ABSTRACT
Foundations in the United States for a long time lived in the shadows of secrecy, which in turn spawned great suspicion. The domination by the men in whose hands the final control of a large part of American industry rests is not limited to their employees, but is being rapidly extended to control the education and social survival of the Nation. The Council on Foundations, which for many years had been little more than a third-rate trade association, reflecting the continuing heavy drag on its development of its many backward-looking members. Its publication, Foundation News, responded to the new atmosphere by gradually becoming less of an uncritical house organ and more of a professional journal. The organizational developments and the gradual emergence of a functioning, interactive philanthropic community have been more important to the vitality of this field than they might have been too many others. By their nature, foundations tend to exist in a cocoon, shielded from external stimuli.
