ELASTICITY OF SUPPLY AS A DETERMINANT OF DISTRIBUTION 83
increases from 50.0 to 50.5 units per hour and the number of
man hours offered from 1000 to 1010, then
1010—1000 10 ’
1600

50.5—50.0
50.0

50.0 100
This then is unit elasticity where a change of one percent in
price is accompanied by a change of one percent of quantity
offered. If the quantity decreased by one percent as the price
increased by one percent, it would be unit negative elasticity.
If however the number of man hours were only to increase
to 1005, then the elasticity would be
5 L

1000

100.0

5

500 100
while if the supply of labor increased to 1020, then
20 2

31700

nn

)

500 100

There is indeed but one important difference between the measurement
 of supply schedules and those of demand. By far the
major portion of all demand schedules are negatively inclined.
Unit elasticity here is identical with a constant outlay, the change
in price being commensurate with an opposite change in quantity
demanded so that the total price area is constant. In the case
of elasticities greater than unity, an increase in price causes a
lesser price area while a decreased price leads to a greater outlay.
The reverse situation holds when the elasticities are less than
unity. These relations hold in the case of negative supply
* Most economists reason as though all demand curves must be negatively
 inclined, but this is not necessarily so.