Historians of the entrepreneur and of the firm encounter great difficulty in finding comparative data against which to measure their subject. Empirical studies such as this one, dealing in broad yet specific terms with the ebb and flow of enterprise in a community, provide a workable guide to what constitutes typical patterns of business development.

In this issue the Business History Review inaugurates a new editorial feature. Like the financial mart from which it derives its name, OVER THE COUNTER is designed for the types of exchanges not handled elsewhere. The new feature has its origin in a demand among readers of business history for a place to compare ideas, voice comments on published articles and reviews, and publish research essays. Contributions are invited. The Editor and Advisory Board reserve the right to decide whether, on the basis of general interest, pertinence, and merit, such contributions will be published. OVER THE COUNTER will appear as often as the volume of contributions may dictate.

Historians have awaited with great interest a new endeavor to tell the story of business in America — not in a narrow or technical way, but broadly related to the social environment of which business is one part. Economic historians, business historians, sociologists, and many other specialists have gathered extensive data on phases of business behavior, and are continuing to do so at a commendably prolific rate. The job of synthesis, however, has been neglected, perhaps because of its formidable demands. No two scholars would be likely to agree on the content and emphasis of any volume, such as the one reviewed here, that describes the development of American business. This circumstance does not detract from either the usefulness of the effort or the value of the criticism. The increasingly specialized nature of scholarship demands both the stimulus of a general thesis and wide reactions to that thesis if historical perception is to be kept abreast of accumulating evidence.