The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1849-10-02 00:00:00

THE COTTON TRADE.

We did not in our last publication give any remarks on
the Cotton Trade, nor should we in the present uninter-
esting state of the Market have given any this, had not
our contemporary of the Manchester Examiner and
Times, in his number of Wednesday last, furnished
another of his short-sighted articles on this interesting
and vital subject ; and although we are undoubtedly pay-
ing him far too much attention, yet for the interest of all
concerned in this great question—and who is there who is
not more or less directly or indirectly interested—we will
once more combat his figures and assertions, and leave it
to the Manchester Spinners and others directly interested
to draw their own deductions—we have neither time nor
inclination to follow him through his ratiocinations : but
we take facts, and to these we will bind him, particularly
as they are of his own furnishing, and as they tend to clear
up, so far as it is possible at the present early period,
the great point at issue, whether the probabilities
of the coming crop in America are or are not in
favour of a large one. We will here again remark, be-
fore entering upon the statistics and data given by our
contemporary, that it:is riot against these, but his false
deductions, that we have to contend. He informs us that
speculators, or, as he terms them, croakers, assert that
we have never had more than two good crops together,
and to disprove this position he gives the crop in America
for the last sixteen years, commencing with 1833. As the
production had not been forced till the year 1837, we will
recapitulate his estimates of the crop from this year, which,
we will do him the justice to say, we believe to be correct.
Bales. Bales.
1837-1,801.497 1843-2.030.409
1838-1,360.532 1844-2,394,502
1839 —2,177,835 1845-2,100,537
1840-1,634,945 1846-1,780.479
1841-1,683.574 1847-2.347,634
1842-2,378,875 1848-2,707,000
Now here we have before us the crop of cotton in Ame-
rica for the last twelve years ; and from these facts our
Manchester contemporary argues that there is every pro-
bability, nay certainty, of there being a large crop this
year; he and his correspondents having variously estima-
ted it at 21 to 31 million bales,—by the way, a pretty mi.
dons guess, sufficient of itself to cause a want of confi-
dence. For some years previous to 1837, we had had an
unusually prosperous state of things in this country, and
the value of cotton, ruling from Bd. to Is. per lb., had given
a great stimulus to its production ; and in that year it had
arrived at its climax, compared with previous seasons—say
1,800,000 bales ; in the following year it fell to 1,360,e00 ;
and in the subsequent one again increased to 2,177,000 ;
but in the years 1840 and 1841 it decreased to 1,634,000
and 1,683,000 ; in 1842 it rallied to 2.378,000 ; but in the
following declined to 2,030,000. In 1844, it amounted to
2,394,000 ; but. in 1845, tell ,off to 2,100,000, and in the
following, only came up to 1,780,000. The crop of 1847,
was again a large one, 2,347,000, and the last a bumper,
having been estimated as high as 2,707,000 bales. And
with these facts before him, our contemporary attempts to
write the cotton market down. Now, the conclusion
which we come to from the foregoing figures, is,
with the exception of the last two years, putting
out of the question the bad accounts of the corning
crop, that there is not only an improbability of a
third large crop, but considering the annual in-
cre.sed consumption of cotton since the year 1837,
not only in this country but in America and on the Conti-
nent, that there has never been a second large crop since,
as we before stated, the production has been forced,
arising from the requirements of the world—the average
of the four years, from 1833 to 1836 inclusive, which
we consider quite unnecessary to introduce in this calcu-
lation, only amounting to 1,300,000 bales. The accounts
from India by the Overland Mail were decidedly cheering,
and with the advance of some 5 per cent. which had ge-
nerally taken place, and a decline in the Manchester mar-
ket of a like per centage, and the certainty of higher
prices for the raw material, it is only reasonable to look
for a resumption of trade before very long. The bad
accounts brought from America by the Caledonia, fully
confirm all our fears on this head ; and it is just as
likely that the crop will be under two millions of bales as
over—fine weather might bring it up to 24, hut the re-
verse, or an early frost, might reduce it to 11 million bales.
We do not wish to appear as the advocates of one inte-
rest to the prejudice of another; but, as we foresee injury
to the class which the Manchester Examiner is evidently
misleading, if they suffer an unwise delay to operate dis-
advantageously upon themselves, we cannot conscienti-
ously withhold our opinions upon the subject. We have
now influential and wealthy competitors for every bale of
cotton, not only on the continent but in America ; and
very different to most previous occasions, we shall be
without any import of consequence probably for four or
five months, and when it does make its appearance it will,
in all probability, be at high prices. The crop is acknow-
ledged to be a month later than usual, and the high prices
ruling in America will prevent orders being executed on
English account, at all events for some time, and there is
every probability that the early portion of the crop will
be taken by the Americans themselves, and France. The
accounts from China were also injurious to the Cotton
crop in that country, and, though• comparatively little is
known of the extent of their annual crop, yet their popu-
lation is estimated at three hundred millions of creatures,
and from what little our countrymen have seen of them,
nine out of every ten are clothed in cotton dresses. This
circumstance must necessarily turn the current of a large
quantity of India Cotton to that country which would
otherwise have been sent here.
Disasters never come alone, and so it seems with regard
to the cotton plant ; the consumption of cotton in the
" States," for the past year, is estimated at 650,000 bales ;
in the year 1832 it was only 173,000, and it is thought for
the coming year that it may rearh 800,000, and no circum-
stance would be so calculated to give the Americans the
advantage over us as that of our spinners being compelled
to enter the market at high prices. We have given it as
our opinion before, and we repeat it, that with anything
short of a large crop in America, present prices, say, mid-
dling at 51-d. to 54d. per lb, are moderate. Doubtless our
exports of goods this year to the East and elsewhere have
been extensive, but it must not be forgotton that they
went to impoverished markets, and that they are finding
their way into consumption in unprecedented large quan-
tities, and at remunerative prices to the shippers. The
Advance in foreign markets may not have kept pace with
that in this country, but that is not to the point; for if
cotton is to rule high here and in the places of growth for
the next twelve months, prices of goods must advance also.

MR. ELMES AND MR. SAMUEL HOLME.

(From the Courier.)

We have just received the following communication
from the Trustees of St. Paul's Church, Prince's-park,
which we publish with pleasure.
Mr. Rawlinson, who is now one of the commissioners
for inquiring into the condition of populous towns, ought
to ascertain facts before he accuses any gentlemen of in-
terference or discourtesy. Mr. Holine, as many persons
will recollect, expressed, in his place in Council, his dis-
satisfaction at the continual alteration and delays in the
erection of St. George's Hall ; and it is easy to conceive
that an artist might take umbrage at such expressions of
sentiment.
One fact is certain. The Corporation at first agreed to
expend £BO,OOO in the erection of the new Assize Courts
and St. George's Hall. Step by step that sum had in-
creased, and it is now beyond all dispute that £200,000

will be expended before the building ti completed. Mr.
Rawlinson would confer a great favour upon the public if
he would explain how this has occurred. Architects were
invited to compete for this building, and seventy-five did
so, it being expressly stipulated, that if the designs could
not be executed for the money, nam' ly, £30.000 for the
Assize Courts, and £50.000 for the great hall, their designs
were to be rejected. Mr. Rawlinson, as one of the friends
of the late Mr. Elmes, and as having been engaged him-
self as an assistant to that gentleman, may be the means
of raking up some awkward questions. His unjust attack
upon Mr. Holme may cause some of the architects whose
plans were rejected to ask whether they were fairly treated
by the Council of that day.
The following is the letter to which we refer:—
" Liverpool,l7th Sep., 1849.
"Rta,—We have observed with surprise a letter in the Mail
of Saturday last, signed " Robert Rawlinson," in which the
writer accuses Mr. Samuel Holme of undue interference be-
tween the late Mr. Elmes and the Trustees of St. Paut's
Church, Prince's Park, with reference to the erection of that
edifice. We feel it due to Mr. Holme to state, that such an as-
sertion has no foundation whatever, (wit:most unwarrantable.
Mr. Holme's conduct towards Mr. Eltnes was marked by the
utmost delicacy and propr,ety of feel;ng. He decined our re-
quest to furnish a plan and estimate of the building until he
had ascertained that our negotiation with Mr. Elmes was con-
cluded ; and until Mr. Elmes himself, as he then informed us,
had assured him by letter that such was the case We must
express our regret that any person would venture to put forth
a statement without any foundation for doing so. and which, if
it had been correct, would have been an imputation upon the
Trustees as well as Mr. Holme. We are, yours respectfully,
"WILLIAM JONES,
R. BICKERSTETH,
EDWARD CROPPER,
JOHN CAMPBELL,
"Trustees of St. Paul's Church."

This letter most effectually disposes of one of Mr.
R9wlinson's statements. Another, of a similar character,
reflects upon Mr. Holme's conduct in connexion with
the Collegiate Institution; end this is susceptible of an
equally emphatic contradiction. We have before us an
account of the ceremony of laying the foundation stone
of the Collegiate Institution on the 22nd of October,
1840; on which occasion the Rev. Rector Brooks thus
alluded to the plans of Mr. Elmes, and the reason why
he had not been entrusted with the practical department
of the undertaking :
"The plans selected, and which, I believe, have been publicly
exhibited, are those of a London artist, Mr. Elmes; and ►t
must be a source of peculiar gratification to that young artist
to reflect, that though only new commencing his career, he has
been fortunate enough to carry off the prize in three public
competitions in this town during the past year, notwithstand-
ing he had those to compete with who were not only old in
their profession, but also adepts in their art. My lord, it has
so happened, by the regulations since adopted, that it does not
fall to the lot of this gentleman to carry into execution the
plans he has furnished ; and in justice to him, I have been
requested by the committee to make this public statement.
that the reason why lie has not been intrusted with the future
care of the building, was in consequence of the committee
re, Lug. that, as trustees of an institution of this nature, and
with the means they possess of carrying their object into effect,
they would not have been justified in going to the extent of his
claims as a remuneration for his services. At the same time
they coal(' not but acknowledge that his motive in making
that_claim was one deserving of great commendation; he did
not feel authorised to break through the known rules of his
profession. He w-s influenced solely by a feeling of delicacy
towards his brother artists, which obliged him to adhere to the
usual scale of remuneration."

It thus appears, that the non-employment of Mr.
Elmes in the execution of his designs was solely the act
of the committee of the institution, and that the ground
upin which they acted was the simple and laudable one of
a desire to avoid expense. And to show how little idea
Mr. Elmes himself entertained of any ill-usage or dis-
courtesy intended or practised towards him, we may add,
that he afterwards offered, in the most handsome man-
ner not only to furnish drawings for those portions of the
edifice which affected its architectural character, but also
to superintend their execution free of all charge ; an offer
which was gratefully accepted by the committee.