THE APPEAL OF ELECTRICITY AT THE, BRITISH EMPIRE EXHIBITION,
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APERSONALLY Conducted visit to the extensive stand of the General Electric Go., Ltd., in the Palace of Engineering at Wembley= is rather a. pleasant function. To our sUrpriSe, such a visit 'paid by us at the request of 'the directors occupied a couple of hours, whilst a cinematograph display of the .story of the G.E.C. holds the attention for about the sameperiod of time. The exhibit is designed to demonstrate the capacity of the company's 14 factories to undertake everything connected with the generation, the distribution and the application of electricity, the application being treated under the heads of (1) the factory, (2) handling goods, (3) the shop, and (4) the home. There are many items in the exhibit which will interest those concerned with motor-vehicle equipment and operation, one in particular being a partly Sectioned magneto actually running and producing sparks in a series of plugs. We believe that the production of current from an extensively sectiened magneto has never before been accomplished. During the course of our visit we had the pleasure of listening to the views of Mr. Hugo Hint, the managing director of the company, upon the future of British trade and the effect thereupon of the British Empire Exhibition. He said that industry generally has wholeheartedly sapported‘the Exhibition from a national standpoint, but he realized that whilst an exhibitor could show the fundamental soUrces, it was not in every case possible to she* the services which could be rendered. Thus the Government must make every effort to attract visitors to the show and must help them to undentand and appreciate what they are looking at. The Exhibition may not Iiring an immecrate access of business, but it show:'' the greatness of the country and satisfactory -results, are bound
to accrue.
Mr. Hirst showed in a -few succinct phrases how great is the' organization of a vast business web as that of the G.E.C. There are employed in it 18,000 workpeople, which means about 50,040 of the inhabitants directly gain
their support from its activities. The removal of the McKenna -duties, in his opinion, was a mistake, because whilst in this country every effort has been made to uplift the condition of the workers, the countries with which we, m an' unprotectecli,.state, have to compete, have put forward no such efforts, and British industry is not likely to recover without. the protection of our home markets. The development of cheap units for the production and use of cheap power is in his opinion one of the most important objects to which to aim.