Notwithstanding that the political situation of Europe seems to be
less threatening among its leading powers, still the uncertainty
prevalent among those who are generally considered the arbiters of
public affairs has had its influence in contracting the limits of
speculative adventure, thereby circumscribing the general course of
trade throughout the Mediterranean.
In renewing to the department my reports upon the navigation and
general commerce of Gibraltar, I beg to state that there has been a
tolerably fair current business prevailing in American produce during
the past quarter, consisting chiefly in flour, tobacco, and refined
petroleum in cases, imported direct from New York.
The steady demand for American petroleum confirms the fact that
Russian petroleum so far receives but little attention in this market
from the regular traders and consumers, so long as supplies from the
United States can be regularly imported at reasonable prices. It,
however, remains an open question, in the event of lower prices ruling
in the Russian petroleum regions, whether American supplies may not
later on experience some greater competitive foreign interference.
According to the statistical data, steam vessels of all nationalities
have continued to make Gibraltar their port of call, not only for
orders, but also for replenishing their stock of fuel and provisions,
and in larger numbers than ever before, the number in 1888 having
reached 5,712 steam vessels, measuring in all 5,969,563 tons, while in
1887 the number was only 5,187 steam vessels, with an aggregate
tonnage of 5,372,962. This increase cannot but result in considerable
benefit to the coal and maritime traffic, which now forms the most
important portion of the general commerce of Gibraltar, in spite of
the keen competition it experiences from other British and foreign
coaling ports.
Freights have also advanced in favor of steamship interests, which,
with higher prices in England for coal, have also caused an advance in
the price of coal at this port, to the benefit of the coal merchants
and others interested in this important trade. At present the ruling
price for steam coal is 24s. per ton, deliverable from alongside of
coal hulks moored in the bay. As near as I have been able to
ascertain, the quantity of coal sold in this market during the past
year for supplying merchant steam vessels has amounted to about
508,000 tons, which is an increase of about 20,000 tons over the year
1887.
Notwithstanding that plans have already been submitted to the British
government for the construction of a dry dock in Gibraltar, the matter
remains somewhat in suspense, since it meets with some opposition on
the part of the British government, which, in face of the European
fever for general arming, seems more inclined to utilize in another
form the expense which such a work would entail upon the imperial
government, by replacing the obsolete ordnance recently removed from
this fortress and substituting new defenses and guns of the most
approved patterns, a matter which has evidently been receiving, for
some time past, the special attention of the British military
authorities, not doubting that the recent visit to the fortress of the
Duke of Cambridge has had some connection with it. In fact, it is
reported that the duke has already expressed the opinion that this
fortress requires a larger number of artillerymen than are quartered
here at present to man its batteries, and it would seem that this
recommendation is likely to be carried out.
It is yet somewhat too early to venture an opinion regarding the
growing crops of cereals in this Spanish neighborhood, but the
agricultural and manufacturing interests in Spain have suffered so
much in the past years that the general feeling in Spain continues to
tend toward establishing increased restrictions against foreign
competition in her home markets. There is every probability that the
provinces of Malaga and Granada may shortly be granted the privilege
of cultivating the tobacco plant under government supervision, as an
essay. If properly managed, it may form an important and lucrative
business for those interested in land and agricultural pursuits.
After many consecutive years of heavy outlays, difficulties, and
constant disappointments, a new English company has recently succeeded
in commencing the construction of a railway from the neighboring
Spanish town of Algeciras to join, via Ronda, the railway station of
Bobadilla, on the railroad line toward Malaga. It is presumed that
when this railroad will be in running order it will greatly benefit
this community, especially if the Spanish government should decide to
establish custom houses at Algeciras and the Spanish lines outside the
gates of this fortress, similar to those existing on the frontiers of
France and Portugal.
That some idea may be formed of the constant important daily
intercourse which exists between this fortress and Spain, I may state
that late police statistics show that 1,887,617 passes were issued to
visitors entering this fortress on daily permits during the year 1888,
1,608,004 entering by the land route and 279,613 by sea. I must,
however, observe that the larger portion of these visitors consists of
laborers, coal heavers, market people, and others engaged in general
traffic.
A new industry in cork has lately sprung up, in which leading Spanish
and native commercial firms in Gibraltar are directly interested to a
considerable extent. Extensive warehouses for the storing of cork wood
and machinery for the manufacture of bottle corks have recently been
established at the Spanish lines, about a mile distant from this
fortress, in Spanish territory, where large quantities of cork have
already been stored. The cork is obtained and collected from the
valuable trees, which are owned by the representatives of some of the
oldest nobility of Spain, who have sold the products of their
extensive woods to private individuals for periods reaching as far on
as ten years, for which concession large cash advances have already
been made. The woods commence at a distance of about twelve miles from
Gibraltar, and are of considerable extent.
The railway now in course of construction passes through these woods,
which may ere long offer quite picturesque scenery for travelers,
especially when the cork trees are bearing acorns, which form the
principal food for the fattening of large herds of swine during
certain seasons of the year, in this way, also, contributing to the
value of this tree, which, like the other kinds of oak trees, is of
long and tardy growth. The tree from which the cork is obtained is
somewhat abundant in the mountainous districts of Andalusia. It grows
to a height of about 30 feet, and resembles the _Quercus ilex_, or
evergreen oak, and attains to a great age. After arriving at a certain
state of maturity it periodically sheds its bark, but this bark is
found to be of better quality when artificially removed from the tree,
which may be effected without injury to the tree itself. After the
tree has attained twenty-five years it may be barked, and the
operation is afterward repeated once in every seven years. The quality
of the cork seems to improve with the increasing age of the tree,
which is said to live over one hundred and fifty years. The bark is
taken off during July and August.
Cork dust is also obtained from this cork wood, and is much used in
the packing of grapes, which fruit is largely shipped from the eastern
coast of Spain, especially from Almeria, during the vintage seasons,
for the American and British markets.--_Reports of U.S. Consuls._
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