3 - only by the ability to finance it, for the need is virtually insatiable. However, these broad conclusions are of little avail in trying to choose a particular construction company as an investment, for no single construction company covers the field. As a matter of fact, there are very few construction companies, or even companies deriving a major part of their income from construction, from which the public investor can choose. Of those companies whose securities can be purchased by the public, there is no large seasoned company specializing in the field of residential building, which is the largest single segment of construction volume. All of the companies specialize to a considerable extent - Turner 8s Fuller in office buildings, Warren Brothers in paving, William Bros.- pipe line, Stone & Webster - utilities, Raymond International, Inc. - pile driving, Morrison-Knudsen - heavy engineering construction, and three other companies - dredging. Therefore, the investor must be concerned with the outlook for a particular type of construction activity when considering any one company. The builder of pipe lines derives no profit from the increases in the highway program and the tunnel driver is not concerned with the expansion in school construction. Therefore, I suggest that the investor's time is best spent in looking at the company first, appraising its performance and then the outlook for the particular segments of the construction industry in which it engages. The company-by-company approach also has the merit of bringing to light quickly those companies that have done relatively well and those companies that have done relatively poorly. The pattern of performance among construction companies whose securities are available to the public shows wide variation, and this is one reason why construction companies have