The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1849-04-24 00:00:00

LAW INTELLIGENCE.

ROLLS' COURT

RSDAY, APRIL 19,

_ritory.) The
Ir. James Leith by his will gave about £14,000 for
he purpose of spreading the Christian religion in foreign
lands, and made the Bishop of London and others trus-
tees. It was proposed to apply the money in support of
•

drawn up by the master to that effect ; but thb
refused to confirm the report on the ground that there
was no evidence taken nor any facts proved on which to
found a report. There was no evidpnr, thst th.,.... ....,..

rd Langdale no

A the c

CAN WE COMPETE WITH THE FOREIGN

MANUFACTTYRER ?

It is becoming a serious question with sill classes of
producers whether or not we are, as a manufacturing na-
tion, so far beyond the reach of competition, as to be ena-
bled to command a sale for our goods, at paying prices, in
neutral markets. The whole case made out in favour of
free-trade rested upon the assumption that our increased
imports of grain and other foreign produce would be paid
for in the products of British industry. It must be plain
to the merest tyro in politico-economical science that, if
We connot do this, we are paying out of our capital; and
that the certain result must be a progressive national de-
cay and ultimate insolvency. We th, refore watch with
interest every commercial movement which tends towards
the solution of so important a problem.
Our attention has been attracted by a letter, bearing
upon this subject, in the Midland Counties Herald, the
writer of which shows that, so far as regards the trade of
Birmingham, we are not only incapable of competing with
the foreigner in his own, or in neutral markets, but that,
with respect to many articles, actually beaten in our own.
In the course of a letter on the subject, he says :
" I have been induced to make these observations from hav-
ing carefully inspected a number of articles recently imported
into this country, of German manufacture. I am not here
alluding to those which have been recently sitlyertised in yntir

paper, about the quality of which there has been some tittle
contention, though I believe only the files have really been ob-
jected to, and these the importers are said to admit to be of in-
f-rior quality. The articles which I have seen have been r: t,rl

recently imported, and will certainly come into competil-4
with, if they do not entirely supersede all similar articles of

nufacture. They may he enumerated partly in the
dvertisement alluded to, the files, scissors, and
g omitted, though for common purposes even

English r
words of th
penknives 'rein

vices, pHs.

The articles, then, are hand-
_.a of all kinds, cutting nippers, spring callipers, and
articles in what I believe is called the heavy steel toy
Patterns have been received and examined, and some
,as of them have also come to hand, and have been found
,cen superior to sample. They are so good in appearance that
no one would hesitate to make choice of them in preference to
the articles manufactured by our known makers. They will
bear comparison with the manufacture of "Stubbs," and in
some cases where a comparison has been made, the foreign ma-
nufacture has proved the better article. In the cutting nippers
this is especially evident, the cutting edges have not been da-
maged when put to trials which have injured the home-made
nippers. The articles have been submitted for inspection to
several of our most intelligent manufacturers, and their good-
ness has been acknowledged. The question became, with th,
one of sumo— "

_y they be supplied in sufficient quantities?
This inquiry has been put to rest; the German manufacturers
undertake to supply any quantity that may be required. The
importers have already furnished several old-established factors
with pattern books, and have been assured that orders will be
plentiful. The prices range from twenty to upwards of forty

laving paid

an import

um), or ten per cent. in many cases the mere journeyman's
wages at home, for forg,inz, is equal to the price asked for the
foreign finished article. It should. perhaps, be mentioned that
'r German competitors have carefully studied and copied the
terns of our most eminent English manufacturers. The
-s are thus en.- - *-to cOmoetit;,-- • - -ticles

.....,veittion with us in artic,
in which we were supposed to be in every way their superiors.
They can beat us in our own home market, how much more so
in foreign markets? There is matter here for our ultra free
traders to ponder over, and I shall be glad if their philosophy
will enable us to overcome the difficulty of the position in which
they have placed us. "

We are afraid that this is not a solitary case. The
stuff- manufacturers of Bradford have already con-
fessed their inability to compete with the Continental
manufacturers of woollen stuffs. The silk goods of
France are exposed in all our shops, to the exclusion of
own fabrics. The American c!o- beer.- •

people are becoming
-eiv more capable of supplying themselves from the
produce of their own looms and workshops; and the
necessary result must be a constant balance of trade
against this country, thus adding tenfold, by derange-
ment of our currency, to evils which, of themselves, are
sufficient to swamp any country, however fertile may be
its resources, and however great its accumulation of
wealth.