406 
ENGLISH GOODS. 
Yellow cloth, rather more. 
Cotton velvets, good profit but varying. 
Looking-glasses, small, one hundred and fifty per cent. 
Large ones were not so profitable. 
Red beads varied in price. 
Blue ditto, sold badly. 
The most uncertain were the Manchester goods ; 
sometimes they were bought very freely, while at others 
they were little disposed to have them. However, as 
soon as they found there were but few left, they rose 
rapidly in estimation. As they manufacture good 
cottons themselves, page 322, of simple blue and white, 
the principal attraction in ours was the gay colours. 
The greatest profit was on salt; we cannot say at 
what per centage, but it was very great. It is, indeed, 
the article which must bring the most sure return, as it 
is for immediate consumption, and the natives have no 
other means of supply than that from Bishi, which 
is dear and bad ; so that they ate our beautiful white 
salt like sugar. 
In general it may be said, that the most inferior 
goods were sold at the greatest profit, which dimi- 
nished in proportion to the increase of the cost 
price; so that good and expensive articles found 
no sale whatever, although they admired them ex- 
cessively when oifered as presents. Very erroneous 
expectations had been formed of the quantity and 
price of ivory; but there is no doubt more than 
treble the quantity could have been had if, instead 
