The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1928-02-24
INDIAN BOYCOTT
|. SHOWS DECAY OF
BRITISH EMPIRE
Slash Wages as English
Cotton Trade Declines
BY LELAND 0LDS,
Federated Press).


threatened by Indian nationalists
against the latest coercive measure
Of the imperial government, shows
once again that the cornerstone of
the British economic empire is get
ting loose. AS the provinces under
mine the economic bonds of the en-
pire the vigor of English capitalism
viii be slowly Slapped. Unemployment,
wage reductions, more unemploy-
ment, a population Increasingly sup
ported on unearned income distributed
in dividends or doles-so the story of
decaying empire will repeat itself
Trade Declines.
The slow decay which the boycott
by the Indian nationalists will hasten
is reflected in two articles in the
weekly commerce reports Of the U. S.
department of commerce. One deals
with the decline in British trade with
India, the other with the cotton in
dustry's difficulties in England.
/ The report on British trade with
India shows that the English share
in total imports into India fell from
an average of 500 in the last pre-
war years to 1890 in the fiscal year
| 1926-27. In recent years the British
decline has been steady, the English
share being $3.50 in 1924, $40 in
1924-25 and 519o in 1925-26. India
buys less of the products which once
made England the industrial center Of
the world-cotton goods, textile ma
chinery, railroad plant, etc.
In the Indian market England is
faced not only with the growing COM
petition of other capitalist nations,
particularly the United States and
Japan, but also with Indian produc-
ton. The nationalist movement in
India as well as in China realizes
that it can strike at British power
with the economic weapon. England
is becoming increasingly vulnerable
economically.
The report on the British cotton
, industry, the original foundation Of
!. British capitalism, shows it almost
mortally hurt. The mill owners fran
tic demand for wage cuts and longer
hours in a last effort to hold foreign
markets is significant. But more sig
nificant is the cotton industry's nee
essity of writing down its capitaliza-
ton. Where capitalism is healthy it
is constantly writing up capitalization
in anticipation of larger profits.
Indian purchases of English-made
cotton goods increased slightly from
1926 to 1927 but the value fell off
sharply. The shipments to India in
1927 totaled 1,652,514, 900 square
yards but this compares with $685.
351, 900 yards in the last prewar year.
The demand for English cotton
goods in other provinces of the en-
pire shows similar decline from
prewar. In 1927 China took only 1O3,-
$4,000 square yards compared with
716,533,000 yards in 1923 Egypt 1885,
884 900 compared with 266, 623, 900 and
Turkey and Syria 91,966,000 yards
compared with 60,742,000 yards in
1913. English exports of cotton goods
in 1927 totaled Alt, 1856, 900 square
yards compared with 7,0T5,252, 900
yards in 1913.
/ Strip Workers as Markets Fail.
In the last months of 1927 the
English cotton spinning industry av-
eraged about $50 of capacity opera
ton. In 1924, the last year for which
census figures are available, the
English cotton industry showed 1870
fewer workers than in 1907 and pro-
duction down $3.50. The cotton spin
ming companies have reduced their
outstanding capital by about a third
since 1920.
THE latest move to restore trade"
says commerce reports, SIS a proposal
for reduction in wages and an in
crease in working hours, sponsored
chiefly by the Federation of Master
Cotton Spinners' Associations and the
Cotton Spinners' and Manufacturers
Associations. Both recommend a
! 1851 all round reduction in the stan
dard piece price lists of wages, equiv
alent to about 12la Go on current earn
ings. as well as an increase of work
ing hours from nominal week of 48
hours to 5212. Other suggestions cali
for readjustment of the finances of
many mills, decrease in expendi-
lures for social service and welfare
work. and closer cooperation be-
tween the various sections of the in
dustry."