Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1877-08-29
ENGLAND'S ALARM.
The British Export Trade Falling or.
1.-The Exports to America.

The annual statement of the trade of
the United Kingdom with foreign coun-
tries and British possessions has Just
been isued for 1875. The Times re-
marks:
The country is painfully familiar with
the fact that our export trade is falling
off, and the abstract tables given in the
beginning of the volume enable us to
trace where this falling offs most pro-
nounced. Thus we see that our exports
to Germany were last year nearly fl3,-
100000 lower in value than in 1872; that
France is a very steady customer, and
also Italy. Trade has also been wonder
fully well kept up with Turkey as a
whole, though Turkey in Europe
shows a great falling of. Petty Dor
rowing states all show very badly as
a rule, such as Peru, the Argentine Con-
federation, Colombia, and such like,
whose trade got II few years unhealthy
stimulus from ill-spent English gold.
AS a whole, however, the export table
Is not so discouraging as we might have
expected, nearly every leading 5
toner, except the United States and Ger
many, showing, all things considered n
remarkable steadiness i'll purchasing
power. There are special hindrances
of course, to our trade with the Ameri-
car union, but, these allowed for, it is II
standing fact all the same that our ex-
ports thither have fallen from the above
f46,0 1000, including the Pacific trade,
in 1872 to n little more than ego, 900, 900
last year. The export trade to our own
foreign possessions keeps fairly good,
and though last years totals were below
those of the three previous years they
are still more than $4,000, 900 above
1872, the Australian and South African
trade being the steadiest of all. Our ex-
ports to Canada, how yer show very
severe depression last year compared
even with 1875.
AS to particular articles, the tables
are equally valuable and instructive.
The quantities" tables particularly
tend, even on the export side of the ac-
count, to lessen III some measure the
alarm with which we are ready to view
the serious fall i'll values. They show
us, for n thing, that % little overpro-
utittlpll LAS IL tlNtSNloiS lIlllutllCt bIl
prices. 1t is true that if we take such
an exceptional article as iron, the guam
titles exported suggestn no consolation, for
the falling offin demand has been more
than one million tons in 1876 compared
with 1872, takingiron and steel together.
Few other articles, however, give such n
bad testimony, although prices are
nearly universally depressed. The cx-
port ofunwrought copper has, for in
stance, increased steadily in quantity
for the last three years, and the export
of yellow metal was decidedly greater in
1866 than in 1872 OF 1878, though smaller
than in the intermediate years; yet
prices for these have gone down very
severely. Again our exports of cotton
piece goods have remained almost ut ~
level for the whole five years, and were
last year at their highest point. Yet
these prices have also given way, in part,
no doubt, through overstocked India and
China markets; Or because of n compe-
tition of prices with other sources of
supply. The record of most kinds OF
WOODEN goods is not quite so satisfactory,
although we should not call the figures
disheartening, judged by quotations
only.