishing feature of the volume is the effort to depict social structures in terms of what they do. The ''functions'', the ''uses'', the ''work'', of banks, of business organization, of
competition Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero-sum game). Competition can arise between entities such as organisms, indivi ...
, of specialization], of
government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
, of
scientific management Scientific management is a theory of management that analyzes and synthesizes workflows. Its main objective is improving economic efficiency, especially labor productivity. It was one of the earliest attempts to apply science to the engineer ...
, of education, and of other multitudinous agencies which together make up our want-gratifying machine, are the matters with which the book is concerned.Marshal & Lyon (1921, p. v)
And more even specific "it is a study of the devices which exist in industrial society, primarily in terms of their activities, and, quite secondarily, in terms of their structures."


Economic organization compared to machine; a process approach to economics

In a 1921 review of the work ''The American Economic Review,'' by Everett Walton Goodhue (1878-1940s), Professor of Sociology and Economics at
Colgate University Colgate University is a private liberal arts college in Hamilton, New York. The college was founded in 1819 as the Baptist Education Society of the State of New York and operated under that name until 1823, when it was renamed Hamilton Theologi ...
,New York (State). Legislature. Senate (1910). ''Documents of the Senate of the State of New York.'' p. 925 Goodhue explained, that this work compares the economic organization to machine, and introduces a process approach (or systems approach) to economics. Goodhue (1921) explained.
Our economic organization is compared to a machine with parts, articulation of parts, motive power, and control or guidance. No one claims that the machine at all times or perhaps at any time works perfectly. There are still many defects. Some parts are not well adapted to their uses; parts rattle, jam and squeak; too much or perchance at times too little motive power is applied; and at times (business depressions) the whole machine seems to break down. Despite the defects, however, the machine functions and is surprisingly well adapted to its purpose of producing goods in quantity, of producing them at right times, and of getting them into the hands of consumers with some accuracy and comparatively little difficulty.
The real test of any good machine is that it be designed for its purpose and that it accomplish that purpose at as low a cost as possible under the conditions which prevail at the time. Our economic machine appears to fulfill these conditions. On this point, indeed, many earnest students of economics honestly doubt the truth of the above statement. They see glaring faults of economy and justice, and take decided exception to the proposition that the present economic organization is adapted to its purpose. Possibly in the past, it is said, but certainly not today.
The complete work is illustrated with over 100 illustrations; tables, schemes, pictures, drawings, maps, graphs, block diagrams, tree diagrams,
classification Classification is a process related to categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated and understood. Classification is the grouping of related facts into classes. It may also refer to: Business, organizat ...
and
organization chart An organizational chart, also called organigram, organogram, or organizational breakdown structure (OBS) is a diagram that shows the structure of an organization and the relationships and relative ranks of its parts and positions/jobs. The term ...
s, presenting a mix of empirical and theoretical data. The process approach is recognizable in the visualization of some specific economic phenomena in diagrams, such as the diagram of gratifying wants (see image). Goodhue (1921) further explained, that the book at the outset rather assumes human wants and the goods to gratify those wants. Its interest lies in the field of processes. The aim was to start the student in elementary economics with a study of our want gratifying machine, to show him how this machine has come to be, and how it serves its purpose in apportioning our social resources, viz: labor power,
capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...
, acquired knowledge and
natural resources Natural resources are resources that are drawn from nature and used with few modifications. This includes the sources of valued characteristics such as commercial and industrial use, aesthetic value, scientific interest and cultural value. O ...
to the production and sale of goods. Although this approach to economics in its time was somewhat new and rather unorthodox, nevertheless there was much to be said in its favor, according to Goodhue (1921): * It serves at the outset to develop an interest in economics in the mind of the student, a thing much to be desired. * It introduces the student to something with which he is a bit familiar, instead of very early in the course dropping him down into the midst of an elusive exposition of marginal utility and marginal cost. * In describing for the student the existing system of economic organization it better prepares him to grasp the difficulties of terminology and theory on which the organization is based. There is no attempt to expound principles. All that is left to be taken up at a later point in the course. Those who have taught elementary economics will appreciate the difficulty of interesting and holding the students when they are plunged at the outset into the midst of the complexities of utility, value, and prices. This book goes far to solve that most difficult problem of arousing student interest in the course. It was considered eminently practical, readable, suggestive, and as such merits consideration.


Topics discussed in the book

The topics discussed in the book are in the main those of Professor Marshall's more pretentious work ''Readings in Industrial Society.'' The first two chapters on human wants and social resources aim to show the reasons for any form of economic organization. Then follow six chapters on English industrial history which, as the authors state, "are not 'historical' in any orthodox sense of the term. They are a somewhat more extended view of the problem at issue." The remainder of the book is taken up with a functionalized description of the economic organization of the United States. There are four chapters on specialization, two on machine industry, three on business organization, three on the province of the enterpriser, two each on money and financial organization and the utilization of natural and human resources, and one on planning, guiding, and controlling.


Reception

A 1921 review of this work by Goodhue, states that:
... it is clear that what should be included, what should be excluded, where the emphasis should be placed is largely a matter of choice, and is somewhat dependent upon the purpose the authors have in mind. Not all topics which quite fall within the scope of the book can be equally well treated, especially if the work is elementary in character. It may be a source of disappointment to certain readers that the authors have done little more than to suggest or imply at some points in their discussion the motive forces of organization. We find comparatively little on gain-seeking, prices, competition, property, contract, and the necessities for interdependence.
And furthermore:
The book does not pretend to cover the entire field of economics. It is designed merely as an introductory text and can well be combined with some one of the standard works on the ''Principles of Economics.'' As a stimulating, attractive, readable book it is a great success. The authors should be complimented on making available this material on economic organization in such a clear and teachable form. The practical questions at the end of each chapter are helpful and suggestive, and add a good deal to the teachable qualities of the book.


Selected publications

*
Field, James Alfred James Alfred Field (May 26, 1880 – July 16, 1927Frank Moore Colby, Allen Leon Churchill, Herbert Treadwell Wade (1928) ''The New international year book.'' p. 286) was an American economist and Professor of Political Economy at the University ...
; Marshall, Leon Carroll;
Wright, Chester Whitney Chester Whitney Wright (1879–1966) was an American economic historian, and Professor at the University of Chicago, known for his works on the economic history of the United States. Biography Wright studied at the Harvard University, where he ...
.
Materials For the Study of Elementary Economics
', University of Chicago Press, 1913. * Judd, Charles Hubbard, and Leon Carroll Marshall.
Lessons in community and national life. Series B, for the first class of the high school and the upper grades of the elementary school
'' United States. Bureau of Education; United States. Food and Drug Administration, 1918. * Marshall, Leon Carroll,
Readings in industrial society; a study in the structure and functioning of modern economic organization
'' Chicago : University of Chicago Press, 1920. * Leon C. Marshall and Leverett S. Lyon.
Our economic organization
'' New York : Te Macmillan Company, 1921. * Marshall, Leon Carroll,
Business administration
'' Chicago, Ill., The University of Chicago press, 1921. * Marshall, Leon Carroll. ''The story of human progress.'' The Macmillan company, 1925. * Marshall, L. C., May, G., Marquard, E. L., & Reticker. ''The Divorce Court.'' Johns Hopkins Press, 1932. * Marshall, Leon Carroll, and Rachel Marshall Goetz. ''Curriculum-making in the Social Studies.'' C. Scribner's sons, 1936.


References

;Attribution This article incorporates public domain material from the 1921 review by Everett W. Goodhue.


External links

*
L. C. Marshall Papers
at american.edu {{DEFAULTSORT:Marshall, Leon Carroll 1879 births 1966 deaths American business theorists Ohio Wesleyan University alumni Harvard University alumni University of Chicago faculty Johns Hopkins University faculty American University faculty and staff People from Zanesville, Ohio Economists from Ohio Journal of Political Economy editors