instance, the lesser capitalists have already disappeared. There remain only five or six huge firms, shareholding companies, producing nearly all the commodities in these particular branches of enterprise. They are carrying on a cut-throat, competition; they lower prices, and consequently make smaller profits. Let us now suppose that two of these concerns are larger and stronger than the others. Then these two will continue the struggle until their rivals have been ruined. Let us further suppose that the strength of the two remaining competitors is practically identical; they work on a similar scale, they have the same sort of machinery, and they both employ about the same number of workers; there is no notable difference between them as regards the net cost of production. What will happen then? Neither can gain the victory; both are being exhausted by the struggle; neither of them is making any profit. The capitalist groups draw the same conclusion. Why, they ask themselves, should we go on cutting prices against one another? Would it not be better for us to unite, to join forces in order to fleece the public? If we combine, there will be no more competition; we shall control the market, and we can force up prices to any figure we please.
Thus arises the combine, the league of capitalists, known as the syndicate or trust. The syndicate is distinguished from the trust in this way. When, a syndicate is organised, the participating concerns agree that they will not sell their wares below a specified price; or they agree to share out the orders; or they agree to a territorial division of the market (you confine your sales to one district, and I will confine mine to another); and so on. In this arrangement, however, the management of the syndicate is not entitled to close down any of the undertakings; these are all members of a league in which each retains a certain measure of independence. In the trust, on the other hand, there is so