Mr. Robson has written an authoritative book on The Development
of Local Government (George Allen and Unwin, 12s. 6d.). Few people, perhaps, realize the immense import- ance of local government in our modern community. Suffice it to say that something like one-ninth of the whole of the national income is dispensed by load authorities in this country. Again, in many towns no less than 10 per cent. of the total population is employed by the Town Councils in one capacity or another. Mr. Robson's book is partly historical, partly descriptive. In the early chapters he traces the growth of the British local government system out of the chaos which almost proved disastrous to the nation in the opening of the industrial era. Mr. Robson is a fervent admirer of our present system of local government, and certainly when we compare it with the disastrous state of affairs which it has superseded, we see that it has great benefits. It may be questioned, however, whether the new industrial revolution which is certainly upon us is not raising problems so complex as to put a tax on our present local government system so severe that it cannot meet it without drastic reform. Probably Mr. Robson would agree to this himself.
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