Like the majority of the states, Pennsylvania has never completely concentrated her archives. Various groups of material currently administered by a bureau or department, such as the land records in the Land Office, should not be concentrated until they cease to be a part of the Government's daily business. But aside from these, there are tons of non-active files which will some day be moved, when the Archive Division of the State Library can house them. Under such conditions no one can state absolutely and concisely what there is; and as one result of this difficulty, research work that might utilize business documents is severely handicapped.

It would be difficult to find a person who has displayed a greater amount of assiduity in unearthing papers and manuscripts on business history than has the Society's president, Mr. Charles H. Taylor. Corporation records, shipping and whaling papers, log books, estate management papers, indentures, deeds, and in fact manuscripts and documents on almost all phases of business history have been lodged in the Baker Library as a result of Mr. Taylor's activities. Among the countless historical documents brought to light by him is an item that does not have a great deal of business significance, nevertheless is sufficiently entertaining to justify its publication.

The status of labor has been markedly changed since the early days of our country. In general it may be said that the worker has tended to acquire a position of even greater bargaining power relative to the employer (indeed, today there are instances where labor holds the superior position.) Of course certain types of laborers have always possessed an advantageous and strategic bargaining power position, but on the whole the tendency toward greater freedom for labor as a class is not disputable. Evidences of this evolutionary movement in the worker's status toward more freedom of contract may be found in the numerous labor agreements and labor indentures in the Baker Library.

In these days we hear much in praise of collective and controlled enterprises. It is, therefore, especially interesting to note that the first business contract signed in this country of which we have record was to establish an undertaking of just such a sort. This event occurred at Plymouth in 1626, when Governor William Bradford, Captain Miles Standish, William Brewster, John Alden, and several others drew up an agreement with the Colony and with the Merchant Adventurers of London, England, whereby they assumed complete control of the trade of the Colony for a period of six years.