Star.
London, England, 1831-01-26 00:00:00

BRITISH COMMBRCE.

In the STA a of Friday the 7th inst. we gave place to a
series of resolutions, proposed to be moved on the 15th of
February, relative to the state of our foreign commerce.—
All mercantile men are aware, that we ship more bulky car-
goes, for lees money and lees profits; and all work-people,

engaged in the manufactories, know that they must perform

a great deal more labour for do same wages; in fact,
That they must work two or three weeks for the former
wages of one week. Importers of raw material, dealers,

manufacturers, finishers, merchants, dm. all say they do not
get a living profit; and yet the Ministers, and public wri-
ters, keep gasconading about the vast increase of our ex-
perts—but they should always add is BULK, not io VALI7I4
and not in slum either to masters or workmen.
Now this fact, Alderman WAITIMAII has illustrated by
reference to the Custom House Returns, and nothing can be
more certain than that we now export more than double the
quantity for less money ; consequently, as manufactures
chiefly represent labour, we now give double or treble the
*sour, for the same money ; and this, in truth, is the true
ma sole cause of the wretched state of the manufacturing
japularion. We are exporting, for the use of foreigners, at
lees than a subsistence price, and snider circumstances of
slavery never exceeded; and yet we are deluded with the
phantom of a public advantage.
We ascertain the fact by the official or old standard video,
fixed soon after the Revolution ; at which value all exports
are uniformly entered. It is, in truth, a mere cemparativei
gunge, as to one year, or period, with another ; but it de.
termines their relations with the varying prices at, which
merchants value their goods, or at which they invoice them
to their consignees. Of course also the two systems of price
work alike at different times, and therefore the amounts, in
a series of years, are an exact page of the returns or va-
lues of the whole of the exports.
The following are the exact data:
Years Ai of
coding.
Value.

Yearly
itaarzus.olt

15th Ito. 17891 22,274,02 37,793.738
to 6th Jan. 1803 f
1808 22,11112,630 . • 37,327.798
1813....... 28,113,813— • . • 39,908,448
1819 38,178.125 43,791,788
1824 38,182,1112
1830 48,939,230 36,713,824
Ministers themselves bad, for years, gone on in such self.
satisfied ignorance, and Fox bunting and College Legis-
lators were so little qualified, even for this simple abstrac-
tion, that on a man of business stating Mr. MAILIN•LeII
well-known doctrines on this subject, he was laughed at ;1
and even the Head of the Board of Trade, the Chancellor of
the Exchequer, who appeared also to be in such utter igno-
rance as to deny the fact !
Marh, then, in the 14 yarn, from 1789 to 1803, the official
uniform, or standard value of the exports, were 22;
; and the entered real, or invoice value, were 371—
the difference of which, or above 15 millions—indicated a
comparative growing advantage to the country. In like way,
this advantage continued; but every year it became less
and less, till, lb 1819, the 15 millions had dwindled
down to 54. Since 1819, however, the balance has been THI
*Tina HAT—that is, from 1819 to 1824, the real values
were less than the standard, by 44 millions ; and from 1824
to 1830, the real values were less than the standard by no
less than 134 millions against the exporter, instead a being,
as in the first instance, above 15 in his favour ! In
fact we get, now, 28§ millions less for our exports than
from 1789 to 1803 ; and such has been the detailed=
ever aims 1824, soon after which our theorists began In
make their free-trade and monetary speculations.
To put it in another point of view, we exported, at a 'tan&
and price, in 1798, 191 millions at an invoice price of 331 mil-
lions; and in 1830, we exported 551 millions also, at an invoice
of nearly 35 millions ; that is, we now give 55 millions of,
labour, or quantity, for nearly the same invoice debits,f or
which in 1798 we gave but 19§ millions, or nearly three
for one ; and all this has been progressively going on,
while • our legislators and financiers, were not only
utterly ignorant of the • fact ; but even insulted
a better informed member, who brought it lass year before
them, as a key to the solution of our national difficulties.
This is the reason why the price of equal labour in weaving
I has fallen from 15e. to Is. 10d ; and why the operatives,
masters, and merchants, can make no profits by their trans-
actions. It is, in a word, itself partly the effect of inadequate
and restricted currency, and of consequent forced sales all
over the world ; and it makes no difference whether we re-
quired the exports as products of machinery, or hand-labour,
Weenie it is a question of net public profit, or gross balance,
however it arises.