ts Acquired Total
Date Number or Controlled Nominal Capital

Jan. 1, 1904 318 5288 $7,246,000,000

These figures compared with those given above would indicate that the
industrial trusts had about doubled in the years 1900-1903 inclusive.
Probably most of this growth was in the years 1900 and 1901; then the
movement became very slow, because, as is generally believed, of
the aroused public opinion, of more vigorous prosecution by the
government, and of additional legislation against trusts. The
authority last cited gives in a more comprehensive list, in six
groups, all the monopolistic combinations in the United States, at
the date of January 1, 1904, as follows (the figures just given above
being the totals of the first three groups):

No. of Plants Total Nominal
Groups Number Acquired or Controlled Capital

1. Greater industrial
trusts 7 1528 $2,260,000,000
2. Lesser industrial
trusts 298 3426 4,055,000,000
3. Other industrial
trusts in process
of reorganization
or readjustment 13 334 528,000,000
4. Franchise trusts 111 1336 3,735,000,000
5. Great steam
railroad groups 6 790 9,017,000,000
6. Allied independent 10 250 380,000,000
--- ----- --------------
Total, 445 8664 $20,000,000,000

Sec. 11. #Motive to avoid competition.# This remarkable movement toward
the formation of united corporations from formerly independent
enterprises called forth a variety of explanations. The organizers of
trusts gave as the first explanation of their action that it was the
necessary result of excessive competition. It is not to be denied
that a hard fight and lower prices often preceded the formation of
the trusts. But as this excessive competition usually is begun for the
very purpose of forcing others into a combination, this explanation
is a begging of the question. It is fallacious also in that it ignores
the marginal principle in the problem of profits. Profits are never
the same in all factories, and to those manufacturers that are on the
margin competition