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New York Times Annalist

Fig. 244. Average per Capita in the United States of Total Savings-bank Deposits

At first glance the impression is that Americans are growing rich very rapidly. Yet total deposits per capita have not doubled in the sixteen years shown. If the bottom line of the chart were at the zero of the vertical scale, an entirely different impression would be given. See Fig. 245

At numerous places throughout this book criticisms have been made of curves and charts in which no zero hne for the vertical scale was shown on the chart. Though this subject has been mentioned elsewhere it seems best to show here a few examples on the same general argument. In Fig. 244 the first glance impression that savings-banks deposits have increased with great rapidity is not entirely confirmed when it is noticed that the lefthand scale does not begin anywhere near zero. It is nearly always possible to make a chart so that the zero of the vertical scale will show. Usually, of course, the zero line is at the bottom of the chart unless there are negative quantities so that the curve crosses over the zero line and extends below it. In all cases the zero line can be made a heavy line. If the curve should extend below the zero line the width of the zero line should be ' so great that the reader will be certain to interpret the chart from the zero line rather than from the bottom line of the chart itself.