in January, 1901, had a market value on December 31, 1922, of $15,422—an increase of over 50 percent. The total income received from them was $19,781, averaging a shade less than 9 per cent., as compared with 4 per cent. on the bonds, and the total advantage on the side of the shares, capital increase and extra income together, was $16,401. And this is on the assumption, probably highly flattering to them, that there had been no decline in the prices of the bonds in a period during which the biggest war that ever happened had raised the rate of interest on gilt-edged securities.
It was to be expected that in this period, 1901-22, ordinary shares would be a more profitable investment than bonds, because it was a time of rising commodity prices and interest rates and of feverish industrial activity. Mr. Smith, while freely admitting this, maintains that "regularity of income in this first test was maintained through two severe industrial depressions and the greatest war in history." In claiming regularity of income, however, he seems rather to strain the meaning of the word, as is shown by his own very clear statement year by year of the cash income received from the shares. For the first year it was just over 8.2 per cent., and it went on as follows year by year: 5.9, 5.6, 5.1, 7, 10, 8.8,
