Thanks Daniele. But I wonder if that attribution is correct. It seems a rather odd area of interest for Granville Sharp to pick up, particularly since it doesn't seem to touch on anything else he has written nor does his profile fit the kind of subtle theoretical bent that would be necessary for it. In contrast, just skimming through the latter parts of the History of Aberdeen, I have to confess Walter Thom seems to have a good grasp of political economy. Moreover, Goldsmith's-Kress lists Walter Thom as the author of another book, "Synopsis of the Science of Political Economy" (1814). It's not the same book as the Sketches, but it does strengthen the connection. Following up on some clues, stumbled upon this: http://www.thoms.ie/content/about.asp So if this is the same Walter Thom, he was actually Irish, publisher of the Dublin Journal (from 1813 to 1824), and father of Alexander Thom, the publisher of Thom's Almanac and (incidentally) publisher of several works on Irish economic development (e.g. reprints of Ware, Petty and Berkeley). Thom pater's interest in Aberdeen might be put down to his sojourn as an Irish student in the Scottish academies. Which could very well explain his acquisition of political economy. Has any of our Irish experts come across this character before? Goncalo Fonseca