British Investment Trusts, by Mr. Leland L. Robinson, American Trade Commissioner in London, says that "fully one-quarter of the investment trusts have been remarkably successful," which shows very clearly that the purchase of their securities is not a thing to be done with one's eyes shut, and makes one wonder why the proportion of professional success, on an apparently not too difficult job, should have been so low. Perhaps there is a temptation to think that diversification is all that matters, whereas without skill and care it is useless. With skill and care it works wonders. Mr. Robinson gives a most interesting analysis of the highly successful career of the Edinburgh Investment Trust, which began with a dividend of 8 per cent. on its deferred stock for 1890, came down gradually to 2 per cent. for 1895 and 1896, and since then has gone ahead steadily to 20 per cent. in 1916, and now pays a dividend of 12 per cent. on a deferred capital more than doubled by the capitalization of reserves. It has in all distributed to its deferred shareholders £278,000 of deferred stock, £64,000 in debentures and £58,000 in preferred stock.
It is a wonderful record of success, and this is not the most successful of the Scottish Trusts in the matter of past record, its career having
