Reviews the book "Handbook of Graphic Presentation," by Calvin F. Schmid.

Abstract The need for regular formalized staff training classes as a part of employee training has been fairly widely accepted by public accounting practitioners. In the article, the author presents his experience related to a large scale audit organization in the conduct of short intensive refresher courses for auditors at the in-charge level. Testing of capabilities of auditors in the application of theory to practice have been tabulated and preliminary inferences drawn from these results. The representative in-charge auditor carried into the courses a strong emphasis on voluminous vouching and checking as the prime means of obtaining adequate audit evidence. There was a marked resistance to change by a significant portion of the men even upon demonstration of the patent unsoundness of some of their ideas about audit objectives. This intransigence required early and intensive diversification of teaching techniques. Statistical measurements of progression superficially support the belief that early application of flexible, well-thought-out plans of instruction can aid in achieving significant improvement even as early as the second day of training.

Abstract The yield formulas for irregular installment payments can be used to find the yield or effective rate of interest on an issue of serial bonds. Unequal retirement installments or intervals of payment, deferred first coupons, even maturity premium requirements, with any or all of these the general installment payment formulas will produce a reasonable approximation, usually very close and sufficient for an amortization schedule, to the yield rate. If, however, the serial issue is such that every bond by itself is a simple and complete bond, that is, with no initial coupon irregularities and no premium due on maturity, it is possible to derive a yield formula but which can be used by considering only the maturity payments and ignoring the coupon payments. This will be so regardless of inequalities in amounts and intervals of the serial maturities themselves. The article presents such a formula. The shortening of the summation process can be carried to its limit, and is most easily demonstrated, with a perfectly regular issue, but even with an issue having irregularities, short cuts are still available.

Abstract This article focuses on budgetary accounting procedures and accounting forms for small colleges and universities. Increased volume of financial transactions and the added complexity of auxiliary enterprises incident to an educational institution in these days necessitate a system of budgetary control for planned income and expenditures. Successful management demands budgetary control even in smallest colleges. Mechanical accounting is essential in supplying the administration and various division heads with the necessary data for a greater degree of physical and budget control. Twenty-one schools were asked to report on their accounting procedures, from which will be developed five areas of accounting procedure which give support to good budget control, together with a brief comment on observations made by the twenty-one reporting schools. The factors which are essential in the development and operation of a plan of budgetary control within a college are, formulation of a financial plan, applying the plan, and checking the results.

Abstract The article focuses on the statistical relationship of accounting and economics. Pressures, from both within the accounting profession and without, are constantly being brought to bear on the accountant in an attempt to induce him to change the basis of accounting reports. These ever-increasing pressures often make technical judgment formations by the professional accountant difficult. Many of these forces can be attributed, either directly or indirectly, to ideas of economists. It is the author's belief that accounting and economics are more statistically related and thus more interdependent than is commonly thought. It is also his belief that if the accountant and the economist were both more aware of this relationship, some of these pressures might subside and as a result both professions might derive mutual benefits therefrom. If one considers accounting and economic statistics as merely types of the quantitative method of analysis, the similarities of accounting and statistical methodology must be sought in the characteristics of the quantitative method itself.

Abstract This article focuses on applicability of the realization principle to money claims in common dollar accounting. Common-dollar accounting refers to the branch of accounting that attempts to remove the distorting effects of changes in the general level of prices by stating all accounting magnitudes in terms of dollars having the same purchasing power. Such procedure is to be sharply distinguished from the adjustment of only depreciation and inventory charges. It is true that depreciation and inventory consumption charges may be converted into figures having more current significance than the original dollar figures. A very important difference between common-dollar adjustments and other methods of adjustment for inflation arises in the case of "money-value items" or "money claims," as they will be called throughout the remainder of this paper. It is much more difficult to determine the flow applicable to a bank balance. It is not possible to scrutinize the debits appearing on a bank's books to tell to what credits they refer.

Reviews the book "Productivity Accounting," by Hiram S. Davis.

Reviews the book "Financial Public Relations for the Business Corporation," by Herman S. Hettinger.