THE DECENTRALISATION OF INDUSTRIES. II 



The new manufactures of Germany begin where Man- 

 chester arrived after a century of experiments and grop- 

 ings ; and Russia begins where Manchester and Saxony 

 have now reached. Russia, in her turn, tries to emanci- 

 pate herself from her dependency upon Western Europe, 

 and rapidly begins to manufacture all those goods she 

 formerly used to import, either from Britain or from 

 Germany. 



Protective duties may, perhaps, sometimes help the 

 birth of new industries ; always at the expense of some 

 other growing industries, and always checking the im- 

 provement of those which already exist ; but the decen- 

 tralisation of manufactures goes on with or without 

 protective duties I should even say, notwithstanding 

 the protective duties, Austria, Hungary and Italy 

 follow the same lines they develop their home in- 

 dustries and even Spain and Servia are going to join 

 the family of manufacturing nations. Nay, even India, 

 even Brazil and Mexico, supported by English and 

 German capital and knowledge, begin to start home 

 industries on their respective soils. Finally, a terrible 

 competitor to all European manufacturing countries has 

 grown up of late in the United States, In proportion 

 as technical education spreads more and more widely, 

 manufactures must grow in the States ; and they do 

 grow at such a speed an American speed that in a 

 very few years the now neutral markets will be invaded 

 by American goods. 



The monopoly of the first comers on the industrial 

 field has ceased to exist And it will exist no more, 

 whatever may be the spasmodic efforts made to return 

 to a state of things already belonging to the domain 

 of history. New ways, new issues must be looked for : 

 the past has lived, and it will live no more. 



Before going farther, let me illustrate the march of 

 industries towards the east by a few figures. And, to 



