Den frie konkurrences mangler – uddrag af en upubliceret dansk nationaløkonomisk lærebog

In 1921, shortly after he became a professor of statistics at the University of Copenhagen, Jens Warming began work on writing an economics textbook. Because of a bitter dispute between Warming and the professors of economics the book was never published, and it is only recently that the hand-written manuscript has been rediscovered. The article gives an introduction to the textbook, pointing out that it was not only with respect to macroeconomics but also in the treatment of welfare economics that Warming deviated from mainstream views. Of special interest is a summary chapter in which Warming listed the problems of allocation, distribution and income stabilisation in a free market economy, pointing out the need for extensive government interventions. The chapter on ‘The deficiencies of free competition’ is reproduced in full as an appendix.