134 



COTTON TEXTILES IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES. 



The following figures are compiled from returns made to the Hong- 

 Kong General Chamber of Commerce during the year 1888, and are, 

 I am informed by the secretary who kindly furnished them, incomplete, 

 as a large part of the trade is carried on by firms who are not members. 

 These figures therefore serve only to show the nature of the trade, as 

 they are misleading as regards quantities : 



UNITED STATES CONSULATE, 



Hong-Kong, July 30, 1889. 



R. E. WITHERS, JR., 



Vice-Consul. 



NINGPO. 



REPORT BY CONSUL PETTTJS. 



I have the honor to inclose my reports on cotton textiles imported 

 into this consular district as instructed. It has been a hard matter to 

 arrive at the facts outside of the quantity. 



As I had to procure information from native merchants, which but 

 few of them would give, my report is not as full as I would wish. We 

 have no merchants here who are direct importers; all cotton textiles are 

 bought by native merchants here from importers at Shanghai. 



I have only given the weight of cotton goods imported from and manu- 

 factured in Europe. I find that our American goods are of full weight, 

 of better quality, and much liked by the Chinese. 



They are growing in favor with the intelligent Chinese merchants 

 and customers. 



McCaslin & Co., American merchants here, inform me that they have 

 just got in a few hundred pieces of American sheetings, drillings, etc., 

 imported direct; this is their first venture in this direction. I hope it 

 may lead to further importation of our cotton textiles. 



THOS. F. PETTUS, 



Consul. 



UNITED STATES CONSULATE, 



Ningpo, August 21, 1889. 



