TEXTILES IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES. 

 PLACE OF MANUFACTURE AND WHENCE IMPORTED. 



The places of manufacture were as follows: 



Piece goods : 



United Kingdom 367,642 



Germany 200 



United States ; 246 



Blankets : 



United Kingdom 75,000 



All other countries 500 



Hosiery : 



United Kingdom 100,000 



All other countries * 300 



DUTIES CHARGED THEREON. 



The value of the goods imported are declared at the customs at the 

 cost price at the place of purchase, with the addition of the usual charges, 

 commissions, etc., as in the United States, and a duty is levied thereon, 

 12 per cent, ad valorem. 



Some four or five years ago no inconsiderable amount of cotton goods 

 was sold here, the product of the United States. At the present time 

 it will be seen that a relatively small amount is imported from the United 

 States. One importer informed me that he was forced to dispose of the 

 last of his stock of unbleached goods at a loss. One of the largest im-' 

 porters of cotton goods in Gape Town informed me that he had recently; 

 gone so far as to get out samples of nearly all descriptions of cotton 

 fabrics, such as duck, denims, bleached and unbleached cottons, cotton-' 

 ades, and prints, and had established his private telegraph code. Upon 

 comparing his line of samples with his goods in stock of English manu- 

 facture he came to the conclusion that he could get better value by the 

 purchase of the latter. I made an exhaustive examination of the sam- 

 ples, comparing them with like quality of English goods. I could not, 

 of course, argue the question as an expert, and, though the admission 

 was made that the American goods were of high quality, they could not 

 compete in price with the English. . 



These samples were furnished by a New York commission house, and 

 embraced the product of many mills, from Maine to Georgia. Whether 

 the prices quoted were unduly enhanced by excessive cominissioifrcharges 

 I have no means of knowing. 



GEO. F. HOLLIS, 



UNITED STATES CONSULATE, Consul. 



Cape Town, July, 1889. 



PORT ELIZABETH. 



REPORT BY CONSULAR AGENT CHABAUD. 



1. It is impossible to give quantity the Government, as will be seen 

 from annexure A (customs comparative returns), only give the value 

 to wit, for the year 1888, 230,360, and keep no record of quantity or 

 kind. From the principal importing merchant of cotton goods in this 



