TRADE TOPICS

Press, Volume XLIX, Issue 14758, 30 August 1913, Page 16

TRADE TOPICS

(IEOII OI r R OWN roHRB.S!'ONT».NTi. LONDON. July '_'3. DHM-VND FOR JL'l .-TAMP.S. A !.t.'i<oU.-r square si.stmp dealer is under indictment ;>t the Oid Bailey .-iiargcd with obtaining WIO Hy fills* l>r<'t<fiices :in<i with feloniously helling •ZliT'.i forced purporting to be British u-«'d postage stamps of the <Ji £1 each. H earn.- out in evidence th;il ;• u»ed £1 Kianip would ! ii.tfh S, uiioie-air. In til.- ".'Lily '. TiioiitlK c>! tii'- no-sent y-'ar Mr .Julias j J.ck, :. ('irni:i.Md hv»k-< . a-r.-vd to pur'ii.is,- -_'i;ss I'l -tar-!!- a: 7.-, 'M . aril, a'm\ on Ami! -JMih Mr !.<■!. :<■<■> ived '-'<J7O ! .-,;;. mi>- I'oin <!cl-!id.!i:t. «ho. wh«.-n j . ( i: thi-y wt.-rc i:emiiin-. ivplit-d ; •C-i-Uiim." " N.-\i duy Mr Lek 1-.mid j fiii-v woro I'orgi-ri.-s, -'f"I the d'-iendant j «-\j»laJmil tlua Ik- '■■■iiev.-d iht-y wen- | • •»-niiin«-. iiii'! -.hi- only as an Ail the vtrmips appeared k> 1i:»v«- voru.- iroiii .lerM-y. They were , .)l>!ii<-r;ite«l by having :h>- name Jersey J (.tjinivd upon them, but no d;iU> ap-)x::in'.-'i on ihrin, and ::■- a matter of hi<T i in , stain»>» :md the obliterating murks v.ire and dccefitivo foi--e:-ie>. Iti ordvr to add lo their apparnii the stamps had in. -n pjfPtJ-d on pieces oi brown paj>er, .-tiid in some c.ws genuine sixpenny and j -biilii!:: "ore plac»nl alongside ■ ii.- ffM-grrk-s, wich tli'- result, that the '».[>fK?.nrird to haw been torn irnni lUirei-K. { IN KM A FILMS. A Darlingfon *;ineiiui propriouir has i he»n siinuiionc'd i-y the jioliee for ex- j iiibitiim ;i lilm. entitled wliic-Ji viitfi objected to ;is being improper. A ixilito superintendent the film in lie iroin beginninj; to end suggestive oj impropriety, and an ex-ehainnan of tho Durham County Council said the tilm wiis utterly tinsuitablo tor -exhibition. In the end the magistrates had .-> priv;ttJ> view of the film In-fore the Court, and they decided it was not objectionable, arid dismissed the ca.se. j HRI.V-MEAD PIANOS. j Th« Court ot Appeal is hearing argu- J jiH-ritM in the case of John Brin.sme.ad and -Sons versus E. G. S. Brinsmead .iTjd W.-uldiagton and Son, upon the appeal o{ -th« i)laint.iff <-onipany from a .judgment, ol .Sir Justice Warrington refusing an injunction against the first defendant. Mr IvJward Gwrge' Stanley piano manufacturer, Islington. Although judgment has not yet been jiiven. two of tho learned judges iaid down interesting points of law. Justice. Hamilton said the question wa« whether it was neoessary to ashow an mtorrtion to dtceivo by tho ««3O oi t«o iiamis Brinsmead. or whether it wan HTjfficiGirt to show that the use of tho nam« did in fact dcMjeive. If ■lint la-tter proposition would do, then t?lat was an end of the case, because fhoro was evidence that the uso of the iiaano did deceive. * Lord Justice Williams' remarked that th« present case <Kffer«l from other cases that had been, <-ited, iXJCiiuse tlie name, used was the defendant's own nann. , , ami in addition ihe gave tho Christian names on £he j;Lanos. Ho did not gather, however. iJiat tho other sido disputed the proposition that tho l mere fact that the manx? used was the defendant's own T»anv> was n««ssarily inconsistent with passing off. CHIXESE QUEUE EDICT. The abolition of the queue in Clu'na means that the export of long ti-esses <rf hair to England will be seriously curtailed in the uea,r future, and the price of. human hair will riso. Whta-e hairdressers lose, however, hatters will jspiiii, for the "Hankau consular report remarks: —"The general cutting of the nuoues,- which was one of the outward and visiblo signs of the revolution, tfijused a big demand for foreign-shaped lists, of which tho Japanese -were not glow to take advantage. There is every indication, however, that the season of 1913 will see most of the business for cheap straw hats going to tho United Kingdom, and fox 'felt hats io Italy." CTGAIiETTE-SMOKING FASHIONABLE. A Consular report says that higher J'ood prices and cost of living in Germany is one reason why smokers can no longer buy tho more expensive cigars. Thov are often dissatisfied with the cheapor brands, and either become cigarMto smokers or give up the habit altogother. As a result, last year a number of cigar manufacturers have advertised their factories for sale, which is regarded as "a sad sign of the bad condition" of that branch of tho tobacco industry. "As regards cigarettes, however, Rales last year increased, but at tho same time trade expenses increased. Tho cigarette becomes more fashionable from day to day, but the extra profits go into tho pockets of the advertisement agents, as competition is exceedingly keen. In addition to this, foreign manufacturers, whoso brandr. were once very popular, and who were only obliged to withdraw their goods from the market through the prohibitive import duty, were beginning to erect their factories in the country. In pipe tobacco the year was no more-favourable than others. Tbe number of pipe smokers decreases as the older generation gives place to the younger, who in most eases take up cigarette smoking.'' PANAMA HAT TRADE. ! The export of imitation Adamba—hats from Japan greatly increased last year. The labour employed in making the.se hats is mostly that ot quite youug.girls, who tako about a week over each one. There are several small factories scattered about Okavama, which is the centre oi the m"dustry. although tho fibre itself comes from Formosa. It would appear that the supplies of this fibre arc becoming exhausted by too constant plucking ot tho leaves, and it may bo necessary to jind another source of supply or- tt> turn to some different material. Each lea produces four strands, and about 1200 strands go to mako one lady s bat. 1 ho price of these strands is So sen per 1000 of hotil quality. THE RUBBER MARKET. Iα the ophiiou of Mr John W. Lint,icr chairman of various rubber companies, the manipulation of the markets lias had a great deal to do with tho depreciation in the price of plantation rubber. It has been made possible io manipulate the, market because tho largo producing companies have sold forward (he says), and because practically tho bulk of the output of plantation rubber is consigned to one market. Thero arc only a low dealers in this product, and manufacturers ready to huy for cash very seldom attend tho sales. The largo* producing companies havo known for a considerable time that tho output of plantation rubber in tlio near future will considerably increase, ;md. knowing thnt tho produce is used over the entire world, they, their agents, and brokers ought to have introduced new methods of satisfactorily disposing of a new article in direct competition, with an old-established and proved article, held very firmly — namely, hard Para. Mr Lintner said ho would support any scheme which appeared to be most. practicable for remedying the existing state of things. The first points to bo considered were: —Th© stopping of further forward sales of anything like ruiing prices; the introduction Of auction sales by tender (which method had proved so satisfactory in other markets), and tho publication after every sale of the names of tho buyers, the quautities bought by eieh of tiem respectively, and the prices paid; tho limitation of the selTTng prjce> and tho support of Continental markets, thereby creating healthy competition. HERZEGOVINIAN TOBACCO. Out of Bosnia-Herzegovina's total population of about 1.900,000, no fewer than .22,000 persons are engaged in 'tobacco growing. Since lt<SO the manufacture of tobacco Has been a

monopoly of the Territorial Government and the license to grow it can only bo obtained by purchase from the Government. The monopoly lias factoruw at Sarajevo, Mostar, Banjaluka, and Travnik, and employs about 1360 hands. In those factories about 22OO_metric tons of Herzegovinian tobacco, 7<X) tons of Bosnian tobacco, and two tons oi tumboki. <-tc. were worked un in 1912. The total output was at>out 88.000.000 ci-ja retti-.s and !)0,000.0"0 packets oi tobaccos of various qualities and brands. The native tobacco i* strong aromatic, and dries quickly: To per of the* tobacco grown in BosniaHerx.egnvinJi i.s consumed in tho country itself, the greater part of tho remainder i.s sold to the Austrian and Hungarian tohnrco monopolists and ;i little goes to Germany and Kgypt.