97 



small dimensions." Tkis condition of things has, as might be 

 naturally expected, excited the greatest alarm among the Man- 

 chester manufacturers, and in proof of it Mr. 0' Conor quotes 

 the following passages from a letter of the Commercial corre- 

 spondent in London of the Times of India : " Several specimens 

 of dhooties manufactured in India were laid on the table for 

 inspection at the meeting of the Blackburn Chamber of Com- 

 merce on Wednesday. Mr. Alexander Harrison, who presided, 

 said that during the last ten years it has been the general 

 opinion in Lancashire that it is impossible for mill-owners in 

 India to make dhooties from 40's or the 50's yarns, but here 

 before their eyes were remarkably good specimens of dhooties 

 made from 40's twist and 50's Egyptian weft, Mr. Harrison 

 added that in his mind there never had been any insuperable 

 difficulty that would prevent Indian manufacturers from pro- 

 ducing tine counts, and he owned the opinion that in India in 

 time they will grow their own cotton and weave these fine 

 counts. The manufacturers of Lancashire should carefully 

 watch the doings of the Indian manufacturers, or they will find 

 not only that the coarse yam trade has gone, but that the medium 

 trade will go also. And he urged that it is time for Lancashire 

 manufacturers to consider their situation and to take means 

 to fortify themselves against encroachments on their interest." 

 What the means referred to are intended to be, whether they 

 are the pressure brought to bear on the Indian Government to 

 enact stringent factory ^"^ laws not suited to the conditions of 

 labour in this country, or less illegitimate methods, has not 

 been stated ; but whatever they may be, it is devoutly to be 

 hoped that no artificial obstacles will be placed in the way of 

 the development of the nascent factory industries in India, 

 which may enable Indian manufacturers to regain much of the 

 ground they have lost under the stress of Manchester com- 

 petition. 



40. It is clear, however, that the hereditary spinning and 



weaving castes have nothing to hope for in 



loom wetvo?s/a ntes-' the futurc, ovcu if India should mauu- 



sary stage in industrial facturc all the clothiug required for the 



e\e opmen . ^^^ ^^ ^^^ owQ population as wcU as to meet 



the demands of foreign markets. The deterioration of these 



classes has now been going on for over a hundred years. Mr. 



White (one of the members of Council of the Grovernor of 



** In this connection the following passage from a speech of the President of the 

 Blackburn Chamber of Commerce will be read with some amusement. He said : " They 

 (the Lancashii-e manufacturers) felt not one jot of opposition as being hostile to Indian 

 industry ; bJit they did protest against any industry being fostered upon the lives of little 

 children and women, upon the blood and sinews of the men who had to work in the mill 

 •toves and dust-iloles of th? cotton jenny workshops of India." 



