THE New Zealand Mail. PUBLISHED WEEKLY. THURSDAY, JANUARY 30, 1896. THE TRADE OF GREAT BRITAIN IN 1790 AND 1890.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1248, 30 January 1896, Page 22

THE New Zealand Mail. PUBLISHED WEEKLY. THURSDAY, JANUARY 30, 1896. THE TRADE OF GREAT BRITAIN IN 1790 AND 1890.

Notwithstanding the vast extent and variety of articles of import to Great Britain and her colonies stamped with the unpopular legend " Made in Germany " imprinted on them*', the commerce of the three kingdoms makes great strides. It is admitted, however, that the cheap labour of Continental nations now enters largely into severe competition with the Home products. Possibly, in /;ew of the feeling against the influx of the " Made in Germany" article a feeling which is expanding and becoming stronger, especially in view of the political sentiment recently awakened by the injudicious action of " the young man in a hurry " English mercantile men may find it advisable to take steps for securing for British operatives a considerable share of that work which, to such an extent, is at present benefiting those of foreign countries. It by no means follows that mere cheapness in price is actual cheapness of the commodity purchased. Every judicious housewife (we italicise the adjective) knows the truth of this assertion. A pertinent example of the force of this maxim we find in the latest issue of the Windsor Magazine (the Christmas number, and an excellent one). It contains an article on Dr George Morrison, of Melbourne, one of the greatest of living foot travellers and explorers. He travelled, inter alia, across China in 100 days; 1500 miles by boat and steamer, and 1500 miles on foot through the provinces of Szechuen and Yunnan, and the small Shan States to the boundary of Burma. In justice to the Chinese, it may be mentioned that though alone and unprotected, without an interpreter, and unarmed, except with his British passport, Dr Morrison invariably received from all classes of Chinese the greatest kindness and courtesy. The particular point in his narrative we desire to notice here bears on the character of certain Continental manufactures as compared with those of English construction. And this is what he says:—

"It is in connection with this railway" (Tientsin to the northern Taku Fort) " that some time ago a large number of half-deck girders were sent to the railway from France. They were at once condemned by all the engineers, but, as the engineers were English and the girders French, the astute Chinese believed that national prejudice was the cause of the condemnation. .They were accordingly laid down, and at the time of my visit they were all being taken up again. These girders came from the workshop of M. Eiffel, of Panama notoriety."

If keen comparison were made with other C6ntinental products more light I would be shed on the true nature of the goods we buy from abroad and those of sound English manufacture. But we have diverged from the purpose in view when beginning this article. That > purpose was to point out the unparalleled advance of British commerce to-day as contrasted with that of a hundred years ago. For the year 1790 the exports of Bx'itish manufactures amounted, Mr Pitt told the House of Commons, "to no less a sum than .£18,513,000, exceeding for that yeai-, in these manufactures alone, the average exports of six years prior to the Ameriean war by three millions, and the imports exceeded by an equal proportion." So it is recorded in the Annual Register for 1791. One hundred years after this official utterance was made what do we find ? Of course it were bootless here to enter on the causes, the marvellous advance of trade and traffic through steam and all that has followed in its train; the growth of colonies, the progress of innumerable inventions which have swelled pi-oduction and brought the ends of the earth together. It is enough to give the figures of to-day and contrast the 16vV millions of imports and the 18£ millions of a total trade of

35 millions, to and from the Mother Oouptry in 1790 with those, pf the year iB9O. In the lattet yeai* the British imports were .£420,692,000 and the exports .£325,252,000, making a total trade of close on 749 millions sterling, the largest ever known. This is an increase of more than twentyfold in 1890 as compared with a hundred years ago. The facts cited-are well worth pondering. To the thinking mind they indicate some of.the sources of the marvellous story the century now dosing tells of Britain's progress. The position of British-Colonial trade, to which We referred the other day, is now absorbing considerable attention in both commercial and political Circles* as witness Mr Chamberlain's recent speeches-. *We are informed that a large amount of the fencing 1 wife imported into New Zealand, though shipped from London, is" " Made in Germany !"