COTTON TEXTILES IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES. 165 



AMERICAN VS. ENGLISH COTTONS. 



The cost of freight, exchange, and commission, and in fact all kinds 

 of business transactions, are greater with the United States than with 

 England and form obstacles in the way of successful introduction of 

 American cotton manufactures into this market. One great obstacle 

 is the absence of a permanent and direct steam communication between 

 the cities on the Atlantic coast of the United States and the Australian 

 ports. These difficulties may be overcome in time but the fact never- 

 theless remains that the bulk of the trade has been monopolized by 

 Great Britain. 



I have conferred very fully on the subject with Mr. E. G. Vallack, of 

 the firm of Messrs. W. Gardiner & Co., of Sydney, who has had more 

 experience than any other merchant in Australia with regard to Amer- 

 ican cotton goods, and he has very kindly given me the results of his ex- 

 perience. In regard to such articles as rubber duck, rubber drill, 

 enameled duck, tan-back drill, tan-back moleskin, he says that all 

 these goods are suited to the Australian market, being used for coach 

 building and other purposes. The consumption, however, is not large 

 and he things the total imports of these goods into STew South Wales 

 would not exceed 300 pieces per annum. 



There is also a very limited demand for ticks and denims, the ordi- 

 nary cotton tick having, in a great measure, given place to manufactures 

 of more recent introduction, in which the widths are either 36 or 72 

 inches. Such goods comprise quite a large variety of woven colored 

 stripes of different patterns. The consumption of the woven striped 

 ticks is large and steadily increasing. All such manufactures come 

 from England and Mr. Vallack thinks that they are not produced in 

 America. Blue denims were, until a few years ago, comparatively 

 unknown ; but they are now an item of almost daily demand. They 

 are used chiefly by sailors, and Sydney seems to be the depot for the 

 neighboring ports. Mr. Vallack states that his firm uses about 500 

 pieces of these goods in the year. 



Cotton duck, cotton drill, " Stark," or other mill, 7 to 12 ounces Army 

 duck, " Druid " duck or canvas, and blue duck are all in fair demand in 

 Sydney. Of these Mr. Vallack says the American market seems to sup- 

 ply makes and weights which meet the wants of the people quite as 

 well as any produced in England. The demand for such is a growing 

 one. His linn imports direct from New York between 400 and 500 

 pieces a year. 



Several other Sydney firms have done exceedingly well with Ameri- 

 can ducks, such as the Ontario, 60 inches in width, weighing 12 ounces 

 to the yard. This article can be landed in Sydney, freight and all 

 charges paid, at 26 cents per yard, and I am informed that there is no 

 European article of a similar make that can at all compare with it. 



