CONDITIONS IN PARTICULAR INDUSTRIES. . 217
works of the Bedson Wire Co. In 1902 a complete union of the
interests of Dorman, Long &amp; Co. (Ltd.) and Bell Bros. (Ltd.) was
2ffected, the former acquiring all of the ordinary shares of the latter.
In 1903 Dorman, Long &amp; Co. acquired all the ordinary shares of the
North-Eastern Steel Co. (Ltd.), with a basic Bessemer plant and
rail mills, thus becoming a producer of everything from iron ore to
various rolled steel products. The total capital represented by this
combination is over $16,000,000.
The firm of Guest, Keen &amp; Nettlefolds (Ltd.), is one of the largest
in Great Britain. In 1900 the firm of Guest, Keen &amp; Co. was formed
by the amalgamation of the Dowlais Iron Co., Guest &amp; Co,, and the
Patent Nut &amp; Bolt Co. The properties acquired consisted of collieries,
 blast furnaces, open hearth and Bessemer steel plants, and
rolling mills for the production of rails, sleepers, plates, etc., and
works for the production of bolts, nuts, railway equipment material,
etc. In 1902 the firm became Guest, Keen &amp; Nettlefolds (Ltd.),
through the absorption of the firm of Nettlefolds, screw makers.
Later the firm of Crawshay Bros., which made steel rails, was acquired.
 The motive in seeking the absorption of these last two firms,
according to A. Keen, was to eliminate the competition met from
their products.
There is a group of amalgamated companies associated with the
name of the late Baron Furness (Sir Christopher Furness). The
Weardale Steel, Coal &amp; Coke Co. (Ltd.), incorporated in 1899, took
over the business of the Weardale Iron &amp; Coal Co., which possessed
collieries, blast furnaces, rolling mills, and deposits of coal, iron ore,
limestone, and other minerals. In 1901, to better the competitive
situation, the Cargo Fleet Iron Co. (Ltd.) was bought, and in 1905
control was secured of the South Durham Steel &amp; Iron Co. (Ltd.),
itself an amalgamation of three competing ironworks. In 1906 the
Weardale Co. acquired a controlling interest in the Talbot Continuous
Steel Process (Ltd.), now reconstructed as the Steel Developments
(Ltd.).®
Prominent in the manufacture of armor and ship plates is William
Beardmore &amp; Co. (Ltd.), of Glasgow, owning steelworks at Parkhead
and Dalmuir near Glasgow. In 1900 they acquired the shipbuilding
business of R. Napier &amp; Sons and in 1905 bought the Mossend Steel
Works. In 1914 their issued capital, share and loan, was over
$19,000,000. Nearly half of the ordinary shares of Beardmore &amp; Co.
are held by Vickers (Ltd.), the great ordnance and shipbuilding con-1

 H. W. Macrosty, The Trust Movement in British Industry (London), 1907, pp. 26-30,
"Ibid. pp. 37-39.
3 Ibid., pp. 32-34, and Stock Exchange Official Intelligence, London, 1914, p. 1237 et seq.