The Sun.
London, England, 1839-11-22 00:00:00

to impress upon your minds the fact, that that market ,
important as it is—the market which takes from, you
half your whole export of cotton twist—that that
market is in jeopardy.—(Hear, hear.) It is my opinion
that, vrhetever be the intentions and purposes of the
Prussian Government, they cannot preserve that market
to your industry, unless some charges are made in
your own legislation.—(Heir, hear.) As I have said,
this great commercial union is a vast instrument, like
itsmo naessocf's
productionstohe
f 3 oor hugestm of
shall
a machinery
cybcoeruyr
beneficial; stoenadm can
ngi
dicno,euossierios.u,rii
th,
oevi3l,hacerutg,i
oes
rrt
injurious and destructive ; whether that vast machine
e
shall
expansivenh
virtuesoebtteh oe turned l
yrt
onh
feet dsi
these
t mankind
nkintercourse,ihostile,nwork
interests
a ri in
ev
warlike,
rd:thethi the
ertedihec_tahi
unfriendly,naoeemfas
rs free r col
hear)—
unpa-
triotic, rrc)at
eldr
ortaarenirdnyw
unbrotherly feelings shall predominate, on this
side the water and on the other.
Gentlemen, the system of the Prussian League is I
forcing things into a new, and, in many instances, an un- i
fortunate direction,—unfortunate for Germany, unfor-
tunate for England. I went Mete, a district of Berlin
which was formerly known by the name a Little Man-
chester, in which formerly there was not a single shop.-
keeper who was not supplied with manufactured goods
from this place, either directly or indirectly. All that
interest had been swept away. There was scarcely one
individual amongst them who bad not abandoned' the
trade, and many of them had become themselves ma-
nufacturers, because, as they said to me, " We cannot
lose our buyers. We waited, we hoped ; but we waited
and hoped in vain ; and our markets and free trade with
England are now altogether involved in our approbation
of your manufactures." And not at a great distance
from that very quarter of the capital of Prussia, I went
into a manufactory, which, at this very moment, is turn-
ing out 900 pieces_ of cotton prints per day,—(Hear.)
And now, gentlemen, we come to the question as to.
what is to be done. My Hon. Friend, your President,
has said that it has been asked again and again,
"'What is England to get by reforming her syeeem
It was stated in the House of Commons, and repeated
both in and out of doors,—it was the grand and most
prominent argument of one of the most eloquent men
in that House, that nothing was to be obtained for the
concessions made to other countries. It has been re-
peated again and again, of late, at the agricultural
meetings which have been held throughout the e,oun-
try, that it is idle for England to discuss the question
ofsverifieing her agriculture and her colenies ; for that
nothing is to be obtained for such a sacrifice. I believe °
that the agricultural interests are deeply involved' in
the question of free trade. I believe it can be proved
to demonstration, that the greatest boon that could'he
conferred on the agriculturists of this country would be
the free importation, of co-n—(Heer)—that the greatest
portion of the mercantile and commercial profits would
go to the English neiculturists ; that there is no class
of inen which has benefited so greatly and perma-
nently by the increase and extension of English manu-
facturing industry. But it was my duty at Berlin
to explain the enormous difficulties of this question,
and from those difficulties we must not turn away.
And whatever I might think, as a political economist,
of the true interests of agriculture and manufactures, I
could not conceal from myself, and still less from the
Government to which I was sent, that I did not believe
that it was in the power of the Ministry, or in the will
of Parliament, to give us free trade in corn. But I
received the assurance, gentlemen, which I wish to im-
press on your minds, and that it, should go to the world,
that the Governments of Germany have a full sense of
the difficulties of this question, and are within!: to meet
us if a moderate duty be established on the import of
corn.—(Hear, hear, and applause.)
Gentlemen,-1 need not point your attention to those
countries which have made the experinent of a free
trade in corn, in order to show that their agriculture
is in the most advanced and most prosperous state,
and that the welfare of their manufacturing interests
has not been damaged by the application of the prin-
ciples of free trade. Even in Germany itself, those
manufactures which have the least quantity of protec-
tion have been, on the whole, the most progressive.—
(Hear.) Those gentlemen present who !save been ac-
customed to ship goods to Germany, know very well '
that that market has become much less active, and that
the demand for English cottons for home consumption
(in Germany) has almost ceased. At the late fairs at
Leipsic and Frankfort, which I passed through, and
and made it my business to obtain such information as
was, under such circumstances, accessible to me, I
found that the demand had almost wholly ceased—at
all events, for all the inferior and middle qualities of
English cotton manufactures. But there is a very
curiors fact, to which I would call your attention,
namely, that though the demand for English cotton
rnannfactures had almost ceased for the internal con-
sumption of Germany, the import of cotton manufac-
tures for its home consumption has not diminished ;
so that our manufactures were excluded, not only by
the industry of the Germans themselves, but by other
rival nations—by Switzerland especially, by Belgium,
and in some instances by France. The average im-
portation of manufactured cotton, into Germany has not
varied 200 cwt. during the last five or six years ; and it
amounts to about 13,000 cwt. of manufactured stuffs.
Then, gentlemen, as I have said already, the most
important question is the question of the Corn-laws,
litiere is no disposition amongst the Germans to ask or
to do impossible things. If we can ise induced to in-
troduce a progressive legislation, tending towards free
commerce, they will go with us, hand in hand.--(Hear,
hear.) Their statements are these :—" If you sire able
and willing to do much, we, too, are able and wjiling-
If you will do little, we'll meet you by doing little ; but
matters can't stand where they are. Our duties must
be diminished upon your goods, which we shall rejoice
'o be able to accomplish, or they must be raised." And
that is the impression I have received in journeying,
through ehe whole of the German States. I think the
moment most propitious ; that the feeling towards
to which I have before referred, was never
more
EnglasndtrO whichng, never more friendly.—(Hear.) I should
deplore, to the end of any days, if this occasion were
lost ; I should rejoice, ;beyond expression, if it were
accepted—if there were such an expression of public
opinion throughout the country, as should respond, in
the language of brotherhood, to these friendly and
brotherly offers ; and I am convinced that their effects,
their happy consequences, would be seen in an immense
impulse to the trade and manufactures of this country.
—(Applause.)
I rejoiced much to have in my hands, also, the peti-
tion of this Chamber of Commerce, with respect to the
timber duties. The settlement of that question would
affect not only Germany but other countries ; and
pledge myself to this fact, that not only the markets of
Germany, but other important markets, now closed to
your manufactures, will be opensal, cheerfully opened, I•
if the timber duties are repealed.— Hear.) I rejoice
that my Right Hon. Friend, who latt:lY represented
you will have an opportunity of ascent-dm:le, when he
reaches Canada, whether or not the colonial interests
are involved seriously in this question. As far as i !lave
been able to get at the opinions of the honest Canadia.a
cultivators, progriefors, or merchants, I believe that the
timber trade with Canada is pernicious to Canada—
(Hear, hear)—that it is an injurious application of
capital ; that it is desirable that they should be relieved
from it ; and I hope that my Right Hon. Friend, as Le
has now an opportunity of estimating it for himself, mill
also come to that conclusion ; for certainly I have not
understood the great anxiety which yas manifested to
cover him with opprobrium'before his departure, when
it must have been known that if Canadian interests are
involved in the preservation of these discrimination
duties, considering that he went to Canada to study
those interests—l do not see how it should not have
had a beneficial effect upon his mind, and have made
him a convert to the doctrines of these Canadian tim-
ber importers, when he had so good an opportunity of
ascertaining what would be the effect in Canada itself.
It is necessary that I should state to you, that some
misconception has gone abroad with respect to the ob-
ject of the late congress that was held at Berlin. That
congress was not composed of men authorised to nego,
ciate for any changes in the tariffs. They were merely
there as delegates of the different powers composing
the German union, to settle the accounts, to make a
partition of the receipts, to take up all those questions •
of internal administration which were connected with
levying these taxes ; and, generally, to give effect to
any change which might have been negotiated by the.
different governments during the preceding • year. I
bad the pleasure there of having for colleagues, the
representatives of France and America —men who,
I think, rightly understood and fully appreciatedi the
importance of their mission. We found that we were
all engaged in the same cause ; that we all represented
the same interests, viz., the diffusion of commercial in-
tercourse. And if, now and fleet], it was suggested •
to any of us that the interests of England were not ,
involved in the raising of this or the other duty
upon French productions ; or that the interests of
France were not involved in raising the duty on
cotton twist, or any other English production ; or that
in the importation of rice, for example, neither France
nor England had any concern ;—we proceeded in this
Community of feeling to state, that it was our duty
everywhere to resist any attempt at
thorn.—(lleac,
lcvyiug increasing
tariffs, and
dto
to assoisbttooioneoadnoiotlhicero,tiionc
of thefts every direction, in
and applat:s.i.)
to content. ; it is not
but a fallacy, like the falsehoods
moNoyovsw, gitehntwlericeini, tyhoeuonhloyveargumen.t I hi eat d. in Ger-
many
language from that of many
luemreerictdior the advocates of monopoly in
of our opponents here, is this It is idle for you to
England will not reciprocate ; it is idle to be
of modifying your tariffs, in the view of in-
piGnudetremefdoarnwaynahrda:le
cop
glinhger to do the same ; you will obtam nothing from
Her landlords, her agriculturists, her sinister in-
hddtirlreck.aino;
tr rests, are too mighty to be overthrown or even shaken.
Your time is wasted. This man has come to throw
dust in your eyes. England is helpless; her people are
ether unconcerned or feeble. Nothing will result from
this. There has been mit clamour in Parliament, and I.
Government found it necessary to moderate that cla- I