The Sun.
London, England, 1863-01-22 00:00:00

FOREIGN TRADE AND TARIFFS.

At a soiree held on Monday evening in St. George's-hall,
Bradford, in connection with the annual meeting of the
Brad ford Chamber of Coinnierce,M r.W. Forster, M. P.,senior
vice-president, was the chairman, and moved the adoption
of the report of the council. After referring to the Great
International Exhibition of last year, and to the successful
display of Bradford manufactures there, he said the Exhibi
Hon naturally reminded them of foreign trade and tariffs,
and ho thought they might congratulate themselves on the
success of the long efforts of the Chamber with regard to the
Belgian treaty. Having had something to do with the diffi-
culty connected with obtaining that treaty in his place in
Parliament, he was very glad to have that opportunity of
expressing his obligations to a member of the Chamber,Mr.
Behrens, for the verygreat assistance which he gave towards
its accompl shment. He hoped their success in the matter
of Belgium would rather spur them on in keeping their at-
tention directed to foreign tariffs generally. The fact was
that the French treaty had operated to initiate a reform in
tariffs throughout the Continent, and he thought our Go-
vernment had in some measure lost the initiative, and that
they ought to have followed up the French treaty immedi,
ately by proposing to other countries to reduce their tariffs.
They had rather left it to France to initiate the thing, and
France having done so, there was probably no Government
on the Continent with which negotiations would not be
entered into for a fresh arrangement of the tariff. The
French treaty had been followed by the Belgian treaty and
by the treaty of the Zollverein. They saw that day that
there had been a treaty signed between France and Italy,
and they heard rumours of fresh tariff arrangements in
Austria, Russia, and Spain. This movement with regard
to tariffs made it most important that the members of the
Bradford Chamber of Commerce, being greatly interested in
them, should keep their attention directed to the subject,
and that they should furnish information to the Govern-
ment upon it. He knew it was often said that, having
adopted the Free-trade principle, we had lost the opportu-
nity of making any bargain with foreign Governments ; that
we had already given everything to them, and, therefore,
could give nothing in return, and that, therefore, our Go-
vernment might hold their hands. He believed such a
laissez faire system as that would be as unwise and unsound
as any policy could be, and those who advocated it were
providing for the Foreign-office an excuse for neglect and
indifference which they themselves did not profess or adopt.
They did not find that the Foreign office considered that it
ought to do nothing in the matter. They felt that Protec-
tion was a disadvantage to the country protected, and there-
ford they felt that the Government ought to make itself a
propagandist of the principle of Free-trade. It did so hap-
pen that those Governments which were most protected
were those whose real and true interests were damaged by
Protection. Take Austria as an example. Nothing was
more clear than that the people of Austria, the great mass
of the consumers, were immensely injured, and that the re-
sources of the country were not developed, by reason of the
Protection which was given to a very small number of ma-
nufacturers. The same was the case in Russia. In that
country the duty was almost prohibitory. Mr. Behrens
had given him particulars of the Russian tariff, which was
at least 117 per cent. upon English goods. An English
Orleans piece that cost 20s had a duty of 25s levied upon
it. It must bo plain to Russian statesmen that it was
against the interest of the people of Russia that they
should have their clothes so much increased in price by
this heavy protective duty ; and that it really answered
merely for Protection, and not for revenue, was
proved by the result upon the revenue. The re-
venue derived in Russia from the Customs duty on all
worsted and woollen goods imported from England,
France, and Germany was only £9-1,000 per annum ; and,
therefore, for a very small sum they were immensely in-
creasing the price of the necessaries of life to their popula-
tion. However, it might be said that this was a matter not
merely for the Government, but for the press of England
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with regard to Belgium, and, determined as
the manufac-
turing interest in Belgium were to maintain their mono-
poly as long as possible, it was felt by the Belgian Govern-
ment to be an irresistible case. The Belgian Government
felt it wouii be almost an act of hostility to this county
to continue to prefer France to us in the way they did.
Wherever that injustice existed, the Chamber might fairly
call upon the Government to protest against it as strongly
as possible—and it was very rarely that that course did
not before long produce the desired result. They had such
a case with regard to Austria, where the duty upon the
goods of the Zollverein was only two-thirds, on the ave-
rage, of what it was upon English goods. He believed that
was a case in which an able memorial forwarded by that
Chamber would have a real effect upon the Government,
giving them information upon which they would act, and
he could not but think that it would be responded to by
Austria itself. There was another case which might claim
the action of the Government. England did something
towards the formation of the Kingdom of Italy, but it
c ,uld not be intended by the great statesman who formed
that kingdom that we should be made worse off than
before. Such, however, was the fact, for the result
of the substitution of the Piedmont tariff for the old

Tuscany tariff was a heavier duty upon English
goods. They might petition against it ; they might peti-
tion for something stronger—that was that we should be
treated exactly as France was treated ; and he had heard
that day, in the allusion in the report of the council, that a
treaty had been signed between France and Italy. He
thought the Chamber should lose no time in memorialising
again for the promise to be carried out, which ho believed
was made by the Italian Government, that we should
be treated as France was treat-A. He also thought
they might call upon our Government to make repre•
sentations through its Ministers, wherever it could be
proved that a tariff answered n) other purpose than that of
vexation. The experience they had had of the French
treaty enabled them to state that ad valorem duties answered
better than specifi t duties—he meant that the same amount
of revenue was obtained by the importing country at a less
burden upon the exporting country. In the relort it was
stated that some complaints were made by the manufacturers
of Roubaix of the fraudulent exercise of the ad valorem
duties. He believed the manufacturers of Roubaix thought
it might be done, but the actual fact was that no case of a
fraudulent invoice had been proved against any exporter of
that (Bradford) district, and he believed he might go fur-
ther, and say that no invoice had been questioned, which
was a matter upon which they might congratulate the dis-
trict, and for which they might thank the true liberality
with which the treaty had been administered by the French
Government and its officers, and also thank the honourable
feeling with which that treaty had Leen responded to by the
exporters of that district. If they stepped over the Pyrenees
and went to Spain, they got from a good system of duties to
one which was probably one of the very worst that could be
conceived. It was difficult to believe that anything so absurd
could be devised by a Government. It seemed not to have
been made for the purpose of trade, but for the protection
of smuggling. It was a temptation to fraud and a pre-
miuwa upon falsehood. The result was that this absurd
tariff, which seemed to have been made for the promotion
of smuggling and not of legitimate trade, immensely in-
creased the price of goods imported into Spain, and gave to
Spain very little revenue ; for the amount of the duty on all
worsted and woollen goods imported into the country was
only £lBO,OOO per annum. As far as regarded the woollen
and worsted trade, these absurd attempts at Protection
could not havo answered in the way of raising up manufac-
turing industry in Spain, for the woollen and worsted trade
there only employ ed 160,000 spindles and under 5,500
looms. These facts showed what a great field there was
open for the Bradford Chamber of Commerce to keep
pressing upon the attention of the Government. They
certainly had had reason to complain that in past times
commercial affairs, especially commercial affairs with foreign
countries, had not been sufficiently considered. That was
partly in consequence of trade not being very much thought
of in the Foreign office, but it had also quite as much, or
perhaps more, resulted from the clumsy organisation of the
department. He must congratulate the Chamber on having
in some measure got the better of this. They had deter-
mined to make their representations to the Foreign• office as
well as to the Board of I rade. In conclusion, Mr. Forster
expressed a hope that the Chamber would be well supported
by the town, and continue the same influential course it
had hitherto adopted.

COUNTRY MARKETS.

V

LYNN—TUESDAY.
To-day wheat came moderately to hand, and good Cry
samples were fully higher. Barley also advanced in price.
Beans and oats firm.
White ..50s to 53s j
It ‘d 49s to 51s
Beans
New —s to —s

Barley. 3Bs to 41s
Grinding ..32s to 33s
Oats
Peas —s to —s

HULL-TUESDAY.

A fair supply of English wheat to-day at market, which
met a slow sale at barely last week's currencies. Foreign a
limited business, but not pressed to any reduction. Barley
for malting sold steadily at fully late rates ; grinding rather
easier. Oats neglected. Beans and peas unaltered.
Wheat.... Old white....per qr sos Od to 53s Od
Old red
New white . • ~
New red .... „
Dantzic, Konb , &c. old white 52s Od to 576 Od
Dutch, Belgian, and French. 68s Od to 62s Od
Baltic and Hamburg, red
St. Petersburg and Riga, old sos Od to 52s Od
Barley.... English malting 3ls Od to 38s Od
Grinding 3os Od to 33s Od
Saal and Oderbruck
Holstein and Danish 2Bs Od to 29s Od
Grinding
Oats English, old 26s Od to 28s Od
Archangel and Riga, per st oBl2ld to 13d
Friesland and Dutch osl3d to 03130
Swedish and Danish osl2ld to osl3d
Beans ....English, old, per qr 4ss Od to 46s Od
New pigeon 42s Od to 44s Od
New tick. 4os Od to 42s Od
Egyptian .. 34s 6d to 356 Od
Peas Foreign boilers ..
Grinding
Tares ....Spring.
Indian Corn
Linseed, feeding s2s Od to 56s Od
_ _ _ .

crushing .• 4os Od to 52s Od
Linseed cakes (Hull) £lo 5: 0 to £lO 10 0
Foreign Bl5 oto 9 0 0
Rape cakes 6 5 oto 610 0
Bones .. 5 5 oto 510 0

NEWARK—WEDNESDAY.
At our market to• day there was a small supply of wheat,
with a fair basiness, and prices is to 2s higher than last
week.
White wheat new, 50s to 55s
Red do. 47e to 53s
Old white 6os to 62s
Red do.. 55s to 57s
Barley, malting 36s to 43s
Peas,....

1 Barley, grinding 298 to 32s
Oats, old, .. 2ss to 30s
New do 20s to 22s
I Beans. 428 to 44s
1 Beans, new 34s to 383
44s to 48s.

COAL MARKET.
Flues of Coal per Ton at the close of the market.
s. d. a. d.
Hastings Bartley ....16 3 Tanfield Moor Butes 13 6
Carway and Duffryn kA, alker Primrose 13 0
Malting,
Do. °Anthracite 20 6 Walls End.
Wylam .16 3 Tunstall
Lambert's West hart- Hetton .. l9 0
ley 16 3 Cassop
Ships at market, 20 ; sold, 14.

Foreign Mail Packet List.

MAILS D

A.up.,ralia and Mauritius, via Southampton. Jan. 18.

via Marseille; Feb. 12.
Brazil and Cape Verds, by British packet. Feb. 3.
Cape of Good Hope, Ascension, and St. Helena Feb. 1.
China, Penang, and Singapore, via Senthampton Jan. 18.
... ... ...

via Marseilles ...Jan 27.
Falkland Islands..
Gibraltar, via Southampton
India (Calcutta), and Ceylon, via Southampton Jan. 18
via Marseilles Jan. 27.
India (Bombay), via Southampton
via Marseilles Jan. 20.
Portugal• • • • Feb. 3.
Malta, Egypt, and Aden, via Southampton Jan. 18.
via Marseilles .. Jan, 20.
Newfoundland
Oporto and Vigo
U. S. and British N. America, by Brit. packet.... Jan. 21.
by U.S. packet....
by Canadian packet. Jan. 16.
W.C. of Africa, Madeira, and Teneriffe.. Feb. 10.
Bahamas, via New York ... . Jan. 15.
Mexico..
All parts of West Indies, including Chili, Peru, } Jan, 28.
California, and British Columbia..

ETON COLLEGE.—The Christmas vacation termi-
nated only yesterday, in consequence of the extra
week being given through the marriage of her Royal High-
ness the Princess Alice of Hesse, when the Lower Boys re-
turned to the school; to• day the Fifth Form will return ;
and to-morrow the Sixth Form, when the whole school will
have assembled.

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