W. Stanley Jevons
William Stanley Jevons is a subject who would have needed no introduction a
century ago, even though he died aged only 46 on 13th August 1882. Regarded by many as one of
the founding fathers of economics he was proud to be described as a
"competent statistician". He was not able to study for a degree until
he could afford to support himself but he became a Professor of both Manchester
and Liverpool Universities.
He suffered from poor health and self-doubt but his opinions were sought and
valued by the great men of his day, such as: W. E. Gladstone, Sir John
Herschel, John Stuart Mill and Herbert Spencer. His work on a "reasoning
machine or logical abacus, adapted to show the working of Boole's Logic in a
half mechanical manner" makes it possible to claim that he was an early
computer pioneer. He was also one of the first people to draw attention to the
impact mankind can have on the environment in his book "The Coal
Question".
The Portico Library in Manchester
has a fine selection of his books but for a good insight into the scope of his
life, ideas and writing, I would recommend "Letters and Journal of W. Stanley
Jevons", edited by his wife, Harriet, and published by Macmillan in 1886.
The picture that emerges is of someone who could truly be described as the
Victorian "Great Communicator".
At the age of eighteen (in 1854), he sailed to Australia
to work as an assayer at the Mint in Sydney.
Within two years he had carved out a niche for himself, having a weekly
meteorological report published in the Empire newspaper, Sydney.
This was the beginning of a lifetime work producing papers and reports for
publication and presentation, as well as a stream of interesting correspondence
with colleagues, friends and family. Although he was born in Liverpool,
it was in Manchester that he got
his "academic break", when he was appointed tutor to Owens
College, in September 1863. He
stayed there until he resigned his Professorship in 1880.
Paul Newman, October, 1998
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