TWO UNPUBLISHED LETTERS BY DAVID RICARDO ON A MONETARY PAMPHLET BY SAMUEL TERTIUS GALTON

Abstract

This article transcripts and analyzes two hitherto unpublished letters by David Ricardo. The first one (6 December 1812), was addressed to Leonard Horner. In the second one (3 March 1813), Ricardo thanked Samuel Tertius Galton for having sent him the pamphlet on monetary questions Galton had just published. This second letter was very useful to identify the work discussed by Ricardo in the first letter. Indeed, in his writing to Horner, Ricardo commented extensively on Galton’s manuscript. He dealt with important monetary issues such as the distinction between a deteriorated and a depreciated currency, the determination of the par of exchange between countries admitting two different monetary standards, and the distinction between an increased issue of notes by the Bank of England and an increased quantity of money in circulation.