Security

Man in order to achieve security, has master not only the means of controlling his economic fortunes, but also the means to maintaining the world's peace. This however, is extraordinarily difficult, for the unprecendentedly rapid advance of the powers of destruction, far from making men less prone to arm themselves to the teeth, leads them to expend more and more of their productive power on efforts to increase their security against one another by heavier and ever more costly armaments. Arms, alas, are unlike most other products of industry, in that there is no satiating the demand for them. The more of them one nation has, the more other nations feel they must have too.

G.D.H. Cole, Oxford, March 1952
İntroduction to Economic History 1750-1950, McMillan & Co.







The exports of capital as they appeared in the first decade of the 20th century as follows - in order to see what precise changes in the direction of capital movements were going on, on the eve of the Great War, in order to see what, if any, influence they may have had on the WW and the resulting economic crisis. British foreign investments were computed by Sir George Paish before the war to have eached the figure of 3,349 million Pounds in 1910. The largest amount of British capital abroad was in the United States. Particularly popular was American railways, whcih had for years been quoted on the London Stock Exchange. The amount of British capital in the US in 1910 was probably slightly over 700 million Pounds. İn Canada the figure was 372 millions in that year. İn Mexico an American authority has estimated British investment in that year at one-half the american, namely 64 millions. There was 537 millions investment in Argentine, Chile, Brazil, and the other South American republics. Coming now to Asia Sir Paish estimated in 1910 that British capital investments in İndia amounted to 365 millions. Assuming 642 for the whole Asia. The amount invested in the East İndies and Malaya at this time was not more than 80 millions. This leaves about 120 millions for China. İn Australia British capital in 1910 was estimated at 399 millions. İn Africa his estimates in 1910 is 350 millions in South Africa, which left 106 millions for East and West African Crown Colonies, Egypt, Sudan, and Nigeria. An increase over the whole of South America in 1913 was the enormous figure of 715 millions and additional 10 percent in the US showing clearly the new direction of British overseas capital movements.

Philips Price, (1928)


(gen HC57P67)