Chambers of commerce have themselves become highly organ ized bodies. The London chamber is divided into 69 sections according to overseas countries dealt with, commodities or trades, and special aspects; Manchester has 15 general sections including the Testing House, 7 being on a geographical basis. Apart from this there are numerous committees to deal with the various aspects of commerce—transport rates and services, postal and telegraphic matters, commercial law. Of special importance are those on arbitration and education.
The London court of arbitration is jointly managed by the London chamber and the corporation of London by which bodies it was formed in 1892. It consists of 12 representatives of the chamber and 12 of the corporation. Its function is not itself to hear cases but to appoint duly qualified arbitrators to deal with disputes which are referred to it. It serves a very useful purpose in providing a ready, efficient and inexpensive means of settling commercial disputes. Manchester also possesses a tribunal of arbitration, a special department which itself gives awards. The Dublin chamber of commerce has established (1927) a court of arbitration for commercial disputes at its offices in Dublin avail able both for voluntary references to arbitration and for arbitra tion of cases referred by the law courts.
The provision of a continuous supply of educated young men and women who can carry on the great work of commerce, which tends always to become more exacting, is one of the chief cares of the chambers of commerce. Valuable work is done in London and other large centres by the institution of examinations for certifi cates in commercial subjects and by the grant of scholarships enabling chosen students to study languages and commercial conditions abroad. In 1927 over 26,00o entered for the London junior and senior commerce certificates and 13,499 certificates were granted. Apart from these direct incursions into the educa tional field the chambers watch educational policy from the busi ness man's standpoint.
In addition, chambers of commerce undertake from time to time special pieces of work of which a good example is afforded by the enquiry which the joint committee of Cotton Trade Organ izations convened by the Manchester chamber of commerce made into the costs of production and marketing overseas in the Lan cashire cotton trade in 1927-28. The object of the Committee was described by themselves as being "to bring about the changes required by changed conditions more speedily, more efficiently and with greater regard for the common good of all sections than would be done by individuals in the trade, if left to themselves"; in other words a voluntary organization is to be developed.
True to their independent and voluntary character the British chambers of commerce were slow in associating together for common purposes in any permanent form. The Association of British Chambers of Commerce was formed in 1860 but then it consisted only of 16 chambers and it was not until the closing years of the 19th century that the association can be said to have embraced the whole body of chambers. Even now the associa
tion is in the nature of a loose federation, though it plays au important part in the formation of the policy of the commercial community and is the channel for authoritative advice and appeal to the Government.
Trade Associations.—Chambers of commerce, and such closely allied bodies as the Manchester Importers and Exporters Association, may be said to organize the trade of the country on a territorial basis. In some cases, such as notably Manchester for cotton or Sheffield for steel, the district which is served by the chamber produces the main share of the country's whole output of the commodity in question. But this is exceptional, and with the great majority of the modern industries the factories of each are found in several distant parts of the country, and for this reason, and because naturally each industry presents its own special problems, practically every one has set up its own national trade association. The nature and activities of these bodies vary greatly. Apart from employers' associations formed primarily to deal with trade unions in regard to wages, hours, and conditions of labour (as to which see LABOUR), there are general associations capable of dealing with all other subjects of interest to the pro ducers or traders in each particular industry. While in general these exert little control over the actual conduct of each mem ber's business as, e.g., in the matter of prices or credit terms, there are examples of bodies which exhibit closer degrees of association for definite purposes, and the study of these gradually impinges upon that of cartels, trusts and amalgamations. (See TRUSTS.) Important examples of the more common type of trade associa tion for general purposes are the Mining Association, the National Federation of Iron and Steel Manufacturers, the Cotton Spin ners' and Manufacturers Association, the Wool Textile Delegation and the British Engineers' Association. Such bodies are in general concerned in a greater measure with production than with any problems of the merchant, but their work provides a valuable supplement to that of the local Cha*Mbers in the efficient organiza tion of commerce. (See also INDUSTRY.) Just as the Association of British Chambers of Commerce constitutes a centre and head for these bodies, the trade associations of Great Britain are grouped under the Federation of British Industries, which was founded in 1916, and numbers among its members over 16o sepa rate Trade Associations as well as over 2,35o individual firms. The federation does not deal with questions affecting wages and conditions of labour, such questions being left to the National Confederation of Employers' Associations. It co-ordinates and supplements, from a national point of view, the work of the in dividual associations. It has representatives and correspondents in nearly every country in the world and is thus able, apart from its more general work, to promote immediately the sale of its members' products.