The two great sections of the cotton industry are _yarn_ and _cloth_,
and in Great Britain the production of both of these is mainly in South
Lancashire, though the area extends to parts of Cheshire, Yorkshire and
Derbyshire, and there is a Scottish branch, besides certain isolated
ventures in other parts of the country. Though there are local rivalries
there is nothing in competitive division to compare with the northern
and southern sections in America, and the British industry is, for its
size, more homogeneous than most of the European industries. Both
operatives and employers are highly organized and both parties are able
to make articulate contribution to the solution of the various problems
connected with the trade.
_Cotton Yarn._--The yarn trade is mainly in the hands of limited
companies, and a private firm is looked upon as something of a survival
from the past. The two great centres of production are Oldham, in which
American cotton is chiefly, though not exclusively, spun, and Bolton,
which spins the finer counts from Egyptian or Sea Island cotton.
Spinning mills are established, however, in most of the large Lancashire
towns as well as in some parts of Cheshire and in Yorkshire, where there
is a considerable industry in doubling yarns. The centre of trade is the
Manchester Royal Exchange, and though some companies or firms prefer to
do business by means of their own salaried salesmen, managers or
directors, most of the yarn is sold by agents. Frequently a single agent
has the consignment of the whole of a company's yarn, but many spinners,
especially those whose business connexion is not perfectly assured,
prefer to have more outlets than can be explored by an individual. At
times of bad trade even those who usually depend on their own resources
seek the aid of experienced agents, who sometimes find a grievance if
their services are rejected when trade improves and sales are made
easily.
Yarn is sold upon various terms, but a regular custom in the home trade
is for the spinner to allow 4% discount, for payment in 14 days, of
which 2-1/2 goes to the buyer, who is commonly a manufacturer, and 1-1/2
to the agent for sale and guaranteeing the account. In selling yarn for
export it is usual to allow the buyer only 1-1/2% for payment in 14
days, or in some cases the discount is at the rate of 5% per annum for 3
months, which is equivalent to 1-1/4%.
The great bulk of the yarn spun in Great Britain ranges between
comparatively narrow limits of count, and such staples as 32^s to 36^s
twist and 36^s to 46^s weft in American, 50^s to 60^s twist and 42^s to
62^s weft in Egyptian, make up a large part of the total. It is
nevertheless the experience of yarn salesmen that Lancashire produces an
increasingly large amount of specialities that indicate a continued
differentiation in trade. The tendency to spin finer counts has been to
some extent counteracted by the development of the flannelette trade,
for which heavy wefts are used, and there has been again a tendency
lately to use "condensor" or waste wefts, which has worked to the
disadvantage of the spinners of the regular coarse counts spun at Royton
and elsewhere. The demand for cloths which require careful handling and
regularity in weaving has helped to develop the supply of ring yarns
which will stand the strain of the loom better than mule twists. A great
amount of doubled and trebled yarn is now sold, though it does not
appear that recent expansions have added much to doubling spindles, and
considerable developments continue in the use of dyed and mercerized
yarns.
Yarns are sold according to their "actual" counts, though when they are
woven into cloth they frequently attain nominal or brevet rank. There
has been a long-continued discussion, which between buyer and seller
sometimes degenerates into a dispute, on the subject of moisture in
yarns, and the difficulty is not confined to the Lancashire industry.
The amount permissible, according to the recommendation of the
Manchester Chamber of Commerce, is 8%, but while it may be assumed that
yarns at the time of their sale rarely contain less than this, they
frequently contain a good deal more. It is a matter of experience that
cotton yarns which when spun contain only a small percentage of moisture
will absorb up to about 8% when they are exposed to what may be rather
vaguely described as natural conditions. The exigencies of competition
prompted the discovery that if yarn were sold by weight fresh from the
spindle its comparative dryness made such early sale less profitable
than if it were allowed to "condition." Between loss and delay the
spinner found an obvious alternative in damping the yarn artificially.
As it was often clearly to the advantage of the buyer that he should
receive immediate delivery he did not object to water in moderation, but
art soon began to run a little ahead of nature. The essentially
dishonest practice of deluging yarn with water, which has sometimes even
degenerated into the use of weighting materials deleterious to weaving,
has been recognized as a great nuisance, but while various attempts have
been made to protect the buyer the question seems to have pretty well
settled itself on the principles which commonly rule the sales of
commodities between those who intend to do business continuously. The
spinner who persists in over-weighting his yarn finds it difficult to
obtain "repeat" orders.
A remarkable point in the Lancashire yarn trade is the looseness of the
contracts between spinner and manufacturer. Doubtless some kind of sale
note or acknowledgment usually passes between them, but in the home
trade at least it is quite usual to leave the question of delivery an
open one. It would not be correct to say that this system or want of
system is satisfactory, but the trade manages to rub along very well
with it, although inconveniences and disagreements sometimes arise when
prices have advanced or declined considerably. Thus when prices have
advanced the manufacturer may find it difficult to obtain delivery of
the yarn that he had bought at low rates, for some spinners have a
curious, indefensible preference for delivering their higher-priced
orders; and, on the other hand, when prices have fallen the manufacturer
sometimes ceases to take delivery of the high-priced yarn and actually
purchases afresh for his needs. Yet positive repudiation is very rare
though compromises are not uncommon, and a good many illogical
arrangements are made that imply forbearance and amity. Litigation in
the yarn trade is very unusual, and Lancashire traders generally have
only vague notions of the bearing of law upon their transactions, and a
wholesome dread of the experience that would lead to better knowledge.
The average yearly values of the exports of cotton, yarn and cloth
from Great Britain for the decades 1881-1890 and 1891-1900
respectively, are given by Professor Chapman in his _Cotton Industry
and Trade_, in million pounds:--
1881-1890. 1891-1900.
Cloth L60.4 L57.3
Yarn 12.3 9.3
----- -----
Total L72.7 L66.6
During the earlier decade the prices of cotton were comparatively
high.
The whole of the cloth exports represent, of course, a corresponding
home trade in yarns. The following table, taken from the _Manchester
Guardian_, gives in thousands of lb. the amounts of cotton yarns
exported from Great Britain during 1903, 1904 and 1905 respectively,
according to the Board of Trade returns, together with the average
value per lb. for each of the countries:--
+-----------------------------+--------------+---------------+--------------+
| | 1903. | 1904. | 1905. |
| +-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------+
| | |Price | | Price | | Price|
| | lb.* | per | lb.* | per | lb.* | per |
| | | lb. | | lb. | | lb. |
+-----------------------------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------+
| | | d. | | d. | | d. |
| Russia | 814| 30.22| 713| 30.71| 557| 30.66|
| Sweden | 1,526| 11.00| 1,486| 12.55| 1,512| 11.12|
| Norway | 1,656| 9.54| 1,511| 11.05| 1,606| 9.73|
| Denmark | 2,429| 8.91| 2,368| 10.18| 2,860| 9.51|
| Germany | 27,239| 16.05| 40,295| .27| 39,513| 16.38|
| Netherlands | 29,591| 9.10| 29,384| 10.48| 37,341| 8.93|
| Belgium | 3,970| 15.89| 5,864| 16.50| 7,205| 16.12|
| France | 3,974| 17.59| 3,084| 20.01| 3,518| 22.64|
| Italy | 204| 21.78| 174| 24.70| 204| 22.21|
| Austria-Hungary | 2,662| 11.60| 3,329| 14.36| 3,066| 13.36|
| Rumania | 4,608| 8.55| 5,072| 10.13| 7,856| 9.73|
| Turkey | 12,966| 8.93| 14,253| 10.05| 17,389| 9.37|
| Egypt | 4,590| 8.66| 4,381| 9.83| 4,382| 8.59|
| China (including Hong-Kong) | 4,660| 9.45| 2,457| 10.24| 8,441| 8.70|
| Japan | 1,406| 12.98| 681| 11.46| 4,071| 13.99|
| British India-- | | | | | | |
| Bombay | 6,286| 10.80| 8,145| 11.88| 13,112| 10.86|
| Madras | 6,683| 11.07| 8,288| 12.48| 10,930| 11.91|
| Bengal | 6,777| 11.04| 6,596| 12.82| 11,068| 11.20|
| Burma | 5,611| 12.17| 3,388| 12.39| 4,211| 12.31|
| Straits Settlements | 1,945| 10.81| 1,137| 11.57| 2,149| 10.71|
| Ceylon | 33| 11.92| 44| 16.51| 42| 13.55|
| Other countries | 21,129| 12.39| 21,252| 13.28| 23,970| 12.43|
| +-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------+
| Total and average |150,758| 11.79|163,901| 13.11|205,001| 12.08|
+-----------------------------+-------+------+-------+-------+-------+------+
* 000 omitted.
It should be understood, however, that in some cases the Board of
Trade figures represent only an approximation to the ultimate
distribution, as the exports are sometimes assigned to the
intermediate country, and in particular it is understood that a
considerable part of the yarn sent to the Netherlands is destined for
Germany or Austria. The large business done in yarns with the
continent of Europe is in some respects an extension of the British
home trade, though certain countries have their own specialities. A
considerable business is done with European countries in doubled yarns
and in fine counts of Egyptian, including "gassed" yarns, which are
also sent intermittently to Japan. "Extra hard" yarns are sent to
Rumania and other Near Eastern markets, and Russia, as the average
price indicates, buys sparingly of very fine yarns. The trade with the
Far East, which, though not very large for any one market, is
important in the aggregate, is a good deal specialized, and since the
development of Indian and Japanese cotton mills some of the trade in
the coarser counts has been lost. The various Indian markets take
largely of 40^s mule twist and in various proportions of 30^s mule,
water twists, two-folds grey and bleached, fine Egyptian counts and
dyed yarns. China also takes 40^s mule, water twists and two-folds.
The general export of yarn varies according to influences such as
tariff charges, spinning and manufacturing development in the
importing countries and the price of cotton. A particular effect of
high-priced piece-goods is seen in various Eastern countries that are
still partly dependent on an indigenous hand-loom industry. The big
price of imported cloths throws the native consumer to some extent
upon the local goods, and so stimulates the imports of yarn. It
appears that as the native industries decline the weaving section
persists longer than the spinning section.
_Cotton Goods._--Cotton goods are of an infinite variety, and the titles
that experience or fancy have evoked are even more numerous than the
kinds. Descriptions of the following fabrics, which are not of course
invariably made of cotton, will be found in separate articles: BAIZE,
BANDANA, BOMBAZINE, BROCADE, CALICO, CAMBRIC, CANVAS, CHINTZ, CORDUROY,
CRAPE, CRETONNE, DENIM, DIMITY, DRILL, DUCK, FLANNELETTE, FUSTIAN,
GAUZE, GINGHAM, LONGCLOTH, MOLESKIN, MULL, MUSLIN, NANKEEN, PRINT, REP,
TICKING, TWILL, VELVETEEN. The following are notes on other varieties.
_Grey cloth_ is a comprehensive term that includes unbleached cotton
cloth generally. It may be a nice question whether "yellow" would not
have been the more nearly correct description. A very large proportion
of the Lancashire export trade is in grey goods and a smaller yet
considerable proportion of the home trade.
_Shirting_, which has long since ceased to refer exclusively to shirt
cloths, includes a large proportion of Lancashire manufacture. Grey and
white shirtings are exported to all the principal Eastern markets and
also to Near Eastern, European, South American, &c. markets. Certain
staple kinds, such as 39 in. 37-1/2 yd. 8-1/4 lb. 16 x 15 (threads to
the 1/4 in.), largely exported to China and India, are made in various
localities and by many manufacturers. The length quoted is to some
extent a conventional term, as the pieces in many cases actually measure
considerably more. The export shirting trade is done mainly on "repeat"
orders for well-known "chops" or marks. These trade marks are sometimes
the property of the manufacturer, but more commonly of the exporter.
Generally the China markets use rather better qualities than the Indian
markets. The principal China market for shirtings and other staple goods
is Shanghai, which holds a large stock and distributes to minor markets.
A considerable trade is also done through Hong-Kong and other Far
Eastern ports. The principal Indian markets are Calcutta, Bombay,
Karachi and Madras.
_Shirt-cloth_ is the term more commonly applied to what is actually used
in the manufacture of shirts, and it may be used for either plain or
fancy goods.
_Sheeting_ has two meanings in the cotton trade: (1) the ordinary bed
sheeting, usually a stout cloth of anything from 45 in. to 120 in. wide
(the extremes being used on the one hand for children's cots or ship
bunks and on the other for old-fashioned four-posters), which may be
either plain or twilled, bleached, unbleached or half-bleached; (2) a
grey calico, heavier than a shirting, sent largely to China and other
markets, usually 36 in. by 40 yd. and weighing about 12 lb. American
sheetings compete with Lancashire goods in the China market. The _Cabot_
is a kind of heavy sheeting, and for the Levant markets the name as a
trade mark is said to be the exclusive property of an American firm,
although the general class is known by the name and supplied by other
firms.
_Mexican_ is a plain, heavy grey calico, sometimes heavily sized. The
origin of the word is doubtful, and it seems to be an arbitrary term.
Mexicans are exported to various markets and also used in the home
trade. For export the dimensions are commonly 32 or 36 in. by 24 yd.,
and a usual count is 18 x 18. In the Mexican the yarns were originally
of nearly the same weight and number of threads to the 1/4 in., an
arrangement which gave the cloth an even appearance, thus differing from
the "pin-head" or medium makes. Now, however, Mexicans are often made
with lighter wefts, though the name is usually applied to the better
class of cloths of the particular character. _Punjum_ is a Mexican,
generally 36 yd. in length, sent mainly to the South African market.
_T Cloth_ is a plain grey calico, similar in kind to the Mexican and
exported to the same markets. There is no absolute distinction between
the two cloths, but the T cloth is generally lower in quality than the
Mexican. The name seems to have been originally an arbitrary
identification or trade mark.
_Domestic_, a name originally used in the sense of "home-made," is
applied especially to home-made cotton goods in the United States. In
Great Britain it is employed rather loosely, but commonly to describe
the kind of cloth which if exported would be called a Mexican. It may be
either bleached or unbleached.
_Medium_ is a plain calico, grey or bleached, of medium weight, used
principally in the home and colonial trade. The word is sometimes
particularly applied to cloths with a comparatively heavy weft, the
distinction being made between the even "Mexican make" and the
"pin-head" or "medium-make."
_Raising-cloths_ are of various kinds and may be merely mediums with a
heavy weft, or "condensor" weft made from waste yarns. The essence of
the raising-cloth is a weft that will provide plenty of nap and yet have
sufficient fibre to maintain the strength of the web.
_Wigan_ is a name derived from the town Wigan and seems to have been
originally applied to a stiff canvas-like cloth used for lining skirts.
Now it is commonly applied to medium or heavy makes of calico.
_Double-warp_, as its name implies, is a cloth with a twofold warp. It
is usually a strong serviceable material and may be either twilled or
plain. Sheetings for home trade are often double-warp, and double-warp
twills and Wigans were and are used for the old-fashioned type of men's
night-shirts.
_Croydon_, which seems to be an arbitrary trade name, is a heavy,
bleached, plain calico, usually stiff and glossy in finish. It used to
be sold largely in the Irish trade as well as in the English home trade,
but it has been supplanted a good deal by softer finishes.
_Printing-cloth_ is a term with a general significance, but it is also
particularly applied to a class of plain cloths in which a very large
trade is done both for home trade and export. The chief place in
Lancashire for the manufacture of printing-cloths is Burnley, and in the
United States, Fall River. The Burnley cloths range in width from 29 in.
to 40 in., and are usually about 120 yd. in length. The warp is commonly
from 36^s to 44^s, the weft from 36^s to 54^s, and the threads from 13 X
13 to 20 X 20 to the 1/4 in. Cheshire printers, which are made at Hyde,
Stockport, Glossop and elsewhere, are commonly 34 in. to 36 in. wide,
the warp is from 32^s to 36^s, the weft 32^s to 40^s, and the counts 16
X 16 to 19 X 22.
_Jacconet_ is understood to be the corruption of an Indian name, and the
first jacconets were probably of Indian origin. They now make one of the
principal staple trades of Lancashire with India. The jacconet is a
plain cloth, lighter than a shirting and heavier than a mull. When
bleached it is usually put into a firm and glossy finish. A _nainsook_
is a jacconet bleached and finished soft. It also goes largely to India.
_Dhootie_ is a name taken from a Hindu word of similar sound and
referred originally to the loin-cloth worn by Hindus. It is a light,
narrow cloth made with a coloured border which is often so elaborate as
to require a dobby loom for its manufacture. The finer kinds, made from
Egyptian yarns, are called mull-dhooties. The dhootie is one of the
principal staples for India and is exported both white and grey.
_Scarf_ is a kind of dhootie made usually with a taped or corded border.
_Madapolam_ or _Madapollam_ is a name derived from a suburb of Narsapur
in the Madras presidency where the cloth was first made. It is now
exported grey or white to India and other countries. In weight it is
lighter than a shirting, and it is usually ornamented with a distinctive
coloured heading.
_Baft_, probably of Persian derivation, and originally a fine cloth, is
now a coarse and cheap cloth exported especially to Africa.
_Sarong_, the Malay word for a garment wrapped round the lower part of
the body and used by both men and women, is now applied to plain or
printed cloths exported to the Indian or Eastern Archipelago for this
purpose.
_Jean_, said to be derived from Genoa where a kind of fustian with this
title was made, is a kind of twilled cloth. The cloth is woven "one end
up and two ends down," and as there are more picks of weft per inch than
ends of warp the diagonal lines pass from selvage to selvage at an angle
of less than 45 degrees. The weft surface is the face or wearing surface
of the cloth. Jeans are exported to China and other markets, and are
also used in the home trade. _Jeanette_ is the converse of jean, being a
twill of "two ends up to one down"; the diagonal passes from selvage to
selvage at a greater angle than 45 degrees and the warp makes the
wearing surface.
_Oxford_ is a plain-woven cloth usually with a coloured pattern, and is
used for shirts and dresses. The name is comparatively modern, and is,
no doubt, arbitrarily selected.
_Harvard_ is a twilled cloth similar to the Oxford.
_Regatta_ is a stout, coloured shirt cloth similar in make to a
jeanette. It was originally made in blue and white stripes and was used
largely and is still used for men's shirts.
Fancy cotton goods are of great variety, and many of them have trade
names that are used temporarily or occasionally. Apart from the large
class of brocaded cloths made in Jacquard looms there are innumerable
simpler kinds, including stripes and checks of various descriptions,
such as Swiss, Cord, Satin, Doriah stripes, &c. _Mercerized cloths_ are
of many kinds, as the mercerizing process can be applied to almost
anything. _Lace_ and _lace curtains_ are made largely at Nottingham.
Various light goods are made in Scotland, such as _book muslin_, a fine
light muslin with an elastic finish, so called from being folded in
book-form.
Among the fancy cloths made in cotton may be mentioned: _matting_, which
includes various kinds with some similarity in appearance to a matting
texture; _matelasse_, which is in some degree an imitation of French
dress goods of that name; _pique_, also of French origin, woven in
stripes in relief, which cross the width of the piece, and usually
finished stiff; _Bedford cord_, a cheaper variety of pique in which the
stripes run the length of the piece; _oatmeal cloth_, which has an
irregular surface suggesting the grain of oatmeal, commonly dyed cream
colour; _crimp cloth_, in which a puckered effect is obtained by uneven
shrinkage; _grenadine_, said to be derived from Granada, a light dress
material originally made of silk or silk and wool; _brilliant_, a dress
material, usually with a small raised pattern; _leno_, possibly a
corrupt form of the French _linon_ or lawn, a kind of fancy gauze used
for veils curtains, &c.; _lappet_, a light material with a figure or
pattern produced on the surface of the cloth by needles placed in a
sliding frame; _lustre_, a light dress material with a lustrous face
sometimes made with a cotton warp and woolen weft; _zephyr_, a light,
coloured dress material usually in small patterns; _bobbin-net_, a
machine-made fabric, originally an imitation of lace made with bobbins
on a pillow.
Some fancy cloths have descriptive names such as _herringbone stripe_,
and there are many arbitrary trade names, such as _Yosemite stripe_,
which may prevail and become the designation of a regular class or die
after a few seasons.
Cotton linings include _silesia_, originally a linen cloth made in
Silesia and now usually a twilled cotton cloth which is dyed various
colours; _Italian cloth_, a kind of jean or sateen produced originally
in Italy. Various cotton cloths are imitations of other textures and
have modified names which indicate their superficial character,
frequently produced by finishing processes. Among these are _sateen_,
which, dyed or printed, is largely used for dresses, linings,
upholstery, &c.; _linenette_, dyed and finished to imitate coloured
linen in the north of Ireland and elsewhere; _hollandette_, usually
unbleached or half-bleached and finished to imitate linen holland; and
_interlining_, a coarse, plain white calico used as padding for linen
collars.
+------------------------------+---------------+---------------+---------------+
| | 1903. | 1904. | 1905. |
| +---------+-----+---------+-----+---------+-----+
| Country. | |Price|Thousands|Price|Thousands|Price|
| |Thousands| per |Thousands| per |Thousands| per |
| |of Yards.|Yard.|of Yards.|Yard.|of Yards.|Yard.|
+------------------------------+---------+-----+---------+-----+---------+-----+
| Germany | 60,650| 3.77| 60,129| 4.02| 65,842| 3.98|
| Netherlands | 47,570| 3.57| 46,187| 3.68| 56,639| 3.47|
| Belgium | 52,199| 4.34| 56,237| 4.42| 67,509| 4.41|
| France | 17,552| 4.61| 17,759| 4.39| 14,875| 4.65|
| Portugal, Azores and Madeira | 32,824| 2.70| 29,440| 2.92| 29,867| 3.03|
| Italy | 6,363| 5.07| 7,904| 5.19| 8,746| 5.31|
| Austria-Hungary | 2,405| 3.44| 2,102| 3.40| 1,905| 3.60|
| Greece | 40,973| 2.64| 32,658| 3.11| 28,190| 3.20|
| Turkey | 305,611| 2.45| 379,557| 2.53| 376,209| 2.53|
| Egypt | 229,704| 2.41| 283,521| 2.57| 272,737| 2.53|
| Algeria | 709| 2.74| 438| 2.71| 455| 2.63|
| Morocco | 52,368| 2.28| 51,262| 2.44| 44,407| 2.44|
| Foreign West Africa | 64,589| 2.92| 55,131| 3.12| 69,163| 3.08|
| Persia | 34,859| 2.46| 33,119| 2.67| 38,647| 2.59|
| Dutch East Indies | 156,905| 2.45| 185,196| 2.72| 226,586| 2.57|
| Philippine Islands | 25,558| 2.59| 25,969| 2.86| 42,876| 2.66|
| China, including Hong-Kong | 477,691| 2.83| 548,974| 3.34| 799,732| 3.06|
| Japan | 67,315| 3.08| 42,373| 3.34| 128,725| 2.99|
| United States of America | 72,360| 6.80| 52,391| 7.18| 65,563| 7.40|
| Foreign West Indies | 86,349| 2.08| 98,797| 2.21| 80,679| 2.24|
| Mexico | 19,327| 3.10| 21,679| 3.42| 21,028| 3.31|
| Central America | 40,879| 1.97| 53,018| 2.21| 49,523| 2.29|
| Colombia and Panama | 44,299| 2.25| 44,648| 2.54| 31,798| 2.41|
| Venezuela | 52,330| 1.87| 52,934| 2.07| 32,717| 2.11|
| Peru | 28,962| 2.66| 32,430| 2.85| 39,035| 2.78|
| Chile | 84,118| 2.50| 80,836| 2.57| 96,996| 2.62|
| Brazil | 152,402| 2.64| 134,841| 2.89| 131,504| 2.50|
| Uruguay | 44,062| 2.79| 35,670| 2.85| 56,770| 2.95|
| Argentine Republic | 151,003| 2.91| 186,022| 3.04| 159,115| 3.24|
| Gibraltar | 11,961| 2.39| 10,578| 2.47| 3,960| 2.73|
| Malta | 4,065| 3.11| 3,659| 3.45| 4,006| 3.31|
| British W. Africa | 69,795| 3.27| 69,308| 3.43| 74,392| 3.40|
| " S. " | 61,778| 3.61| 29,670| 4.03| 50,592| 3.69|
| British India-- | | | | | | |
| Bombay | 678,684| 2.07| 818,261| 2.23| 908,619| 2.24|
| Madras | 132,825| 2.48| 141,675| 2.63| 131,145| 2.62|
| Bengal |1,122,004| 1.97|1,215,607| 2.18|1,280,314| 2.18|
| Burma | 64,654| 2.84| 79,765| 3.10| 72,528| 3.13|
| Straits Settlements* | 112,006| 2.61| 100,230| 2.84| 121,690| 2.71|
| Ceylon | 17,395| 2.75| 19,336| 2.95| 24,991| 2.94|
| Australia | 106,000| 3.83| 128,247| 4.01| 136,481| 3.85|
| New Zealand | 38,499| 3.58| 33,538| 3.81| 32,315| 3.63|
| Canada | 47,439| 4.15| 49,903| 4.25| 45,189| 4.47|
| British West India Islands, | | | | | | |
| Bahamas and British Guiana | 49,614| 2.49| 43,487| 2.61| 47,173| 2.21|
| Other countries | 188,662| 2.84| 197,339| 3.14| 226,971| 3.03|
+------------------------------+---------+-----+---------+-----+---------+-----+
| Total |5,157,316| 2.57|5,591,822| 2.75|6,198,200| 2.74|
+------------------------------+---------+-----+---------+-----+---------+-----+
* Including Federated Malay States.
Various cotton imitations share the name of the original, such as lawn,
batiste, serge, huckaback, galloon, and a large number of names are of
obvious derivation and use, such as umbrella cloth, apron cloth, sail
cloth, book-binding cloth, shroud cloth, butter cloth, mosquito
netting, handkerchief, blanket, towelling, bagging.
Among the miscellaneous cloths made or made partly of cotton may be
mentioned: _waste cloths_, made from waste yarns and usually coarse in
texture; _khaki cloth_, made largely for military clothing in cotton as
well as in woollen; _cottonade_, a name given to various coarse low
cloths in the United States and elsewhere; _lasting_, which seems to be
an abbreviation of "lasting cloth," a stiff, durable texture used in
making shoes, &c.; _bolting cloth_, used in bolting or sifting;
_brattice cloth_, a stout, tarred cloth made of cotton or wool and used
for bratticing or lining the sides of shafts in mines; _sponge cloths_,
used for cleaning machinery; _shoddy_ and _mungo_, which though mainly
woollen have frequently a cotton admixture; and _splits_, either plain
or fancy, usually of low quality, which include any cloth woven two or
three in the breadth of the loom and "split" into the necessary width.
Cotton is used too for many miscellaneous purposes, including the
manufacture of lamp wicks and even of billiard balls.
_British Cotton Cloth Exports._--The main lines of the Lancashire export
trade in cotton goods are indicated in the Board of Trade returns. The
table on p. 278 compiled from them is taken from the _Manchester
Guardian_. It gives in thousands of yards the quantities of cotton goods
exported from Great Britain during 1903, 1904 and 1905 respectively,
together with average value per yard for each of the countries.
The following table gives, approximately, in thousands of yards the
quantities exported of the four main divisions of cotton cloths:--
+---------------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+
| | 1903. | 1904. | 1905. |
| +-----------+-----------+-----------+
| | Thousands | Thousands | Thousands |
| | of Yards. | of Yards. | of Yards. |
|---------------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+
| Grey or unbleached | 1,880,321 | 2,033,895 | 2,336,018 |
| Bleached | 1,326,255 | 1,528,165 | 1,710,742 |
| Printed | 1,027,925 | 1,036,901 | 1,053,900 |
| Dyed and coloured | 922,735 | 993,009 | 1,097,540 |
+---------------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+
In the case of cloth, too, the Board of Trade returns must not be taken
as an absolute record of imports to the particular countries, as the
ultimate recipient is not always determined. The development of the
Eastern trade has been one of the most remarkable features of the cotton
trade in the 19th century. Professor Chapman writes in his _Cotton
Industry and Trade_: "In 1820 Europe received about half the cotton
fabrics which were sent abroad, while the United States received nearly
one-tenth and eastern Asia little more than one-twentieth. By 1880
Europe was taking less than one-twelfth, the United States less than
one-fiftieth, and eastern Asia more than a half."
Naturally a trade tends to find out the most direct means of
distribution, and Manchester merchants are now generally in direct
connexion with native dealers in India. Bombay was the pioneer in the
custom, followed now by Calcutta and Karachi, by which deliveries of
goods from British merchants remained under the control of the banks
until the native dealers took them up. Manchester business with India,
China, &c., is done under various conditions, however, and a good many
firms have branches abroad. The regular "indent" by which most of the
Manchester Eastern business is conducted now implies a definite offer
for shipment from the dealer abroad, either direct or through the
exporter's agents, and commonly includes freight and insurance. The term
"commission agent" is now discredited, and buying done by Manchester
houses on simple commission terms is unusual though not unknown. This
has been so since the famous law case of _Williamson_ v. _Barbour_ in
1877, when it was established that whatever might be the custom of the
trade a commission agent was not entitled to make a profit over his
commission on the various processes, such as handling and packing, which
are a necessary part of the exporter's work. A good deal of business is
done, however, for South America and other markets in which the goods
are bought for delivery in the Manchester warehouse, all charges for
packing, &c., and carriage being extra.
Transactions with distant markets are now done almost entirely by cable,
and a remarkable development of the telegraphic code has enabled
merchants to pack a good deal into a brief message. A cable sent to
India in the evening may bring a reply next morning, and in these days
of rapid cotton fluctuations mail advices are confined mainly to general
discussion, hypothetical inquiry, advice, admonition and complaint. Some
Manchester export business is done through London, Glasgow, and
continental towns, of which Hamburg is the principal. Glasgow buys
largely of yarns and cloth, some considerable part of which is dyed or
printed, for India and elsewhere, and has an indigenous manufacture and
trade in fine goods such as book-muslins and lappets, a somewhat
delicate department of manufacture which necessitates a slower running
of machinery than is usual in Lancashire.
Besides the indent business there is, of course, purely merchant
business by Manchester exporters, who buy on their own initiative at
what they consider to be opportune times or on recommendations from
their houses or correspondents abroad. In the Indian trade, especially
in the Calcutta trade, a large proportion of the total amount is done by
a few houses who buy in this way, and there is some difference of
opinion as to whether the method, which had fallen out of fashion, may
not further develop. It is more speculative than the indent business,
but the dealing with large quantities which it involves gives the
opportunity to buy very cheaply. A good many firms venture occasionally
to buy in anticipation of their customers' needs, especially when they
expect a rising market. During the great trade "boom" of 1905 there was
a good deal of buying by exporters in advance of their indents because
manufacturers continued to contract engagements which threatened to
exclude dilatory buyers. On the whole, however, what may be called the
speculative centre of gravity of Great Britain's export business in
cotton goods is not in Manchester but abroad.
The terms on which business is conducted are various even in a single
market, and it is sometimes a reproach that British firms are
old-fashioned in their reluctance to give credit. The so-called
enterprising methods of some German traders are, however, condemned by
many experienced English traders, and it is said that in China, for
instance, the seeming successes of the newcomers are delusive. The
Tientsin developments of German business on credit terms are said to
have proved unsatisfactory, and heavy losses were suffered in Hong-Kong
some years ago by merchants who endeavoured to initiate a bolder system
of trading. The very common complaint of British consuls that British
firms neglect to send out travellers may have some foundation, but a
commercial house naturally follows the line of least resistance to the
development of its trade, and cannot be expected to work remote and
barren ground when better opportunities are near at hand. On the whole
it appears that the British cotton trade continues to increase to a
satisfactory degree in fancy and special goods, which require for their
production a comparatively high degree of technical skill, and are more
lucrative than some of the simpler products in which competitors have
been most formidable. Various finishing processes, and particularly the
mercerizing of yarn and cloth, have increased the possibilities in
cotton materials, and while staples still form the bulk of our foreign
trade, it seems that as the stress of competition in these grows acute,
more and more of our energy may be transferred to the production of
goods which appeal to a growing taste or fancy.
_British Home Trade._--The home trade in cotton cloths is a great and
important section, but it is not comparable in volume to the export
trade. It involves more numerous and more elaborate processes, and the
qualities for home use are generally finer and more costly than those
for export. Of course by far the larger part of the yarn spun in
Lancashire is woven in Lancashire, but of the cotton cloth woven in
Lancashire it is roughly estimated that about 20% is used in Great
Britain. Not only is the average of quality better, but the variety of
kinds and designs is greater in the home trade than in the export trade.
A good home trade connexion is considered an extremely valuable asset,
and as the trade is highly differentiated the profits are usually good.
Some manufacturers devote themselves exclusively to the home trade, and
some exclusively to foreign trade, but there is a large class with what
may be called a margin of alternation, which serves to redress the
balance as business in one or other of the sections is good or bad.
Certain kinds of light goods made for India and other Eastern markets
are not used in the home trade, and the typical Eastern staples are not
generally used in their particular "sizings," but with these exceptions
and various specialities almost every kind of cotton cloth is used to
some extent in Great Britain. Grey calicoes for home use, except the
lowest kinds, are comparatively pure, and of late years the heavy
fillings which used to be common in bleached goods have become
discredited. The housewife long persisted in deceiving herself by
purchasing filled calicoes, and the movement in favour of purer goods
owes a good deal, strangely enough, to the increase in the making-up
trade and the consequent inconveniences to workers of sewing machines,
whose needles were constantly broken by hard filled calicoes.
This development of the making-up trade has become an important element
in the home trade, and it has greatly reduced the retail sale of
piece-goods. The purchase of ready-made shirts, underclothing, &c.,
corresponds to a change in the habits of the people. The factories which
have been erected in the north of Ireland, on the outskirts of London
and elsewhere turn out millions of garments that would, under the old
conditions, have been made at home. It is not necessary here to balance
the advantages and disadvantages of the two systems, and it must not be
supposed that made-up cotton garments are necessarily cheap and
inefficient.
The chief distributing centre of cotton made-up goods is London, though
a considerable trade is done through wholesale houses in Manchester and
elsewhere. Large warehouses in the city of London carry on the trade and
frequently supply Lancashire with her own goods. Of course the partial
loss of the piece-goods trade by the shops is not a loss in aggregate
trade, as they are the ultimate distributors of the made-up garments,
which are probably at least as profitable to retail as calico or
flannelette sold in lengths.
The normal course of home trade piece-goods is from manufacturer to
bleacher, dyer, printer or finisher, either on account of a merchant to
whom the goods are sold or on the manufacturer's own account. By far the
majority of Lancashire manufacturers sell their goods as they come from
the loom, or, as it is called, in the "grey state," but an increasing
number now cultivate the trade in finished goods. Usually the
manufacturer sells either directly or through an agent to a merchant who
sells again to the shopkeeper, but the last twenty or thirty years have
seen a considerable development of more direct dealing. Some
manufacturers now go to the shopkeeper, and this has made it difficult
for the merchant with a limited capital and therefore a limited
assortment to survive. The great general houses such as Rylands's,
Philips's and Watt's in Manchester, and Cook's and Pawson's in London,
some of which are manufacturers to a minor degree, continue to flourish
because under one roof they can supply all that the draper requires, and
so enable him to economize in the time spent in buying and to save
himself the trouble of attending to many accounts. Some general
merchants, indeed, supply what are practically "tied houses," which give
all their trade in return for pecuniary assistance or special terms.
The tendency to eliminate the middleman has not only brought a good many
manufacturers into direct relation with the shopkeeper, but in some
exceptional cases the manufacturer, adopting some system of broadcast
advertisement and postal delivery, has dealt with the consumer.
Naturally, the merchant resents any developments which exclude him, and
some mild forms of boycott have occasionally been instituted. In the
United States there has been an arduous struggle over this question, and
combinations of merchants have sometimes compelled favourable terms. In
England, though the merchant has maintained a great part of the trade
with shopkeepers, the developing trade with makers of shirts,
underclothing, &c., is mainly done by the manufacturers directly, and
perhaps the simplification of relations by direct dealing in the cotton
trade has now reached a point of fairly stable compromise. The tendency
to direct trading is naturally controlled by the exigencies of capital.
Those manufacturers who act as merchants aim to retain the merchant
profit and must employ a merchant capital in stocks. There has been a
tendency, indeed, to make the manufacturer the stock-keeper, and some
merchants do little more than pass on the goods a stage after taking
toll. The great improvement in trade during 1905 and 1906 checked this
tendency, and probably the manufacturing extensions owed something to
the capital set free by the reductions of stocks.
It must be noted, however, that while most of the spinning concerns are
worked by limited companies or individuals with a considerable capital,
a good many small manufacturers exist who have little capital and are
practically financed by their agents or customers. This is so in both
the export and home trades.
The home trade merchant or merchant-manufacturer works largely through
agents and travellers, and though railway facilities continue to
improve, some shopkeepers rarely visit their markets. The difficulty
that is naturally experienced by a traveller in finding sufficient
support on a sparsely populated "ground" has brought into vogue the
traveller on commission who represents several firms. The traveller with
salary and allowances for expenses survives, but the quickening induced
by an interest in the amount of sales has caused many firms to adopt the
principle of commission, which may, however, be an addition to a minimum
salary. Of course, such travellers are not peculiar to the cotton trade,
but cotton goods in various forms are an important factor in the home
trade.
The profits of manufacturers, merchants and shopkeepers are commonly
very much less on the lower classes of cotton goods than on the higher
ones. Thus while there may be a difference of 1d. per yd. between the
qualities on a manufacturer's list, the difference in cost may not be
more than a farthing; and, again, while the shopkeeper sometimes pays
2-1/2d. or even 2-5/8d. per yd. for a calico to retail at 2-3/4d., his
next selling price may be 3-3/4d. for one which costs him only 2-3/4d.
or 3d. per yd. It appears, therefore, that if the poorer classes of the
community have the discretion to avoid the lowest qualities they may
obtain very good value in serviceable goods. In the matter of profits,
however, there is a good deal of irregularity.
_The Manchester Royal Exchange._--There are not many cotton mills or
weaving sheds in Manchester, which is, however, the great distributive
centre, and its Exchange is the meeting-place of most classes of buyers
and sellers in the cotton trade and various trades allied to it. As
buyers of finished goods for London and the country do not attend it,
certain departments of the home trade are hardly represented, but
practically all the spinners and manufacturers and all the export
merchants of any importance are subscribers. Transactions between
spinners and manufacturers are largely effected on Tuesdays and Fridays,
the old "market days," when the manufacturing towns are well
represented, but a large amount of business is transacted every day.
Besides the persons immediately concerned in the cotton trade and
connected with allied trades, a large number of members find it
convenient to use this great meeting-place as a means of approach to a
body of responsible persons. Thus not only bleachers, carriers, chemical
manufacturers, mill furnishers and accountants find their way there, but
also tanners, timber merchants, stockbrokers and even wine merchants.
Since the Ship Canal made Manchester into a cotton port there has been a
steady development of the raw cotton trade in Manchester, and many
cotton brokers and merchants have Manchester offices or pay regular
visits from Liverpool.
The various expansions and developments have made it difficult to
maintain the ratio between accommodation and requirements, and although
overcrowding is troublesome only during some three or four hours a week,
at "high 'Change" on market days, various complaints and suggestions
provoked in 1906 an appeal from the chairman of directors to the
Manchester corporation. This took the form of a suggestion that the
Exchange should be worked as a municipal institution on a new site, and
though such a development met with opposition it was apparent that
Manchester must presently have a new or an enlarged Exchange. The
present building is, however, the largest of the kind in the world, and
the history of the various exchanges coincides with the expansion of the
Lancashire industry.
According to semi-official records "the first building in the nature of
an Exchange" was erected in 1729 by Sir Oswald Mosley, and though
designed for "chapmen to meet and transact their business" it appears
that, as to-day, encroachments were made by other traders until cotton
manufacturers and merchants preferred to do their business in the
street. In 1792 the building was demolished, and for a period of some
eighteen years there was nothing of the kind. In 1809 the new Exchange
was opened, and terms of membership were fixed at two guineas for those
within 5 m. of the building and one guinea for those outside this
radius. In the following year plans for enlargement were submitted to
the shareholders, and various extensions followed, particularly in 1830
and 1847. The present building was opened partly in 1871 and partly in
1874. The area of the great room is 4405 sq. yds. The subscription was
raised on the 1st of January 1906 from three guineas to four guineas for
new members, but the number of members continues to increase and early
in 1906 amounted to 8786.
Of course in this great mart a large variety of types is to be found and
the members fall into some kind of rough grouping. Export buyers,
attended by salesmen, are commonly more or less stationary and
prominent; Burnley manufacturers abound in one locality and spinners of
Egyptian yarns in another. The importance of the Exchange as a
bargaining centre is fairly maintained, though buyers are assiduously
cultivated in their own offices, and the telephone has done a good deal
to abbreviate negotiation. As to the amount of business transacted on
the Exchange there is no record. The market reporters make some attempt
to materialize the current gossip, and doubtless catch well enough the
great movements in the ebb and flow of demand, but the sum of countless
obscure transactions cannot be estimated. Some few years ago an attempt
was made to mark more clearly the course of business in Manchester, and
a scheme was prepared for the recording of daily transactions. This
could only have been a somewhat rough affair, but its originator
maintained reasonably that it would be of interest if some indication of
the daily movements could be obtained. For some time a memorandum of the
total of daily sales reported was posted on 'Change, but the
indifference of traders, together with the distrust that makes any
innovation difficult, caused the scheme to be abandoned.
It would be difficult in any attempt to estimate the volume of British
home trade to distinguish what may be called the effective movements of
goods. There is a considerable amount of re-selling both in yarn and
cloth, and, though the bulk of cotton goods finds the way through
regular and normal channels to the consumer, these channels are not
always direct. A good many transactions on the Manchester Exchange are
intermediate, without fulfilling any useful function, and could be
accomplished by the principals if they were brought together. Agents, of
whom there are many, sometimes occupy a precarious position, but they
are protected in some degree by law as well as by the custom of the
trade and the point of honour. Points of honour in the Manchester
business may seem to be arbitrarily selected, but they are an important
part of the scheme. An immense amount of business is done without any
apparent check against repudiation. It is, of course, the verbal bargain
that binds, and large transactions are commonly completed without
witnesses, though before the contract or memorandum of sale passes the
fluctuations of the market may have made the bargain, to one side or the
other, a very bad one. (A. N. M.)