Jeremiah Whipple Jenks, Ph.D., LL.D. (1856 – 1929) was an American
economistAn economist is an expert in the social science of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy...
and educator, born at Saint Clair, Michigan. He graduated from the
University of MichiganThe University of Michigan, Ann Arbor is a public research university located in the state of Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university, the flagship campus of the University of Michigan, and one of the top public universities in the world...
in 1878, studied for several years in
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
, taking his
doctorateA doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries represents the highest level of formal study or research in a given field. In some countries it also refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to practice in a specific profession . The best-known example...
from the University of Halle in 1885, and after his return to the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, studied law and was admitted to the bar. He held professorships at both
Cornell UniversityCornell University is a private university located in Ithaca, New York, USA, that is a member of the Ivy League.Cornell counts more than 255,000 living alumni, 28 Rhodes Scholars and 41 Nobel laureates affiliated with the university as faculty or students...
(1891-1912) as member of the President White School of History and Political Science and
New York UniversityNew York University is a private, nonsectarian, research university in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
(1912 onward).
Jeremiah Whipple Jenks, Ph.D., LL.D. (1856 – 1929) was an American
economistAn economist is an expert in the social science of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy...
and educator, born at Saint Clair, Michigan. He graduated from the
University of MichiganThe University of Michigan, Ann Arbor is a public research university located in the state of Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university, the flagship campus of the University of Michigan, and one of the top public universities in the world...
in 1878, studied for several years in
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
, taking his
doctorateA doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries represents the highest level of formal study or research in a given field. In some countries it also refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to practice in a specific profession . The best-known example...
from the University of Halle in 1885, and after his return to the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, studied law and was admitted to the bar. He held professorships at both
Cornell UniversityCornell University is a private university located in Ithaca, New York, USA, that is a member of the Ivy League.Cornell counts more than 255,000 living alumni, 28 Rhodes Scholars and 41 Nobel laureates affiliated with the university as faculty or students...
(1891-1912) as member of the President White School of History and Political Science and
New York UniversityNew York University is a private, nonsectarian, research university in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
(1912 onward). Professor Jenks was especially interested in the political aspects of economic problems and he served frequently on various government commissions and made many reports on currency, labor, and immigration issues.
Jenks was a member of the U.S. Commission on International Exchange. He was appointed in 1907 a member of the United States Immigration Commission. He advised the governments of
MexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
,
NicaraguaNicaragua officially the Republic of Nicaragua , is a representative democratic republic. It is the largest country in Central America with an area of 130,373 km
2. The country is bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The Pacific Ocean lies to the west of...
,
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
and
ChinaChina is a cultural region, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
on matters of financial policy, visiting Peking in 1904. He was also an active member of the
National Civic FederationThe National Civic Federation, was a federation of American businesses and labor leaders founded in 1900. It favoured moderate progressive reform and sought to resolve disputes arising between industry and organized labor. It emerged first in 1893 as the Chicago Civic Federation , which was also...
where in 1908 he helped to draft a bill to amend the Sherman Anti-Trust Act. Although that bill was ultimately unsuccessful, Jenks also sat on the four-man committee headed by
John Bates ClarkJohn Bates Clark was an American neoclassical economist. He was one of the pioneers of the marginalist revolution and opponent to the Institutionalist school of economics, and spent most of his career teaching at Columbia University.Clark was born and raised in Providence, R. I. and graduated...
which drafted a preliminary version of the 1914
Clayton Antitrust ActThe Clayton Antitrust Act of 1914, , was enacted in the United States to add further substance to the U.S. antitrust law regime by seeking to prevent anticompetitive practices in their incipiency...
.
His books include
The Trust Problem (1900),
The Immigration Problem (with W. J. Lauck, 1911),
Principles of Politics (1909), and
Governmental Action for Social Welfare (1910).
A commission under Dr. Jenks with other prominent educators drew up the Scout Oath and
Scout LawSince the publication of Scouting for Boys in 1908, all Scouts and Guides around the world have taken a Scout Promise or oath to live up to ideals of the movement, and subscribed to a Scout Law...
for the
Boy Scouts of AmericaThe Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over four million youth members in its age-related divisions...
. The principal differences from the originals suggested by
Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-PowellRobert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell OM, GCMG, GCVO, KCB , also known as B-P or Lord Baden-Powell, was a lieutenant-general in the British Army, writer, and founder of the Scout Movement.After having been educated at Charterhouse School, Baden-Powell served in the British...
, the founder of
ScoutingScouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, so that they may play constructive roles in society....
, were the addition to the Scout Oath of the sentence
To keep myself physically strong, mentally awake and morally straight and of three additional Scout Laws-
A Scout is brave,
A Scout is clean, and
A Scout is reverent. In 1912 Baden-Powell adopted
A Scout is clean in thought, word and deed as a tenth law to his own original nine. Jenks was recognized with the
Silver Buffalo AwardThe Silver Buffalo Award is the national-level distinguished service award of the Boy Scouts of America. It is presented for noteworthy and extraordinary service to youth on a national basis, either as part of or independent of the Scouting program...
in 1926.
Today, he is also remembered for his association with Nobel laureate
Friedrich HayekFriedrich August von Hayek CH , was an Austrian and British economist and philosopher known for his defense of classical liberalism and free-market capitalism against socialist and collectivist thought. He is considered by some to be one of the most important economists and political philosophers...
.