ENGINEERING IN INDUSTRIAL WORKS 263 



allied interests, those whose directorate to a large extent 

 may have been identical, have exchanged information regard- 

 ing common problems. In the United States, the Edison 

 electric illuminating companies have long maintained a society 

 for the specific purpose of effecting such exchanges; the fruits 

 of the work being (nominally at least) not for the benefit of 

 outsiders. More lately, interests which, while not allied, 

 were at least noncompetitive, have found it to their advantage 

 to confer with one another — principally, perhaps, with regard 

 to the purchase of machinery — so that at present it is quite 

 common for a firm to answer dozens of letters weekly from 

 parties who have been referred to them regarding their experi- 

 ence. 



Still more recent is the development of a practice of ex- 

 change of information between competitive enterprises. A 

 striking example is in the well known American railway asso- 

 ciations, in which the motive power men meet yearly with 

 the full sanction and approval of their respective roads, and 

 confer freely with their business rivals regarding economical 

 methods of railroading. In other fields, too, the same prac- 

 tice is being followed with success. Even two adjoining 

 manufacturers — keen competitors for certain lines of trade — 

 will confer, with no intention or desire to agree upon prices, 

 but simply to compare notes regarding troublesome details of 

 the business. There is safety in this, as no man can have an 

 absolutely certain knowledge of his own costs, nor proof 

 positive that his customer may not be deceiving him. An 

 opportunity for competitors to compare may be of mutual 

 benefit in giving to the one information that will prevent him 

 from making an unprofitable quotation, and for the other 

 obviating the necessity of meeting an unprofitable quotation 

 in order to retain the business. In the development of a 

 spirit of co-operation such as has thus become prevalent, the 

 examples of the engineers' societies and of the personality of 

 their membership have played no small part. In the ulti- 

 mate fruits of this development it is probable that the engineer 

 will be a leading figure. 



