118 COMMERCE AND EXCHANGE 



the fear of their monopoly. It has, therefore, been immensely 

 stimulated by the formation of great consolidated corporations and 

 by the increased use of holding companies, stock syndicates, and 

 harmony-of -interest arrangements. 



With respect to raw materials which are readily reproducible, 

 like wheat, cotton, and wool, the policy of our manufacturers is 

 not to own and manage agricultural and other industries. But the 

 tendency is increasingly shown to pass by the great primary or 

 terminal markets and the visible supply points on which raw 

 materials were formerly secured, and purchase upon the remote 

 local markets at which they first appear in commerce. There are 

 several reasons to account for this. 



In the first place, the imperfect and unorganized condition of 

 many raw-material markets has forced it. The effort of our manu- 

 facturers to produce finer products, coupled with the increased value 

 of materials and the closer specialization of processes, has compelled 

 a sharper scrutiny of the supplies they purchase to secure purity 

 and uniformity. The offering to manufacturers of poorly graded 

 and mixed lots of materials has necessitated the substitution of 

 professional for amateur local buyers, as in the case of wool. A 

 poorly housed and protected product coming onto the market, water- 

 soaked and stained, as often happens with our cotton, has favored 

 direct shipments as opposed to the passage of materials through 

 several markets with their delays. The agriculturalist is with^great 

 difficulty able to take initiative for the improvement of these condi- 

 tions by commercial organization. As Professor L. H. Bailey has 

 said, " The farmer reacts so slowly to changes in his environment 

 that after all other businesses have become adjusted, he is still 

 out of harmony with commercial conditions. Collective or cooper- 

 ative movement among the agricultural classes is difficult, because of 

 the lack of common interests. Farming is not one occupation, but 

 many occupations." The American farmer has furthermore been 

 engrossed in other things than the adjustment of markets. He 

 has had laid upon his shoulders the great task of finding out the 

 physical capabilities of a new country. Each region, climate, slope, 

 and soil has required countless experiments to explore. A stu- 

 pendous investment of labor and capital has been and is being made 

 in these experiments, the results of which will be enjoyed to remote 

 generations. 



A second force drawing the manufacturer into the raw-material 

 market is connected with the financing of the products of agricul- 

 ture. The farmer is hampered by lack of ready money. The period 

 of his turn-over is long; the fixed capital is large in proportion to 

 the circulating. A considerable part of the spare money he has had 

 has been attracted to investment in land. The statistics of un : m- 



