174 Transactions. — Miscellaneous. 



and the exports goods of home production. Such imports and 

 exports are described as " special" when it is necessary to dis- 

 tinguish them from the total imports and exports, which include 

 the re-exports, or goods of the transit trade, which are imported 

 only to be exported again. Bullion and specie are usually 

 excluded from the general returns, and separately accounted for. 



Variations from this standard practice sometimes occur. 

 For instance, the United States value their imports at the port 

 of shipment, and do not add freight, insurance, and other charges. 

 The imports of the United States thus appear considerably 

 smaller than they would do if valued in the same manner as 

 those of most other nations. Again, New Zealand and most 

 gold- and silver-producing countries include these metals in the 

 value of their exports. This, though varying from the recognised 

 practice, is to some extent justifiable, as the production of gold 

 in many of these countries forms quite a considerable proportion 

 of the national industry, and the output of gold must be included 

 in the exports if these are to give a fair representation of the 

 commercial position. The United States, however, does not 

 adopt this practice. These exceptions have to be carefully 

 borne in mind in making comparisons. The question also as 

 to whether re-exports are included or excluded should always 

 be attended to before making application of any returns of 

 imports or exports. In the case of the United Kingdom these 

 re-exports reach now as much as seventy millions annually, 

 and there are instances of places, as Malta, with small consuming 

 and productive power whose trade consists mainly of this class 

 of goods. 



In what follows we shall generally speak of gold only, and 

 deal only with the statistics of gold, and not of gold and silver. 

 In the case of the nations from whose trade returns we shall 

 take illustrations, the part played by silver in international 

 transactions is secondary to that played by gold, and it is 

 unnecessary to complicate the subject by taking both into 

 account. It would, of course, be very different in the case of 

 countries having silver standards ; but even then the general 

 argument would not be affected, though the statistics used 

 would necessarily have to include silver. 



The Graphical Illustrations. 



Figs. I •"> represent, by the usual graphical method, the 

 balance of trade respectively for the United Kingdom, the 

 United States, Germany, France, and New Zealand. An excess 

 of imports is represented above the base line, and an excess of 

 exports lieluu it. Figs. I 1 are drawn to the same scale, and 

 so are suited lor direct comparison ; that for New Zealand is 



