Autograph Letter Signed "R.L. Ellis" to R. Rothman, M.D., applying mathematics to a political economy issue.

Three pages, 8vo, good condition. He commences with a mathematical supposition (in formula terms) then proceeds with putting the suppositions of "the master" [Malthus, Ricardo or their like?) in mathematical terms, concluding a fall of price to "3/4d or one quarter", adding that "The suppositions he makes are incompatible with the ratio theory ...", doing sums which he concludes with the an answer he describes as "absurd". He argues a case, saying that it is "exceedingly hard to attack any other definite idea to 'demand', than the amount of money which people take to market to buy any given commodity & in this case it is a truism that price is measured by the ration of supply & demand ..." [gives example of 100 people buying chickens etc). He concludes that "I think the master or those whom he follows is or are perplexed by the fact that a short harvest raises the price far more than in proportion to the deficient supply: in other words that ... are unequal. The reason of this is simply that a short harvest not only diminishes s but also increases d. There is in one sense no more demand for food than before that is there are not more people to be fed, but there is more effort made to get food - that is in the political economy sense - an increased demand..."