107

varied  local  enterprises  to

ment  combination,  great  attention  being  paid?  j

trade  interests  and  that  all  stocks  held  should
be  as  far  removed  from  general  trade  influences
as  possible.  Further,  care  must  be  taken  that
the  selected  enterprise  is  being  carried  on  as  a
sound  business  concern  and  not  for  the  benefit
of  a  few  chosen  individuals  with  whom  the
company  does  business.  These  points  we  have
fully  explained  in  a  previous  chapter.
After  all,  when  the  sun  shines  the  milliner
is  jubilant,  whilst  in  rainy  weather  the
umbrella-maker  rejoices.  In  this  way  it  is
possible  to  arrive  at  something  approaching  a
distribution  of  risk  without  going  outside  the
United  Kingdom,  provided  that  the  stocks
selected  are  unimportant,  and  for  this  reason
as  far  removed  from  the  influence  of  British
trade  as  they  possibly  can  be.
Conservative  investors  are  naturally  disinclined ­
  to  change  their  holdings,  and  rich
people  are  especially  dilatory  in  their  financial
affairs.  But  our  twenty-seven  years  of  experience
have  proved  to  us  that  every  holder  of  a  badly
distributed  Investment  List  is  in  the  true  sense
of  the  word  constantly  on  the  verge  of  a
precipice,  and  we  have  known  the  finest

to  the  point  that  no  two  com  pm
shall  be  identical  in  their  objects