[Letter] Oct.17,1892,718 North Howard Street,Baltimore,MD.[on Smith College letterhead] [to F.H. Giddings]

     Oct. 17, 1892, 718 North Howard Street, Baltimore, MD. [on
     Smith College letterhead]

Dear Friend,
       You know that the
system of economic theory
that I teach leads to the
inference that the future
well-being of industrial
classes depends on the rate
of increase of capital, on the
one hand, and of population
on the other. We are
divided between ourselves
the field for inductive
work that this fact
serves to open, you taking
the law of Population,
and I that of Capital,
as subjects for continued
inductive research.
 Now in my own
work students must
necessarily see the bearing
of these laws, and get
an idea of the importance
of inductively studying them.
Would you hesitate
about going farther than
to the point of merely
making the relation of the
two laws to the well-being
of humanity obvious?
Would you hesitate to
present the subject in a
way that might start a
graduate student on just
the course of study that we
marked out for ourselves?
 My own impulse is
to say no. The chance
is large that such a
graduate student would
pursue the same general
end that we had in view,
but could take a different
course in reaching lt.
Moreover the field is vast,
and the need of results is
pressing.
 I must not argue
the question, however, in either
way. Would the fact that
you and I planned work
in the line of an inductive
study of (1) population and (2)
capital lead us to hesitate
about setting other men on
similar tasks? Please give
me your view.
 I have about sixty
graduate students in economics,
and thus far greatly enjoy talking
to them and with them. Are you
all well? We are. Regards to Mrs. Giddings.

             Yours Very Truly,
                  J. B. Clark