"Trusts of Today."

In "Trusts of Today," recently published by McClure, Phillips & Co., Mr. G. H. Montague 3L. has made a valuable contribution to the understanding of the trust problem: The book differs from some others in the same field in being concise, clear and interesting. At the same time satisfactory authoritativeness is given to the positions of the author by many and exact references to representative present day combinations. The defect of the work is its brevity: Many of the subjects touched upon we should like to see more exhaustively discussed; especially by an author showing such balance and insight.

After a brief sketch of the history of industrial combinations in the United States. Mr. Montague shows that the "trust problem" resolves itself into this: If the trusts deserve to live the savings of combinations must be found real and legitimate; and the evils flowing either from the mere fact of monopoly or from the particular form assumed by existing combinations must be shown to be self-corrective or capable of correction by statute. Then attempting the solution of this problem, the author brings forward evidence tending to show that most trusts have not raised prices and have assembled sufficient economies to compose an advantage over the competing concerns which they supplant. Politically most of the evils of monopoly carry with them their own cure. Yet two evils--railway discrimination and overcapitalization -- stand out as not self corrective. The remainder of the book is devoted to a careful discussion of proposed statutory or common law remedies for these evils.

"Trusts of Today," Gilbert Holland Montague. New York, 1904. McClure, Phillips & Co. $1.20 net.