Journal Article Some Aspects and Generalisations of the Theory of Discrimination Get access C. G. F. Simkin C. G. F. Simkin Auckland, N.Z. Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar The Review of Economic Studies, Volume 15, Issue 1, 1947, Pages 1–13, https://doi.org/10.2307/2295922 Published: 01 April 1947

Importance of the problem, 206. — Congressional directives, 207. — General attitude of the Commission, 208. — Minimum rates and discrimination, 211. — Adequacy of revenue, 211. — Protection of the rate structure, 214. — Preservation of the advantages of particular modes of transport: the value standard, 220; particular agencies, 223; cost standards, 225. — Conclusions, 229.

W HEN Tycho Brahe and Johannes engaged in the systematic labor of measuring the positions of the planets, and charting their orbits, they started with conceptions and models of the planetary system which later proved incorrect in some aspects, irrelevant in others. Tycho always, and initially, believed in uniform circular motion as the natural basic principle underlying the course of celestial bodies. Tycho's main contribution was a systematic accumulation of careful measurements. Kepler's outstanding success was due to a willingness to strike out for new models and hypotheses if such were needed to account for the observations obtained. He was able to find simple which were in accord with past observations and permitted the prediction of future observations. This achievement was a triumph for the approach in which large scale gathering, sifting, and scrutinizing of facts precedes, or proceeds independently of, the formulation of theories and their testing by further facts. The book by Burns and Mitchell,2 discussed here, approaches the problems of cyclical fluctuations in economic variables in the same spirit. The book has two main purposes: first, a detailed exposition, with experimental applications, of the methods of measuring cyclical behavior, developed by the National Bureau of Economic Research; secondly, a search, with the help of these methods, for possible changes in cyclical behavior of economic variables over time, whether gradual, abrupt, in longer cycles, or otherwise. The approach of the authors is here described as in the following sense: The various choices as to what to look for, what economic phenomena to observe, and what measures to define and compute, are made with a minimum of assistance from theoretical conceptions or hypotheses regarding the nature of the economic processes by which the variables studied are generated. In fact, Burns and Mitchell are more consistently empiricist than was. The latter made no secret of his predilection for the principle of circular motion until observations spoke decisively for the elliptical orbit. He held other speculative views as to the role of the five regular solids and of musical intervals in the proportions of the planetary system, which now appear as irrelevant. Burns and Mitchell do not reveal at all in this book what explanations of cyclical fluctuations, if any, they believe to constitute plausible models or hypotheses. The undertaking commands respect, and the precedent holds great promise: For, in due course, the theorist was inspired to formulate the of attraction of matter, which contain the of planetary motion discovered by as direct and natural consequences. The terms empirical regularities and fundamental laws are used suggestively to describe the Kepler stage and the Newton stage of the development of celestial mechanics. It is not easy to specify precisely what is the difference between the two stages. Newton's of gravitation can also be looked upon as describing an regularity in the behavior of matter. The conviction that this law is in some sense more fundamental, and thus constitutes progress over the stage, is due, I believe, to its being at once more elementary and more general. It is more elementary in that a simple property of mere matter is postulated. As a result, it is more general in that it applies to all matter, whether assembled in planets, comets, sun or stars, or in terrestrial objects thus explaining a much wider range of phenomena. It appears to be the intention of Burns and 'This article will be reprinted as part of Cowles Commission Papers, New Series, No. 25. I am indebted to several friends, including Dr. A. F. Burns, for comments on an earlier draft. These comments have helped me to bring out more clearly the issues raised in this review, for which, of course, I remain exclusively responsible. T.C.K. 2Arthur F. Burns and Wesley C. Mitchell, Measuring Business Cycles (National Bureau of Economic Research, Studies in Business Cycles, No. 2, New York, I946).

Abstract The substantial fall in interest rates which began in the early 1930s resulted in a widespread exercise by corporations of the option to call bonds before maturity, where such provision had been incorporated in the bond terms. Even though a call premium had to be paid, the resulting saving in interest cost often was sufficient to make bond refunding appear mandatory. Other reasons which might have tipped the scales in situations where the interest saving may not have been significant, were the substantial saving in taxes based on income in a high tax year if a relatively large amount of unamortized bond discount and expense, applicable to the refunded bond, was present, and secondly, the opportunity to issue refunding bonds which omitted restrictive covenants found in the old bonds. The true nature of unamortized bond discount or bond premium and the correct presentation of the bond liability can be inferred from the ordinary compound interest computations used to arrive at the present worth of bonds.

Abstract Reviews the book "Preparation of Company Annual Reports."

Abstract The article presents a critical analysis of statutory renegotiation. Since it's inception in 1942, statutory renegotiation of the overall profits of contractors engaged in war business has been the subject of extended discussion. Business interests at first vilified but later grudgingly accepted renegotiation while government spokesmen in and out of the U.S. Congress have praised it most highly. Principal comments in the past have come from those who had an axe to grind on one edge or the other but it is now possible to evaluate critically the results of this legislation. Any evaluation of the accomplishments of renegotiation must first consider the background and intent of the Renegotiation Acts as well as the nature and scope of the avowed aims and then examine the degree to which these purposes have been fulfilled in actual practice. In the first World War, a major public scandal resulted from the excessive profits realized by corporations and individuals and as the production of war goods expanded in 1941, it became increasingly evident that tremendous profits would again be realized.

Abstract The verbs used in the literature of auditing tell what auditors do, and therefore take on technical significance. An analytical study of word usage, by detecting differing shades of word meaning, could therefore be expected to direct attention to differing types of audit action. In a sample of auditing literature amounting to approximately 1,720 pages, about 75 verbs were used 20 times or more for a total of over 5,000 uses. About 400 other verbs were used less than 20 times each for a total of 1,500 uses. The most notable feature of this quantitative analysis is the fact that within a large vocabulary of audit verbs there is a high concentration upon a few words. Seventeen verbs used 30 to 99 times are: note, accept, scrutinize, reconcile, disclose, count, give, substantiate, see, account for, report, request, state, confirm, analyze, satisfy, audit. Fifteen verbs used 30 to 49 times are: provide, insist, study, prove, foot, establish, discover, include, trace, adjust, show, detect, value, take, make.

Abstract Reviews the book "Advanced Accounting," by E.I. Fjeld and Lawrence W. Sherritt.