It is not a normal publishing practice to review a book some 60
years after it came out, but in this one case these are very good
reasons to do so.
Death pays a Dividend is an account of the arms trade, & the
various companies which still are involved in the trade.
Companies which are still very well know by any of todays
anti arms trade campaigners.
Companies like:
Vickers.
Dupont.
&
ICI.
Starting with the US, German, & British companies which
supplied all these countries armies during World War one, the
book goes on to show that even while in the middle of this
conflict, that an International arms cartel was in
operation.
It was British made shells which fell upon British Troops in
Gallipoli, While after the armistice Vickers had to pay for the
Krupp-patented rights on the 123,000,000 fuses which were
used against the German armies.
British manufactuers also supplied the Nazi dictatorship.
While raw Materials from the USA, the French, British, &
Dutch Empires, were sold on in order to built up the Imperial
Japanese War effort.
Of course this sad story did not end there, as these same arms
traders actively succeed in blocking the various arms trade
negotiations which were undertaken during the 1930s.
Even that great figure of appeasement Neville Chamberlain
held shares in ICI, who’s subsidiary company ICI (Metals) Ltd
‘manufactured most of the munitions for Japan during 1932.’
Thus with facts such as the ones mentioned above, and a lot of
other similar ones, its importance as an activist reference
work can not be understated.
One might not be able to pick up this work in hurry, but there
are still a lot of old copies to be found,
&
if it’s not to be found,
Then order it up from your local Public Library.
Brockway, Fenner
&
Mullally, Frederick
Death Pays a Dividend
Left Book Club.
( Victor Gollancz Ltd )
London
1944
158 pp