The Sun.
London, England, 1862-09-27 00:00:00

STATE OF TRADE.

MANCHESTER, Sept. 26.—This market has been exceed-
ingly quiet during the entire week, and since Tuesday there
has been a decided depression in prices. Under the influ-
ence of the American news to-day, however, the yarn-
market has assumed a mere cheerful aspect, and the down-
ward tendency of prices has been checked, Spinners and
speculators are asking within a fraction of the highest rates
lately current The market closes firm, and prices appear
likely to advance, but there is still exceedingly little busi-
neis doing. The cloth-market is affected in the same direc-
tion and under the same influences. Sellers are again be-
ginning to ask very full prices, and all symptoms of decline
have vanished. Buyers have not operated to any extent,
being anxious to receive confirmation of the reported Federal
victory in Maryland before making fresh investments. A
few weeks ago a Confederate success was necessary to sus-
tain prices ; now a Federal success is desirable, or anything
in fact which tends to indicate a prolongation of the war.
If the American news is confirmed we shall probably have
a renewal of speculative operations, and an advance in prices
such as we have bad at Liverpool to-day, where cotton is
telegraphed at id. to ld. per lb. higher, with an increased
business. Of course this position of the market is modified
by the probability of arrivals of Indian cotton before long,
and any large quantity coming in at once might have a
damaging effect both here and at Liverpool; but at present
the market is very firm, with no pressure to sell. Mr.
Harben's proposed substitute for cotton is receiving due
attention, but no great hopes are entertained of any useful
result. Several persons here have sent for quantities of
grass-wrack (Zostera Marina), with a view to experiments.
Among them is one of our most eminent machinists, and a
cotton-spinner. The first great obstable to be encountered
will be the large quantity of vegetable or mucilaginous matter
to be got rid of before the fibre can be disengaged. Some
persons on our Exchange on Tuesday estimated the propor-
tion of the fibre to the grass at little over lib. of the former
to a ton of the latter. This is probably an exaggeration, but
there is no doubt that the yield will be very small, and the
difficulty will probably be great of finding an efficient and
sufficiently. simple mode of removing the superfluous matter
without to the fibre. The fibres are so exceedingly
fine that it is calculated that five of them are only equal
to about one fibre of ordinary cotton. The fear is, therefore,
that for this reason it can never be used as a substitute for,
American cotton of the ordinary qualities. It may do for
something better, just as the finer qualities of Queensland
and Sea Islands are valuable for certain kinds of goods;
it is alleged that, if we had ever such an abundance of thes
qualities of cotton, they could never be made available for
bulkofoe s t
ells: T
-e
fabrics
o th
s m,
andcommon
anuf act ure d. h
n s thisit
ndis-
trict, nsg thuche dmas
tßoetshideeus
use of
itammuasttebricablborne inthmisintdhtehwat if
holewoefhoaudrtomgao.
icnhvi no
le
vr ye wthoeuldsahcriavfiecetoof bae
garleteartepdoortriornemoafdteh,ewvhaischt
cwapoiutlald
already sunk in the trade—a sacrifice which manufacturers
would only be driven to incur under the certainty that all
future hopes of procuring cotton were at an end. In esti-
mating the unwillingness of practical men to enter heartily
into experiments with new material it must be borne in
mind how many of them had made sacrifices on former oc-
casions in trying to work proposed substitutes. Some of
them sacrificed many thousands of pounds in adapting ma-
chinery in trying to make M. Claussen's "cotton fibre" (as
it was called) answer, and the failure of such attempts is
not, of course, lost upon their neighbours. Mr. Harben's
discovery, however, is in good hands to test its capabilities,
and we must await the result of experiments. In the mean-
time, if a ton of grass-wrack yield only a few pounds of
fibre, where are the hundreds of millions of tons to come
from which will be necessary to set our operatives at work
again?

LEEDS, Sept. 26.—The Leeds Chamber of Commerce
make the following ireport as to trade in Leeds and the
neighbourhood during the present month :—" With the
exception of fine
plain cloths, all branches of the woollen
trade have been good during this month, especially during
the former part of it. All kinds of heavy winter goods have
been in great demand. In union cloths the great advance
in cotton warps has necessitated an advance in cloths,
which the makers have generally succeeded in obtaining.
The rise has been very considerable in low goods, particu-
larly tweed!, but without much affecting sales. In the sur-
rounding districts the. manufacturers are fully employed,
eonnte
an time.d
for
AmericanA. bout
a2sw
and have still. considerable orders in hand. The public
sales of colonial wool,
.which closed on the 6th inst.,
satisfactory to the buyer
vtalinaneco.ltaotsottoh::pellalceer:
com-
prised 105,000 bales, being the largest quantity ever brought
account, being rather less
0141010chhbtaelpersu:wnge.rue_b.rought for
than the usual proportion for the Continent alone. Prices
present time,
generally averaged about those of May, and were for the
sold.
nvance of 108, to
ftohrewCarodntaint
most part more
English wools
This has
continuedTowardsowi
ng to tahmsepo
orclose,oenolro tlihevsoesw teov demande
the
h, e
and has im-
parted more than usual briskness. to the trade, many of the
forlon ghobmrieg
dealers have sold largely at a decided advance. The demand
trade
has
foils have also
505., and large quantities have been sothe last
spinners
days
hcto.nhsaiumrepdtisoonrtigshaalvsoe vreearyrizgeodoadn.
laidbheaevnincignie
re
ri,nbut
very extensivelyfi rin; the.
and
th
realised an advance. The excited state of 0, ilax-market
has continued during the month, and all. sorts have ad.
Mod very considerably i'34 value. FrA Alp 04z is um

worth in Hull 58s, to 608., and other marks in proportion.
English, Dutch, Friesland, &c.,have been sold at an advance
of several pounds per ton over last month's prices. All sorts
of tows have been much sought for, and are higher, and the
tendency is still upwards. Low tows and cedillas have
participated in the rise. Green hemps are dearer. The only
exception to this great advance is jute, which has receded
from the highest quotations about £lO per ton, the former
advance having been mainly owing to the probability of
its being extensively substituted for cotton—an idea which
is now almost abandoned. Yarns of all sorts have ad-
vanced largely, from ls. to is. Gd. per bundle, and at present
prices the spinners have no difficulty in obtaining ,orders.
They are all busy and full of orders. The makers of best
iron arc tolerably well employed, though not so well sup-
plied with orders as some months since. Merchants' iron
is dull, but not more so than at the date of last report. The
machine trade remains without much alteration. The en-
gineer tool makers are fairly employed, and it is believed
that the International Exhibition has brought some orders
for these articles. The makers of locomotive and railway
plant are busy. For cut nails there has been a greatly im•
proved demand, and the makers arc generally working over-
time. There has been a steady trade in leather, with a
slight advance in the prices, of shaved hides, East India
kips and calf skins. In other descriptionsof leather, prices
are firm, without alteration. Rape oil is in good demand,
and prices are well supported. The seed season is nearly
over, and prices are higher than last month. Linseed oil
is much wanted, and the rates asked last month have been
fully realised, and the market is very firm. Cakes move
off but slowly. There is a brisk inquiry for olive oil, at
higher prices, both here and abroad. The advance has been
caused by the uniformly unfavourable accounts from the
producing countries. The improvement last reported in
the paper trade has continued, and the makers are all work-
ing full time to order. The scarcity of raw materials for
paper still remains the great difficulty in this trade. The
supply of wheat has been good, and has gone off freely at a
ccnsiderable reduction in price, resulting from the fine har-
vest weather which has generally prevailed. Barley has
been dull. Oats in good demand at firm rates. Beans as
before. This month the demand for cattle has exceeded
the supply. For better sorts prices have been higher, and
continue very firm. For inferior qualities prices have given
way to a slight extent. Number shown (four weeks),—
cattle, 1,720; sheep and lambs, 14,600."