THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
[Sept,  i,  T892 
198 
with  the  crippled  state  of  Argentine  trade  after  the 
Baring  collapse.  Another  crisis  was  threatened  to 
British  trade  by  the  imposition  of  the  “ prohibitive" 
continental  tariffs.  The  five  months  that  have  elapsed 
since  these  new  duties  were  imposed  have  afforded 
a convincing  answer  to  those  people  who  had  looked 
up  the  fiscal  policy  of  France  as  directly  menacing 
British  interests.  Some  branches  of  industry  have 
undoubtedly  been  affected  by  the  new  duties,  but 
taking  trade  as  a whole  it  has  benefited  consider- 
ably. The  imports  into  France  have  been  increasing 
by  leaps  and  bounds,  and,  what  is  more,  the  greater 
part  of  them  are  composed  of  manufactured  goods. 
Upon  the  other  hand,  the  exports  have  undergone 
considerable  restriction,  except  in  raw  material,  which 
has  been  sent  away  in  greater  quantities.  This  state 
of  affairs,  which  is  so  diametrically  opposed  to  all 
the  fundamental  tenets  of  protectionism,  is  not  to  be 
easily  explained ; but  the  fact  remains  that  nothing 
in  the  past  twenty  years  has  inflicted  such  a heavy- 
blow  upon  the  foreign  trade  of  France  than  the  mea- 
sure by  which  it  was  hoped  to  improve  it.  Yet  another 
evil  factor  against  which  the  mining  interest  has  had  to 
contend  in  the  past  is  the  unsettled  state  of  labour,  and 
the  strike  of  miners  in  Durham  helped  in  no  small  way 
to  bring  about  the  quietude  which  has  characterised 
trade  and  industry  during  the  greater  part  of  the 
quarter.  But  as  out  of  evil  comes  good,  so  we  may 
look  forward  to  a better  understanding  between 
capital  and  labour  as  the  result  of  the  conviction 
that  there  is  nothing  to  be  gained  and  everything 
to  be  lost  in  a conflict  between  the  two  necessax-y 
factors  of  production. 
In  the  face  of  these  great  hindrances  to  trade  de- 
velopment it  is  encouraging  to  find  that  thei-e  has 
been  no  abnormal  recession  in  any  branch  ; in  the 
mining  industries,  indeed,  there  has  been  a distinct 
advance,  brought  about  entirely  by  an  adjustment  of 
the  conditions  of  supply  and  demand.  The  investing 
public  have  begun  to  display  more  interest  in  mining 
enterprise ; they  are  beginning  to  conceive  a more 
intelligent  idea  of  the  characteristics  of  mining,  and 
instead  of  allowing  themselves  to  be  swayed  uuduly 
by  the  artificial  fluctuations  of  the  market  they  ax-e 
holding  their  scrip  with  the  conviction  that  by  show- 
ing confidence  themselves  they  are  laying  the 
foundation  of  prosperity  to  the  industry.  This 
feeling  has  been  especially  noticeable  with  respect 
to  home  mines.  It  is  quite  evident,  however 
that  foreign  mining  investments  are  rapidly 
regaining  some  of  the  confidence  that  they 
then  lost,  and  the  favourable  reports  of  numer- 
ous mining  companies  abroad  will  do  much  towards 
attracting  capital.  Moreover,  it  cannot  be  said  that 
money  is  scarce  except  in  a limited  sense,  and  how- 
ever scarce  money  may  be  there  will  always  be  found 
sufficient  when  the  possessors  of  capital  are  convinced 
that  they  may,  with  fair  security,  hope  to  have  good 
returns.  Mining  is  such  an  essentially  British  in- 
dustry that  it  should  be  among  the  fii-st  to  attract  the 
patronage  of  capital,  and  if  only  an  impetus  were 
given,  such  as  that  which  seemed  to  be  afforded  by 
the  rise  in  tin,  the  public  would  be  no  longer  chary 
of  their  support  to  mining  enterprises.  The  natural 
spirit  of  mining  investment  exists  as  much  now  as 
it  ever  did  before,  but  private  capitalists  have  been 
deterred  from  rash  speculation  by  the  glimpses  which 
they  have  caught  of  the  inner  workings  of  some  dis- 
honest concerns,  and  they  are  not  likely  to  place  their 
money  with  so  much  freedom  as  they  have  done  in 
the  past  unless  they  have  some  sort  of  guarantee 
that  they  are  not  putting  it  into  the  pockets  of  un- 
scrupulous company  promoters. 
Now  that  we  are  entering  on  the  second  half  of  the 
year  with  a more  hopeful  conviction  than  was  possible 
in  the  first,  it  becomes  imperative  that  we  should 
enquire  into  the  means  whereby  the  favourable  ele- 
ments now  discernible  can  be  developed  into  a trade 
improvement.  This  question  was  fully  discussed  at  the 
meetings  of  the  Congress  of  Chambers  of  Com- 
merce, when  the  various  proposals  for  bringing 
about  a more  perfect  form"  of  commercial  unity 
between  Great  Britain  and  the  colonies  were  con- 
sidered. It  cannot  be  said  that  the  Pan-British 
meeting  has  advanced  us  in  any  appreciable  degree 
towards  the  end  which  everyone  interested  in  the 
commercial  and  industrial  prosperity  of  the  country 
would  like  to  see  attained.  The  only  possible  solu- 
tion was  approved  by  the  meeting,  a solution  which 
has  been  befoi-e  the  country  for  some  years.  By 
adopting  a policy  of  free  trade  themselves,  the  colo- 
nies would  bring  about  the  union  which  they  are 
trying  vainly  to  effect  by  inducing  the  British  Go- 
vernment to  impose  onerous  and  burdensome  duties 
on  its  own  products.  Nevertheless,  the  meeting 
gave  an  official  stamp  to  the  proposal  which  may 
have  the  desired  effect  upon  the  colonial  Govern- 
ments concerned.  At  the  same  time,  they  discussed 
various  other  matters  that  are  of  vital  moment  to 
the  industries  of  this  country  as  well  as  to  those  of 
the  colonies.  The  proposal  to  settle  all  labour  dis- 
putes by  arbitration  is  one  of  the  first  impor- 
tance. A twelvemonth  ago  such  a proposal  was  scarcely 
feasible,  as  the  miners  were  too  much  wrapped  up 
in  the  apparent  invinciblitv  of  their  own  organisa- 
tion to  listen  to  any  offer  of  conciliation.  But  the 
solitary  lesson  that  was  recently  taught  to  the 
Durham  miners  is  not  likely  to  be  soon  forgotten,  and 
they  may  be  prepared  now  to  accept  some  proposal 
of  arbitration  that  may  in  the  future  prevent  any  such 
disastrous  conflicts  as  those  that  struck  a very 
serious  blow  at  all  branches  of  British  industry.  If 
the  present  encouraging  tone  in  mining  is  to  further 
develop  it  is  very  essential  that  capitalists  should 
have  the  perfect  co-operation  of  the  miner.  Unless 
this  is  forthcoming  we  cannot  hope  to  see  any  con- 
siderable activity  in  mining  enterprise.  The  labour 
question  has  become  so  important  a factor  in  all 
cases  of  industrial  development,  that  it  has  to  be  taken 
into  serious  account  when  an  undertaking  of  any 
magnitude  is  contemplated.  It  depends  in  no  small 
measure  upon  the  miners  themselves  whether  sufficient 
capital  is  to  be  invested  to  afford  them  plenty  of 
remunerative  work.  Any  appearance  of  hostility  will 
infallibly  result  in  the  withdrawal  of  this  capital  to 
the  permanent  detriment  of  the  labouring  population. 
If  only  the  mining  industry  can  be  allowed  to  naturally 
develop,  there  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  in  the 
ensuing  six  months  it  will  experience  an  activity 
that  is  already  foreshadowed  by  an  upward  move- 
ment in  some  of  its  chief  branches.  This  is  still 
more  likely  in  view  of  the  many  millions  of  money 
that  are  to  be  spent  upon  undertakings  in  London,  and 
of  the  revival  that  seems  imminent  in  the  trade  of  the 
colonies  as  well  as  in  the  finances  of  South  America. 
All  this  must  have  an  immediately  beneficial  effect 
upon  the  mining  industry.  It  will  open  up  new 
sources  of  consumption,  and  will  render  fresh  capital 
available  for  mining  undertakings.  The  attention 
that  is  being  paid  to  the  colonies  should  also  result 
in  a further  investment  of  British  money,  and,  unless 
some  unexpected  crisis  should  arise,  the  mining  in- 
dustry should  befox-e  long  undergo  a distinct  and 
encouraging  revival. — Mining  Journal,  July  9 h. 
^ 
NOTES  ON  PRODUCE  AND  FINANCE. 
Tea  at  the  Woeld’sFai.e — It  is  quite  certain  from 
the  letters  received  iu  Ceylon  from  Mr.  Gridinton 
that  plenty  of  energy  is  being  brought  to  bear  upon 
the  work  of  pushing  Ceylon  tea  at  Chicago.  A ban- 
quet to  the  officials  of  the  exhibition  has  been 
given  in  honour  of  Ceylon  tea,  and  the  campaign 
has  been  opened  with  strategy  and  enterprise.  Money 
is,  however,  the  requisite  just  now.  In  a letter 
written  from  Chicago  by  Mr.  Griulinton  to  Mr.  Mitchell 
the  Ceylon  Commissioner  says  inter  alia  : — “ The 
sum  spoken  of  in  the  Colony  will  go  nowhere  in  placing 
Ceyb'n  where  she  ought  to  be  at  this  great  Exposition. 
Our  tea  industry  is  everything  to  the  Colony,  and 
unless  we  are  in  a position  to  come  out  strongly, 
we  shall  be  nowhere  iu  the  race  with  Japan,  which 
is  spending  £50,000  or  more,  with  a promise  of  leav- 
ing  an  important  feature  in  their  exhibits  to  the 
people  of  Chicago.  My  work  is  now  only  beginning. 
I can  say  nothing  as  yet  as  to  the  future. 
I can  say  only  hope  and  try  to  persuade  the  directors 
to  grant  what  I ask.”  It  is  evident  from  this  that 
if  Indian  planters  are  to  achieve  anything  like  success 
