DISCOVERY 



187 



form a rectangle measuring 6 J to 3, or 25 to 12. Now, 

 the Temple of Zeus at Egina is said to measure 94 by 

 45 Attic feet, which is in the proportion of 25-068 to 12. 

 The measurements in this case are taken from An 

 Apocalypse of Numbers, by F. B. Bond (1915). The 

 same ratios are said to be found in other Grecian and 

 Ionian temples. 



The next two combinations I liave only been able to 

 trace in ancient Egyptian work, but they are of especial 

 interest as agreeing exactly with recorded measure- 

 ments. Fig. 6, as will be seen, gives a rectangle of 

 9 by 8. In the old pyramid of Sakkara the base is said 

 {Wonderland of Egypt : R.T.S., 1915) to measure 396 

 feet by 352 feet, which is exactly in the ratio of 9 to 8. 

 In Fig. 7 the rectangle obtained is in the ratio of 16 

 to 9, and this exactly accords with the measurements 

 given of another excavated temple at Gucrfeh Hassan, 

 as recorded by Mr. T. Legh in the Journey before 

 referred to. 



As a last example, and as an illustration of the manner 

 in which the 3, 4, 5 triangle entered into the design of 

 the elevations of important buildings, apart from the 

 arrangement of their ground plans. Fig. 8 represents 

 the front elevation of Westminster Hall, the dimensions 

 being taken from a fine steel plate in the Encyclopedia 

 Britannica, 7th edition. On the elevation I have 

 superimposed a network of diamonds, 4 units long and 

 3 units wide. Each diamond is, of course, made up of 

 four 3, 4, 5 triangles. From the sketch it will be seen 

 that practically all the proportions of the elevation are 

 determined by the network of diamonds ; the height 

 and angle of the main gable, the centre lines of the side 

 towers, the height of the towers, the apex of the 

 entrance arch, and the position of the string courses 

 being all determined by the various intersections of 

 the lines forming the diamonds. 



Many more examples might be added, but to those 

 interested it will be an easy matter to compile a list of 

 the ratios given and apply them as a touchstone to the 

 measurements given in reliable authorities. The root 

 figure, be it the 3, 4, 5 triangle, equilateral triangle, or 

 its derivative figure the Vesica Piscis, can be often 

 detected by a simple calculation. There is a peculiar 

 fascination in thus unearthing the secret clues hidden, 

 unsuspected as radium, for centuries. A new light is 

 thrown on the principles which underlay' so much of 

 the art of the old creators of architectural beauty. 

 The field of inquiry is a spacious one. and much remains 

 yet to be revealed by patient investigation even in 

 relation to some of the notable buildings that meet our 

 ej'es every day. Who is there, for example, of all the 

 thousands who traverse the Thames Embankment, who 

 could unveil the secret of the beautiful geometrical 

 figure which shapes the proportions of Inigo Jones's 

 statelv Water Gate of York House ? 



Rising and Falling Prices— 

 and a Remedy 



By Arthur R. Burns, B.Sc. (Econ.) 



II 



The simplest method employed in the calculation of 

 the index number is to take a list of commodities, as far 

 as possible unrelated to each other, and to compute from 

 time to time the total cost of buying a given amount of 

 each commodity. The total cost of all the com- 

 modities in the list is then expressed as a percentage of 

 the cost at some agreed time, and this percentage is 

 known as the index number and shows the rise and fall 

 of general prices. Index numbers calculated in this way 

 show that between 17S9 and 1809 general prices doubled 

 in this country and during the succeeding forty years 

 they fell back to below level in 1789. Between 1849 

 and 1873 they rose 50 per cent., but between 1873 and 

 1896, in countries in which gold was the basis of the 

 currency, prices fell again. By 1914 they had again 

 risen by 35 per cent. In addition to these general 

 movements, there have been more temporary fluctua- 

 tions of the greatest importance — the economist 

 Jevons found that for some time prices had shown a 

 tendency to ebb and flow in a period of between ten 

 and eleven years, and he endeavoured to connect this 

 movement with the changes in the number of spots 

 on the surface of the sun. 



The effects of this ever-changing general level of 

 prices, as apart from changes in the prices of individual 

 commodities, are very serious from the point of view of 

 both the business community and of the individual. 

 WTien prices are tending to rise all those persons 

 who hold stocks of commodities make a profit out 

 of the increase in value of the stock between the time 

 of purchase and of sale. Under such conditions it is 

 easy to make profits, even for the men of small business 

 ability, and the efficient man or firm can do well. The 

 opportunity to make large profits induces traders and 

 manufacturers to increase their efforts and also induces 

 new men to compete for some of the gains (except in 

 businesses where the high cost of the equipment re- 

 quired discourages them). Bankers are induced to 

 assist by increasing loans, and the movement continues 

 and increases in velocity, and a period of flourishing 

 trade is experienced. If the higher prices were an in- 

 dication of increased demand for goods, then the efforts 

 to increase production would meet the demand and no 

 ill need necessarily follow. Where, however, the high 

 prices arc merely due to monetary conditions which 

 have caused a fall in the purchasing power of money 

 (due to increased supply of money caused by an increase 



