Abstract
The general impression that “the trusts turned out ill,” 68.— The contrary conclusion that the proportion of success was high, 68.— I. A broad conclusion based on an examination of more than 400 companies of the 1900 era, 70.— A primary and a secondary group, 73.— The proportion of business successes above one-half, 76.— II. Earnings on capitalization of a selected sample of mergers compared with Epstein's figures, 78.— III. “Watered stock” not a prevalent phenomenon in the group, 83. — The opposite tendency recently toward undercapitalization, 84.— IV. Reasons for the success of 150 mergers, 87.— Managerial resourcefulness the principal cause, 88.— Reappraisal of the merger era necessary, 89.