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1. Economic growth is most commonly measured by:
A) GDP.
B) GDP per capita.
C) Genuine Progress Indicator per capita.
D) real GDP per capita.
2. Which of the following statements is FALSE?

A) Economic growth leads to lower poverty rates.
B) Economic growth always leads to a more equitable distribution of income.
C) Economic growth leads to longer life expectancies.
D) Economic growth leads to increased consumption of goods and services.
3. Policymakers look at _____________ to compare growth rates over an entire year

without seasonal ups and downs.
A) year-over-year GDP growth rates
B) annualized GDP growth rates
C) quarter-to-quarter annualized growth rates
D) quarterly growth rates
4. If the growth rate in an economy is 3.5%, then its GDP will double in about:
A) 3.5 years.
B) 20 years.
C) 70 years.
D) 245 years.
5. If an economy's GDP will double in 25 years, then its growth rate must be about:
A) 2.5%.
B) 2.8%.
C) 25%.
D) 28%.
6. For which growth rate would the Rule of 70 be most accurate?

A) 1%
B) 15%
C) 20%
D) 30%
Page 1
7. For which growth rate would the Rule of 70 be least accurate?
A) 1%
B) 15%
C) 20%
D) 30%
8. Which statement about the Rule of 70 is TRUE?

A) It is fairly accurate for small growth rates.
B) It becomes more accurate over time.
C) It provides an exact estimate of compounded values over time.
D) It states that the number of years required for a value to double in size is 70 times
the growth rate.
9. If a country's population increases at a higher rate than the growth in its real GDP:
A) GDP per capita has increased.
B) the standard of living in the country has declined.
C) average output per person remains constant.
D) the country's rate of inflation has increased.
10. If a country's population increases at a slower rate than the growth in its real GDP:
A) GDP per capita has increased.
B) the standard of living in the country has declined.
C) average output per person has decreased.
D) the country's rate of inflation has decreased.
11. Which of the following is NOT one of the BRIC countries (four countries that overcame
significant obstacles to have the highest growth rates among industrialized countries in
2012)?
A) Bolivia
B) Russia
C) India
D) China
12. If the Bureau of Economic Analysis reports that the annualized U.S. growth rate was
2.5% for the second quarter, then the actual growth rate from the first quarter to the
second quarter was:
A) 0.625%.
B) 2.5%.
C) 7.5%.
D) 10%.
Page 2
13. If the actual growth rate of U.S. GDP was 1.25% from the first quarter to the second
quarter, the Bureau of Economic Analysis would report the annualized rate as:
A) 0.3125%.
B) 1.25%.
C) 5%.
D) 15%.
14. Which of the following occurrences is the key explanation for the high economic
growth in the United States in the past century?
A) investment in human capital
B) increasing the capital-to-labor ratio
C) technology improvements
D) an increase in population
15. In the United States, real GDP is measured by:

A) the Federal Reserve.
B) the Congressional Budget Office.
C) the National Bureau of Economic Research.
D) the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
16. The Rule of 70 states that the number of years required for a value to double in size is:
A) 70.
B) 70 times the growth rate.
C) 70 divided by the growth rate.
D) the growth rate divided by 70.
17. If the growth rate in an economy is 2%, its GDP will double in about:
A) 70 years.
B) 140 years.
C) 35 years.
D) 28 years.
18. If an economy's GDP will double in 15 years, then its growth rate must be about:
A) 7%.
B) 4.7%.
C) 10%.
D) 15%.
Page 3
19. Which statement about the Rule of 70 is NOT true?
A) It is a valuable tool for understanding the power of compounding growth rates over
time.
B) It is fairly accurate for small growth rates.
C) It becomes more accurate over time.
D) It is an easy way to approximate the number of years it takes for an amount to
double in value.
20. The World Bank defines extreme poverty as a person living on less than:
A) $1.25 per day.
B) $2 per day.
C) $16 per day
D) $5,763 per year.
21. Between 1990 and 2010, the number of people in the world living in poverty has:
A) stayed roughly the same.
B) been cut in half.
C) doubled.
D) increased by 50%.
22. Every year in India:

A) about a million people get out of poverty.
B) tens of millions of people get out of poverty.
C) tens of millions people fall into poverty.
D) about a million people fall into poverty.
23. The percentage of the world's population that is poor, defined by the $2 per day
threshold, is about:
A) 10%.
B) 15%.
C) 20%.
D) 30%.
24. Which statement about short-run economic growth is NOT true?

A) It occurs when an economy makes use of underutilized resources.
B) It is easier to achieve than long-run economic growth.
C) It is likely to occur when countries are recovering from an economic downturn.
D) It is likely to occur when obstacles preventing resources from being used are put in
place.
Page 4
25. Which statement about long-run economic growth is TRUE?
A) It occurs when an economy makes use of underutilized resources.
B) It is easier to achieve than short-run economic growth.
C) It is likely to occur when the capacity to produce goods and services increases.
D) It is likely to occur when obstacles preventing resources from being used are
reduced.
26. Refer to the production possibilities frontiers below. Panel A illustrates _______
economic growth and Panel B illustrates _______ economic growth.
A) short-run; short-run.
B) short-run; long-run.
C) long-run; long-run.
D) long-run; short-run.
27. Improvements in production capacity will:

A) rotate the production possibility frontier (PPF) clockwise.
B) move the economy up to the PPF.
C) move the economy along the PPF.
D) shift the PPF outward.
28. Land and natural resources include:

A) the mental and physical talents of people.
B) human capital.
C) manufactured products that are used to produce other goods and services.
D) water and minerals that come from the earth.
Page 5
29. Physical capital includes:
A) the physical talents of people.
B) the ability to take physical resources and use them in creative ways to produce
goods and services.
C) manufactured products that are used to produce other goods and services.
D) land and raw resources that come from land.
30. Labor includes all of the following factors EXCEPT:

A) the physical talents of people.
B) the ability to use physical resources in creative ways to produce goods and
services.
C) the mental talents of people.
D) the time and effort provided by migrant workers on farms.
31. The ability to use physical resources in creative ways to produce goods and services is
known as:
A) labor.
B) natural resources.
C) physical capital.
D) entrepreneurial ability, technology, and ideas.
32. When Main Street Bank buys new automatic teller machines, the quantity of _____ in
the economy increases.
A) land and natural resources
B) labor
C) physical capital
D) entrepreneurial ability, technology, and ideas
33. Human capital includes:

A) physical capital.
B) labor.
C) the improvements to labor capabilities from training, education, and apprenticeship
programs.
D) pension plans that enable early retirement.
34. Technology:
A) is a physical resource.
B) improves the productivity of all factors.
C) is a manufactured product used to produce other goods and services.
D) is another term for entrepreneurial ability.
Page 6
35. The natural gas deposits found in the United States over the past decade are an example
of an increase in:
A) land and natural resources.
B) labor.
C) physical capital.
D) entrepreneurial ability, technology, and ideas.
36. A production function:

A) shows the output that is produced using different combinations of inputs combined
with existing technology.
B) shows the output that is produced using different combinations of technology
combined with existing inputs.
C) shows the output that is most highly valued by consumers.
D) shows the most desired production method for a given level of output.
37. Which of the following is NOT a factor in the production function?

A) labor
B) technology
C) money
D) capital
38. If technology is held constant, an increase in capital concurrent with a decrease in labor
input causes output to:
A) rise, fall, or stay the same.
B) rise.
C) fall.
D) stay the same.
39. The classical form of the production function states that:

A) Output = f(L / K)
B) Output = f(N, K)
C) Output = f(L, K)
D) Output = f(N / K)
40. The classical form of the production function states that output is determined by:
A) population growth.
B) some function of available labor or capital.
C) some function of the money supply.
D) the government.
Page 7
41. If output equals A*(5K + 2L), what is output if A equals 2,000, capital equals 10, and
labor equals 100?
A) 500,000
B) 120,000
C) 50,000
D) 12,000
42. A production function of the sort that says output per worker equals A * f(L / L, K / L,
H / L, N / L) tells us all of the following EXCEPT that ____________ will lead to a
better standard of living.
A) increases in capital
B) more people
C) more human capital
D) more natural resources
43. An increase in physical capital per worker will:

A) lead to more output per worker.
B) lead to lower standards of living.
C) increase standards of living only if coupled with an increase in other inputs.
D) reduce the productivity of labor.
44. According to the classical model, which of the following developments does NOT
contribute to economic growth?
A) labor productivity
B) more capital
C) technological change
D) higher interest rate
45. Which is NOT a source of productivity growth?

A) raising the capital-to-labor ratio
B) increasing the quality of labor
C) moving resources from production to pension benefits
D) making investments in technological improvements
46. The capital-to-labor ratio measures:

A) the average number of hours worked.
B) the financial resources of a company divided by the number of employees.
C) the rate of technological improvement.
D) the amount of economic capital per worker.
Page 8
47. Investment in human capital is important because:
A) humans need capital.
B) it lowers the total wage bill.
C) it increases labor productivity.
D) it improves morale.
48. Improvements in technology:

A) explain most of the economic growth in recent decades.
B) caused the last recession.
C) are relatively unimportant for today's standard of living.
D) have slowed in the past 100 years.
49. Which of the following is a source of increases in productivity?

A) research and development
B) improvements in labor quality
C) capital investment
D) All of the answers are correct.
50. Which of the following does NOT increase productivity?

A) research and development
B) improvements in labor quality
C) capital investment
D) an increased money supply
51. Which of the following increases productivity?

A) increased skill in the labor force
B) young labor force
C) poorly educated labor force
D) large labor force
52. Whispering Valley Furniture employs five workers working eight hours each to produce
80 rocking chairs. Rocky Gap Furniture employs 10 workers working eight hours each
to produce 160 rocking chairs. Which company's workers are more productive?
A) Whispering Valley Furniture's workers are more productive.
B) Rocky Gap Furniture's workers are more productive.
C) The two companies' workers are equally productive.
D) It is not possible to determine which workers are more productive.
Page 9
53. Rocky Gap Furniture employs 10 workers working eight hours each to produce 100
rocking chairs. What is the productivity of these workers?
A) 2.5 chairs per hour
B) 1.25 chairs per hour
C) 100 chairs
D) 50 chairs
54. Whispering Valley Furniture employs five workers working eight hours each to produce
80 rocking chairs. Rocky Gap Furniture employs 10 workers working eight hours each
to produce 100 rocking chairs. Which company's workers are more productive?
A) Whispering Valley Furniture's workers are more productive.
B) Rocky Gap Furniture's workers are more productive.
C) The two companies' workers are equally productive.
D) It is not possible to determine which workers are more productive.
55. Schumpeter's term creative destruction describes the:

A) Luddites' destruction of machines.
B) innovative dynamism of capitalism.
C) working class communist movement.
D) destruction of buildings.
56. Joseph's Schumpeter's idea that waves of innovations lead to business cycles is called:
A) creative destruction.
B) innovative destruction.
C) the theory of technological business cycle.
D) the upward spiral.
57. According to Schumpeter, the most important activity that drives business cycles is:
A) consumption.
B) savings.
C) innovation.
D) government direction of the economy.
58. According to Joseph Schumpeter, what is the driving force behind business cycles?
A) waves of inventions
B) weather cycles
C) waves of innovations
D) consumer spending
Page 10
59. Creative destruction occurs when:
A) companies attempt to destroy the demand for their competitors' product.
B) the periodic emergence of innovation boosts the economy.
C) new technology is born out of the same theories that led to the old technology.
D) firms plan for their products to become obsolete so that consumers will be forced to
buy replacements.
60. To have long-term economic growth, the production function suggests:

A) keeping interest rates high to encourage saving.
B) increasing the availability of technology, capital, and labor.
C) increasing government oversight of business decisions.
D) redistributing income from the wealthy to the poor.
61. Which of the following changes will NOT result in economic growth according to the
production function?
A) improvements in the productivity of labor
B) increases in consumption spending
C) increases in capital
D) improvements in technology
62. The primary reason the U.S. standard of living is relatively _____ is that U.S. workers
produce _____ than workers throughout most of the rest of the world.
A) high; less
B) high; more
C) low; more
D) low; less
63. Which of the following is NOT a source of productivity growth?

A) decreasing the capital-to-labor ratio
B) increasing the quality of the labor force
C) improvements in technology
D) All of these are sources of productivity growth.
64. On-the-job training can lead to an increase in:

A) the capital-to-labor ratio.
B) the quality of the labor force.
C) the financial capital ratio.
D) population.
Page 11
65. Which one of the following is NOT one of the reasons for the phenomenal growth of the
U.S. economy over the past century?
A) increases in human capital
B) open immigration policies
C) high worker productivity
D) a reduction in the capital-to-labor ratio
66. In general, the higher the capital-to-labor ratio:

A) the higher the wages.
B) the lower the wages.
C) the lower the productivity.
D) the lower the rate of investment.
67. The higher the productivity of a nation, the:

A) greater is its population growth.
B) lower is its capital-to-labor ratio.
C) larger is its labor force.
D) higher is its standard of living.
68. Which of the following occurrences is NOT a source of productivity growth?

A) increasing the capital-to-labor ratio
B) increasing the level of consumption spending
C) increasing the quality of the labor force
D) improvements in technology
69. Developed nations tend to have:

A) limited labor supplies but lots of capital.
B) low capital-to-labor ratios.
C) limited amounts of both labor and capital.
D) large amounts of both labor and capital.
70. The capital-to-labor ratio is:

A) high in rich countries.
B) high in poor countries.
C) a key element in decreasing real wages.
D) the ratio of managers to workers.
Page 12
71. If a country has a low capital-to-labor ratio, then it tends to have:
A) low labor productivity but high wages.
B) high labor productivity but low wages.
C) high labor productivity and high wages.
D) low labor productivity and low wages.
72. Which of the following strategies is an example of increasing the capital-to-labor ratio?
A) replacing the roof on a factory building
B) sending workers to training classes
C) giving a construction crew more backhoes
D) increasing the number of workers harvesting the crop in a field
73. All of the following are considered sources of long-run growth EXCEPT:
A) increases in demand.
B) increases in capital.
C) increases in productivity.
D) improvements in technology.
74. Human capital refers to:

A) equipment, buildings, and inventories.
B) funds firms raise by selling stocks and bonds.
C) skills, knowledge, and quality of workers.
D) infrastructure of a nation.
75. Which of the following items is NOT an example of investment in human capital?
A) policy of universal education
B) on-the-job training
C) acquisition of obsolete skills
D) apprenticeship
76. Decreasing the accessibility to college in order to funnel workers into the workforce
faster will:
A) decrease productivity of the economy.
B) increase productivity of the economy.
C) increase real wages.
D) have no impact on the economy.
Page 13
77. The following table shows data for four countries.
Country Workers Capital Stock
A 100 $4,000
B 50 $500
C 200 $1,000
D 150 $150
The table shows that the country with the most productive workers is:
A) A.
B) B.
C) C.
D) D.
78. Which of the following technologies most strongly affected the growth in U.S.
productivity in recent decades?
A) railroads
B) microcomputers
C) ticker tape
D) petrochemicals
79. What is the primary explanation for the rapid growth of the U.S. economy over the last
century?
A) increases in the number of immigrants
B) increases in human capital
C) increases in government spending for the infrastructure
D) technological progress
80. Increases in ___________ often lead to economic growth.

A) technology
B) public goods
C) money supply
D) government regulations
81. Increases in ___________ often lead to economic growth.

A) capital
B) public goods
C) money supply
D) government regulations
Page 14
82. Labor productivity is a major determinant of:
A) the size of the labor force.
B) the skill level of the labor force.
C) the money supply.
D) living standards.
83. Labor productivity is NOT a major determinant of:

A) economic growth.
B) per capita GDP.
C) the money supply.
D) living standards.
84. Over the past century, when worker productivity rose:

A) real wages rose.
B) fewer public goods were available.
C) nominal prices rose.
D) capital fell.
85. As a rule, the more capital employed with workers, the ________ their productivity and
the ________ their earnings.
A) lower; higher
B) lower; lower
C) higher; higher
D) higher; lower
86. Developing countries can achieve higher productivity per unit of capital because they
can use technologies developed by other countries. This is known as the:
A) increasing returns to capital effect.
B) copycat effect.
C) catch-up effect.
D) productivity effect.
87. The catch-up effect tends to:

A) speed up over time.
B) slow down over time.
C) remain the same over time.
D) remain the same over time unless new technologies are developed.
Page 15
88. Total factor productivity would not change if:
A) a major disaster struck.
B) a civil war ended.
C) a major new source of oil was discovered.
D) a major innovation occurred.
89. Because of the work of _____ during the late 18th and early 19th centuries, economics
became known as the dismal science.
A) Alfred Marshall
B) Karl Marx
C) John Maynard Keynes
D) Thomas Malthus
90. According to Malthus, a fixed quantity of land and a growing human population will
eventually produce:
A) a stationary state in which the economy grows but at a fixed rate.
B) accelerating economic growth.
C) continuous yet variable economic growth.
D) a stationary state in which growth will cease.
91. Malthus believed that population increased ______ and food resources increased
______.
A) arithmetically; geometrically
B) geometrically; arithmetically
C) irresponsibly; economically
D) meagerly; substantially
92. According to Malthus, what part of the economy might increase at a rate such that the
data would show an increase from 1,000 to 2,000 to 4,000 to 16,000?
A) population
B) food
C) GDP
D) inflation
93. In his essay on population, Malthus argued that any improvement in the standard of
living would lead to:
A) an increase in the population that would outstrip the growth in food supply.
B) a decrease in the population that would lead to utopia.
C) an increase in the population matched by an increase in the food supply.
D) a decrease in the population matched by a decrease in the food supply.
Page 16
94. Which of the following statements about the role of social media in promoting
economic growth is FALSE?
A) Many people who used to get information about products from their local
newspaper now access this information via social media.
B) Social media allow firms to do more with fewer resources.
C) Social media allow buyers and sellers to interact more seamlessly.
D) The advent of social media raised costs for firms, which now must invest in Web
pages and information gathering technology to stay competitive.
95. The single largest consumer of goods and services in the United States is:
A) personal consumption.
B) businesses.
C) the government.
D) industry.
96. When the government funds Head Start, it is acting in its role to promote economic
growth by:
A) ensuring a stable legal system.
B) enhancing physical and human capital.
C) ensuring a stable and secure financial system.
D) promoting free and competitive markets.
97. Use of tax receipts to modernize the air traffic control system promotes economic
growth by:
98. The government decides to give tax-exempt status to a new organization whose mission
is to award college scholarships to members of the armed forces. In doing so, the
government is acting in its role to promote economic growth by:
Page 17
99. The government decides to subsidize the development of a new communications
network. It is acting in its role to promote economic growth by:
100. Government funding of Los Alamos National Labs is an example of government acting
in its role to promote economic growth by:
101. The U.S. Patent Office grants Rene a patent for a new method of waterproofing outdoor
gear. It is acting in its role to promote economic growth by:
B) providing physical and human capital.
102. When the government enforces contracts between two parties, it is acting in its role to
promote economic growth by:
103. When the government records a deed showing that ownership of a piece of property has
passed from one party to another, it is acting in its role to promote economic growth by:
104. Infrastructure is:

A) not important in a market-based economy.
B) a country's public capital.
C) typically better when provided by private companies.
D) unimportant for economic growth because the government provides it.
Page 18
105. Which is NOT an example of infrastructure?
A) Hoover Dam
B) the federal highway system
C) airports
D) Walmart stores
106. In the absence of copyright and patent laws:

A) the quality of goods and services consumed by purchasers improves.
B) innovators can invent more, because they don't have to spend resources navigating
the legal system.
C) it is difficult for innovators to profit from their efforts.
D) the profits of writers and inventors rise.
107. Excessive inflation or deflation:

A) interferes with the price mechanism that brings a market to equilibrium.
B) can be beneficial in the long run.
C) has a neutral effect on the market.
D) has a negative effect on the economy only if traders are aware of it.
108. Which is NOT a characteristic of a stable financial system?

A) stable prices
B) flourishing credit markets
C) ease of making financial transactions
D) unanticipated high inflation
109. The historical evidence shows that:

A) despotic governments invest wisely, because they have access to all relevant
information.
B) a country's degree of freedom is related to the level of economic growth.
C) economic freedom is detrimental to growth, because market participants tend to
make mistakes.
D) there is no connection between citizens' freedoms and economic prosperity.
110. Which of the following factors is NOT generally viewed by economists as critical to
economic growth?
A) strong and fair legal system
B) stable monetary system
C) access to large amounts of natural resources
D) economic freedom
Page 19
111. Which of the following is NOT an example of infrastructure in the United States?
A) the interstate highway system
B) the electric power grid
C) the state systems of public colleges and universities
D) desktop computers in the workplace
112. Infrastructure is defined as a country's:

A) private stock of capital.
B) investment in human capital.
C) public capital.
D) financial capital.
113. Property rights consist of _____ goods that _____ be easily measured.
A) intangible; can
B) intangible; cannot
C) tangible; cannot
D) tangible; can
114. The absence of well-defined and enforceable property rights often:

A) causes people to work together for the good of all.
B) inhibits investment because it is difficult to use capital as collateral.
C) improves society because it avoids the selfish actions of private property owners.
D) brings about efficiency.
115. Unanticipated _____ is detrimental to economic growth.

A) inflation but not deflation
B) inflation or deflation
C) deflation but not inflation
D) Neither inflation nor deflation is detrimental to economic growth.
116. Because it consists of _____ items, a nation's infrastructure is difficult to measure.

A) only tangible
B) only intangible
C) tangible and intangible
D) A nation's infrastructure is not difficult to measure.
Page 20
117. One reasonably objective measure for infrastructure is the Index of Economic Freedom,
which incorporates information about freedoms in _____ categories.
A) 10
B) 25
C) 100
D) 500
118. The Index of Economic Freedom uses all of the following categories EXCEPT:
A) monetary policy.
B) fiscal policy.
C) the size of government.
D) international exchange.
119. Which of the following resources is an example of infrastructure?

A) computer manufacturing plant
B) coal mine
C) newly drained swamp
D) elementary school
120. Which of the following institutions is NOT an example of our nation's infrastructure?
A) interstate highway system
B) Hoover Dam
C) buildings of General Electric
D) subway system
121. Which of the following institutions is the best example of public capital?
A) accounting network of a public utility
B) shopping mall
C) Department of Motor Vehicles
D) highway system
122. One of the reasons that property rights are important for economic development is that
without legal ownership:
A) loans are very difficult to obtain.
B) consumption will be lowered.
C) money cannot be passed along to heirs.
D) no one will plant flower gardens.
Page 21
123. Protection of property rights is:
A) not part of the infrastructure.
B) a tangible resource, such as a dam or a road.
C) independent of a stable legal system.
D) an intangible resource that is part of the infrastructure.
124. An example of intangible infrastructure is:

A) patent laws.
B) public education facilities.
C) transportation networks.
D) power transmission lines.
125. A legal system that enforces property rights is important to economic growth because:
A) legal protection of ideas and technologies gives people who innovate the ability to
protect their work.
B) the legal system can help the government with tax collection.
C) strong laws demonstrate commitment by legislators to economic growth.
D) bankruptcy laws encourage lending.
126. The recent global financial instability:

A) slowed down economic growth.
B) harmed standards of living.
C) caused severe credit crunches.
D) All of the answers are correct.
127. One way a stable financial system supports economic growth is that it:
A) subsidizes borrowers of financial capital.
B) facilitates the movement of capital from savings to investment.
C) keeps tax rates low.
D) increases the incidence of unanticipated price changes.
128. A stable financial system is important for all of the following reasons EXCEPT:
A) keeping the purchasing power of the currency stable.
B) tax rate stability.
C) facilitating transactions.
D) permitting credit institutions to arise.
Page 22
129. One reasonably objective measure of intangible infrastructure is the:
A) Index of Economic Freedom.
B) Census Bureau's measure of public capital.
C) Index of Sustainable Economic Welfare.
D) System of Integrated Environmental and Economic Accounting.
130. The relationship between economic freedom and per capita GDP is:
A) negative.
B) positive.
C) negative for advanced economies and positive for developing economies.
D) positive for advanced economies and negative for developing economies.
131. The Index of Economic Freedom:

A) measures the quality of a country's intangible infrastructure.
B) is completely objective.
C) measures the distribution of income.
D) measures the degree of tolerance with respect to drugs.
132. Generally, nations with the _________ economic freedom also have the _________ per
capita GDP.
A) most; highest
B) least; highest
C) most; lowest
D) least; average
133. Generally, nations with the _________ economic freedom also have the _________ per
capita GDP.
A) most; mean
B) least; highest
C) most; lowest
D) least; lowest
134. The annualized GDP growth rate is always lower than the year-over-year growth rate.
A) True
B) False
135. Economic growth typically results in longer life expectancies.

A) True
B) False
Page 23
136. Annualized growth data exclude seasonal variations in growth rates.
A) True
B) False
137. Compounding means that growth builds on prior growth.

A) True
B) False
138. The Rule of 70 states that the number of years required for a value (such as a nation's
GDP) to double in size is 70 divided by the growth rate.
A) True
B) False
139. If it will take 10 years for a nation's income to double, then its growth rate must be 7%.
A) True
B) False
140. If a country's growth rate is 1.25%, then it will take about 40 years for its output to
double.
A) True
B) False
141. From 2002 to 2012, developed countries like the United States, Japan, and Germany
have achieved the highest annual growth rates in the world.
A) True
B) False
142. The Rule of 70 is fairly accurate for high growth rates.

A) True
B) False
143. Economic growth typically leads to lower life expectancies because of increased
environmental pollution.
A) True
B) False
Page 24
144. The only documented benefit of increased economic growth is increased current
consumption.
A) True
B) False
145. If real gross domestic product increased 0.625% from the first quarter to the second
quarter of 2013, the annualized growth rate is 2.5%.
A) True
B) False
146. A 2.5% annualized growth rate for real gross domestic product for the second quarter of
2013 translates into a 0.83% increase in real GDP from the first quarter to the second
quarter of 2013.
A) True
B) False
147. Countries with high inflation rates cannot have high rates of economic growth.
A) True
B) False
148. The Rule of 70 is a valuable tool for understanding the power of compounding growth
rates over time.
A) True
B) False
149. If a country's rate of population growth increases faster than its real GDP growth, the
country's standard of living will decline.
A) True
B) False
150. If real GDP per capita has increased, the standard of living in the country has improved.
A) True
B) False
151. The Bureau of Economic Analysis reports year-over-year growth to remove the effects
of inflation over the previous year.
A) True
B) False
Page 25
152. A country with a large population and high level of poverty cannot be a world leader in
economic growth.
A) True
B) False
153. A country with a large population and centralized government cannot be a world leader
in economic growth.
A) True
B) False
154. It is preferable to use real GDP per capita, as opposed to GDP per capita or real GDP, as
an indicator as to how an economy grows over time.
A) True
B) False
155. If real GDP per capita has decreased, the standard of living in the country has improved.
A) True
B) False
156. Economic growth improves only the lives of the richest citizens.
A) True
B) False
157. An increase in real GDP generally translates into a higher standard of living for most of
a country's residents.
A) True
B) False
158. Year-over-year growth data exclude seasonal variations in growth rates.

A) True
B) False
159. Small differences in growth rates don't lead to large overall differences in income over
time.
A) True
B) False
Page 26
160. The Rule of 70 states that the number of years required for a value (such as a nation's
GDP) to double in size is 70.
A) True
B) False
161. If it will take 40 years for a nation's income to double, then its growth rate must be
1.75%.
A) True
B) False
162. If a country's growth rate is 3%, then it will take about 23 years for its output to double.
A) True
B) False
163. If a country's growth rate is 1.5%, then it will take about 25 years for its output to
double.
A) True
B) False
164. The Rule of 70 is fairly accurate for small growth rates.

A) True
B) False
165. The Rule of 70 provides an exact estimate of compounded values over time.
A) True
B) False
166. The compounding effect makes debt repayment significantly higher over time.
A) True
B) False
167. The power of compounding explains why countries with policies aimed at increasing the
annual rate of economic growth can, over time, become much richer than countries that
don't.
A) True
B) False
Page 27
168. During the recent economic downturn, as incomes dropped and food prices rose, the
number of people living in extreme poverty increased.
A) True
B) False
169. Every year in India, about a million more people fall into poverty.
A) True
B) False
170. During the most recent global economic downturn, extreme poverty continued to fall.
A) True
B) False
171. Growth is the most important contributor to reducing extreme poverty.

A) True
B) False
172. Short-run growth occurs when an economy makes use of underutilized resources.
A) True
B) False
173. To sustain growth beyond the small fluctuations common in the business cycle, an
economy's ability to produce must increase.
A) True
B) False
174. Long-run economic growth can be achieved by making better use of underutilized
resources.
A) True
B) False
175. Because of an economic downturn, 20% of the labor force is unemployed. As the
economy picks up and these workers begin to return to work, long-run economic growth
can occur.
A) True
B) False
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176. Long-run economic growth occurs when an economy finds new resources or finds ways
to use existing resources better.
A) True
B) False
177. Long-run economic growth is shown by moving from a point below the production
possibility frontier (PPF) to a point on the PPF.
A) True
B) False
178. Labor includes the physical but not the mental talents of people.
A) True
B) False
179. Human capital can be increased by providing more education opportunities.

A) True
B) False
180. Physical capital includes all manufactured products.

A) True
B) False
181. An example of a natural resource is a mineral deposit.

A) True
B) False
182. An example of a natural resource is an untapped vein of platinum.

A) True
B) False
183. Breck is in a training program to become a radiology technician, that is, someone who
takes diagnostic images such as x-rays. When he is certified, the amount of human
capital in the economy will increase.
A) True
B) False
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184. An example of physical capital is a communications network used to track shipments.
A) True
B) False
185. Lydia graduates from a culinary school. This action increases human capital.
A) True
B) False
186. Physical resources are not useful without ideas about how to turn them into goods and
services that people want.
A) True
B) False
187. The relationship between the amount of inputs used in production and the amount of
output produced is called an output function.
A) True
B) False
188. Capital is inversely related to production.

A) True
B) False
189. Joseph Schumpeter thought that depressions were part of the process of adapting to new
innovations.
A) True
B) False
190. Schumpeter thought that the capitalist system was doomed by the forces it helped
develop.
A) True
B) False
191. Schumpeter would consider the decline in sales of laptop computers as people switch to
tablet computers to be a natural part of the cycle of creative destruction.
A) True
B) False
Page 30
192. The efficiency with which inputs are converted to outputs is productivity.
A) True
B) False
193. The key driver of wages and incomes is government.

A) True
B) False
194. Open immigration policies in the United States, along with other increases in the labor
force, have led to economic growth.
A) True
B) False
195. The more a country produces and the higher the value of its goods and services, the
lower its standard of living will be.
A) True
B) False
196. Higher productivity leads to lower levels of economic growth.

A) True
B) False
197. In general, the less capital employed with workers, the greater their productivity.
A) True
B) False
198. Investments in human capital help to improve productivity.

A) True
B) False
199. Technological progress that aids in productivity in the United States does not help other
countries to grow.
A) True
B) False
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200. Widespread use of the Internet has slowed economic growth in recent years.
A) True
B) False
201. Two developments that contributed to recent economic growth are innovations in
telecommunications and in computer technology.
A) True
B) False
202. The United States has unlimited labor supplies, and each worker uses a large array of
capital equipment.
A) True
B) False
203. Economic growth is largely due to increases in labor, increases in capital, and
improvements in technology.
A) True
B) False
204. Historically, immigration has helped fuel economic growth in the United States.
A) True
B) False
205. Spending money on research and development hurts a national economy because it
increases the average cost of all products.
A) True
B) False
206. According to economists, agriculture is the factor responsible for most economic growth
in recent years.
A) True
B) False
207. The catch-up effect is the idea that up to a point developing countries can achieve
greater productivity for each unit of capital invested because they have the advantage of
using technologies already developed by other countries.
A) True
B) False
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208. If new technologies are not developed, the catch-up effect tends to slow over time.
A) True
B) False
209. China's growth rate, if new technologies are not developed, is likely to fall.
A) True
B) False
210. Total factor productivity is a measure of output that is not explained by the number of
inputs used.
A) True
B) False
211. Total factor productivity captures the factors that influence the overall effectiveness of
inputs.
A) True
B) False
212. If a tsunami washes across an island nation, the output loss will be greater than that
predicted using a production function.
A) True
B) False
213. Total factor productivity is influenced in part by a country's institutions.

A) True
B) False
214. A country where bribery and corruption are widespread will have higher total factor
productivity, ceteris paribus, than a country where bribery and corruption are limited.
A) True
B) False
215. Thomas Malthus believed that living standards would rise as a result of population
growth, because people are the economy's best resource.
A) True
B) False
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216. As a clergyman and an economist, Thomas Malthus believed that society could
eliminate poverty and create a “heaven on earth.”
A) True
B) False
217. Social media have made markets less efficient by keeping buyers and sellers from
meeting face to face.
A) True
B) False
218. The development of social media has contributed to economic growth.

A) True
B) False
219. Social media raise the costs of doing business for firms.
A) True
B) False
220. The government has no role to play in how well a country utilizes its resources in
production.
A) True
B) False
221. The government sector is the single largest consumer of goods and services in the
United States.
A) True
B) False
222. By investing heavily in consumption goods, the government promotes a higher level of
labor productivity in the United States.
A) True
B) False
223. Infrastructure is a country's public capital.

A) True
B) False
Page 34
224. An example of infrastructure is our public schools.
A) True
B) False
225. A key characteristic of competitive markets is the ability of firms to open and close
businesses without unnecessary restrictions or other burdens.
A) True
B) False
226. Free trade refers to the ability to buy and sell products with other countries without
significant barriers such as tariffs or quotas.
A) True
B) False
227. The Index of Economic Freedom incorporates information about freedoms in 100
categories.
A) True
B) False
228. There is a positive correlation between countries with the most economic freedom and
high levels of per capita GDP.
A) True
B) False
229. Countries with the most economic freedom do not usually have the highest growth rates.
A) True
B) False
230. A country's infrastructure does not affect its economic growth.

A) True
B) False
231. If property rights are not protected, valuable capital cannot be leveraged to secure loans
that would help fuel economic growth.
A) True
B) False
Page 35
232. The legal enforcement of contract rights is a tangible component of a country's
infrastructure.
A) True
B) False
233. Financial stability helps to improve standards of living and generate economic growth.
A) True
B) False
234. The legal enforcement of contract rights is an important component of intangible

infrastructure that promotes economic growth.
A) True
B) False
235. Public educational institutions are not considered infrastructure.

A) True
B) False
236. The intangible components of infrastructure are the easiest to measure objectively.
A) True
B) False
237. The Index of Economic Freedom shows that countries with the fewest economic
freedoms have the highest per capita GDP.
A) True
B) False
238. Most economists believe that freeing up markets can enhance development in poorer
nations.
A) True
B) False
239. Patents and copyright laws are needed to promote invention and innovation.
A) True
B) False
Page 36
240. Countries with strong legal systems tend to have more economic prosperity than those
without.
A) True
B) False
241. Absence of enforcement of contracts would encourage economic development, because

people would be more willing to incur risks if they did not have to worry about getting
sued.
A) True
B) False
242. A stable financial system permits reliable information about prices and strong economic
growth.
A) True
B) False
243. Economic growth is relatively stable when consumers and businesses have a good idea
of the likely rate of inflation in the near future.
A) True
B) False
244. In general, free societies have more economic growth than totalitarian societies.
A) True
B) False
245. There is a positive correlation between economic freedom and high per capita real GDP.
A) True
B) False
246. A politician in a developing country has vowed to double GDP per capita within eight
years. What annual growth rate (approximately) would be necessary to attain this target?
_________ (Round to two decimal places.) Has this rate of growth been achieved by
any developing country in the last 20 years? (Choose one: Yes/No)
247. How is it possible for GDP per capita to increase when the standard of living in a
country has in fact deteriorated?
Page 37
248. In August 2013, Brazil announced that the economy grew 3.3% year on year in the
second quarter. At this rate, how long will it take for its GDP to double?
249. In July 2013, Brazil's Ministry of Finance announced that the GDP forecast for the year
had been lowered to 3% from 3.5%. Why bother to announce a 0.5% difference in GDP
growth? (Explain why a 0.5% change in the growth rate is significant, aside from the
lower current GDP.)
250. In August 2013, Russia's State Statistics Committee reported that its growth rate fell to
1.2% in the second quarter of 2013.
a. If this rate of growth continues, how long will it take for Russia's GDP to double?
b. President Putin was hoping for a 5% growth rate. If Russia achieves a 5% growth
rate, how long will it take for Russia's GDP to double?
251. Some countries block access to social media because of fears that opposition to the
government will be coordinated through social media. What effect would blocking
social media have on economic growth in these countries, all other things being equal?
252. Explain why real GDP per capita is a good indicator of how an economy grows over
time.
253. If Macronomica has a growth rate of 2.6% per year, how long will it take for its output
to double?
254. The year-over-year growth rate of real GDP in the United States in the fourth quarter of
2012 was 1.5%. About how long will it take our economy to double in size at this rate?
255. Country A and Country B had the same real GDP per capita in 2000. However, Country
A's real GDP per capita had doubled by 2010, but it took until 2050 for Country B's real
GDP per capita to double. Use the Rule of 70 to explain the discrepancy.
Page 38
256. Assume that output = 4[(a × L) + (b × K) + (c × H) + (d × N)]. Assume that a = 100, b =
2,000, c = 500, and d = 30. Complete the following table.
L K H N Q
100 100 100 100
200 100 100 100
100 200 100 100
100 100 200 100
100 100 100 200
Explain how an increase in each input in turn affects output.
257. Use a production function to show that having more people will not automatically lead
to a better standard of living.
258. List and describe three factors that increase productivity growth.
259. How has growth in the labor force affected economic growth in the United States?
260. Why is productivity such an important source of economic growth, and how does it
relate to standards of living?
261. What are the sources of productivity growth in the labor market?
262. What are the factors that affect total factor productivity?
263. How can governments promote economic growth?
264. How do governments provide capital and technology?
265. How can an effective legal system facilitate economic growth?
266. What are the advantages of a stable financial system?
267. What does the Index of Economic Freedom measure?
Page 39
268. What is infrastructure, and how is it relevant to economic growth?
269. Compare and contrast tangible and intangible components of the infrastructure, and
explain their importance in economic growth.
270. Describe intangible components of infrastructure in a country's legal system. How do

they affect economic growth?
Page 40
Answer Key
1. D
2. B
3. A
4. B
5. B
6. A
7. D
8. A
9. B
10. A
11. A
12. A
13. C
14. C
15. D
16. C
17. C
18. B
19. C
20. A
21. B
22. B
23. D
24. D
25. C
26. B
27. D
28. D
29. C
30. B
31. D
32. C
33. C
34. B
35. A
36. A
37. C
38. A
39. C
40. B
41. A
42. B
43. A
44. D
Page 41
45. C
46. D
47. C
48. A
49. D
50. D
51. A
52. C
53. B
54. A
55. B
56. A
57. C
58. C
59. B
60. B
61. B
62. B
63. A
64. B
65. A
66. A
67. D
68. B
69. A
70. A
71. D
72. C
73. A
74. C
75. C
76. A
77. A
78. B
79. D
80. A
81. A
82. D
83. C
84. A
85. C
86. C
87. B
88. C
89. D
90. D
Page 42
91. B
92. A
93. A
94. D
95. C
96. B
97. B
98. B
99. B
100. B
101. A
102. A
103. A
104. B
105. D
106. C
107. A
108. D
109. B
110. C
111. D
112. C
113. B
114. B
115. B
116. C
117. A
118. B
119. D
120. C
121. D
122. A
123. D
124. A
125. A
126. D
127. B
128. B
129. A
130. B
131. A
132. A
133. D
134. B
135. A
136. B
Page 43
137. A
138. A
139. A
140. B
141. B
142. B
143. B
144. B
145. A
146. B
147. B
148. A
149. A
150. A
151. B
152. B
153. B
154. A
155. B
156. B
157. A
158. A
159. B
160. B
161. A
162. A
163. B
164. A
165. B
166. A
167. A
168. B
169. B
170. A
171. A
172. A
173. A
174. B
175. A
176. A
177. B
178. B
179. A
180. B
181. A
182. A
Page 44
183. A
184. A
185. A
186. A
187. B
188. B
189. A
190. A
191. A
192. A
193. B
194. A
195. B
196. B
197. B
198. A
199. B
200. B
201. A
202. B
203. A
204. A
205. B
206. B
207. A
208. A
209. A
210. A
211. A
212. A
213. A
214. B
215. B
216. B
217. B
218. A
219. B
220. B
221. A
222. B
223. A
224. A
225. A
226. A
227. B
228. A
Page 45
229. B
230. B
231. A
232. B
233. A
234. A
235. B
236. B
237. B
238. A
239. A
240. A
241. B
242. A
243. A
244. A
245. A
246. 8.75% (use the Rule of 70: 70/8 = 8.75%). Yes (China achieved a 9% rate of growth
over the past 20 years, so it can be done.)
247. GDP per capita is not adjusted for changes in the price level. If the level of real output
decreased at the same time that the price level increased, GDP per capita could
increase even though the standard of living in the country declined.
248. According to the Rule of 70, it will take 70/3.3 = 21.2 years, or a little over 21 years, for
Brazil's economy to double at this growth rate.
249. Aside from this year's GDP being lower, the lower growth rate affects future GDP
because growth builds on previous growth. Growth influences the standard of living of
citizens in a country. The effects of small differences in economic growth are magnified
over time. According to the Rule of 70, a country with a 3.5% growth rate will double its
GDP in 20 years. However, it will take approximately 23.33 years to double if the
growth rate is 3%.
250. a. According to the Rule of 70, it will take 70 / 1.2 = 58.33, or slightly more than 58
years for Russia's economy to double at this growth rate.
b. According to the Rule of 70, it will take 70 / 5 = 14, or 14 years for Russia's economy
to double at this growth rate.
251. Social media allow firms to do more with fewer resources, which increases productivity.
Blocking social media results in less economic growth than would have occurred if
social media were permitted.
252. When a country's real GDP per capita increases, the average output per person (rather
than just prices) is increasing, and this generally translates into a higher standard of
living for most of its residents.
253. According to the Rule of 70, it will take 70 / 2.6 = 26.9, or about 27 years for its output
to double.
254. According to the Rule of 70, it will take 70 / 1.5 = 46.7, or about 47 years, for our
economy to double at this growth rate.
255. The Rule of 70 states that the number of years required for a nation's real GDP per
capita to double is equal to 70 divided by the growth rate. Applying this formula by
Page 46
plugging in the values we know and solving for the growth rate, we find:
Country A's growth rate = 70/10 = 7%
Country B's growth rate = 70/50 = 1.4%
Country A doubled faster because it had a higher growth rate.
256. L K H N Q
100 100 100 100 263,000
200 100 100 100 273,000
100 200 100 100 463,000
100 100 200 100 313,000
100 100 100 200 266,000
An increase in any input increases output.
257. If output per worker = A × f(L / L, K / L, H / L, N / L) then L / L = 1. Even if the number
of workers increases, L / L will continue to equal 1. Therefore, even if the number of
workers increases, L / L does not change, and output per worker does not rise.
258. The first factor is increasing the amount of capital available to workers. More tools and
machinery allow for more production with the same number of workers. The second
factor is investment in human capital, which includes things such as education, skills,
and overall health of the workers. Better educated and more highly skilled workers have
greater productivity. The third factor is technology (finding new ways to use existing
resources.)
259. A big part of the phenomenal economic growth of the United States over the past
century can be tied to the country's population growth, specifically to its immigration
policies. Historically, the immigration policies of the United States have been more
open than those of most other countries. Over the past few decades, the U.S. labor force,
those working and looking for work, has grown faster than the population. Women have
entered the labor force in increasing numbers. The demand for their labor has led many
companies to introduce more family-friendly policies, such as day care, increased
opportunities for job sharing, and more flexible working hours and locations, sometimes
at home. Government policies have also been designed to enhance labor force
participation of “second” earners in families. This growing labor force is important for
economic growth.
260. The demand for labor and the equilibrium real wage are determined by the marginal
productivity of labor. When worker productivity grows, economic growth occurs, and
real wages rise. The primary reason the U.S. standard of living is so high is that U.S.
workers produce so much more per worker than do those in most of the rest of the
world. Many people in the developing world barely make a living using antiquated
tools. This lower productivity is reflected in their standard of living: many of these
people barely produce enough to sustain themselves. Higher productivity and higher
standards of living similarly go hand in hand for nations as a whole. Highly productive
places like the United States, Japan, and Europe are also places with high standards of
living. At the opposite end of the spectrum, countries like Chad, Nigeria, and Pakistan
have less productive labor forces with low incomes, along with the problems associated
with a lower living standard.
261. The first source of increased productivity is an increase in the capital-to-labor ratio.
Developing countries have large labor forces but little capital. Developed nations like
the United States, on the other hand, have limited labor supplies, and each worker uses
Page 47
a large array of capital equipment. As a rule, the more capital employed with workers,
the greater their productivity and the higher their earnings.
A second source of productivity growth is improvements to the labor force from
investment in human capital. Human capital is a term economists use to describe skills,
knowledge, and quality of workers. On-the-job training and general education can
improve the quality of labor by improving productivity.
Technological improvements are a third way productivity can be increased. These
improvements, which can come from various sources, play a major role in improving
productivity, raising the standard of living, and increasing economic growth.
Enterprising people discover new products (Thomas Edison, inventor of the light bulb
and hundreds of other products) and new ways to produce a product (Henry Ford and
the assembly line).
262. Natural disasters reduce total factor productivity by making it harder to use existing
workers and equipment. Innovations increase total factor productivity by increasing the
efficiency of inputs used in production. Government policies can also affect total factor
productivity: policies like strong and stable legal systems and protection of property
rights can increase total factor productivity, while policies reducing economic freedom
or frequent engagement in wars can reduce total factor productivity.
263. Governments can promote economic growth by providing physical and human capital
and technology, ensuring a stable legal system and financial markets, and promoting
free and competitive markets.
264. Governments provide capital and technology by purchasing public capital and
providing incentives for private investment, supporting education through subsidies and
financial aid, and funding research and development.
265. An effective legal system facilitates economic growth by enforcing contracts and
protecting property rights. Contract enforcement ensures that parties do what they
promised, and this facilitates trade and growth because people will be more likely to do
something today for future payment if they know that the government will enforce the
contract for payment. Innovation is more likely if innovators can expect to reap the
rewards of their efforts and that is more likely if they are awarded property rights that
will be protected by the government.
266. A stable financial system keeps the purchasing power of the currency stable (thus
preventing the problems associated with inflations and deflations), facilitates
transactions (thus allowing trade to occur smoothly), and permits credit institutions to
arise (funneling money from savers to borrowers).
267. The Index of Economic Freedom measures a country's intangible infrastructure
supporting economic growth.
268. For several centuries economists have been struggling to determine why some nations
are rich and others are poor. Today, we know that part of the answer lies in the
infrastructure development of various countries. Infrastructure is defined as a country's
public capital. It includes dams, roads, and bridges; transportation networks, such as
air and rail lines; power-generating plants and power transmission lines;
telecommunications networks; and public education facilities. These items are tangible
public goods that can easily be measured. All are crucial for economic growth. In
essence, the focus on infrastructure means that something important lies behind our
aggregate production function: We do not just increase capital, increase labor, improve
Page 48
technology, and automatically obtain economic growth.
269. A country's level of infrastructure development either facilitates or hinders its economic
growth. Infrastructure is defined as a country's public capital, and it is a critical feature
behind a country's aggregate production function. Tangible infrastructure includes
dams, roads, and bridges; transportation networks, such as air and rail lines;
power-generating plants and power transmission lines; telecommunications networks;
and public education facilities. These items are tangible public goods that can easily be
measured. Tangible and intangible goods, including a stable legal system that protects
property rights, make up a country's infrastructure. When ownership is not formally
recognized with an express title, as is the case in many underdeveloped countries, these
resources cannot be used to secure loans for entrepreneurial purposes.
The legal enforcement of contract rights is another intangible component of an
infrastructure that promotes economic growth and well-being. Patent and copyright
laws that protect innovators for specified lengths of time are needed to promote
invention and innovation. A stable and secure financial system is also a critical piece of
a country's intangible infrastructure. A secure financial system keeps the purchasing
power of the currency stable, facilitates transactions, and permits credit institutions to
arise. Financial instability thwarts economic growth and improvement in standards of
living.
270. Intangible components of a country's infrastructure are critical to its economic growth.
Two such infrastructure components are based on the legal system: (1) the protection of
property rights and (2) the enforcement of contract rights. Many underdeveloped
countries do not systematically record the ownership of real property (land and
buildings). Though ownership is often informally recognized, without express legal title
the capital locked up in these informal arrangements cannot be used to secure loans for
entrepreneurial purposes. As a result, valuable capital sits idle; it cannot be leveraged
for other productive purposes.
Enforcement of contract rights is another important intangible component of an
infrastructure that promotes economic growth and well-being. Patent and copyright
laws that protect innovators for specified lengths of time promote invention and
innovation. Every country has its innovators; the only question is whether these people
are offered enough of an incentive to devote their efforts to coming up with the
innovations that drive economic growth. In today's digital world, protecting copyrights
is especially important, since the cost of duplicating digital products is nearly zero. Yet,
without some sort of protection, producers of these goods would have little incentive to
produce them.
Page 49
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And as I thought of Yasma, and gazed at her handiwork, the full
sense of my wretchedness swept over me. Could she really be gone,
mysteriously gone, past any effort of mine to bring her back? Was it
possible that many a long bitter day and cold lonely night would pass
before I could see her again? Or, for that matter, how did I know that
she would ever return?—How attach any hope to her vague
promises? What if she could not keep those promises? What if
calamity should overtake her in her hiding place? She might be ill,
she might be crippled, she might be dead, and I would not even
know it!
While such thoughts blundered through my mind, I tried to keep
occupied by kindling some dry branches and oak logs in the great
open fireplace. But my broodings persisted, and would not be stilled
even after a wavering golden illumination filled the cabin. Outside,
the storm still moaned like a band of driven souls in pain; and the
uncanny fancy came to me that lost spirits were speaking from the
gale; that the spirits of the Ibandru wandered homelessly without,
and that Yasma, even Yasma, might be among them! Old folk
superstitions, tales of men converted into wraiths and of phantoms
that appeared as men, forced themselves upon my imagination; and
I found myself harboring—and, for the moment, almost crediting—
notions as strange as ever disturbed the primitive soul. What if the
Ibandru were not human after all? Or what if, human for half the
year, they roamed the air ghost-like for the other half? Or was it that,
like the Greek Persephone, they must spend six months in the
sunlight and six months in some Plutonian cave?
Preposterous as such questions would formerly have seemed, they
did not impress me as quite absurd as I sat alone on the straw-
covered floor of my log cave, gazing into the flames that smacked
their lean lips rabidly, and listening to the gale that rushed by with a
torrential roaring. Like a child who fears to have strayed into a
goblin's den, I was unnerved and unmercifully the prey of my own
imagination; I could not keep down the thought that there was
something weird about my hosts. Now, as rarely before during my
exile, I was filled with an overpowering longing for home and friends,
for familiar streets, and safe, well-known city haunts; and I could
almost have wept at the impossibility of escape. Except for Yasma—
Yasma, whose gentleness held me more firmly than iron chains—I
would have prayed to leave this dreary wilderness and never return.
Finally, in exhaustion as much of the mind as of the body, I sank
down upon my straw couch, covered myself with my goatskin coat,
and temporarily lost track of the world and its vexations. But even in
sleep I was not to enjoy peace; confused dreams trailed me through
the night; and in one, less blurred than the others, I was again with
Yasma, and felt her kiss upon my cheek, wonderfully sweet and
compassionate, and heard her murmur that I must not be sad or
impatient but must wait for her till the spring. But even as she spoke
a dark form intruded between us, and sealed our lips, and forced her
away until she was no more than a specter in the far distance. And
as in terror I gazed at the dark stranger, I recognized something
familiar about her; and with a cry of alarm, I awoke, for the pose and
features were those of Yulada!
Hours must have passed while I slept; the fire had smoldered low,
and only one red ember, gaping like a raw untended wound, cast its
illumination across the cabin. But through chinks in the walls a faint
gray light was filtering in, and I could no longer hear the wind
clamoring.
An hour or two later I arose, swallowed a handful of dried herbs by
way of breakfast, and forced open the cabin door. It was an altered
world that greeted me; the clouds had rolled away, and the sky,
barely tinged with the last fading pink and buff of dawn, was of a
pale, unruffled blue. But a white sheet covered the ground, and
mantled the roofs of the log huts, and wove fantastic patterns over
the limbs of leafless bushes and trees. All things seemed new-made
and beautiful, yet all were wintry and forlorn—and what a majestic
sight were the encircling peaks! Their craggy shoulders, yesterday
bare and gray and dotted with only an occasional patch of white,
were clothed in immaculate snowy garments, reaching far
heavenward from the upper belts of the pines, whose dark green
seemed powdered with an indistinguishable spray.
But I tried to forget that terrible and hostile splendor; urged by a hope
that gradually flickered and went out, I made a slow round of the
village. At each cabin I paused, peering through the window or
knocking at the unbolted door and entering; and at each cabin I sank
an inch nearer despair. As yet, of course, I had had no proof that I
was altogether abandoned—might there not still be some old man or
woman, some winter-loving hunter or doughty watchman, who had
been left behind until the tribe's return in the spring? But no man,
woman or child stirred in the white spaces between the cabins; no
man, woman or child greeted me in any of the huts.... All was bare
as though untenanted for months; and here an empty earthen pan or
kettle hanging on the wall, there a dozen unshelled nuts forgotten in
a corner, yonder a half-burnt candle or a cracked water jug or
discarded sandal, were the only tokens of recent human occupancy.
It was but natural that I should feel most forlorn upon entering
Yasma's cabin. How mournfully I gazed at the walls her eyes had
beheld a short twenty-four hours before! and at a few scattered trifles
that had been hers! My attention was especially caught by a little
pink wildflower, shaped like a primrose, which hung drooping in a
waterless jar; and the odd fancy came to me that this was like
Yasma herself. Tenderly, urged by a sentiment I hardly understood, I
lifted the blossom from the jar, pressed it against my bosom, and
fastened it securely there.
The outside world now seemed bright and genial enough. From
above the eastern peaks the sun beamed generously upon the
windless valley; and there was warmth in his rays as he put the snow
to flight and sent little limpid streams rippling across the fields. But to
me it scarcely mattered whether the sun shone or the gale dashed
by. Now there was an irony in the sunlight, an irony I resented even
as I should have resented the bluster of the storm. Yet, paradoxically,
it was to sunlit nature that I turned for consolation, for what but the
trees and streams and soaring heights could make me see with
broader vision? Scornful of consequences, I plodded through the
slushy ground to the woods; and roaming the wide solitudes, with the
snow and the soggy brown leaves beneath and the almost denuded
branches above, I came to look upon my problems with my first trace
of courage.
"This too will pass," I told myself, using the words of one older and
wiser than I. And I pictured a time when these woods would be here,
and I would not; pictured even a nearer time when I should roam
them with laughter on my lips. What after all were a few months of
solitude amid this magnificent world?
In such a mood I began to warm my flagging spirits and to plan for
the winter. I should have plenty to occupy me; there were still many
cracks and crannies in my cabin wall, which I must fill with clay; there
was still much wood to haul from the forest; there were heavy
garments to make from the skins supplied by the natives; and there
would be my food to prepare daily from my hoard in the cabin, and
my water to be drawn from the stream that flowed to the rear of
village. Besides, I might be able to go on long tours of exploration; I
might amuse myself by examining the mountain strata, and possibly
even make some notable geological observations; and I might
sometime—the thought intruded itself slyly and insidiously—satisfy
my curiosity by climbing to Yulada.
Emboldened by such thoughts, I roamed the woods for hours, and
returned to my cabin determined to battle unflinchingly and to
emerge triumphant.
It will be needless to dwell upon the days that followed. Although the
moments crawled painfully, each week an epoch and each month an
age, very little occurred that is worthy of record. Yet somehow I did
manage to occupy the time—what other course had I, this side of
suicide or madness? As in remembrance of a nightmare, I recall how
sometimes I would toil all the daylight hours to make my cabin snug
and secure; how at other times I would wander across the valley to
the lake shown me by Karem, catching fish with an improvised line,
even though I had first to break through the ice; how, again, I would
idly follow the half-wild goat herds that browsed in remote corners of
the valley; how I would roam the various trails until I had mapped
them all in my mind, and had discovered the only outlet in the
mountains about Sobul—a long, prodigiously deep, torrent-threaded
ravine to the north, which opened into another deserted valley
capped by desolate and serrated snowpeaks. The discovery of this
valley served only to intensify my sense of captivity, for it brought me
visions of mountain after mountain, range after range, bleak and
unpopulated, which stretched away in frozen endless succession.
But the days when I could rove the mountains were days of
comparative happiness. Too often the trails, blocked by the deep soft
drifts or the ice-packs, were impassable for one so poorly equipped
as I; and too often the blizzards raged. Besides, the daylight hours
were but few, since the sun-excluding mountain masses made the
dawn late and the evening early; and often the tedium seemed
unendurable when I sat in my cabin at night, watching the flames
that danced and crackled in the fireplace, and dreaming of Yasma
and the spring, or of things still further away, and old friends and
home. At times, scarcely able to bear the waiting, I would pace back
and forth like a caged beast, back and forth, from the fire to the
woodpile, and from the woodpile to the fire. At other times, more
patient, I would amuse myself by trying to kindle some straw with bits
of flint, or by returning to the ways of my boyhood and whittling sticks
into all manner of grotesque designs. And occasionally, when the
mood was upon me, I would strain my eyes by the flickering log
blaze, confiding my diary to the notebook I had picked up in our old
camp beyond the mountain. For the purposes of this diary, I had but
one pencil, which gradually dwindled to a stub that I could hardly
hold between two fingers—and with the end of the pencil, late in the
winter, the diary also came to a close.
Although this record was written merely as a means of whiling away
the hours and was not intended for other eyes, I find upon opening it
again that it describes my plight more vividly than would be possible
for me after the passage of years; and I am tempted to quote a
typical memorandum.
As I peer at that curiously cramped and tortured handwriting, my
eyes pause at the following:
"Monday, December 29th. Or it may be Tuesday the 30th,
for I fear I have forgotten to mark one of the daily notches
on the cabin walls, by which I keep track of the dates. All
day I was forced to remain in my cabin, for the season's
worst storm was raging. Only once did I leave shelter, and
that was to get water. But the stream was frozen almost
solid, and it was a task to pound my way through the ice
with one of the crude native axes. Meanwhile the gale
beat me in the face till my cheeks were raw; the snow
came down in a mist of pellets that half blinded me; and a
chill crept through my clothes till my very skin seemed
bared to the ice-blast. I was fifteen minutes in thawing
after I had crept back to the cabin. But even within the
cabin there seemed no way to keep warm, for the wind
rushed in through cracks that I could not quite fill; and the
fire, though I heaped it with fuel, was feeble against the
elemental fury outside.
"But the cold would be easier to bear than the loneliness.
There is little to do, almost nothing to do; and I sit
brooding on the cabin floor, or stand brooding near the
fire; and life seems without aim or benefit. Strange
thoughts keep creeping through my mind—visions of a
limp form dangling on a rope from log rafters; or of a half-
buried form that the snow has numbed to forgetfulness.
But always there are other visions to chide and reproach; I
remember a merry day in the woods, when two brown
eyes laughed at me from beneath auburn curls; and I hear
voices that call as if from the future, and see hands that
take mine gently and restrain them from violence. Perhaps
I am growing weak of mind and will, for my emotions flow
like a child's; I would be ashamed to admit—though I
confess it freely enough to the heedless paper—that more
than once, in the long afternoon and the slow dismal
twilight, the tears rolled down from my eyes.
"As I write these words, it is evening—only seven o'clock,
my watch tells me, though I might believe it to be midnight.
The blazes still flare in the fireplace, and I am stretched
full-length on the floor, trying to see by the meager light.
The storm has almost died down; only by fits and starts it
mutters now, like a beast whose frenzy has spent itself.
But other, more ominous sounds fill the air. From time to
time I hear the barking of a jackal, now near, now far;
while louder and more long-drawn and mournful, there
comes at intervals the fierce deep wailing of a wolf,
answered from the remote woods by other wolves, till all
the world seems to resound with a demoniac chorus. Of
all noises I have ever heard, this is to me the most
terrorizing; and though safe within pine walls, I tremble
where I lie by the fire, even as the cave-man may have
done at that same soul-racking sound. I know, of course,
how absurd this is; yet I have pictures of sly slinking feet
that pad silently through the snow, and keen hairy muzzles
that trail my footsteps even to this door, and long gleaming
jaws that open. Only by forcing myself to write can I keep
my mind from such thoughts; but, even so, I shudder
whenever that dismal call comes howling, howling from
the dark, as if with all the concentrated horror and ferocity
in the universe!"
Chapter XII
THE MISTRESS OF THE PEAK
During the long months of solitude I let my gaze travel frequently
toward the southern mountains and Yulada. Like the image of
sardonic destiny, she still stood afar on the peak, aloof and
imperturbable, beckoning and unexplained as always.... And again
she drew me toward her with that inexplicable fascination which had
been my undoing. As when I had first seen her from that other valley
to the south, I felt a curious desire to mount to her, to stand at her
feet, to inspect her closely and lay my hands upon her; and against
that desire neither Yasma's warnings nor my own reason had any
power. She was for me the unknown; she represented the
mysterious, the alluring, the unattained, and all that was most
youthful and alive within me responded to her call.
Yet Yulada was a discreet divinity, and did not offer herself too
readily to the worshipper. Was it that she kept herself deliberately
guarded, careful not to encourage the intruder? So I almost thought
as I made attempt after attempt to reach her. It is true, of course, that
I did not choose the most favorable season; likewise, it is true that I
was exceedingly reckless, for solitary mountain climbing in winter is
hardly a sport for the cautious. But, even so, I could not stamp out
the suspicion that more than natural agencies were retarding me.
My first attempt occurred but a week after Yasma's departure. Most
of the recent snow had melted from the mountain slopes, and the
temperature was so mild that I foresaw no exceptional difficulties. I
had just a qualm, I must admit, about breaking my word to Yasma—
but had the promise not been extorted by unfair pleas? So, at least, I
reasoned; and, having equipped myself with my goatskin coat, with a
revolver and matches, and with food enough to last overnight if need
be, I set out early one morning along one of the trails I had followed
with Karem.
For two hours I advanced rapidly enough, reaching the valley's end
and mounting along a winding path amid pine woods. The air was
brisk and invigorating, the sky blue and clear; scarcely a breeze
stirred, and scarcely a cloud drifted above. From time to time,
through rifts in the foliage, I could catch glimpses of my goal, that
gigantic steel-gray womanly form with hands everlastingly pointed
toward the clouds and the stars. She seemed never to draw nearer,
though my feet did not lag in the effort to reach her; but the day was
still young, and I was confident that long before sunset I should meet
her face to face.
Then suddenly my difficulties began. The trail became stonier and
steeper, though that did not surprise me; the trail became narrower
and occasionally blocked with snow, though that did not surprise me
either; great boulders loomed in my way, and sometimes I had to
crawl at the brink of a ravine, though that again I had expected. But
the real obstacle was not anticipated. Turning a bend in the wooded
trail, I was confronted with a sheer wall of rock, a granite mass
broken at one end by a sort of natural stairway over which it seemed
possible to climb precariously. I remembered how Karem and I had
helped one another up this very ascent, which was by no means the
most difficult on the mountain; but in the past month or two its aspect
had changed alarmingly. A coating of something white and glistening
covered the rock; in places the frosty crystals had the look of a
frozen waterfall, and in places the icicles pointed downward in long
shaggy rows.
Would it be possible to pass? I could not tell, but did not hesitate to
try; and before long I had an answer. I had mounted only a few yards
when my feet gave way, and I went sprawling backward down the
rocky stair. How near I was to destruction I did not know; the first
thing I realized was that I was clinging to the overhanging branch of
a tree, while beneath me gaped an abyss that seemed bottomless.
A much frightened but a soberer man, I pulled myself into the tree,
and climbed back to safety. As I regained the ground, I had a
glimpse of Yulada standing silently far above, with a thin wisp of
vapor across her face, as if to conceal the grim smile that may have
played there. But I had seen enough of her for one day, and slowly
and thoughtfully took my way back to the valley.
From that time forth, and during most of the winter, I had little
opportunity for further assaults upon Yulada. If that thin coat of
November ice had been enough to defeat me, what of the more
stubborn ice of December and the deep drifts of January snow?
Even had there not been prospects of freezing to death among the
bare, wind-beaten crags, I should not have dared to entrust myself to
the trails for fear of wolf-packs. Yet all winter Yulada stared
impassively above, a mockery and a temptation—the only thing in
human form that greeted me during those interminable months!
I shall pass over the eternities between my first attempt upon Yulada
in November and my more resolute efforts in March. But I must not
forget to describe my physical changes. I had grown a bushy brown
beard, which hid my chin and upper lip and spread raggedly over my
face; my hair hung as long and untended as a wild man's; while from
unceasing exertions in the open, my limbs had developed a strength
they had never known before, and I could perform tasks that would
have seemed impossible a few months earlier.
Hence it was with confidence that I awaited the spring. Daily I
scanned the mountains after the first sign of a thaw in the streams; I
noted how streaks and furrows gradually appeared in the white of
the higher slopes; how the gray rocky flanks began to protrude, first
almost imperceptibly, then more boldly, as though casting off an
unwelcome garb, until great mottled patches stood unbared to the
sunlight. Toward the middle of March there came a week of
unseasonably warm days, when the sun shone from a cloudless sky
and a new softness was in the air. And then, when half the winter
apparel of the peaks was disappearing as at a magic touch and the
streams ran full to the brim and the lake overflowed, I decided to pay
my long-postponed visit to Yulada.
Almost exultantly I set forth early one morning. The first stages of the
climb could hardly have been easier; it was as though nature had
prepared the way. The air was clear and stimulating, yet not too cool;
and the comparative warmth had melted the last ice from the lower
rocks. Exhilarated by the exercise, I mounted rapidly over slopes that
would once have been a formidable barrier. Still Yulada loomed afar,
with firm impassive face as always; but I no longer feared her, for
surely, I thought, I should this day touch her with my own hands! As I
strode up and up in the sunlight, I smiled to remember my old
superstitions—what was Yulada after all but a rock, curiously shaped
perhaps, but no more terrifying than any other rock!
Even when I had passed the timber-line, and strode around the blue-
white glaciers at the brink of bare ravines, I still felt an unwonted
bravado. Yulada was drawing nearer, noticeably nearer, her features
clear-cut on the peak—and how could she resist my coming? In my
self-confidence, I almost laughed aloud, almost laughed out a
challenge to that mysterious figure, for certainly the few intervening
miles could not halt me!
So, at least, I thought. But Yulada, if she were capable of thinking,
must have held otherwise. Even had she been endowed with reason
and with omnipotence, she could hardly have made a more terrible
answer to my challenge. I was still plodding up the long, steep
grades, still congratulating myself upon approaching success, when I
began to notice a change in the atmosphere. It was not only that the
air was growing sharper and colder, for that I had expected; it was
that a wind was rising from the northwest, blowing over me with a
wintry violence. In alarm, I glanced back—a stone-gray mass of
clouds was sweeping over the northern mountains, already casting a
shadow across the valley, and threatening to enwrap the entire
heavens.
Too well I recognized the signs—only too well! With panicky speed,
more than once risking a perilous fall, I plunged back over the path I
had so joyously followed. The wind rose till it blew with an almost
cyclonic fury; the clouds swarmed above me, angry and ragged-
edged; Yulada was forgotten amid my dread visions of groping
through a blizzard. Yet once, as I reached a turn in the trail, I caught
a glimpse of her standing far above, her lower limbs overshadowed
by the mists, her head obscured as though thus to mock my temerity.
And what if I did finally return to my cabin safely? Before I had
regained the valley, the snow was whirling about me on the arms of
the high wind, and the whitened earth, the chill air and the
screeching gale had combined to accentuate my sense of defeat.
It might be thought that I would now renounce the quest. But there is
in my nature some stubbornness that only feeds on opposition; and
far from giving up, I watched impatiently till the storm subsided and
the skies were washed blue once more; till the warmer days came
and the new deposits of snow thawed on the mountain slopes. Two
weeks after being routed by the elements, I was again on the trail to
Yulada.
The sky was once more clear and calm; a touch of spring was in the
air, and the sun was warmer than in months. Determined that no
ordinary obstacle should balk me, I trudged with scarcely a pause
along the winding trail; and, before many hours, I had mounted
above the last fringe of the pines and deodars. At last I reached the
point where I had had to turn back two weeks ago; at last I found
myself nearer to the peak than ever before on all my solitary
rambles, and saw the path leading ahead over bare slopes and
around distorted crags toward the great steel-gray figure. The
sweetness of triumph began to flood through my mind as I saw
Yulada take on monstrous proportions, the proportions of a fair-sized
hill; I was exultant as I glanced at the sky, and observed it to be still
serene. There remained one more elevated saddle to be crossed,
then an abrupt but not impossible grade of a few hundred yards—
probably no more than half an hour's exertion, and Yulada and I
should stand together on the peak!
But again the unexpected was to intervene. If I had assumed that no
agency earthly or divine could now keep me from my goal, I had
reckoned without my human frailties. It was a little thing that
betrayed me, and yet a thing that seemed great enough. I had
mounted the rocky saddle and was starting on a short descent
before the final lap, when enthusiasm made me careless. Suddenly I
felt myself slipping!
Fortunately, the fall was not a severe one; after sliding for a few
yards over the stones, I was stopped with a jolt by a protruding rock.
Somewhat dazed, I started to arise ... when a sharp pain in my left
ankle filled me with alarm. What if a tendon had been sprained?
Among these lonely altitudes, that might be a calamity! But when I
attempted to walk, I found my injury not quite so bad as I had feared.
The ankle caused me much pain, yet was not wholly useless; so that
I diagnosed the trouble as a simple strain rather than a sprain.
But there could be no further question of reaching Yulada that day.
With a bitter glance at the disdainful, indomitable mistress of the
peak, I started on my way back to Sobul. And I was exceedingly
lucky to get back at all, for my ankle distressed me more and more
as I plodded downward, and there were moments when it seemed as
if it would not bear me another step.
So slowly did I move that I had to make camp that evening on the
bare slopes at the edge of the forest; and it was not until late the
following day that I re-entered the village. And all during the return
trip, when I lay tossing in the glow of the campfire, or when I clung to
the wall-like ledges in hazardous descents, I was obsessed by
strange thoughts; and in my dreams that night I saw a huge taunting
face, singularly like Yulada's, which mocked me that I should match
my might against the mountain's.
Chapter XIII
THE BIRDS FLY NORTH
It was with a flaming expectation and a growing joy that I watched
the spring gradually burst into blossom. The appearance of the first
green grass, the unfolding of the pale yellowish leaves on the trees,
the budding of the earliest wildflowers and the cloudy pink and white
of the orchards, were as successive signals from a new world. And
the clear bright skies, the fresh gentle breezes, and the birds
twittering from unseen branches, all seemed to join in murmuring the
same refrain: the warmer days were coming, the days of my
deliverance! Soon, very soon, the Ibandru would be back! And
among the Ibandru I should see Yasma!
Every morning now I awakened with reborn hope; and every
morning, and all the day, I would go ambling about the village,
peering into the deserted huts and glancing toward the woods for
sign of some welcome returning figure. But at first all my waiting
seemed of no avail. The Ibandru did not return; and in the evening I
would slouch back to my cabin in dejection that would always make
way for new hope. Day after day passed thus; and meantime the last
traces of winter were vanishing, the fields became dotted with
waving rose-red and violet and pale lemon tints; the deciduous trees
were taking on a sturdier green; insects began to chirp and murmur
in many a reviving chorus; and the woods seemed more thickly
populated with winged singers.
And while I waited and still waited, insidious fears crept into my
mind. Could it be that the Ibandru would not return at all?—that
Yasma had vanished forever, like the enchanted princess of a fairy
tale?
But after I had tormented myself to the utmost, a veil was suddenly
lifted.
One clear day in mid-April I had strolled toward the woods, forgetting
my sorrows in contemplating the green spectacle of the valley.
Suddenly my attention was attracted by a swift-moving triangle of
black dots, which came winging across the mountains from beyond
Yulada, approaching with great speed and disappearing above the
white-tipped opposite ranges. I do not know why, but these birds—
the first I had observed flying north—filled me with an unreasonable
hope; long after they were out of sight I stood staring at the blue sky
into which they had faded, as though somehow it held the secret at
which I clutched.
I was aroused from my reveries by the startled feeling that I was no
longer alone. At first there was no clear reason for this impression; it
was as though I had been informed by some vague super-sense.
Awakened to reality, I peered into the thickets, peered up at the sky,
scanned the trees and the earth alertly—but there was no sight or
sound to confirm my suspicions. Minutes passed, and still I waited,
expectant of some unusual event....
And then, while wonder kept pace with impatience, I thought I heard
a faint rustling in the woods. I was not sure, but I listened intently....
Again the rustling, not quite so faint as before ... then a crackling as
of broken twigs! Still I was not sure—perhaps it was but some tiny
creature amid the underbrush. But, even as I doubted, there came
the crunching of dead leaves trodden under; then the sound—
unmistakably the sound—of human voices whispering!
My heart gave a thump; I was near to shouting in my exultation.
Happy tears rolled down my cheeks; I had visions of Yasma
returning, Yasma clasped once more in my arms—when I became
aware of two dark eyes staring at me from amid the shrubbery.
"Karem!" I cried, and sprang forward to seize the hands of my friend.
Truly enough, it was Karem—Karem as I had last seen him, Karem
in the same blue and red garments, somewhat thinner perhaps, but
otherwise unchanged!
He greeted me with an emotion that seemed to match my own. "It is
long, long since we have met!" was all he was able to say, as he
shook both my hands warmly, while peering at me at arm's length.
Then forth from the bushes emerged a second figure, whom I
recognized as Julab, another youth of the tribe. He too was effusive
in his greetings; he too seemed delighted at our reunion.
But if I was no less delighted, it was not chiefly of the newcomers
that I was thinking. One thought kept flashing through my mind, and I
could not wait to give it expression. How about Yasma? Where was
she now? When should I see her? Such questions I poured forth in a
torrent, scarcely caring how my anxiety betrayed me.
"Yasma is safe," was Karem's terse reply. "You will see her before
long, though just when I cannot say."
And that was the most definite reply I could wrench from him. Neither
he nor Julab would discuss the reappearance of their people; they
would not say where they had been, nor how far they had gone, nor
how they had returned, nor what had happened during their
absence. But they insisted on turning the conversation in my
direction. They assured me how much relieved they were to find me
alive and well; they questioned me eagerly as to how I had passed
my time; they commented with zest upon my changed appearance,
my ragged clothes and dense beard; and they ended by predicting
that better days were in store.
More mystified than ever, I accompanied the two men to their cabins.
"We must make ready to till the fields," they reminded me, as we
approached the village, "for when the trees again lose their leaves
there will be another harvest." And they showed me where, unknown
to me, spades and shovels and plows had been stored in waterproof
vaults beneath the cabins; and they surprised me by pointing out the
bins of wheat and sacks of nuts and dried fruits, preserved from last
year's produce and harbored underground, so that when the people
returned to Sobul they might have full rations until the ripening of the
new crop.
Before the newcomers had been back an hour, they were both hard
at work in the fields. I volunteered my assistance; and was glad to be
able to wield a shovel or harrow after my long aimless months. The
vigorous activity in the open air helped to calm my mind and to drive
away my questionings; yet it could not drive them away wholly, and I
do not know whether my thoughts were most on the soil I made
ready for seeding or on things far-away and strange. Above all, I
kept thinking of Yasma, kept remembering her in hope that
alternated with dejection. Could it be true, as Karem had said, that I
was to see her soon? Surely, she must know how impatiently I was
waiting! She would not be the last of her tribe to reappear!
That night I had but little sleep; excited visions of Yasma permitted
me to doze away only by brief dream-broken snatches. But when the
gray of dawn began to creep in through the open window, sheer
weariness forced an hour's slumber; and I slept beyond my usual
time, and awoke to find the room bright with sunlight.
As I opened my eyes, I became conscious of voices without—
murmuring voices that filled me with an unreasoning joy. I peered out
of the window—no one to be seen! Excitedly I slipped on my coat,
and burst out of the door—still no one visible! Then from behind one
of the cabins came the roar of half a dozen persons in hearty
laughter ... laughter that was the most welcome I had ever heard.
I did not pause to ask myself who the newcomers were; did not stop
to wonder whether there were any feminine members of the group. I
dashed off crazily, and in an instant found myself confronted by—five
or six curiously staring men.
I know that I was indeed a sight; that my eyes bulged; that surprise
and disappointment shone in every line of my face. Otherwise, the
men would have been quicker to greet me, for instantly we
recognized each other. They were youths of the Ibandru tribe, all
known to me from last autumn; and they seemed little changed by
their long absence, except that, like Julab and Karem, they appeared
a trifle thinner.
"Are there any more of you here?" I demanded, after the first words
of explanation and welcome. "Are there—are there any—"
Curious smiles flickered across their faces.
"No, it is not quite time yet for the women," one of them replied, as if
reading my thoughts. "We men must come first to break the soil and
put the village in readiness."
If I had been of no practical use to the Ibandru in the fall, I was to be

plunged into continuous service this spring. Daily now I repeated that
first afternoon's help I had lent Karem in the fields; and when I did
not serve Karem himself, I aided one of his tribesmen, working from
sunrise to sunset with occasional intervals of rest.
It was well that I had this occupation, for it tended to keep me sane.
After three or four days, my uneasiness would have amounted to
agony had my labors not provided an outlet. For I kept looking for
one familiar form; and that form did not appear. More than twenty of
the men had returned, but not a single woman or child; and I had the
dull tormenting sense that I might not see Yasma for weeks yet.
This was the thought that oppressed me one morning when I began
tilling a little patch of land near the forest edge. My implements were
of the crudest, a mere shovel and spade to break the soil in primitive
fashion; and as I went through the laborious motions, my mind was
less on the task I performed than on more personal things. I could
not keep from thinking of Yasma with a sad yearning, wondering as
to her continued absence, and offering up silent prayers that I might
see her soon again.
And while I bent pessimistically over my spade, a strange song burst
forth from the woods, a bird-song trilling with the rarest delicacy and
sweetness. Enchanted, I listened; never before had I heard a song of
quite that elfin, ethereal quality. I could not recognize from what
feathered minstrel it came; I could only stand transfixed at its fluted
melody, staring in vain toward the thick masses of trees for a glimpse
of the tiny musician.
It could not have been more than a minute before the winged
enchantress fell back into silence; but in that time the world had
changed. Its black hostility had vanished; a spirit of beauty
surrounded me again, and I had an inexplicable feeling that all would
be well.
And as I gazed toward the forest, still hopeful of seeing the sweet-
voiced warbler, I was greeted by an unlooked-for vision.
Framed in a sort of natural doorway of the woods, where the pale
green foliage was parted in a little arched opening, stood a slender
figure with gleaming dark eyes and loose-flowing auburn hair.
"Yasma!" I shouted. And my heart pounded as if it would burst; and
my limbs shuddered, and my breath came fast; and the silent tears
flowed as I staggered forward with outspread arms.
Without a word she glided forth to meet me, and in an instant we
were locked in an embrace.
It must have been minutes before we parted. Not a syllable did we
speak; ours was a reunion such as sundered lovers may know
beyond the grave.
When at length our arms slipped apart and I gazed at the familiar
face, her cheeks were wet but her eyes were glistening. It might
have been but an hour since we had met, for she did not seem
changed at all.
"Oh, my beloved," she murmured, using the first term of endearment
I had ever heard from her lips, "it has been so long since I have seen
you! So long, oh, how long!"
"It has been long for me too. Longer than whole years. Oh, Yasma,
why did you have to leave?"
A frown flitted across the beautiful face, and the luminous eyes
became momentarily sad. "Do not ask that!" she begged. "Oh, do not
ask now!" And, seeing her distress, I was sorry that the
unpremeditated question had slipped from my lips.
"All that counts, Yasma," said I, gently, "is that you are here now. For
that I thank whatever powers have had you in their keeping."
"Thank Yulada!" she suggested, cryptically, with a motion toward the
southern mountains.
It was now my turn to frown.
"Oh, tell me, tell me all that has happened during the long winter!"
she demanded, almost passionately, as I clutched both her hands
and she stared up at me with an inquiring gaze. "You look so
changed! So worn and tired out, as if you had been through great
sufferings! Did you really suffer so much?"
"My greatest suffering, Yasma, was the loneliness I felt for you. That
was harder to bear than the blizzards. But, thank heaven! that is over
now. You won't ever go away from me again, will you, Yasma?"
She averted her eyes, then impulsively turned from me, and stood
staring toward that steel-gray figure on the peak. It was a minute
before she faced me again; and when she did so it was with lips
drawn and compressed.
"We must not talk of such things!" she urged, with pleading in her
eyes. "We must be happy, happy now while we can be, and not
question what is to come!"
"Of course, we must be happy now," I agreed. But her reply had
aroused my apprehensions, and even at the moment of reunion I
wondered whether she had come only to flutter away again like a
feather or a cloud.
"See how quick I came back to you!" she cried, as though to divert
my mind. "I left before all the other women, for I knew you would be
waiting here, lonely for me."
"And were you too lonely, Yasma?"
"Oh, yes! Very lonely! I never knew such loneliness before!" And the
great brown eyes again took on a melancholy glow, which brightened
into a happy luster as she looked up at me confidently and
reassuringly.
"Then let's neither of us be lonely again!" I entreated. And forgetting
my spade and shovel and the half-tilled field, I drew her with me into
the seclusion of the woods, and sat down with her by a bed of freshly
uncurling ferns beneath the shaded bole of a great oak.
"Remember, Yasma," I said, while I held both her hands and she
peered at me out of eyes large with emotion, "you made me a
promise about the spring. I asked you a question—the most
important question any human being can ask another—and you did
not give me a direct answer, but promised you would let me know
when the leaves were again sprouting on the trees. That time has
come now, and I am anxious for my answer, because I have had
long, so very long to wait."
Again I noticed a constraint about her manner. She hesitated before
the first words came; then spoke tremblingly and with eyes
downcast.
"I know that you have had long to wait, and I do not want to keep you
in suspense! I wish I could answer you now, answer outright, so that
there would never be another question—but oh, I cannot!—not yet,
not yet! Please don't think I want to cause you pain, for there's no
one on earth I want less to hurt! Please!"—And she held out her
hands imploringly, and her fingers twitched, and deep agitated
streams of red coursed to her cheeks.
"I know you don't want to hurt me—" I assured her.
But she halted me with a passionate outburst.
"All I know is that I love you, love you, love you!" she broke out, with
the fury of a vehement wild thing; and for a moment we were again
clasped in a tight embrace.
"But if you love me, Yasma," I pleaded, when her emotion had nearly
spent itself, "why treat me so oddly? Why not be perfectly frank? I
love you too, Yasma. Why not say you will be my wife? For I want
you with me always, always! Oh, I'd gladly live with you here in
Sobul—but if we could we'd go away, far, far away, to my own land,
and see things you never saw in your strangest dreams! What do
you say, Yasma?"
Yasma said nothing at all. She sat staring straight ahead, her fingers
folding and unfolding over some dead twigs, her lips drawn into rigid
lines that contrasted strangely with her moist eyes and cheeks.
"You promised that in the spring you would tell me," I reminded her,
gently.
I do not know what there was in these words to arouse her to frenzy.
Abruptly she sprang to her feet, all trace of composure gone; her
eyes blazed with unaccountable fires as she hurled forth her answer.
"Very well then, I will tell you! I cannot say yes to you, and I cannot
say no—I cannot, cannot! Go see my father, Abthar, as soon as he
returns—he will tell you! Go see him—and Hamul-Kammesh, the
soothsayer."
"Why Hamul-Kammesh?"
"Don't ask me—ask them!" she cried, with passion. "I've told you all I
can! You'll find out, you'll find out soon enough!"
To my astonishment, her fury was lost amid a tumult of sobbing. No
longer the passionate woman but the heart-broken child, she wept
as though she had nothing more to live for; and when I came to her
consolingly, she flung convulsive arms about me, and clung to me as
though afraid I would vanish. And then, while the storm gradually
died down and her slender form shook less spasmodically and the
tears flowed in dwindling torrents, I whispered tender and soothing
things into her ear; but all the time a new and terrible dread was in
my heart, for I was certain that Yasma had not told me everything,
but that her outburst could be explained only by some close-guarded
and dire secret.
CHAPTER XIV
THE WARNING
Had it been possible to consult Abthar immediately in the effort to
fathom Yasma's strange conduct, I would have wasted only so much
time as was necessary to take me to the father's cabin. But,
unfortunately, I must remain in suspense. So far as I knew, Abthar
had not yet returned to the village; and none of the townsfolk
seemed sure when he would be back. "He will come before the last
blossom buds on the wild rose," was the only explanation they would
offer; and knowing that it was not the way of the Ibandru to be
definite, I had to be content with this response.
True, I might have followed Yasma's suggestion and sought advice
of Hamul-Kammesh, since already that Rip Van Winkle figure was to
be seen shuffling about the village. But ever since the time, months
before, when he had visited my sick-room and denounced me to the
people, I had disliked him profoundly; and I would about as soon
have thought of consulting a hungry tiger.
And so my only choice was to wait for Abthar's return. The interval
could not have been more than a week; but during all that time I
suffered torments. How to approach him, after his return, was a
question that occupied me continually. Should I ask him bluntly what
secret there was connected with Yasma? Or should I be less direct
but more open, and frankly describe my feelings? It was only after
much thought that I decided that it would be best to come to him
candidly as a suitor in quest of his daughter's hand.
I well remember with what mixed feelings I recognized Abthar's tall
figure once more in the village. What if, not unlike some western
fathers, he should be outraged at the idea of uniting his daughter to
an alien? Or what if he should mention some tribal law that forbade
my alliance to Yasma? or should inform me that she was already
betrothed? These and other possibilities presented themselves in a
tormenting succession ... so that, when at length I did see Abthar, I
was hampered by a weight of imaginary ills.
As on a previous occasion, I found the old man working among his
vines. Bent over his hoe, he was uprooting the weeds so diligently
that at first he did not appear to see me; and I had to hail him loudly
before he looked up with a start and turned upon me those searching
proud brown eyes of his.
We exchanged greetings as enthusiastically as old friends who have
not met for some time; while, abandoning his hoe, Abthar motioned
me to a seat beside him on a little mound of earth.
For perhaps a quarter of an hour our conversation consisted mostly
of questions on his part and answers on mine; for he was eager to
know how I had passed the winter, and had no end of inquiries to
make.
For my own part, I refrained from asking that question which
bewildered me most of all: how had he and his people passed the
winter? It was with extreme difficulty that I halted the torrent of his
solicitous queries, and informed him that I had a confession to offer
and a request to make.
Abthar looked surprised, and added to my embarrassment by stating
how gratified he felt that I saw fit to confide in him.
I had to reply, of course, that there was a particular reason for
confiding in him, since my confession concerned his daughter
Yasma.
"My daughter Yasma?" he repeated, starting up as though I had
dealt him a blow. And he began stroking his long grizzled beard
solemnly, and the keen inquiring eyes peered at me as though they
would bore their way straight through me and ferret out my last
thought.
"What about my daughter Yasma?" he asked, after a pause, and in
tones that seemed to bristle with just a trace of hostility.
As tranquilly as I could, I explained how much Yasma had come to
mean to me; how utterly I was captivated by her, how desirous of
making her my wife. And, concluding with perhaps more tact than
accuracy, I remarked that in coming to him to request the hand of his
daughter, I was taking the course considered proper in my own
country.
In silence Abthar heard me to the last word. He did not interrupt
when I paused as if anxious for comment; did not offer so much as a
syllable's help when I hesitated or stammered; did not permit any
emotion to cross his weather-beaten bronzed features. But he gazed
at me with a disquieting fixity and firmness; and the look in his alert
stern eyes showed that he had not missed a gesture or a word.
Even after I had finished, he sat regarding me contemplatively
without speaking. Meanwhile my fingers twitched; my heart thumped
at a telltale speed; I felt like a prisoner arraigned before the bar. But
he, the judge, appeared unaware of my agitation, and would not
break my suspense until he had fully decided upon his verdict.
Yet his first words were commonplace enough.
"I had never expected anything at all like this," he said, in low sad
tones. "Nothing like this has ever been known among our people.
We Ibandru have seen little of strangers; none of our young people
have ever taken mates outside the tribe. And so your confession
comes as a shock."
"It should not come as a shock," was all I could mumble in reply.
"Were I as other fathers," continued the old man, suavely, "I might
rise up and order you expelled from our land. Or I might grow angry
and shout, and forbid you to see my daughter again. Or I might be
crafty, and ask you to engage in feats of prowess with the young
men of the town—and so might prove your unworthiness. Or I might
send your request to the tribal council, which would decide against
you. But I shall do none of these things. Once I too was young, and
once I too—" here his voice faltered, and his eyes grew soft with
reminiscence—"once I too knew what it was to love. So I shall try not
to be too harsh, my friend. But you ask that which I fear is
impossible. For your sake, I am sorry that it is impossible. But it is
my duty to show you why."
During this speech my heart had sunk until it seemed dead and cold
within me. It was as if a world had been shattered before my eyes;
as if in the echoes of my own thoughts I heard that fateful word,
"Impossible, impossible, impossible!"
"There are so many things to consider, so many things you cannot
even know," Abthar proceeded, still stroking his beard meditatively,
while my restless fingers toyed with the clods of earth, and my eyes
followed absently the wanderings of an ant lost amid those
mountainous masses. "But let me explain as well as I can. I shall try
to talk to you as a friend, and forget for the time that I am Yasma's
father. I shall say nothing of my hopes for her, and how I always
thought to see her happy with some sturdy young tribesman, with my
grandchildren upon her knee. I shall say nothing of the years that are
past, and how I have tried to do my best for her, a motherless child;
how sometimes I blundered and sometimes misunderstood, and was
more anxious about her and more blest by her than you or she will
ever know. Let that all be forgotten. What concerns us now is that
you are proposing to make both her and yourself more unhappy than
any outcast."
"Unhappy!" I exclaimed, with an unconscious gesture to the blue
skies to witness how I was misjudged. "Unhappy! May the lightning
strike me down if I don't want to make her happier than a queen!"
"So you say," replied the old man, with just the hint of a cynical
smile, "and so you no doubt believe. We all set out in life to make
ourselves and others happy—and how many of us succeed? Just
now, Yasma's blackest enemy could not do her greater mischief."
"Oh, don't say that!" I protested, clenching my fists with a show of
anger. "Have you so far misunderstood me? Do you believe that I—
that I—"
"I believe your motives are of the worthiest," interrupted Abthar,
quietly. "But let us be calm. It is not your fault that your union with
Yasma would be a mistake; circumstances beyond all men's control
would make it so."
"What circumstances?"
"Many circumstances. Some of them concern only you; some only
Yasma. But suppose we begin with you. I will forget that Yasma and I
really know very little about you; about your country, your people,
your past. I am confident of your good faith; and for that reason, and
because I consider you my friend, I do not want to see you beating
your heart out on the rocks. Yet what would happen? Either you
would find your way back to your own land and take Yasma with you,
or else you would live with her in Sobul. And either course would be
disastrous.
"Let us first say that you took her with you to your own country. I
have heard only vague rumors as to that amazing land; but I am
certain what its effect would be. Have you ever seen a wild duck with
a broken wing, or a robin in a cage? Have you ever thought how a
doe must feel when it can no longer roam the fields, or an eagle
when barred from the sky? Think of these, and then think how
Yasma will be when the lengthening days can no longer bring her
back to Sobul!"
The old man paused, and with an eloquent gesture pointed to the
jagged, snow-streaked circle of the peaks and to the far-off,
mysterious figure of Yulada.
"Yes, yes, I have thought of that," I groaned.
"Then here is what we must expect. If you should take Yasma with
you to your own country, she would perish—yes, she would perish
no matter how kind you were to her, for endless exile is an evil that
none of us Ibandru can endure. Yet if you remained with her in
Sobul, you would be exiled from your own land and people."
"That is only too true," I sighed, for the thought was not exactly new
to me.
But at that instant I chanced to catch a distant glimpse of an auburn-
haired figure lithely skirting the further fields; and the full
enchantment of Yasma was once more upon me.
"It would be worth the exile!" I vowed, madly. "Well, well worth it! For
Yasma's sake, I'd stay here gladly!"
"Yes, gladly," repeated the old man, with a sage nod. "I know you
would stay here gladly—for a while. But it would not take many
years, my friend, not many years before you would be weary almost
to death of this quiet little valley and its people. Why, you would be
weary of us now were it not for Yasma. And then some day, when
unexpectedly you found the route back to your own world, you would
pick up your things and silently go."
"Never! By all I have ever loved, I could not!" I swore. "Not while
Yasma remained!"
"Very well, let us suppose you would stay here," conceded Abthar,
hastily, as though skimming over a distasteful topic. "Then if your life
were not ruined, Yasma's would be. There are reasons you may not
be aware of."
"There seems to be much here that I am not aware of."
"No doubt," Abthar admitted, in matter-of-fact tones. And then, with a
gesture toward the southern peak, "Yulada has secrets not for every
man's understanding."
For an instant he paused, in contemplation of the statue-like figure;
then quickly continued, "Now here, my friend, is the thing to
remember. Take the migration from which we are just returning. Do
not imagine that we make such a pilgrimage only once in a lifetime.
Every autumn, when the birds fly south, we follow in their wake; and
every spring we return with the northward-winging flocks."
"Every autumn—and every spring!" I gasped, in dismay, for Abthar
had confirmed my most dismal surmises.
"Yes, every autumn and every spring. How would you feel, my friend,
with a wife that left you five months or six every year? How do you
think your wife would feel when she had to leave?"
"But would she have to leave? Why would she? After we were
married, would she not be willing to stay here?"
"She might be willing—but would she be able?" asked Abthar,
pointedly. "This is no matter of choice; it is a law of her nature. It is a
law of the nature of all Ibandru to go every autumn the way of the
southward-speeding birds. Could you ask the sap to stop flowing
from the roots of the awakening tree in April? Could you ask the
fountains not to pour down from the peaks when spring thaws the
snow? Then ask one of us Ibandru to linger in Sobul when the frosty
days have come and the last November leaf flutters earthward."
Abthar's words bewildered me utterly, as all reference to the flight of
the Ibandru had bewildered me before. But I did not hesitate to admit
my perplexity. "Your explanation runs contrary to all human
experience," I argued. "During my studies and travels, I have heard
of many races of men who differed much in habits and looks; but all
were moved by the same impulses, the same natural laws. You
Ibandru alone seem different. You disappear and reappear like
phantoms, and claim to do so because of an instinct never found in
the natural world."
My companion sat staring at me quizzically. There was just a little of
surprise in his manner, just a little of good-natured indulgence, and
something of the smiling tolerance which one reserves for the well-
meaning and simple-minded.
"In spite of your seeming knowledge, my friend," he remarked at
length, "I see that you are really quite childish in your views. You are
mistaken in believing that we Ibandru do not follow natural laws. We
are guided not by an instinct unknown in the great world around us,
but by one that rules the lives of countless living things: the birds in
the air and the fishes in the streams, and even, if I am to believe the
tales I have heard, is found among certain furry animals in the wide
waters and at times among swarms of butterflies."
"But if you feel the same urge as these creatures, then why should
only you out of all men feel it?"
"No doubt it exists elsewhere, although weakened by unnatural ways
of life. Did it ever occur to you that it may have been common to all
men thousands of years ago? Did you never stop to think that you
civilized folk may have lost it, just as you have lost your keenness of
scent and sense of direction? while we Ibandru have preserved it by
our isolation and the simplicity of our lives? As your own fathers may
have been five hundred generations ago, so we Ibandru are today."
"But if your migration be a natural thing," I asked, remembering the
sundry mysteries of Sobul, "why make a secret of it? Why not tell me
where you go in winter? Indeed, why not take me with you?"
A strange light came into Abthar's eyes. There was something a little
secretive and yet something a little exalted in his manner as he lifted
both hands ardently toward Yulada, and declared, "There are truths
of which I dare not speak, truths that the tradition of my tribe will not
let me reveal. But do not misunderstand me, my friend; we must
keep our secrets for the sake of our own safety as well as because
of Yulada. If all that we do were known to the world, would we not be
surrounded by curious and unkindly throngs? Hence our ancient
sages ordained that when we Ibandru go away at the time of falling
leaves we must go alone, unless there be with us some
understanding stranger—one who has felt the same inspiration as
we. But such a stranger has never appeared. And until he does
appear, Yulada will weave dread spells over him who betrays her
secrets!"
The old man paused, and I had no response to make.
"But all this is not what you came to see me about," he continued.
"Let us return to Yasma. Now that I have told you of our yearly
migration, you can judge of the folly you were contemplating. But let
me mention another fact, which even by itself would make your
marriage foolhardy."
"What fact can that be?" I demanded, feeling as if a succession of
hammer strokes had struck me on the head.
"Again I must go out of my way to explain. For many generations, as
far back as our traditions go, there has been one of our number
known as a soothsayer, a priest of Yulada. His mission is to read the
omens of earth and sky, to scan the clouds and stars, and to tell us
Yulada's will. Sometimes his task has been difficult, for often Yulada
has hidden behind a mist; but at other times his duty has been clear

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2. Which of the following statements is FALSE?

3. Policymakers look at _____________ to compare growth rates over an entire year

6. For which growth rate would the Rule of 70 be most accurate?

8. Which statement about the Rule of 70 is TRUE?

15. In the United States, real GDP is measured by:

22. Every year in India:

24. Which statement about short-run economic growth is NOT true?

27. Improvements in production capacity will:

28. Land and natural resources include:

30. Labor includes all of the following factors EXCEPT:

33. Human capital includes:

36. A production function:

37. Which of the following is NOT a factor in the production function?

39. The classical form of the production function states that:

43. An increase in physical capital per worker will:

45. Which is NOT a source of productivity growth?

46. The capital-to-labor ratio measures:

48. Improvements in technology:

49. Which of the following is a source of increases in productivity?

50. Which of the following does NOT increase productivity?

51. Which of the following increases productivity?

55. Schumpeter's term creative destruction describes the:

60. To have long-term economic growth, the production function suggests:

63. Which of the following is NOT a source of productivity growth?

64. On-the-job training can lead to an increase in:

66. In general, the higher the capital-to-labor ratio:

67. The higher the productivity of a nation, the:

68. Which of the following occurrences is NOT a source of productivity growth?

69. Developed nations tend to have:

70. The capital-to-labor ratio is:

74. Human capital refers to:

80. Increases in ___________ often lead to economic growth.

81. Increases in ___________ often lead to economic growth.

83. Labor productivity is NOT a major determinant of:

84. Over the past century, when worker productivity rose:

87. The catch-up effect tends to:

104. Infrastructure is:

106. In the absence of copyright and patent laws:

107. Excessive inflation or deflation:

108. Which is NOT a characteristic of a stable financial system?

109. The historical evidence shows that:

112. Infrastructure is defined as a country's:

114. The absence of well-defined and enforceable property rights often:

115. Unanticipated _____ is detrimental to economic growth.

116. Because it consists of _____ items, a nation's infrastructure is difficult to measure.

119. Which of the following resources is an example of infrastructure?

124. An example of intangible infrastructure is:

126. The recent global financial instability:

131. The Index of Economic Freedom: