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CHAPTER 6 | Elasticity: The Responsiveness
of Demand and Supply
Brief Chapter Summary and Learning Objectives
6.1 The Price Elasticity of Demand and Its Measurement (pages 184–190)
Define price elasticity of demand and understand how to measure it.
The key determinants of the price elasticity of demand for a good are: the availability of
close substitutes, the passage of time, whether the good is a luxury or a necessity, the
definition of the market, and the share of the good in the consumer’s budget.
6.3 The Relationship between Price Elasticity of Demand and Total Revenue
(pages 193–197)
Explain the relationship between the price elasticity of demand and total revenue.
When demand is inelastic, price and total revenue move in the same direction. When
demand is elastic, price and total revenue move inversely.
Elasticity can help us understand why the family farm has become an endangered species
and the effects of raising the federal government’s tax on gasoline.
6.6 The Price Elasticity of Supply and Its Measurement (pages 202–208)
Define price elasticity of supply and understand its determinants and how it is measured.
The price elasticity of supply measures the responsiveness of the quantity supplied to a
change in price.
Key Terms
Cross-price elasticity of demand, p. 197. The Perfectly inelastic demand, p. 189. The case
percentage change in quantity demanded of one where the quantity demanded is completely
good divided by the percentage change in the unresponsive to price, and the price elasticity
price of another good. of demand equals zero.
Elastic demand, p. 185. Demand is elastic when Price elasticity of demand, p. 184. The
the percentage change in the quantity demanded responsiveness of the quantity demanded to
is greater than the percentage change in price, so a change in price, measured by dividing the
the price elasticity is greater than 1 in absolute percentage change in the quantity demanded
value. of a product by the percentage change in the
product’s price.
Elasticity, p. 184. A measure of how much one
economic variable responds to changes in Price elasticity of supply, p. 202. The
another economic variable. responsiveness of the quantity supplied to
a change in price, measured by dividing the
Income elasticity of demand, p. 198. A percentage change in the quantity supplied
measure of the responsiveness of the quantity of a product by the percentage change in the
demanded to changes in income, measured by product’s price.
the percentage change in quantity demanded
divided by the percentage change in income. Total revenue, p. 193. The total amount of
funds a seller receives from selling of a good or
Inelastic demand, p. 185. Demand is inelastic service, calculated by multiplying price per unit
when the percentage change in quantity by the number of units sold.
demanded is less than the percentage change in
price, so the price elasticity is less than 1 in Unit-elastic demand, p. 185. Demand is unit
absolute value. elastic when the percentage change in quantity
demanded is equal to the percentage change in
Perfectly elastic demand, p. 189. The case price, so the price elasticity is equal to 1 in
where the quantity demanded is infinitely absolute value.
responsive to price and the price elasticity
of demand equals infinity.
Chapter Outline
Do People Respond to Changes in the Price of Gasoline?
In the summer of 2008, the average price of a gallon of gasoline was $4.00; by the end of the year it was
down to $1.50. The price rose to nearly $4.00 by 2011 before falling to below $2.00 at the beginning of
2015 and then rising again. Some people argue that consumers don’t vary the quantity of gas they buy as
the price fluctuates because the number of miles they drive is roughly constant. But actual consumer
behavior contradicts this. In December 2014, when the average price of gasoline was $2.50 per gallon,
U.S. consumers bought about 7 percent more gasoline than they did in April 2014, when the average price
of gasoline was $3.60 per gallon.
Elasticity is a measure of how much one economic variable responds to changes in another economic
variable. The price elasticity of demand is the responsiveness of the quantity demanded to a change in
price, measured by dividing the percentage change in the quantity demanded of a product by the
percentage change in the product’s price.
The price elasticity of demand is always negative. Because we are usually interested in the relative size of
elasticities, we often compare their absolute values.
Inelastic demand refers to when the percentage change in quantity demanded is less than the percentage
change in price, so the price elasticity is less than 1 in absolute value.
Unit-elastic demand refers to when the percentage change in quantity demanded is equal to the
percentage change in price, so the price elasticity is equal to 1 in absolute value.
(Q 2 Q1) ( P 2 P1)
Price elasticity of demand .
Q1 Q 2 P1 P 2
2 2
Teaching Tips
After illustrating a perfectly inelastic demand curve, ask your students to suggest examples. They may
mention cigarettes, gasoline, or other goods that have relatively inelastic, but not perfectly inelastic,
demands. Ask if the quantity demanded of the products they suggest would change if the price were not
only higher but lower as well. Even students who claim they would not buy less gasoline if the price rose
are unlikely to argue that they would not buy more gasoline at lower prices. This discussion will help
your students understand that very few products actually have perfectly inelastic demand curves. You
don’t need to spend much time discussing perfectly elastic demand. It should be sufficient to make a brief
reference to perfect competition, a topic covered in Chapter 12.
Extra Making
the Rewriting the Formula
Connection
Your understanding of elasticity (E) may be increased by rewriting the elasticity formula. To make this
explanation easier to follow, assume that we are interested in measuring the price elasticity of a linear
demand curve. The elasticity formula in the textbook is:
(Q 2 Q1) ( P 2 P1)
E .
(Q1 Q 2) ( P1 P 2)
2 2
Both “2”s can be dropped from this equation. Recall that (Q2 − Q1) = ΔQ and (P2 − P1) = ΔP. Substituting,
we have:
Q P
E .
(Q1 Q 2) ( P1 P 2)
Because the elasticity equation divides one fraction by another fraction you can rewrite this expression by
multiplying the numerator by the inverse, or reciprocal, of the denominator. The associative property of
multiplication allows us to divide ΔQ by ΔP and (P1 + P2) by (Q1 + Q2). Therefore:
Q P1 P 2
P .
P Q1 Q 2
Because the slope of a linear or straight line demand curve is constant and can be written as ΔP/ΔQ, the
elasticity formula can now be written as:
P1 P 2
E (1/slope) .
Q1 Q 2
Writing the elasticity formula this way makes it clear that the slope is not the same as the elasticity of a
demand curve. Along a linear demand curve, the slope will have a constant value but the elasticity will
not. The formula highlights this and also can be used to make another important point. Because the law of
demand tells us that high prices are associated with relatively low values of quantity demanded (and vice
versa), the absolute values for elasticity will be high at high prices (demand is elastic) and relatively low
at low prices (demand is inelastic). This result can easily be shown by substituting in actual price and
quantity values for a given demand curve into the rewritten formula and observing the change in the ratio
of (P1 + P2) to (Q1 + Q2) as price is decreased.
B. Passage of Time
The more time that passes, the more elastic the demand for a product becomes.
Teaching Tips
It is useful to emphasize two points. First, each of the five determinants of the price elasticity of demand
should be considered separately from the others. A product that consumes a small part of a consumer’s
budget (this suggests demand would be relatively inelastic) may have several good substitutes (this
suggests demand would be relatively elastic). Second, changes in the market price of any product will
result in different values for price elasticity. Estimates of the price elasticity of demand use market prices
for products at a particular time. Different market prices from different timer periods would result in
different elasticity estimates.
Currently, consumers appear to be “trading down,” choosing lower-priced restaurants than they
used to. The National Restaurant Association projects sales, adjusted for inflation, will decline by
2.5% in full service restaurants in 2009, while it predicts quick service will grow by 0.4%.
Stephen Hanson, who closed several of his once-successful restaurants in New York and Chicago, has
had better luck with restaurants that offer less expensive meals. Mr. Hanson explained the success of his
big restaurants that earn a small profit from a large number of customers: “I’m in the volume business.”
By 2010, business at upscale and other restaurants began to recover as the recession ended.
Sources: Katy McLaughlin, “What’s Not Cooking,” Wall Street Journal, January 23, 2009, and Kevin P. Casey, “From fast food
to fine dining, business is up at restaurants,” USA Today, November 22, 2010.
a. What are the key determinants of the price elasticity of demand for meals served at high-end
restaurants?
b. Cite evidence that high restaurant prices resulted in a lower quantity demanded and a substitution
by consumers to lower-priced alternatives.
Step 2: What are the key determinants of the price elasticity of demand for meals served at
high-end restaurants?
The key determinants are the availability of close substitutes (for example, “quick service”
restaurants that serve less expensive meals) and the share of the restaurant meals in the
consumer’s budget.
Step 3: Cite evidence that high restaurant prices resulted in a lower quantity demanded
and a substitution by consumers to lower-priced alternatives.
High-end restaurants had their worst downturn in decades. San Francisco’s Rubicon and the
Blue Water Grill in Chicago closed in 2008. But sales at “quick service” restaurants
increased. Steven Hanson, owner of several restaurants, reported that he had greater success
with restaurants that charge lower prices.
A firm is interested in price elasticity of demand for its products because it allows the firm to calculate
how changes in price will affect its total revenue. Total revenue is the total amount of funds a seller
receives from selling a good or service, calculated by multiplying price per unit by the number of units
sold. When demand is inelastic, price and total revenue move in the same direction: An increase in price
raises total revenue, and a decrease in price reduces total revenue. When demand is elastic, price and total
revenue move inversely: An increase in price reduces total revenue, and a decrease in price raises total
revenue. If demand is unit elastic a change in price is exactly offset by a proportional change in quantity
demanded, leaving revenue unaffected.
Extra Making
Determining the Price Elasticity of Demand through Market
the
Experiments
Connection
Firms usually have a good idea of the price elasticity of demand for products that have been on the market
for at least a few years. For new products, however, firms often experiment with different prices to
determine the price elasticity. For example, Apple introduced the first-generation iPhone in June 2007, at
a price of $599. But demand for the iPhone was more elastic than Apple had expected, and when sales
failed to reach Apple’s projections, the company cut the price to $399 just two months later. Similarly,
when 3D televisions were introduced into the U.S. market in early 2010, Sony and other manufacturers
believed that sales would be strong despite prices being several hundred dollars higher than for other
high-end ultra-thin televisions. Once again, though, demand turned out to be more elastic than expected,
and by December firms were cutting prices 40 percent or more in an effort to increase revenue.
Since electronic books (e-books) became popular after Amazon introduced the Kindle e-reader, firms
have experimented with different prices in trying to determine the relevant price elasticity. Amazon had
originally priced most best-selling e-books at $9.99, but when Apple introduced the iPad in 2010, Apple
negotiated contracts with publishers that raised prices for e-books. Amazon and Barnes & Noble
eventually signed similar contracts, and the prices for best selling e-books rose from $9.99 to $12.99 or
$14.99. Publishers hoped that a low price elasticity of demand for e-books would result in the price
increase leading to higher revenues. Many buyers, however, claimed that rather than pay higher prices,
they would go back to reading printed books. Joel Waldfogel, an economist at the University of
Pennsylvania, raised the possibility that the higher prices might lead some readers to illegally download
pirated e-books, in violation of the publishers’ copyrights. Although piracy has been a problem with
music and movies, it had not yet been a problem with books. Waldfogel argued that, “I would be scared to
death about a culture of piracy taking hold. I wouldn’t mess around with price increases.” Whether the
demand for e-books turns out to be elastic or inelastic may depend on how many readers consider printed
books or pirated e-books to be close substitutes for legally downloaded e-books.
Source: Daisuke Wakabayashi and Miguel Bustillo, “TV Makers Can’t Hold Line on 3-D Prices,” Wall Street Journal, December
20, 2010; Motoko Rich and Brad Stone, “Cost of an e-Book Will Be Going Up,” New York Times, February 11, 2010; and Kate
Hafner and Brad Stone, “iPhone Owners Crying Foul Over Price Cut,” New York Times, September 7, 2007.
Question
A publisher was quoted as saying the following about the pricing of e-books: “We may introduce [an e-
book] at $14.95 for a year and then move the book to $9.99 when we would have put out the trade
paperback edition. I suspect you’re going to see a fair amount of experimentation.” Why would issuing a
paperback version of a book affect the price a publisher would charge for an e-book? Why would
publishers be experimenting with the prices of e-books?
Source: Motoko Rich and Brad Stone, “Cost of an e-Book Will Be Going Up,” New York Times, February 11, 2010.
Answer
The paperback edition is a reasonably good substitute for the e-book edition. Publishers are
experimenting with the prices of e-books because they are relatively new products, which makes
estimating price elasticity difficult.
In addition to price elasticity, two other demand elasticities are important: the cross-price elasticity of
demand and the income elasticity of demand.
The cross-price elasticity of demand is the percentage change in the quantity demanded of one good
divided by the percentage change in the price of another good. An increase in the price of a substitute will
lead to an increase in quantity demanded, so the cross-price elasticity of demand will be positive.
An increase in the price of a complement will lead to a decrease in the quantity demanded, so the cross-
price elasticity of demand will be negative.
If the quantity demanded of a good increases as income increases, then the good is a normal good.
Normal goods are often further subdivided into luxuries and necessities. The income elasticity of demand
for a necessity is positive but less than 1. The income elasticity of demand for a luxury is greater than 1.
A good is inferior if the quantity demanded falls as income increases.
Teaching Tips
Many students confuse one type of elasticity with another. Ask your students to solve the following
problem. Assume that the absolute value of the price elasticity of demand for good X is 2.5. Is good X a
normal good? (Answer: You cannot determine whether X is normal or inferior by knowing its price
elasticity. You need to know the income elasticity of demand for good X to answer this question).
a. There is a 20 percent increase in New York subway fares. As a result, the price of a taxicab ride
increases by 5 percent.
b. An economic expansion causes a 5 percent increase in the incomes of tourists visiting New York
City. As a result, the price of a taxicab ride increases by 2 percent.
Describe the cross-price and income elasticity formulas and use the formulas to determine the values of
these elasticities for taxicab rides.
Step 2: State the cross-price elasticity formula and determine the value of this elasticity for
taxicab rides.
The cross-price elasticity formula is:
Because a 20 percent increase in subway fares raised the quantity demanded of taxi rides by
5 percent, the value of the cross-price elasticity is:
5 percent
0.25.
20 percent
Step 3: State the income elasticity formula and determine the value of this elasticity for
taxi rides.
The income elasticity is:
Because a 5 percent increase in income led to a 2 percent increase in taxi rides, the value of
the income elasticity is:
2 percent
0.4.
5 percent
The elasticity is positive but less than 1. Therefore, a taxi ride is a normal good and a
necessity.
From 1950 to 2015, the number of farms decreased from 5 million to about 2 million, and the number of
people who lived on farms fell from 23 million to fewer than 3 million. Rapid growth in farm output has
combined with low price and income elasticities to make family farming difficult in the United States. In
1950, the average U.S. wheat farmer harvested about 17 bushels from each acre. By 2015, the average
U.S. wheat farmer harvested 44 bushels per acre. This increase in wheat production resulted in a
substantial decline in prices because: (1) the demand for wheat is inelastic, and (2) the income elasticity
of demand for wheat is low.
a. Suppose the price elasticity of demand for cocaine is −2. If legalization causes the price of
cocaine to fall by 95 percent, what will be the percentage increase in the quantity of cocaine
demanded?
b. If the price elasticity is −0.02, what will be the percentage increase in the quantity demanded?
c. Discuss how the size of the price elasticity of demand for cocaine is relevant to the debate over its
legalization.
Step 2: Answer part (a) using the formula for the price elasticity of demand.
Percentage change in quantity demanded
Price elasticity of demand .
Percentage change in price
We can plug into this formula the values given for the price elasticity and the percentage
change in price:
Percentage change in quantity demanded
2 .
95%
Or rearranging:
Percentage change in quantity demanded = 2 × 95% = 190%
Step 4: Answer part (c) by discussing how the size of the price elasticity of demand for
cocaine helps us to understand the effects of legalization.
Clearly, the higher the absolute value of the price elasticity of demand for cocaine, the greater
the increase in cocaine use that would result from legalization. If the price elasticity is as high
as in part (a), legalization will lead to a large increase in use. If, however, the price elasticity
is as low as in part (b), legalization will lead to only a small increase in use.
Extra Credit: One estimate puts the price elasticity at −0.28, which suggests that even a large fall in the
price of cocaine might lead to only a moderate increase in cocaine use. However, even a moderate
increase in cocaine use would have costs. Some studies have shown that cocaine users are more likely to
commit crimes, to abuse their children, to have higher medical expenses, and to be less productive
workers. Moreover, many people object to the use of cocaine and other narcotics on moral grounds and
would oppose legalization even if it led to no increase in use. Ultimately, whether the use of cocaine and
other drugs should be legalized is a normative issue. Economics can contribute to the discussion but
cannot decide the issue.
Source for estimate of price elasticity of cocaine: Henry Saffer and Frank Chaloupka, “The Demand for Illicit Drugs,” Economic
Inquiry, Vol. 37, No. 3, July 1999, pp. 401–411.
To measure how much quantity supplied increases when price increases, we use the price elasticity of
supply.
Because of the law of supply, price elasticity of supply will be a positive number. If the price elasticity of
supply is less than 1, then supply is inelastic. If the price elasticity of supply is greater than 1, then supply
is elastic. If the price elasticity of supply is equal to 1, then supply is unit elastic.
Sources: Jared Mayer, “New York’s Taxi King Is Going Down,” the Federalist, October 26, 2015; Ilya Marritz, “NYC Taxi
Medallions Fetch ‘Unbelievable’ Returns,” National Public Radio, November 15, 2011; and “NYC Taxi Medallions Sell for $1.1
Million,” Economic Policy Journal, March 18, 2013.
a. What was the value of the price elasticity of supply of New York City taxi medallions between
1980 and 2015?
b. Describe some of the consequences of the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission’s
decision to limit the quantity of taxi medallions.
Step 2: What was the value of the price elasticity of supply of New York City taxi
medallions between 1980 and 2013?
The price elasticity of supply formula is:
Because the quantity supplied of medallions did not change between 1980 and 2015, the
percentage change in the quantity supplied of medallions was zero, as was the price elasticity
of supply. The medallion supply curve was vertical at the quantity of about 13,200
medallions.
Step 3: Describe some of the consequences of the New York City Taxi and Limousine
Commission limiting the quantity of taxi medallions.
The high cost of medallions has limited the number of taxi cabs available for residents and
visitors to the city, which has raised the price of taxi rides. Another consequence is the high
number of unlicensed cabs that break the law by offering their services. Economist Paul
Krugman claims that a disproportionately high number of traffic accidents in New York City
are caused by unlicensed and unregulated taxi drivers. The limited the number of medallions
and taxis created an incentive for competitors such as Uber to offer its transportation services
in New York City.
Question: After studying the material in this chapter, you should understand why knowing the income
and price elasticities of their products is important to the owners and managers of firms. But what if you
are not a manager or owner? If, for example, you were interested in investing some of your hard-earned
savings in the stock market, how would knowing income and price elasticities help you?
Answer: The best advice for success in the stock market is still “buy low, sell high.” But what you
learned about elasticity also may be helpful, at least in a general way. Firms that sell products with high
income elasticities (for example, houses and automobiles) experience especially large fluctuations in sales
as the overall economy moves through the business cycle. Consumers are reluctant to buy expensive
products during a recession, especially if they must take out loans to do so. But sales of these same items
tend to increase rapidly when the economy moves into an expansion.
Source: Ben McClure, “The Ups and Downs of Investing in Cyclical Stocks,” www.investopedia.com. October 22, 2002.
Review Questions
1.1 Price elasticity of demand = (percentage change in quantity demanded)/(percentage change in
price). The price elasticity of demand isn’t measured by the slope of the demand curve because
the slope depends on the units of measurement. The slope of the demand curve will change by a
factor of 100 if you use cents instead of dollars, for example. Another example: consider six-
packs of soda versus cans of soda. If the price drops by $1.00 per six-pack and the quantity
demanded increases by two six-packs, then that is the same thing as quantity demanded
increasing by 12 cans. So, you could calculate the slope either as −1/2 six-packs, or as −1/12
cans. In addition, using percentage changes in the elasticity formula allows for meaningful
comparisons of demand responsiveness between very different kinds of goods; for example,
breakfast cereal versus health care.
1.3 In calculating the percentage change in price and quantity, the midpoint formula divides the
change in price and change in quantity by the average of their starting and ending values.
(Q 2 Q1) ( P 2 P1)
Midpoint formula :
Q1 Q 2 P1 P 2
2 2
Percentage changes can also be calculated by using the starting or ending value without
averaging, but, unlike the midpoint formula, these methods gives different results depending on
whether the starting or ending value is used.
1.4 A perfectly inelastic demand curve is a vertical line, as shown at the bottom of Table 6.1. Such a
good will have no substitutes; for example, a life-saving drug. Therefore, an increase in price
from $30 to $40 or decrease in price from $30 to $20 will have no effect on the quantity
demanded (Qd) of the good, which remains at 16.
Because the price elasticity of demand is less than one (in absolute value) the demand for gasoline would
be price inelastic. The percentage change in quantity demanded is less than the percentage change in
price.
12,000,000 8,000,000
1.6 a. 4,000,000
$2.00 $3.00
12 8
b. 4 . This is a much smaller value than in (a).
$2.00 $3.00
c. We can calculate the price elasticity using the midpoint formula as follows:
12,000,000 8,000,000
Percentage change in quantity demanded = 100 40%
10,000,000
$2.00 $3.00
Percentage change in price = 100 40%
$2.50
40%
So, the price elasticity of demand = 1
40%
Notice that this value is significantly different from the values calculated in (a) and (b).
For D2:
40 30
Percentage change in quantity demanded = 100 28.6%
35
$2 $3
Percentage change in price = 100 40%
$2.5
28.6%
Elasticity = 0.7
40.0%
Step 2: Calculate percentage change in quantity demanded and percentage change price:
1,131 1,469
Percentage change in quantity demanded = 100 26%
1,300
$29, 454 $24,751
Percentage change in price = 100 17.4%
27,102.5
Step 3: Divide the percentage change in the quantity demanded by the percentage change in price
to arrive at the price elasticity for the demand curve:
26%
Price elasticity of demand = 1.5
17.4%
Demand for Pace University is therefore elastic.
Total tuition received in 2006 declined to $33,312,474 (= $29,454 × 1,131 students) from
$36,359,219 (= $24,751 × 1,469 students) in 2005.
1.9 Suppose Ford did cut the price by $1 from $440 to $439 and quantity demanded increased by
1,000 cars from 500,000 to 501,000. The midpoint price would be $439.50 and the midpoint
quantity would be 500,500. Then, the percentage change in quantity would equal:
(1,000/500,500) × 100 = 0.20%. The percentage change in price would equal: (–$1/$439.50)
× 100 = –0.23%. The price elasticity of demand is: 0.20%/–0.23% = –0.87. If Ford’s belief
about the responsiveness of the quantity demanded for Model Ts to a change in their price was
accurate, then the demand for Model Ts was price inelastic.
1.10 At a higher price, quantity demanded will decrease, so the total revenue (price × quantity sold)
will still be less than the total cost. Only in the very unlikely case where the demand for the
magazine is perfectly inelastic would the publisher’s analysis be correct.
Review Questions
2.1 The most important determinant of the price elasticity of demand is usually the availability of
substitutes for the product. If there are close substitutes, elasticity will be high because people can
switch to buying another good as the product’s price rises. Other factors determining the price
elasticity of demand for a product include the passage of time, whether the good is a necessity or
a luxury, how narrowly the market for the good is defined, and the share of the good in the
consumer’s budget.
2.2 The demand for most agricultural goods is inelastic. Food is a necessity, and the demand for
necessities tends to be less elastic than the demand for luxuries.
2.4
Percentage change in quantity demanded 14
0.42
Percentage change in price 33
Because the price elasticity of demand was less than one (in absolute value) the demand for bus
rides was price inelastic. The five determinants of the price elasticity are: (a) the availability of
substitutes, (b) the passage of time, (c) whether the good is a luxury or a necessity, (d) the
definition of the market, and (e) the share of the good in a consumer’s budget. For many people
who do not own their own automobiles, there are no good substitutes for bus transportation,
which is more of a necessity than a luxury. These are probably the most important reasons why
demand was price inelastic.
2.5 The more narrowly a market is defined, the more elastic demand will be, because more
substitutes are available. The price elasticity of Coca-Cola (or any specific brand of soda) will be
higher than for soda as a product because there are more substitutes available for a specific
product like Coca-Cola than there are for a product category like soda.
2.6 It usually takes consumers some time to adjust their buying habits when prices change. The more
time passes, the more elastic the demand for a product becomes. In the case of oil prices, a good
part of the demand is determined by the demand for gasoline. Consumers are slow to react to
changes in gasoline prices because doing so often involves buying new cars, moving closer (or
farther away) from work, and so on.
2.7 a. We can’t know with certainty from the information given whether in this case demand will be
elastic or inelastic. We can say, though, that a family that has driven to Yellowstone with the
intention of vacationing there is probably not going to be very responsive to changes in the
admission price because that price would likely make up only a small fraction of the family’s
vacation budget. So, it seems likely that demand for entry from someone driving a car,
minivan, or motor home will be inelastic.
b. Once again, we can’t answer this question with certainty from the information given. As
noted in part (a), someone arriving for a vacation in a private vehicle is likely to have an
inelastic demand for entering the park. Someone who is entering by foot, bike, or on skis
likely lives in the area or is staying close to the park. These people may have access to
recreational opportunities outside of the park and so may choose not to enter the park if the
price is too high. They are likely to have a more elastic demand for entering the park. People
who arrive by motorcycle may be intending to vacation in the park, or they be from the local
area and just planning a short visit. They are likely to have a price elasticity of demand that
is between the two other groups. This ordering of the groups from highest price elasticity of
demand to lowest corresponds to the ordering of prices charged by the National Park Service.
Review Questions
3.1 If demand is inelastic, an increase in price will increase revenue because the price will increase
proportionally more than the quantity sold will decrease.
3.2 If revenue increases when price falls, other things remaining equal, then demand must be elastic.
3.4 a. The observation that an increase in ticket prices to the opera “backfired” means that total
revenue from ticket sales decreased following the price increase.
b. Assuming that there were no other reasons why ticket revenue fell (for example, because of bad
weather on the dates of the performances or a negative reaction by the public to the operas
performed in 2012), the decline in revenue means that demand for opera tickets was elastic.
3.5 Elasticity = (percentage change in quantity/percentage change in price). The article states that
consumption decreases by 3 to 5 percent in response to a 10 percent increase in price, so the
range of elasticity is: (−3%/10%) = −0.3 to (−5%/10%) = −0.5. The demand for cigarettes is
inelastic because the elasticity values computed are both less than 1 in absolute value. Because
demand is inelastic, if price increases, revenue will also increase.
3.6 a. The Coca-Cola executive’s comment suggests that he believes the demand for Coca-Cola is
inelastic. If he believes that consumers don’t care at all about price, then he believes that the
demand for Coke is perfectly inelastic. It is unlikely that the executive believes that demand
is perfectly inelastic, because it’s implausible that however high the firm raised the price,
consumers would buy the same quantity of Coke.
b. If the executive was correct, then by raising the per ounce price of Coca-Cola, the firm’s
revenues should increase.
c. It may be that placing cans of Coke near checkout lines “within arm’s reach” results in more
impulse buying on the part of shoppers. If this is true, then it could make the demand for
Coke more price inelastic. If Coke is the only soda that is displayed near checkout lines, then
shoppers who decide to buy soda at that point in their shopping trip would have no “close”
substitutes for Coke.
3.7 a. We can calculate the price elasticity along D1 between points A and C as follows:
300 200
Percentage change in quantity demanded = 100 40.0%
250
$2.50 $3.00
Percentage change in price = 100 18.2%
$2.75
40.0%
So, the price elasticity of demand = 2.2
18.2%
Similarly, the price elasticity of demand along D2 between points A and B can be calculated
as follows:
225 200
Percentage change in quantity demanded = 100 11.8%
212.5
$2.50 $3.00
Percentage change in price = 100 18.2%
$2.75
11.8%
So, the price elasticity of demand = 0.65
18.2%
Because the quantity response is much larger for the same price change, demand curve D1 is
much more elastic.
b. Along D1, revenue increases from $3 × 200 = $600 to $2.50 × 300 = $750. Revenue rises by
$150 as the price is cut because this demand curve is elastic between these prices. Along D2,
revenue falls from $600 to $2.50 × 225 = $562.50. Revenue falls by $37.50 as the price is cut
because D2 is inelastic between these prices.
3.8 Manager 2 is wrong. Cutting the price will increase revenue if demand is price elastic. But notice
that Manager 1 is just as wrong to say “only” as Manager 2 was to say “never.” Manager 1 says
the only way to boost revenue is by cutting the price, but if demand is inelastic, then cutting the
price will decrease revenue, not increase it.
3.9 a. Because Coca-Cola’s revenue rose while it sold 1 percent less soda in North America, it
must have raised its prices. Lowering its prices would have resulted in its selling more soda,
not less, holding all other factors constant.
b. Because Coke’s revenue increased following an increase in price, we know that the demand
for Coke is price inelastic, holding all other factors constant.
3.10 a. No. If the demand for the publisher’s books is inelastic, then an increase in price will increase
total revenue.
b. The author of the article is assuming the demand for the publisher’s books is elastic. If
demand for the books is elastic, an increase in price will decrease total revenue.
3.11 Assuming that there was not an increase in demand for the author’s book(s), then a decrease in
price that resulted in an increase in income, or revenue, implies that the demand for her books
was price elastic.
Review Questions
4.1 Cross-price elasticity of demand equals the percentage change in quantity demanded of one good
divided by the percentage change in the price of another good. If the cross-price elasticity is
negative, then the goods are complements; if it is positive, then they are substitutes.
4.2 Income elasticity of demand equals the percentage change in the quantity demanded divided by
the percentage change in income. If the income elasticity is greater than 0, then the good is
normal; if it is less than 0, then the good is inferior. Goods with income elasticities between 0 and
1 are often called necessities; goods with income elasticities greater than 1 are often called
luxuries.
4.4 To find the cross-price elasticity, divide the percentage change in the quantity demanded of buns
by the percentage change in the price of hot dogs. At the initial price of buns ($1.20), the quantity
demanded rises from 10,000 to 12,000, which is the change in quantity demanded that should be
used.
12,000 10,000
Percentage change in the quantity demanded = 100 18.2%
11,000
$1.80 $2.20
Percentage change in the price of hot dogs = 100 20.0%
$2.00
18.2%
So, the cross-price elasticity = 0.91.
20.0%
Because the cross-price elasticity of demand is negative, we know these two goods are
complements.
4.5 (a) and (c) are substitutes, so the cross-price elasticities will be positive; (b) and (d) are
complements, so the cross-price elasticities will be negative.
4.6 a. On the basis of the information given, the cross-price elasticity of demand is negative
(everything else equal) because the percentage change in ridership on mass transit increased
(by 1 percent) at the same time that gasoline prices decreased (by 33 percent). If the cross-
price elasticity of demand between two products is negative the products are considered
complements.
b. Because during the same period–late 2014–unemployment was falling and more people used
private and public transportation to commute to work, it is likely that “everything else” was
not equal; in addition to the changes in the price of transportation there was a simultaneous
increase in the demand for transportation. So we cannot be sure of the value of the cross-price
elasticity of demand between gasoline and rides on mass transit, or even whether the value is
positive or negative.
4.7 (a) Bread, (b) Pepsi, (d) laptop computers, (c) Mercedes-Benz automobiles is the most likely
order. For normal goods that are considered necessities (such as food and clothing), their income
elasticity is positive and less than 1. For normal goods that are considered luxuries (such as laptop
computers and Mercedes-Benz automobiles), their income elasticity is positive and greater than 1.
The items are ranked from most necessary to most luxurious.
4.8 The more narrowly we define a market, the more price elastic demand will be. So if data for only
one brand of beer is used instead of multiple brands, demand for beer will likely be more elastic,
which may not be an accurate estimate of the price elasticity for beer as a product.
4.9 During recessions, falling consumer incomes can cause firms selling luxury goods (goods with an
income elasticity of demand greater than 1) to see their sales decrease the most. During
recessions, falling consumer incomes can cause firms selling inferior goods (goods with an
income elasticity of demand less than 1) to see their sales increase the most.
Review Questions
5.1 Increasing productivity in agriculture has brought about lower prices for food products as, over
time, increases in supply have dramatically outpaced increases in demand. Because the price
elasticity of demand for food is low, lower prices have not caused a large increase in quantity
demanded. The increase in incomes over time has not increased the demand for food much
because the income elasticity for food is low. Farmers, therefore, need to sell larger and larger
quantities of food at lower and lower prices to earn the same revenue. As a result, small farms are
no longer as profitable as they once were, and many people have abandoned farming to pursue
other occupations.
5.3 a. We can plug into the midpoint formula the values given for the price elasticity, the original
price of $3.00, and the new price of $3.70 (= $3.00 + $0.70):
Rearranging and writing out the expression for the percentage change in quantity demanded:
Q2 140 billion
0.11
140 Q
2
2
Because the price elasticity of demand for gasoline is low (0.55), a 21 percent increase in
price of gasoline leads to only about a 10 percent decline in gasoline consumption per year.
b. The federal government would collect an amount equal to the tax per gallon multiplied by the
number of gallons sold: $1 per gallon × 125.40 billion gallons = $125.4 billion.
c. The answers are similar to Solved Problem 6.5 on page 201. Even though demand for
gasoline is more elastic in the long run than in the short run, the elasticity is still relatively
low, so the decline in the quantity of gasoline demanded is relatively small, and the
government collects a relatively large amount of tax revenue.
5.4 For the government policy to be effective, the demand for bribes must be elastic. The more elastic
the demand curve, the more effective the policy will be. On the graph, the burden of corruption
before the policy is enacted is represented by the area 0Q1AP1. The burden of corruption after the
policy is enacted is represented by the area 0Q2BP2. In effect, this problem is applying the result
that a price increase will result in an increase in revenue if demand is inelastic but a decrease in
revenue if demand is elastic.
Price of S2
bribes
Burden of
corruption
after policy
S1
B Burden of
P2 corruption
before policy
A
P1
Demand
0 Q2 Q1 Quantity of bribes
5.5 His reasoning is correct: Because the demand for kumquats is elastic, a price increase resulting from
the implementation of a price floor will decrease the revenue received by kumquat producers.
5.6 Imposing a price ceiling causes the market quantity to decline from Q1 to Q2 and the price to
decline from P1 to PC. We measure the loss of efficiency by the deadweight loss. When demand is
elastic D2), the deadweight loss in the figure is A. When demand is inelastic (D1), the deadweight
loss is A + B. Therefore, the loss of economic efficiency from a price ceiling is greater when
demand is price inelastic.
Price
Supply
B
P1
A
Price ceiling
PC
Elastic
D2
Inelastic
Demand, D1
0 Q2 Q1 Quantity
Review Questions
6.1 The price elasticity of supply = (percentage change in quantity supplied)/(percentage change in
price). In this case, the elasticity of supply = 9%/10% = 0.9. The dividing point between elastic
and inelastic is 1.0, so the price elasticity of supply for frozen pizzas is inelastic.
6.2 The main determinant of the price elasticity of supply is time. The longer the time period, the
more firms are able to adjust the quantity they supply to a change in price. So, we would expect
that as the time period increases, the price elasticity of supply will increase. An exception to this
rule is products that require use of a resource that is in fixed supply, such as wine from a
particular region in France.
$110
P1
40
D4
D1 D3 D2
0 85 89 Quantity
(millions of barrels
per day)
b. The graph below shows that an increase in the supply of oil from S1 to S2 will result in a
smaller change in price when demand is relatively elastic (D2) than when demand is relatively
inelastic (D1). With the more inelastic demand curve (D1), the equilibrium price falls from
$110 to $47. With the more elastic demand curve (D2), the price only falls from $110 to P1.
Price S1 S2
(dollars
per
barrel)
$110
P1
47 D2
D1
0 85 89 Quantity
(millions of barrels
per day)
6.7 To find the price elasticity of supply, divide the percentage change in quantity supplied by
percentage change in price. In panel (a), the percentage change in quantity supplied =
1, 400 1, 200 $4 $2
100 15.4% , and the percentage change in price = 100 66.7% . So,
1,300 $3
15.4%
the price elasticity of supply = 0.23. In panel (b), the percentage change in quantity
66.7%
2,100 1,200
supplied = 100 54.5% , and the percentage change in price =
1,650
$2.50 $2.00 54.5%
100 22.2%. So, the price elasticity of supply = 2.45.
$2.25 22.2%
6.8 Because it can take years to attract skilled construction workers back to the area or to train new
workers, it is likely that the supply of housing in Denver will be considerably more elastic in the
long run than in the short run. The following graph illustrates this point by comparing the market
for housing in the short run (S2014), when supply is relatively inelastic, and for a longer time
period (S 2018), when supply is more elastic. The graph shows that, holding other factors constant,
an increase in demand from D1 to D2 increases the price of housing from P1 to P2 when supply is
inelastic in the short run, but only from P1 to P3 when supply is more elastic in the long run. The
price increase will be lower the longer the period of time the market has to adjust to a given
increase in demand.
Price
S2014
S2018
P2
P3
P1
D2
D1
Quantity of
houses in Denver
6.9 a. The increase in demand for roses on Valentine’s Day causes the price to increase from $1 to
$2.
b. Based on this information, we don’t know much about the price elasticity of demand for
roses. The demand curve has shifted, so the rise in the quantity of roses demanded is not
caused by the rise in their price—and we can’t calculate the price elasticity of demand. We
have a movement along the supply curve, so we can calculate the price elasticity of supply for
roses.
6.10 a. Price elasticity of supply is the percentage change in the quantity supplied divided by the
percentage change in price. In this case, the percentage change in supply is always zero,
because the quantity supplied by the university does not change in response to changes in
demand, so the price elasticity of supply is 0.
b. As shown in the following graph, when the demand curve for basketball tickets shifts from
D1 to D2, the equilibrium price increases from $15 to $20, but there is no change in the
equilibrium quantity.
Price S
(dollars
per ticket)
$20
15
D2
D1
15,000 Quantity
(tickets per game)
c. One determinant of price elasticity of supply is the period of time. Over a longer period of
time, supply is more price elastic. So, although the supply curve for basketball tickets is
perfectly inelastic in the short run, it is possible that over time State University could build a
larger basketball arena with more seats to accommodate more fans.
“The black breast (horned lark) sings in the air: ‘Spread out your
blanket and I will light upon it.’
“We call the bird that chatters among the bushes, when women are
gathering berries, ‘stingy-with-their-berries’ (kingbird). A bird with
long legs and black breast (spotted sandpiper) we call ‘shadow-in-
the-water,’ because it stands in shallow water and looks at its own
shadow.
“My father taught me how to read the future, by watching the flights
of birds and the habits of wild animals. Of all the birds, we look upon
the raven as the wisest. When I see one soaring over our camp, I
know a messenger is coming from a distance. If two ravens sit near
a trail with their heads close together, it is a sign an enemy is near.
On a hunt, if I see a flock of ravens playing together, I go in that
direction and am sure to find game.
“My father told me how to read the signs in the sky—if the sun paints
his face (sun dogs), a big storm is coming; when the ‘fires of the
northmen’ (aurora) show in the sky, a heavy wind is coming; a
‘feeding star’ (comet), is a sign of famine and sickness; and if the
sun hides his face (eclipse), a great chief is about to die. The
rainbow is the ‘lariat’; it is the Thunder roping the rain; and the storm
will slow up.” [228]
Calendar of Moons
“Last of December and early January, ‘moon of the first warm wind’
(chinook).
“March, ‘moon of sore eyes,’ or ‘moon when the geese fly north.’
“The spring moon has different names—‘time when the trees are budding,’
‘when buffalo calves are yellow,’ ‘when the buffalo plant is in flower,’ ‘when
the grass begins to grow.’
“Late June and July, ‘moon of flowers,’ ‘when strawberries get ripe.’
“Last of October and early November, ‘moon when the geese fly south.’
“My father used to sit by the lodge-fire on long winter evenings and tell us
stories and the wonderful things that happened in his life. He told about
the Stars and the Sun and the Moon, saying:
The Bunched Stars
“There is a family of small stars in the sky; we call them Bunched Stars.
They are some children that got lost from an Indian camp on the plains
long ago.
“This happened in the spring, the moon when the buffalo [229]calves are
yellow. Some hunters were driving buffalo over a cliff. When they went
back to camp, they gave the little yellow skins of the buffalo calves to their
children, who wore them in playing.
“There was a poor family in the camp, whose children did not get any of
the calfskins; and the others made fun of them.
“Then the poor children were ashamed, because they were not dressed
like the others. They ran away from the camp and got lost on the plains.
They had no place to go, so they went up to the sky. We know they are the
Bunched Stars (Pleiades), because they never show themselves in the
spring—the time buffalo calves are yellow. But, in the fall, when the calves
are brown, you can see the Bunched Stars in the sky every night.”
“There is a constellation in the north sky we call the Seven Stars. They
belonged to a family of nine children, two girls and seven boys. The oldest
girl had many suitors, but she would not marry. She went every day into
the forest to gather wood.
“One day her little sister followed; and when they were in the forest
together, the older girl left her and went off alone. She stayed a long while
and came back with her clothes covered with earth and leaves. The
younger girl said to herself: ‘There is something my sister does when she
goes alone; and now I shall find out.’ Next day she followed secretly; she
saw her sister having a good time with a big grizzly bear; and came home
and told her father.
“Then the father was angry. He said to his oldest daughter: ‘Now I know
why you do not marry any of our young men; you have a grizzly bear for
your lover.’
“He went through the camp and called to the people: ‘I have a grizzly bear
for a son-in-law; he waits near by in the [230]forest; let us all go forth and
kill him.’ So they went out and killed him.
“Then the girl stood by the body of her bear lover and mourned. His spirit
came to her in a dream and bestowed his supernatural power upon her.
After that she wore a piece of his skin for a charm and could do wonderful
things.
“One day she suddenly changed herself into a big grizzly bear. She went
through the camp and killed all the people; she spared only her little
brother and sister. And the three of them lived together. But all this time
the six older brothers were away on the warpath.
“One day the little sister went to the river with her water pails and met the
brothers coming home from war. She told them about Bear-Skin-Woman
—how she had killed all the people and would surely kill them too.
“Then the brothers planned to save their little brother and sister. They
gathered prickly pears and scattered them in the dark, leaving only a
narrow path from the tepee. That night the two children ran away in the
dark and joined their waiting brothers by the river.
“As soon as Bear-Skin-Woman knew they had gone, she turned herself
into a grizzly bear and followed them. But the prickly pears got into her
feet and she had to stop to pull them out.
“It turned out that the little brother, whose name was Body Chief, was a
medicine man with great power. He carried a bow with magical arrows and
wore an eagle feather in his hair. When he heard their bear sister coming,
he took his feather and made a lake between them and the bear; again he
made a thicket to hold her back; and another time they all climbed into a
tree.
“When the bear came to the tree, she said: ‘Now where can you go? I am
going to kill all of you.’
“She climbed into the tree and knocked six of the brothers [231]down; only
Body Chief and his little sister were left. Then a little bird lighted in the tree
near Body Chief and sang:
“ ‘Shoot her in the top-knot.
Shoot her in the top-knot.
You must shoot the top of her head.’
“By this time the bear was near Body Chief, so he took one of his magical
arrows and shot her. She fell dead, and Body Chief came down from the
tree.
“Now six of the brothers were dead. But Body Chief shot six of his arrows
into the air. Each time he brought a brother back to life, until they were all
alive again.
“Then Body Chief said: ‘Now what shall we do? Our relatives and friends
are all dead and we have no place to go.’
“The oldest brother said: ‘Let us go to the sky and become seven stars in
the north. Then people will always know that the morning comes from us.’
“So Body Chief took one of his eagle feathers. He waved it over his head,
and the brothers went up to the sky one after the other. They took the
same places they had in the tree, with the four oldest at the bottom. Body
Chief, the medicine man, is the end star in the constellation, and their little
sister the small star at one side. Every night you can see the brothers
move around the sky, until their heads are up in the morning. And that is
how the Seven Stars (Ursa Major) came to be.”
Our last evening in the North Piegan camp many Indians came to
visit. So we gathered logs and built up the fire, until the flames
lighted up our white tepees and the surrounding woods.
“The things I am going to tell you happened long ago, long before we
had the Sun Dance; when our people used stone weapons and had
dogs instead of horses for beasts of burden.
Star Boy
“It was a night in early summer. The sky was clear and a warm wind blew
over the prairies. Two sisters were sleeping on the grass outside their
father’s lodge. The youngest, whose name was Feather Woman, wakened
before daybreak and saw Morning Star rising from the prairie. For a while
she watched this wonderful star; and she talked to him as if he were her
lover. At last she woke her sister and said: ‘See Morning Star! He is
beautiful and must be very wise. I want him for my husband.’
“This happened in the spring. In the ‘moon when leaves [233]were turning
yellow,’ the sister who loved the star found herself with child. The people
learned her secret and taunted her until she wanted to die.
“One day, at the time when geese were flying south, Feather Woman went
alone to the river for water. On her way back to camp, a young man met
her in the trail. He stood in her way and she said:
“ ‘Why do you want to head me off? None of the young men have ever
bothered me before.’
“And he answered: ‘I am Morning Star. One night in spring you took me for
your husband. Now I have come from the sky to take you to the lodge of
my father and mother, the Sun and Moon. We shall be together and you
will have no more trouble.’
“Then the girl remembered that night in the early summer and knew
Morning Star was the father of her child. He wore a yellow plume in his
hair and held a juniper branch with a spider-web hanging from one end.
He was tall and straight and his hair was long and shining. His beautiful
clothes were of soft-tanned skins; and had a fragrance of pine and sweet
grass.
“She wanted to tell her father and mother; but Morning Star allowed her to
speak to no one. He fastened his plume in her hair and told her to close
her eyes. He gave her the branch with the spider-web to hold; and thus
she was drawn up to the sky. When she opened her eyes, she was
standing with Morning Star before a large lodge. He said: ‘This is the
home of my father and mother, the Sun and Moon.’
“It was daytime and the Sun was away on his long journey, but the Moon
was at home. Morning Star said to his mother: ‘I saw this girl asleep on the
prairie; I loved her and she is now my wife.’
“Then the Moon was glad and took the girl into their lodge. She gave her a
dress of soft-tanned deerskin, trimmed [234]with elk teeth, wristlets of elk
teeth, and an elkskin robe, and said: ‘I give you these because you
married our son.’
“So Feather Woman lived with Morning Star in the home of the Sun. She
was happy and learned many wonderful things. When her child was born,
they called him Star Boy; then the Moon gave her a sacred root-digger,
saying:
“ ‘It is used only by good women; with it you can dig all kinds of roots; but
do not dig up the big turnip that grows near the home of the Spider Man.’
“Everywhere Feather Woman went, she carried the root-digger and Star
Boy. She often looked at the big turnip, but was afraid to touch it. But one
day she felt curious to see what was underneath; she thought how strange
was the warning of her mother-in-law, the Moon.
“She laid Star Boy on the ground and started to dig; but the root-digger
stuck fast. Two large cranes came flying from the east; and she called on
them for help. The man-crane stood on one side, his wife on the other. He
took the turnip in his long bill and moved it slowly backwards and
forwards. They chanted four songs in the four directions. Then they pulled
up the turnip; and Feather Woman saw a hole in the sky.
“She looked down to the earth, and saw the prairies and rivers, the
meadows and lodges of her people. For a long time she sat watching the
familiar scenes; women tanning skins and making lodges, gathering
berries on the hills and crossing the meadows to and fro for water. It made
her unhappy and she began to cry. She felt lonely and wanted to go back
to her own people on the prairies.
“Then Feather Woman returned to the lodge of the Sun. As soon as she
entered, Morning Star saw she was unhappy and said:
“ ‘Alas! You have dug up the sacred turnip.’ And, when [235]she made no
reply, the Moon said: ‘I warned you, because I did not want to lose Star
Boy.’
“Nothing more was said, because the Sun Chief was still away on his long
journey through the sky. In the evening when he came home, he said:
“Feather Woman answered: ‘Yes, I looked down to the earth and feel
homesick for my people.’
“Then the Sun God was angry and said to Morning Star: ‘She has
disobeyed and must go back to the earth. She can no longer be happy
with us.’
“After that Morning Star took Feather Woman to the home of the Spider
Man, whose long web had drawn her up to the sky. He laid Star Boy on
her breast and wrapped them both in the elkskin robe; he bade them
farewell and let them down to the earth.
“This happened in midsummer, the time ‘when berries were ripe.’ In the
Blackfoot camp many people were outside their lodges, watching a crowd
of young men play a game of rolling the wheel. Suddenly they beheld
something coming down from the sky. And when they came to the place
where the bundle lay, they saw the woman and her baby.
“They took her to her father’s lodge and she lived there. But after that she
was not happy. She used to go alone to the summit of a hill and mourn for
her husband. One night she slept on the hill; and, at daybreak, when
Morning Star rose over the prairies, she begged him to take her back.
“Before Feather Woman died, she told all these things to her father and
mother. Then the grandparents of Star Boy died, and he was left alone in
the camp. He was so poor he had no clothes, not even moccasins to wear.
He did not play with other children; they made fun of him and stoned him.
Whenever the tribe moved camp, he had to walk barefoot [236]behind the
rest of the people. He had a ridge-scar on his face; and they called him
Scarface.
Scarface
“Then Scarface was ashamed and went away from the camp. He
wandered alone; he fasted, and prayed to the birds and wild animals for
power. Finally an eagle took him to the home of a wise old woman. She
asked him why he traveled so far, and he replied: ‘Because of this, my
scar.’
“Then the old woman said: ‘Ah, yes, I know, I understand. You must go to
the place where the sun sets, beyond the mountains and down the other
side, to the big water. There you must wait, for you will be near the home
of the Sun. In the evening he comes home to his lodge; and before dawn
his only son, the Morning Star, comes out. He will tell you how to live.’
“The old medicine woman pitied Scarface and gave him food to eat, and
moccasins to wear, for his feet were torn and bleeding. Then he left her
and traveled again, across the mountains and down the other side, until
he came at last to the shore of the big water. There it was so hot he knew
he was near the lodge of the Sun. So he lay down and waited.
“In the early morning a young man with a beautiful face came forth. It was
Morning Star. He saw Scarface and said:
“ ‘Brother, I shall hide you. Soon my father, the Sun, will appear and would
kill you. In the morning he comes from his lodge and starts on his long
journey through the sky.’ [237]
“So Morning Star hid Scarface. And after the Sun had gone, he took him
to his mother, the Moon, and said:
“ ‘I want this fellow for my comrade. He has come a long way and I ask you
to pity him.’
“The Moon answered: ‘Wait until your father comes home to-night; I am
afraid he won’t allow the young man to stay.’
“That evening, as soon as the Sun entered the lodge, he said to his wife:
‘Whew! Old woman, I smell a human here.’
“And the Moon replied: ‘Yes, your son has a chum hidden yonder.’
“Then the Sun would have killed Scarface, but the Moon interceded and
saved his life. Morning Star burned juniper and sweet grass. He put
Scarface in the sweet-smelling smoke; and after that the Sun allowed him
to stay in the lodge.
“Thus Scarface became the comrade of Morning Star; and the two young
men went everywhere together. On one of their trips, some huge birds
with sharp bills attacked Morning Star. They would have killed him, but
Scarface cut off all their heads and saved his life. Four of the heads he
gave to the Sun and three to the Moon. Then the Sun praised Scarface.
He said he was a chief and gave him a war shirt, which was trimmed with
scalps and ermine and with leggings to match. On each legging the Sun
made seven black lines to represent the seven enemies he had killed.
Because of this our warriors have always painted their leggings with the
number of enemies they kill in battle.
“ ‘A girl said she would not marry me until my scar was healed.’
“When it was time for Scarface to leave the sky and return to the earth, the
Sun gave him power to heal the sick. He told him about the Sun Dance
and taught him the songs and prayers, saying: ‘It must be given in
midsummer, when my power is greatest. If a virtuous woman makes a vow
to the Sun and gives this ceremony sacred to me, the sick will be restored
to health.’
“At parting, Morning Star showed Scarface the Wolf Trail (Milky Way), the
short path across the sky to the earth. He gave him a magic flute and a
song with which to charm the girl he loved. So Scarface left the home of
the Sun and returned to the earth. He brought the Sun Dance to the
Indians and power to heal the sick. Then he was taken back to the sky
and became another Morning Star, just like his father.”
“I remember another time years ago, when these two stars rose close
together in the early morning before the sun; also when I was a boy, I
remember my father waking me one morning when we were going on a
journey, saying: ‘Get up, my son! Morning Star and Star Boy are rising
over the prairie. Day will soon dawn and it is time we were off.’
“Sometimes these two stars separate and travel alone through the sky. I
have also seen them together in the evening sky, going down after the
sun. Now they are together in the morning. You can see them before
dawn. Scarface comes up first, his father soon after, and then his
grandfather, the Sun.”
When the old chief ended his talk, no one spoke for a while, because of
the magic of his words and the spell of the [239]night. Suddenly a bright
meteor flashed across the heavens and burst into a shower of sparks near
the horizon. Some of the Indians thought it an evil omen. But Brings-
Down-the-Sun said:
“That falling star is a sign a great chief has just died—a man who had a
good heart and lived a straight life. The Sun God is all-powerful; he sees
everything and watches over every one.
“And now our story-telling is ended, for the dogs have separated, having
had their evening meal.”
In the east were the two bright morning stars in conjunction, Star Boy
and his father, the planets Jupiter and Venus. Star Boy (Jupiter)
came up first, and was followed by Morning Star.
The first birds were chirping in the thickets and from the hills came
the wailing cries of bands of coyotes. Soon a rosy glow spread over
the Rocky Mountains, over the snow-capped [240]peaks and the
forests of the lower slopes. By the time I found our horses, the sun
itself came up and flooded the prairies with light.
Soks-kinne was a handsome stallion with silvery mane and tail, the
fastest race horse of the North Piegans. What a chest he had! Long
legs and brightest of eyes. The old chief cared for him as for an old
and faithful friend. But he led his horse forth and gave him to us.
“My son, I give you my ‘everyday’ pipe—the one I have smoked for
many years. Keep it as a remembrance of your Indian father. My
heart feels heavy because you are going; and I shall be lonely every
time I see your deserted camp-ground. Never have I gone into
another camp to talk day after day as I have with you.”
Then he shook hands; and, as I turned to go, the old chief gazed
towards the rising sun and prayed:
As we left the valley for the open plains, I turned in the saddle for a
last look, and saw Brings-Down-the-Sun with bowed head, going
along the trail to his lodge, leading his horse and followed by his old
dog, Kops-ksisse. [241]
[Contents]
CHAPTER XXXIV
BEGINNING OF THE SUN DANCE
The Blackfoot Indians did not have a personal God. They looked to
the Sun as the source of all power, believing he was everywhere—in
the mountains, lakes and rivers, birds and wild animals. They
believed that Sun Power could be transferred to man. Any one might
be the favored person; an individual was powerless to gain it, but he
could put himself in the way of receiving the gift.
Mad Wolf, my Indian father, and his wife were the givers of a Sun
Dance. One day in the early summer, I rode Kutenai, my saddle
horse, across the prairie to attend their opening ceremony. When I
came to a long ridge-like summit that led down to his camp, I
dismounted to rest and view the landscape.
In the wide and grassy valleys were herds of fat horses and cattle.
Sharp against the western horizon stood the snowy peak of Divide
Mountain, where two continental divides meet, and the rocky summit
of a mountain called “Chief” by the Indians, because it stands apart
and is higher than the other peaks. It was evening and the hills and
mountains were bathed in the rosy light of sunset. On all sides I
heard the sweet sounds of prairie birds—the Western meadowlark
and lark sparrow and the serene and exalted song of the willow
thrush.
But the dogs of Mad Wolf’s camp soon broke the spell; they got wind
of the approaching white man and began an incessant barking. So I
leaped into the saddle and rode down to his camp.
When I entered the lodge, the chief and his wife Gives-to-the-Sun
were seated together at the back, their heads bowed in prayer. He
looked at me with his keen glance, then shook hands and, directing
me to a seat on a couch, said: [243]