The relationships between factor use and scale and technological change and scale are emphasized in a translog cost function analysis of technological development in four sectors of Canadian manufacturing, 1900-29. By paying particular attention to the role of electrification in this technological development, the major findings are that the increased use of electricity was not in general scale-dependent and that electrification may have been a factor in increasing the relative productivity of smaller-scale units over the period. A hypothesis that states that technical change is partially induced by increased scale is, however, confirmed. Copyright 1990 by MIT Press.