Ax INDISPENSABLE INDUSTRY.
It has been said that threatened men live long, and the remark might truly be applied to certain industries. There was a time when with the advent of electricity, holders of Gas stocks were beset with fears as to the possible consequences, some, indeed, saying that the old industry was doomed. So far from events having justified these apprehensions, the reverse has been true, and the gas industry as a whole was probably never more alive than it is to-day. For this fact, however, I cannot help thinking that there is at least one fairly good explanation quite apart from the merits -.of the industry itself. I believe the main explanation to lie in the fact that the directors of this industry from the moment that the formidable competitor entered the field bent all their energies to the task which was before them, and their efforts have been rewarded possibly to an extent which they had scarcely dared to hope. I cannot help thinking that in this explanation lies a very important lesson for the country as a whole, for there was probably never a time when England was more up' against adverse factors than to-day ; but it is good to know that there are now signs of these trying conditions calling out increased effort to deal with the situation, and efficiency on the part of Governments and people.
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