420 SECTIONAL TRANSACTIONS.—F, F*. 
adjusted to requirements, though for the purpose of our examination correct adjust- 
ment may be assumed. Analysis reveals that from the producer’s point of view the 
count against unconscious control is serious ; the consumer is to-day only indirectly 
and much less seriously affected, so that the problem of varying yields can be con- 
sidered in the main as a producer’s problem. Further examination indicates that, 
under a wide range of conditions, producers themselves can, in theory, hold the surplus 
of a bumper crop until the compensatory crop deficiency at less cost to themselves 
than by allowing merchants and speculators to do so. In practice, however, stock- 
holding by producers involves war to the knife with the merchantsand speculators, 
and this results in many difficult problems of operating technique ; moreover, the 
producers are faced with the great temptation to try and make the consumer pay in 
the short-period for the costs of the operation. Given resistance to this temptation 
and the evolution of asatisfactory technique, there appears to be a strong probability 
that such conscious control schemes would be an improvement from the producer’s 
point of view, though their difficulties cannot be completely solved. 
In the short period, there is also the problem of temporary fluctuations in demand, 
and the count against unconscious control is here again serious. A temporary con- 
traction of demand can with advantage be met by concerted action on the part of 
producers, provided that such action does not interfere with current long-period adjust- 
ments in respect of productive capacity ; this is not an insurmountable difficulty, 
though the technique of operating such controls again presents most difficult problems. 
On the other hand, from the point of view of securing a greater measure of stability, 
control by producers to counter a temporary contraction in demand should be accom- 
panied by control to counter temporary expansions in demand, i.e. by schemes for 
the maintenance of reserve stocks, or reserve producing capacity. No such form 
of control has yet been attempted, for though the boom which results from a sudden 
increase in demand is often a boomerang for the producer, yet the opportunity of 
squeezing the consumer means large profits here and now, and is usually irresistible. 
Therefore, since the only alternative, namely control by the consumer in his own 
interests, is usually impossibly difficult to organise, it seems probable that conscious 
control to meet the short-period variations of demand will remain one-sided until 
producers learn the merits of a more long-sighted attitude. Nevertheless, both 
producers and consumers may find even such incomplete conscious control more 
advantageous than laissez-faire. 
Wednesday, September 30. 
Prof. H. Srantey Jevons.—The British Steel Industry. 
Mr. P. Forp.—The Southampton * Booth’ Industrial Survey. 
DEPARTMENT OF INDUSTRIAL CO-OPERATION (F*). 
Thursday, September 24. 
Discussion on The Aims, Methods and Progress of Research into Manage- 
ment Problems. (Chairman: Mr. B. 8. Rowntree, C.H.) :— 
Major L. Urwicx.—International Position. 
Sir Horace Witson, K.C.B., C.B.E.— British Position. 
Dr. H. 8. Person.—American Position. 
Dr. Hettmuts Botier.—Austrian Position. 
—o 
