Books

Fourth edition of Malthus's Essay, first published in 1798, one of the most important and influential works in the history of economic thought, and the foundation text of modern demography. Two vols, octavo (203 x 126 mm). Contemporary calf, spines lettered in gilt. With half-titles. Contemporary ownership signature to title pages, bookplate of one C. W. Clementine, dated 1901, to front pastedowns. Slight scratch to rear cover of vol. I, endpapers toned and a little soiled, slight worming in fore margin of vol. II (not affecting text), an excellent copy in a well-preserved contemporary binding.

The book addresses the relationship between population growth and food supply. Malthus argued that population tends to grow exponentially, while food production increases only arithmetically, meaning that population growth would eventually outpace the ability to produce enough food. He suggested that without checks, such as famine, disease, or war, overpopulation would lead to widespread poverty and suffering. Malthus identified two types of checks on population growth: "positive checks," which raise the death rate (such as famine and disease), and "preventive checks," which reduce the birth rate (such as moral restraint, later marriage, or celibacy). He believed that without preventive measures, human misery was inevitable. Malthus’s work had a lasting influence on economic and demographic theories, and his ideas about population pressure also influenced Charles Darwin’s theory of natural selection. Although some of his predictions were mitigated by technological advances in agriculture, his work remains important in discussions of overpopulation and resource sustainability.