bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The Use of the Elasticity Concept in Economic Theory
Authors: Reilly E. E. 
Published: June 2006

It is well recognized that the imposition of a tax on a commodity will produce certain changes in its production and consumption, and in particular, that the primary incidence of a commodity tax is a function of the elasticities of the relevant supply and revenue curves at the point of intersection. This study attempts to add to the precision, and to extend the usefulness, of the elasticity concept in economic theory, with particular reference to the taxing of commodities. The effect of commodity taxes in restricting business activity (and consumption) is of increasing economic significance. To facilitate the analysis of these effects, the term “Elasticity of the Market” is introduced. It measures the change in the quantity produced and sold, for a given vertical change in the supply curve, or in the revenue curve, or in both. Within the limits of the assumptions given, it is possible to determine from the elasticity of the market, the effect of a change in tax rates on the tax revenues, and the point of maximum fiscal revenue. The conditions of monopoly and competition offer a number of interesting comparisons, not only in the economic effects of commodity taxes, but also for general economic theory.Dalton proposes that a commodity tax is divided between buyers and sellers in the ratio of the elasticity of supply to the elasticity of demand.
The Political Basis of Municipal Democracy
Authors: Duncan Lewis 
Published: June 2006

Municipal institutions in Canada date their origin to the 1837 rebellions in Lower and Upper Canada, the Report of Lord Durham on the causes of the rebellions, and the action of Lord Sydenham in putting through legislation creating municipal institutions. He did this in 1841 while he was, as he called himself, “dictator.” Under Sydenham's system municipal officers were largely nominated by the Crown. This was changed in 1845 in Lower Canada, and in 1849 in Upper Canada, and an elective system was set up. These acts are the foundations of the municipal systems of Ontario and Quebec.The rebellions in Lower and Upper Canada were the product of identical political systems under which vast areas were governed from provincial capitals remote from the people. There was an accumulation of grievances without a corresponding opportunity for redress by change of local government. Sydenham put the situation in his despatch (no. 160) of September 16, 1840: “The people acquire no habits of self-dependence for the attainment of their own local objects … Whatever little improvement in their respective neighborhoods may appear to be neglected affords grounds for complaint against the Executive. All this is charged directly upon the Government and a host of discontented spirits are ever ready to excite their feelings.” It is not too much to say that the granting of municipal self-government took the word rebellion out of provincial history for one hundred years. This was an achievement of the first order. It is to be ranked in the science of politics with some of the great discoveries in medicine. As there is a cause for the rash which appears on the skin of the child, so there is a cause for those disturbances in the political body which evidence themselves in rebellion.
Democratic Possibilities in a Totalitarian World
Authors: Clokie H. McD. 
Published: June 2006

It may be thought that to give consideration now to the possibility of democratic government in a totalitarian world is an idle task. Whether there is to be a future for democracy rests in far more capable and determined hands than ours, and it may seem that there is little we can do beyond cheering on our defenders, assuring them of our confidence in their victory, and consolidating for them a whole-hearted support on the home front. In these perilous days there is a temptation for us to regard it as an impertinence to take stock of our position while the issue is still in the balance. The importance of action is so great that we tend to turn from the contemplation of ends and objectives to concentration upon the effective means of execution, to those practical arts appropriate for the mechanized warfare of an industrialized age. In a similar period of war and strife, even Milton, the great defender of the spoken word and printed page, could also renounce the “inglorious arts of peace,” proclaiming:'Tis time to leave the books in dust And oil the unused armour's rust.Yet, as we look back to the civil war of the eighteenth century, there are two things which should give us pause. One is that for Milton a long period of thought had settled in his mind certain firm convictions of the issue at stake and the direction which action should take. And secondly, even more important, is the serious doubt that Milton must have had later regarding the wisdom of the policy being taken by the man of action, Cromwell, whose praises he had sung. Was the establishment of the Protectorate the object which the Puritans and Parliamentarians had in mind? Evidently not. Was it not Milton himself who declared in dismay that “presbyter” is but “priest” writ large? Must he not secretly have considered that “Protector” was but “Prince” writ large, too?
The Impact of the War on Canadian Political Institutions
Authors: Dawson R. MacGregor 
Published: June 2006

It is an old and well-worn charge, now re-enforced by the emergence of the totalitarian state, that democratic governments are essentially inefficient. They are especially alleged to be slow in decision, cumbersome in movement, uncertain and unduly deliberate in execution, these faults tending to become much more pronounced when the increased stresses of war make effective action imperative. But the validity of so sweeping a criticism may easily be questioned, although it is, up to a point, undoubtedly justified. For once that point is passed and a democracy is fully seized of the seriousness of the emergency, it may develop reserves of power which have been hitherto unsuspected, and display a political resourcefulness which will enable it to mould and adapt its institutions to the novel demands made upon them. Such, at least, was the experience during the last world war, and such seems to be the trend of events during the present war also. From this point of view, a survey of the Canadian effort during the past eighteen months discloses something more than the struggle of the Dominion to win the war. It also furnishes an interesting illustration of both the flexibility of democratic government and the nature of the devices which a democracy may utilize without entirely sacrificing the ideas of responsibility and popular control.In the early months of the present war the Dominion of Canada moved, in the language of the English Chancery, “with all deliberate speed.” The original idea, generally held and frequently expressed, was that the war could be fought in rather leisurely fashion, that Canada could participate and at the same time limit the extent of her efforts. This seems, at least, to have been the hope of most of the people, derived partly from their own inclination, partly from the attitude of their government, and partly also by contagion from the lukewarm Chamberlain administration in Great Britain. Canadian Ministers visited England and British officials came to Canada, and all professed to be quite satisfied with the progress of events, awaiting with some complacency the slow economic starvation of Germany as an inevitable consequence of Allied encirclement. Unhappily Germany had other ideas. The disasters of last spring brought a violent awakening, and were susceptible of but one interpretation: the issue became thenceforth a simple one-win or perish.
The Gains from International Trade
Authors: Samuelson Paul A. 
Published: June 2006

[1] In a recent paper the thesis was advanced that while it is not possible to demonstrate rigorously that free trade is better (in some sense) for a country than all other kinds of trade, it nevertheless can be shown conclusively that (in a sense to be defined later) free trade or some trade is to be preferred to no trade at all. I should like here to amplify these remarks with respect to the last point, that some trade is better than no trade.This is by no means a novel proposition. Indeed, it can be traced back to the beginnings of the Classical theory of international trade. It has become associated, however, quite unnecessarily in my opinion, with a labour theory of value, or a “real cost” theory of value, or more recently, with an opportunity cost theory of value. All of these have come in for considerable criticism in recent years as restrictive special cases of the so-called theory of general equilibrium. Those writers who have insisted on the need for a modern theory of value for a positive description of behaviour in international trade have in general ignored the normative aspects of international trade, presumably in the belief that as soon as one gives up the inadmissible special theories indicated above, nothing can be said concerning this problem. It will be argued here that this is a mistake, that from the most general theories of equilibrtlim all valid normative propositions can be derived.
The Eastern Irrigation District
Authors: Burchill C. S. 
Published: June 2006

The major factor in determining the production of western farms is the amount of water available for plant growth. Climatic fluctuations apart, this quantity has apparently diminished as a result of settlement. This diminution of the water supply seems to be the main cause of the disquieting decline in the productivity of the Canadian prairies; though the decline may have been due in part to the loss of those advantages which are enjoyed for a brief time by newly cultivated land, viz., relative freedom from plant disease, insect pests, and weeds.The supply of soil water depends on three factors—precipitation, evaporation, and the nature of the soil, each of which is subject to considerable local and regional variation, and the variations in which are roughly indicated by the natural vegetative cover. The northern forest belt indicates a plentiful water supply; the long grass region of the foot-hills and the park belt areas have normally an adequate supply, which, in spite of sporadic drought, can be depended upon to yield a satisfactory volume of agricultural produce. The short grass area, extending along the forty-ninth parallel from the Manitoba boundary to the foot-hills, and narrowing northward to the Saskatchewan River in the vicinity of Battleford, has an inadequate supply of water, yet it is one of the most highly developed areas in Western Canada. Here the decline in productivity has been catastrophic. In spite of occasional wet years, there appears to be a chronic and increasing shortage of soil water.
The Canadian Manufacturers' Association and the Tariff
Authors: Clark S. D. 
Published: June 2006

Protection as an economic creed has been largely an expression of industrial capitalism in Canada. It is true that Ministers of Finance have endorsed the tariff as a means of providing revenue independently of the interests of manufacturers, that such groups as farmers at various times have favoured the imposition of duties on particular commodities, and that certain newspapers, political parties, and organizations of a reform or patriotic character have advanced the general philosophy of protection. But in none of these cases has the support of tariff increases grown out of any broad economic movement. The tariff system developed with the growth of manufacturing industries, and it was pressed upon the Government as a necessary policy by organizations formed to advance the interests of manufacturers.The first organized attempt of Canadian manufacturers to secure protection of which we have knowledge was made at a meeting in Toronto, April 14, 1858, called “for the purpose of recommending such a readjustment of the tariff as would place the manufacturers of Canada on a footing of greater equality with those of the United States.” Previous to the meeting, consultations had taken place between a committee in Toronto, the Tariff Reform Association of Montreal, and manufacturers scattered throughout the country, and, as a result of these deliberations, a detailed draft of the necessary tariff changes was drawn up.
Economic Expansion and the Moral Order
Authors: Clark S. D. 
Published: June 2006

The purpose of this paper is to suggest the close relationship between economic development and movements of moral reform in Canada. From the beginning of Canadian history, organized attempts have been made to control such problems as intemperance, crime, gambling, juvenile delinquency, sexual promiscuity, and prostitution. These movements were indicative of a condition of disintegration of the mores, and their role was that of establishing a new moral code to govern behaviour. But disturbances which resulted in the breakdown of moral standards extended throughout the range of society, and affected the organization of economic and political life as well. Movements of moral reform, like those of an economic or political (or purely religious or cultural) character, were products of economic expansion.This fact becomes evident if consideration is given to the broad features of the social development of Canada. Beginning with the establishment of the fishing industry in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canadian development may be represented in terms of a series of stages marked by the emergence of new areas or forms of economic exploitation. The expansion of economic life involved new accommodations in economic, political, and social institutions, and the points of greatest social disturbance were to be found where the impacts of the new techniques of production were most felt. It was within these interstitial areas of social organization, where the traditional culture came in conflict with new economic developments, that movements of reform took their rise.
Canadian War Finance and the Balance of Payments, 1914-18
Authors: Knox F. A. 
Published: June 2006

The primary purpose of this paper is to set out in some detail the writer's recently revised estimates of Canada's balance of international payments during the years of the last war. This is done in Part I, where a brief account is also given of the methods which have been followed in arriving at these estimates. In Part II some observations are made as to the part played in the war-time expansion of the volume of money in Canada by the external factors revealed in the balance of payments and by the methods of war finance.The information about a country's international economic transactions to which the term “balance of payments” is now usually applied, may be presented in a variety of forms and with much or little detail depending on the taste and particular purpose of the compiler. Official reports usually give at one place the credits, debits, and balance for each item, and group the items into a current and a capital “account.” They may or may not isolate monetary gold and short-term capital movements as a third group. As a basic form from which each user may rearrange the data as he wishes, this is satisfactory, provided ample details are given. In table I, however, the basic grouping is according to receipts, payments, and “balancing” items. Receipts and payments are then each grouped into current and capital “accounts.” From this information the reader may, if he wishes, make a table of the conventional form. Some of the group balances usually included in such a table are given in items 31-36.
A Measurement of the Productive Capacity of Wealth
Authors: Beach E. F. 
Published: June 2006

During the last two decades, considerable progress has been made in the measurement of national income, while the measurement of national wealth has lagged. This situation contrasts with the fact that it was wealth rather than income in which economists were first interested. The late Lord Stamp read a paper to a meeting of the Royal Statistical Society in 1919, in which he discussed the wealth and income of the chief powers of the world. In this paper he considered some eighteen countries for which there were eighteen estimates of national wealth, but only ten of these countries had estimates of national income. Professor Bye, in the second volume of the National Bureau of Economic Research series entitled Conference on Research in National Income and Wealth, goes back even farther to show this change in interest. It may be pointed out that Adam Smith called his famous book The Wealth of Nations.Only since the last war has great progress been made in the measurement of national income. The increase in accuracy of the estimates has brought about an increase in their use until now they serve as legitimate bases for all sorts of comparisons. They stand in somewhat the same position as population estimates, as fundamental points of reference. This development is one of foremost importance in the social sciences. There seems to be little question that adequate measurements of income are more useful than equally adequate estimates of wealth. The former is a measurement of the effectiveness of the working of the economy. The latter is but one of the factors in its working.
United States International Financial Policy
Authors: Mikesell Raymond F. 
Published: June 2006

The United States and Canada have had a more or less parallel economic development throughout their histories and they have emerged from World War II as the two most important creditor nations of the world. It is not surprising, therefore, to find that their foreign economic policies and objectives are similar in character. Our countries are the leading champions of liberal trade policies and of a world system of multilateral payments. They constitute the vanguard in the fight against economic blocs and restrictive exchange and trade practices. Not only is a large portion of the foreign trade of both Canada and the United States dependent upon a system of multilateral payments but trade between Canada and the United States requires settlement by means of a Canadian surplus with third countries.The differences in our approach to international economic problems stem largely from the difference in the relative importance of foreign trade in the two countries. In 1938 Canada's total foreign trade amounted to nearly 40 per cent of her national income, while total exports and imports of the United States were only 8 per cent of United States national income. On the other hand, United States exports in 1938 were three and a half times the value of Canadian exports and the world supply of United States dollars has been generally recognized as the most important single factor in world trade. (I believe that in the future when we speak of a “dollar shortage” it will not be necessary to differentiate between United States and Canadian dollars.) Canada, therefore, has the greater immediate economic interest in world trade, but the United States has, in a sense, the greater responsibility. Canada must adjust her economy to a given international economic environment while, at the same time, co-operating with other countries in the creation of a more favourable world environment. The primary concern of the United States must be with the environment itself. Needless to say the task of our administration in promoting a worldwide liberal trade programme would be far easier if United States foreign trade were 40 per cent of our national income instead of less than 10 per cent.
The Informal Organization of the Medical Profession
Authors: Hall Oswald 
Published: June 2006

Social scientists have given very little time to the study of professions. They have studied the market and the state, the family and the labour union, the immigrant and the delinquent; but the professions, of which they are a part, they have in general avoided. The omission is not easy to explain. Undeniably professions play an extremely important part in our own type of society. As a matter of fact, professions should be interesting merely for the fact that in no other type of society have they developed in comparable fashion. In terms of the functions performed, the prestige accorded, the numbers involved, and the portion of the national income which they receive in our society, they are obviously important.The study of professions requires a manifold approach, one which corresponds to the various facets of the type studied. In order to understand a profession one would need to know something about the following: (1) the institutions within which the members carry on their activities, (2) the characteristics of the clienteles which the members acquire, and (3) the groups into which the members of the profession are organized.The successful practice of medicine requires access to a multiplicity of institutions. Of particular importance are the hospital, the clinic, and the established office practice. The successful career in medicine involves gaining admittance to these institutions, and maintaining connexion with them. Only the exceptional practitioner can survive without access to such institutions; the freelance practitioner has gradually been supplanted by one whose career depends on his relationships with a network of institutions.
Exports and National Income in Canada
Authors: Munzer E. 
Published: June 2006

The following analysis is primarily concerned with definite mathematical expressions of the relationship between export and national income values in Canada as it developed during the inter-war period, with an attempt to measure the export multiplier and the influence of the barter terms of trade upon the national income, and to make tentative projections into the future.The mathematical expressions for this relationship are alternatively based (1) on the time series for exports and national income and (2) on the deviations from the linear trends of exports and national income over the period 1923-38. The year 1939 is omitted as the war distorted the relationship even then. The years prior to 1923 are eliminated as their inclusion would lead to inverse correlations in individual cases owing to disturbances in currency relations, abnormal lags and leads in the equilibration of the respective balances of payment, and sudden shifts in the proportional evolution of domestic and foreign markets in the countries concerned.