Show What It Means in in Dollars and Cents I By CLAUDE A. A JAGGER Associated Press Financial Writer NEW YORK April 20 20 What What does it mean in dollars and arid cents This was the question on innumerable innumerable merable lips today not only those of butchers bakers and candlestick candlestick candlestick candle candle- stick makers but of leading bankers bankens bank bank- ers ens as as markets were convulsed by news that the United States had suspended the gold standard While clear answers to the question were lacking pending development of Washington's controlled controlled controlled con con- trolled inflation program it was agreed in many financial and economic economic eco ceo quarters that it should mean more jobs Whether the price rise coIncident coincident coincident dent to reduced purchasing power pow pow- er of the dollar would mean appreciably ap ap- ap higher costs of living was described as 35 problematical That it was explained would depend depend depend de de- de- de pend upon the levels le at which prices are finally stabilized Great Britain since abandonment abandonment abandonment abandon abandon- ment of the gold standard there therein in 1931 has kept the cost of living comparatively stable That country's country's coun coun- try's suspension of gold gave commodity com corn prices only a momentary boost but it helped England hold her prices in terms of her currency currency cur cur- rency fairly stable while gold prices in the United States and France continued their steady decline de do- cline chine with consequent further disturbance to business and employment employment em em- Proponents Proponent of inflation inflation and and inflation means raising raisin prices prices' through increasing the turnover of currency or credit creditor or both both both- have held that slightly higher costs of living should be welcomed welcomed wel wel- corned by bYthe the country at large if it it meant widespread gains in employment employment employment em em- and a check to the steady teady decrease in payrolls which the nation has endured In the main bankers and economists economists economists i mists who discussed the problem were not inclined to look for much increase in living costs It was pointed o out t that the relapse relapse re lapse in the dollar in terms of other currencies had effected chiefly the raw staples which had declined much more sharply than the cost of living The actual gains thus far in iii m commodity levels have been but a small fraction of the slump in the past three years It was hoped that the upturn in staples many of which have bave been quoted seriously below the cost of ol production would bring the profit motive into play again revive revive re re- vive ive business and restore jobs |