CHAPTER II. 



THE DECENTRALISATION OF INDUSTRIES (continued). 



Italy and Spain India Japan The United States The cotton, wool 

 and silk trades The growing necessity for each country to rely 

 chiefly upon home consumers. 



THE flow of industrial growths spreads, however, not 

 only east ; it moves also south-east and south. Austria 

 and Hungary are rapidly gaining ground in the race for 

 industrial importance. The Triple Alliance has already 

 been menaced by the growing tendency of Austrian 

 manufacturers to protect themselves against German 

 competition ; and even the dual monarchy has recently 

 seen its two sister nations quarrelling about customs 

 duties. Austrian industries are a modern growth, and 

 still they show a yearly return which exceeds 

 100,000,000. Bohemia, in a few decades, has grown 

 to be an industrial country of considerable importance ; 

 and the excellence and originality of the machinery used 

 in the newly reformed flour-mills of Hungary show that 

 the young industry of Hungary is on the right road, not 

 only to become a competitor to her elder sisters, but 

 also to add her share to our knowledge as to the use of 

 the forces of nature. Let me add, by the way, that the 

 same is true to some extent with regard to Finland. 

 Figures are wanting as to the present state of the ag- 

 gregate industries of Austria-Hungary ; but the rela- 

 tively low imports of manufactured goods are worthy of 

 note. For British manufacturers Austria-Hungary is, 

 in 'fact, no customer worth speaking of ; but even with 



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