-VAGI, -1"O-1-[R THE MICHIGAN DAILY . _. _ . _, __ _ .. I e , ir1 i trt tl Basis For Inflation Danger Facing United States Analyzed By OPA Edited and managed by students of the University of Michigan under the authority of the Board in Control of Student Publications. Published every morning except Monday during the University year and Summer Session. Member of the Associated Press The Associated Press is exclusively entitled to the use for republication of all news dispatches credited to it or not otherwise credited in this newspaper. All rights of republication of all other matters herein also reserved. Etered at the Post Office at Ann Arbor, Michigan, as second class mail matter. Subscriptions during the regular school year by car- rier $4.00, by mail $5.00. REPRESENTED POR NATIONAL ADVERTIJING 9t National Advertising Service, Inc. , College Publishers Representative 420 MADISON AvE. NEW YORK. N. Y. CHICAGO * BOSTON . LOS ANGELES .SAN FRANCISCO Member, Associated Collegiate Press, 1941-42 Editorial Staff Emile Gelb . . Alvin Dann David Lachenbrucla Jay McCormick Gerald E. Burns Ral Wilson Janet Hooker. . Grace Miller Virginia Mitchell . Daniel H. Huytt, James B. Collins Louise Carpenter Evelyn Wright . . . . . Managing Editor . . . . Editorial Director . . . . . City Editor . Associate Editor * . . .Associate Editor . . . . Sports Editor . . . . Women's Editor . . Assistant Women's Editor . . . . Exchange Editor Business Staff * . . Business Manager Associate Business Manager . Women's Advertising Manager . Women's Business Manager NIGHT EDITOR: DAN BEHRMAN The editorials published in The Michigan Daily are written by members of The Daily staff and represent the views of the writers only. Wartine Living Coss Threaten Students . AS defense workers keep pouring into Ann Arbor every day to occupy jobs here and at the Willow Run bomber plant, a serious threat keeps arising against Unversity students and possibly even faculty members . . *a threat of rising living costs and crowded living quarters. The bomber factory at Willow Run is near completion and both skilled and unskilled work-I ers are coming from all sections of the state and country to seek employment in the large indus- try. Since Ypsilanti cannot accommodate-the vast influx of workers and their families, many of them are webbing around to surrounding towns and villages seeking housing facilities. Ann Arbor is one of the favorite stopping off places of these workers, being only about twelve miles away from the bomber plant. In Washington, National Housing Adminis- trator John B. Bradford, Jr., is trying to get Ann Arbor and other localities near Willow Run classified as defense areas so that they will re- ceive priorities on building materials. Likewise, Earl H. Cress, chairman of the Ann Arbor Hous- ing Commission is working to get this city classified as a defense area. He claims that not only Willow Run workers are crowding the city but also that "the city's industries have been expanding to take care of war work and have thus brought many more people into town. They need housing facilities too." THOUGH it is not very conspicuous now, the arrival of defense workers and their families in this city and the increased demand for hous- ing accommodations will eventually lead to a sharp rise in living costs. For example, if the demand of workers for living quarters becomes so great that they are willing to outbid the students for rooms, many student rooming houses will be converted into family apartments and many rents for single rooms will be increased. Certainly, with the increased population, in- comes and demands will increase and conse- quently prices of food both in groceries and in restaurants will increase. The prices of theatres, taverns and other places of entertainment will show a rise, just as will the costs of clothing and other commodities. STUDENTS will especially suffer from these rising ,costs since most of their incomes are fixed and remain as they were before this war production prosperity. Many of the faculty members may also suffer from fixed incomes. Both these groups have to compete with the de- fense worker whose income is elastic and whose wages tend to counterbalance rising living costs. Some students may be forced to leave school because of these rising costs and many may discontinue their education, at least tempor- arily, to pursue defense occupations, It goes without saying that President Roose- velt's anti-inflation proposals and profit and price ceilings wil curb living costs to some ex- tent but nevertheless that students will suffer higher prices scems inevitable. Mark Lip per (Editor's Note: Since the urgent national problem of inflation has, been treated in superficial and erroneous fashion by many publicists, The Daily is publishing a release by the' Office of Price Admin- istration which makes clear the basis for the Ad- ministration's concern over this economic perl,) THE following question and answer series was issued by OPA. Q. What is inflation? A. Inflation is a sharp, large increase in money and credit available for spending with- out a proportionate rise in supplies of goods available for purchase. This results in higher prices. Q. Do we face a danger of inflation today? A. Yes. In fact, we are in the early stages of a serious inflationary spiral. Q. What causes this danger? A. American labor, management and capital are being paid more money this year than ever before. At the same time, the production of consumer goods is being drastically cut. If this unbalance continues, even after taxes are paid and savings deducted, there will be only $3 worth of goods for every $4 that people have to spend. That extra dollar will be thrown on the market as bidding power for scarce goods, forcing prices upward. Q. If Americans have $4 to spend for every $3 in goods, won't prices stop when they have gone up 33 percent? A. No. Consider a man with $40 to spend for $30 worth of goods. If he sees an article he wants very much, even though it was priced at 10 cents in 1941, he may be willing to bid all of his surplus for the article. When plates of hama and eggs sold for $20 in gold rush days, it wasn't because there was $20 in gold for every 50 cents worth of goods. It was simply that there were more miners who wanted ham and eggs than there were plates of ham and eggs each day, and so some were willing to pay exorbitant prices for the privilege of eating this scarce food. Q. Is inflation caused only by the dispropor- tion between the amount of money people have to spend and the "normal" value of con- sumer goods available. A. No, There are other reasons. Higher prices seem to make even higher prices. The gold- rush restaurant owner who could get $20 for a plate of ham and eggs would be willing to spend $500 for a fur coat worth $75 in some other town. Also, in time of war even the best- informed people are subject to fears and alarms, which produce price rises. Take a recent ex- ample-false rumors of a soap shortage caused people to buy more soap than they need, making some prices go up, even though we have a sur- plus of soap. Q. Have there been any danger signs of in- flation? A Yes. The cost of living in January, 1942, was 13 percent higher than in September, 1939, at the outbreak of the war. Q. What has been done to cheek inflation? A. Higher taxes, sales of defense bonds, and a certain amount of price fixing have put a small brake on inflation. Money that the Gov-! ernment takes in taxes or receives in return for bonds can't be used by consumers to bid up prices. And you'll notice that even the smallest bonds are now registered so they can't be used as money. Liberty bonds were used that way after the last war. Also, your Government has fixed the prices on more than 100 commodities and groups of products. They will not skyrocket in price-but thousands of other goods and services are not under control. Q. If stronger brakes are not applied, what will happen? A. Based on past experience, prices go up first,'followed somewhat later by wages. If it remains out of control, inflation results in huge rises in costs coupled later with a sharp increase in war labor wages. Unable to assess values in such a mercurial market, business finds it diffi- cult to plan ahead and Congress has no accurate guide for enacting a sound tax program. Inevi- tably, goods are hoarded against rising prices, and men and materials are drawn to the most inflated industries-industries that may be rela- tively unimportant in war production. Q. Isn't it possible to solve the problem by printing more money? A. Some governments have tried it They have deliberately lowered the value of their currency in an effort to counterbalance rising prices. But printing more money has started price rises all over again. The faster prices went up, the faster the government had to print money, and at the faster they priited more the faster prices went' up. In the end there was national bank- ruptcy. Q. Who would profit from uncontrolled in- flation? A. In the early stages, those who owe money and those who have laid away stores of goods. A man who owes $100 today may figure that he owes 10 days work. Similarly, as prices rose, the man who hid away a warehouse full of $4 hams would find he had, possibly, a warehouse full of $9 hams. But in the end, these superficial advantages might prove valueless-a $5 profit on a ham perhaps would not be enough to buy a pound of peanuts for the next pig-and the higher wages which appeared to benefit the debtor might not cover the inflated costs of food, clothing and shelter for himself and his family. Do wages ever rise more rapidly than prices? A. In every inflation in history, Wages and salaries have lagged behind the general rise. That is the deadly danger. Wages seem to be more-there is actually more money in the pay- check. But that increase is more than offset by the rise in prices. So, in reality, the wage earner's standard of living is lowered. Q. Who suffers most from uncontrolled infla- tion? A. Everyone except the very few. Hardest hit are those who depend for their livelihood on returns from insurance policies, annuities, pen- sions, money in the bank, bonds, etc. While their costs go up, up, up-their income remains fixed. That means less food, no new clothes, a step down in living quarters-affecting, in many cases, old people, the disabled and others who are unable to work for a living Wage earners themselves, as we have seen, are pinched by a rise in costs far in excess of the rise in wages. Our children and our children's children-they would suffer too. In the last war, inflation added thirteen and one-half billion dollars to our war bill-in this war, if unchecked, it may add 100 billion dollars. Q. How can inflation be stopped? A. There is only one way-an effective, wide- scale government program to stabilize prices. Halt the price rise in its tracks and you halt inflation. Halt inflation and you strengthen the home front. Strengthen the home front and you help to win the war. The Reply Churlish by TOUc tirONE MARK VAN AKEN rates an apology, and this is it. In Tuesday's column I inadvertently lambasted the hell out of Mark's name and reputation without bothering to call him or in- vestigate thoroughly the matter about which I was sore. For my haste, and the repercussions it had on Mark, I apologize. The remarks on the plaque trade, and the wording of the form letter which was under discussion still stand, but Mark was not responsible for the letter. His name was used on the letterhead by a firm selling the plaques. His name was signed in ink at the end of the letter, but the signature was not his. I have talked to him, and I can per- sonally say that he is not the sort of a guy who does such things. One of these days I shall get rid of my nasty habit of going off half-cocked, and avoid hurting people who don't deserve it. The damage has already been done, but I can only hope this will in some way compensate for the terms of unendearment which I hurled too promiscuously at Mark. The thing worked out this way. A stationery firm for which Mark has been campus salesman wrote to him and asked if he would obtain a student directory to be used by the plaque outfit in a sales campaign. There was no mention of the fact that Marl's name would be used in the campaign, nor was he consulted on the wording of the letter. The letters were sent by express, already sealed, and lie was asked to mail them from Ann Arbor. He did not see Ihe letters until several of them were returned becaise of incorrect addresses. He has written to the firm which used his name, asking for an explanation. As far as my column is concerned, I can only say that I am sorry to have thrown the rib at Mark personally on an issue which is not a personal one. He was not to blame. I was, but only to the extent that the column affected Mark personally. The rest of it, and I am glad to say that Mark agrees with this, should and does stand. The letter, though not written by' a student, is a no good letter, and should be pub- licized as such. I can only hope that in some way Mark will be able to make the firms respon- sible for it sweat just a little. HAVE severa I of these tender spots in my miakeiip, ibut probably thte i'iatter of my par- ents and the U V('iv'rsiy is the most important of them all. I know I 1itt many other kids here feel as I do about ,Liis contin ual fight to live up to what our parents deserve of us -not that they expect it or demand it, but only the fact that' they sacrifice to send us here, and have perhaps too much respect for the University, Maybe I was rough; certainly I was not fair to Van Aken. But now that the personal element has been retracted, I'll let the column stand as is on the issue involved, and if each of the cracks at Mark can be redirected towards the outfit which wrote the letters, I think the roughness is still justi- fiable. The whole deal, viewed in the light of the addi onal wrong jlOne to an innocent per son, seems to mie to be just that much dirtier. Mark has taken a, drubbing he didn't deserve. DAILY OFFICIAL BULLETIN THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 1942 VOL. LI. No. 152 Publication in the Daily Official Bulletin is constructive notice to all members of the University. Notices Registration for Selective Service: 1. Date of Registration: April 27. One day only. 2. Who Shall Register: All males born on or before Decem- ber 31, 1921, who have not registered for Selective Service at earlier times and who will not have passed their sixty-fifth birthday on April 27, 1942. Individuals who have previously registered for the Selective Service do not reregister at this time. 3. Places of Registration: For the convenience of University employees the following arrange- ments have been made for their registration: (a) University Hospital staff and patients will register in the Hospital at a time and place to be designated by Mr. A. B. Cook, Assistant Director.I (b) Buildings and Grounds em- ployees will register at a time and place to be announced by Mr. E. C. Pardon, Superintendent of Buildings and Grounds. (c) Assistant Dean Charles T. Olmsted will be in charge of the regis- tration of all other University em- ployees. Registration for this group will berheld in Room 4, University Hall from 8 a.m to 12 noon, and from 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Any individual wishing to register before or after these designated hours may do so at Tappan School or Slauson School. 4. Registration Certificate: Each registrant will be given a cer tificate which he should carry at all times, "as he may be required to show it from time to time." 5. Change of Address after Regis- tration: Each individual who changes his address at any time after regis- tration should address a communi- cation fo his Selective Service Board indicating his new address. This is the individual's responsibility and cannot be borne or shared by any- one. Robert L. Williams Ionors Convocation: The Nine-' teenth Annual Honors Convocation of the University of Michigan will be held Friday, April 24, at 1':00 a.m. in Hill Auditorium. Classes, with the exception of clinics, will be dismissed at 19:45 a.m. Those students in clinical classes who are receiving hono~ys at the Convocation will be ex- cused in order to attend. The Facul- ty, seniors, and graduate students are requested to wear academic cos- tume, but there is no procession. Members of the faculty are asked to' enter by the rear door of Hill Audi- torium and proceed directly to the stage, where arrangements have been made for seating them. The public is invited. Alexander' G. Ruthvenj Residence Halls for Men and Wo- men Applications for Staff Positions: Upperclass, graduate, and profession- al students who wish to apply for Staff Assistantships and other stu- dent personnel positions in the Resi- dence Halls may obtain application blanks in the Office of the Director of Residence Halls, 205 South Wing.1 Unmarried members of the faculty holding the rank of Teaching Fellow or above are invited to apply for Resident Adviserships in the Quad- rangles (House Masterships). Posi- tions-of all grades will be open for the Fall and Spring Terms; and it is probable that there will be a limited number of student and faculty staff vacancies for the Summer Term. Karl Litzenberg lgineering Students: The Depart- ment of Mechanism and Engineering Drawing is desirous of obtaining sev- eral Engineering Students who have Drawing 1, 2, and 3 to act as student assistants in the Ordnance Training Courses. They must be free on M. W. F. 10-12 or Tu., Th., S. 10-12. The Course runs from April 27 to July 25, including the two weeks that the regular students have vacation, May 30 to June 15. Apply to Col. H. W. Miller, room 412, W. Eng. Candidates for the Teacher's Cer- tificate for May, 1942 are requested to call at the office of the School of Education, 1437 UES, during the week of April 27, between the hours of 1:30 and 4:30,, to take the Teacher Oath whiclm is a requirenmeut for the (e!'ti Lieate. T1each ing Departments Wishing to lRecomm-nd tentative May graduates from the College of Literature, Sci- ence and the Arts and the School of Education for Departmental Honors should send such names to the Regis- trar's Office, Room 4, U. Hall before May 15, 1942. Robert L. Williams, Assistant Registrar. Th l'e vjel'sity Butreau of Appoinrt- ow1uts has received notification of the following Civil Service Examinations. Detroit Civil Service Sheet Metal Worker (Male), $1.10, May 1, 1942. Calculating Machine Operator, $1,- 560 ($1,716 after 7/1/42), May 5, 1942. Posting Machine Operator (Tem- porary employment only), $1,560 ($1,- 716 after 7/1 /42), May 5, 1942. Communicable Disease Nurse (Fe- male), $1,800 ($1,980 after 7/1/42), May 11, 1942. Technical Aid: (Bus. Adm.; Gen- eral; Medical Science; (Male and Female). Salary, $1,560 ($1,716 after 7/1/42); Last filing date May 4, 1942. Residence rule waived fortmale applicants; residence rule restrict- ed to State of Michigan for female applicants. Bureau of Appointments and Occupational Information The University Bureau of Appoint- ments wishes to again -call attention to the United States Civil Service Announcement of the examination for Junior Professional Assistant. This examination is open to graduat- ing seniors in all fields. Applica- tions will be accepted until April 27, 1942. Further information and the application form may be obtained at the offices of the Bureau of Ap- pointments, 201 Mason Hall. Office hours, 9-12 and 2-4. Bureau of #ppointments and Occupational Information Acadenic Notices Biological Cihemistry Seminar will meet on Saturday, April 25, at 11:00 a.m., in Room 319, West Medical 'Building. Topic: "Vitamin A-Func- tional Studies." All interested are in- vited. German 160 will meet today p.m. in room 407 Library. "I like to look at our 1934 headlines-reminds me of the gay, carefree days." GRIN AND BEAR IT By Lichty / '. . ~ t C- 'may' %. a at 4:15 Doctoral Examination for Rosalind Marie Zapf. Education; thesis: "In- cidence and Modification of Super- stitious Beliefs of Junior High School, Pupils." Today, 4:00 p.m., West Council Room, Rackham Building. Chairman, W. C. Trow. By action of the Executive Board,, the Chairman may invite members of the faculties and advanced doctor- al candidates to attend the examina- tion and he may grant permission to those who for sufficient reaso'a might fwish to be present. . C. S. Yoakum Doctoral Examination for Cheng Kwei Tseng, Botany; thesis: "Mono- graphic Studies of the Rhodophyceae of Hong Kong." Today, 1139 Natur- al Science, 2:00 p.m. Chairman, W. R. Taylor. By action of the Executive Board, the Chairman may invite members of the faculties and advanced doc- toral candidates to attend the exam- ination and he may grant permission to those who for sufficient reason might wish to be present. C. S. Yoakum Doctoral Examination for Min- Chen Wang, Physics; thesis: "A Study of Various Solutions of the Boltznima