July 2, 1896.]
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
ported. Sheffield cutlery,' from Austria; English pale ale,' from Germany' and. Belgium; hosiery with English trade "marks is offered by German travellers; English whisky labels of known brands "are made in the country by enterprising "Levantines and affixed to the worst class "of spirits; while 'English' patent medi- cines, closed with forged British Govern- "ment labels, are imported from Italy; but it is nearly as bad; and, although we have " legislation and consider ourselves pro- "tected by trade marks, yet these are, in some cases, such close copies of the trade "marks on really good English articles that
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determined to secure it one way or another. They prefer to get these concessions peace- ably if possible; they object to the cost and trouble of war if the object can be attained without appeal to arms. And Russian statesmen are too well acquainted with the disposition of the mandarins not to be thoroughly well aware that it is hope- less to expect to get anything for nothing from China. But for the war with Japan and its disastrous consequences, the Tsung- li Yamen would not have ceded an inch of Manchuria or allowed a foreign railway to pass through a yard of Chinese territory without an obstinate resistance. Russia saw that the moment had come, and struck. Had she delayed but for a few months she would have encountered a tough resistance; but she timed her proposals so well that they were conceded without apparent hesi tation. How the Chinese may now feel in the matter, and whether the mandarins are quite as satisfied with their bargain as they were are moot points; the chances are that repentance has already followed on quiescence, and that the Peking Authorities" see the irremediable mistake they have been dragged into. For some years to come Russia will rest content, but sooner or later, as the corollary to this concession, we shall see her master of the Liaotung Peninsula and possibly of Peking. The thin end of the wedge has been inserted, and it will surely be driven home. There may, as L1 HUNG-CHANG is alleged to have stated, be no secret treaty between Russia and China, but there is doubtless a memorandum of agreement in existence ceding certain ter- ritory in Manchuria to Russia, to be more clearly defined by treaty later on.
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cotton goods. That he does not supply trash" in other lines seems to be due prin cipally to the fact that he does not study the requirements of the markets so closely ass his German rivals, who, by superior dilles gence and application, have practically “muck and monopolised the profitable
trade, a truck”
trade which in China is growing more rapidly than any other, both in its export_and_import branches. As the Consul at Hankow says the interests of manufacturers at homew seem annually to be less represented on the spot and they "certainly require a greater conversancy with the requirements of "remote markets, than can be obtained
through compradores in Shanghai.".
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we are apt to be deceived. The only cure, "it is said, would be for merchants and "dealers alike to put equally cheap English "articles on the market. The English name: "shall sell them even if they were of equally THE NAVY AND THE DEFENCE OF
HONGKONG. "inferior quality with the foreign aricles, while if they were slightly better and yet. as cheap they would be sure to have the preference given them. English ex- 'cellence, however, has so long been pro- verbial that it would seem like the be- ginning of the end if England were to "take to competing with foreigners in
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THE “MUCK AND TRUCK" TRADE.
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Mr. M. R. CARLES, the Consul at Hankow, draws attention in his annual report to the large profits derived from the so-called "muck and truck" trade, which is almost entirely in the hands of German merchants. Exception is rightly taken by the Consul to the contemptuous desiguation conferred on this trade, in which, as he points out, large profits can be made by persons with expe- rience in it. A similar theme is dwelt upon in a recent report from Egypt, by Mr. RENNELL RODD, who urges that, in view of keen competition and other circums stances, it would be well for British trader- to look sharply after their interests if they wish to maintain the name and prestige of British manufactures, inasmuch as trade with England is carried on more and more year by year through Egyptian and Conti- nental houses in Egypt. 'If the volume "of British trade has not diminished," Mr. RODD writes, "and has rather increased, "the British middleman tends to play an CC even less important part and is cut out by the Egyptian, or by the agents of other European nationalities who are content "with smaller profits, and also perhaps are more active in creating business." Com- menting upon this an Indian contem- porary, the Madras Times, says:-"Here is where the difficulty exists; not only "in Egypt but all over the world, for
eigners are ruining British merchants "because they are willing to work for "much lower salaries and be content "with much lower profits. But this is not "their only plan, nor are their tricks of the "trade confined to Egypt, as we in India are being made painfully conscious. It may not be in India as in Egypt, where at present, owing to the absence of adequate legislation for the protection of industrial property, counterfeit goods are largely im-
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"trash."
In China, where there is no protection for trade marks, the conditions resemble those in Egypt rather than those in India, and the counterfeiting of trade marks is common; though it must be admitted, as regards goods "made in Germany," that they make their way in foreign markets for the most part on their own merits, especially their cheapness. In course of time we may perhaps arrive at some sort of protection for trade marks in China, but in the meanwhile British manu- facturers and merchants, while not under- rating the value of the protection of trade marks, would do well, instead of crying out so much about tricks of trade, to address themselves more seriously to the all im- It is no use portant question of cost. relying on the proverbial excellence of British goods if that excellence happens to be of a higher standard than the markets call for. No permanent prosperity can be built up by representing goods to be what they are not and habitually deceiving the purchasers, but, on the other hand, if the purchasers demand second class goods it is idle to offer them only first class goods. A short time ago a paragraph went the rounds of the papers which was supposed to represent the superior excellence of British iron. A fire occurred in a build- ing in the construction of which iron girders had been used, some of them being of British and some of Belgian manufacture, the latter being the cheaper. After the fire the Bel- gian girders were found to be all bent and twisted, while the British ones had hardly been damaged at all. The test was decisive in so far as the ability of the girders to stand fire was concerned, but as under ordi- nary circumstances such articles are not required to stand fire to endow them with the quality of doing so seems simply so much waste, and the additional expense involved must tell against the superior goods in competition with the cheaper ones, which, though not so good in some respects, answer equally well the purpose for which they are required. We may sneer at the cheap goods of our foreign rivals as but if the markets want the so-called trash we fail to see why Great Britain should not supply it as well as other countries, selling it always for what it really is and not as some- thing different. Nor, in fact, is there any superlative goodness in the Briton that prevents his dealing in "trash" when he thinks it to his interest, as witness over-sized
trash,"
It is generally understood that in the event of England's becoming involved in war the defence of Hongkong would receive little assistance from the Navy. It is also re- coguised that the garrison is inadequate, to withstand an attack in force. That is not exactly to say that the enemy could walk in at his pleasure. Perhaps he might be blockaded in his own ports by our. Navy or might be so harassed at sea as to be unable to organise an attack in force on this island; and if an attack were made it would of course be opposed to the utmost and by some lucky accident of war or brilliant stroke of genius the invasion might be re pelled. But lucky accidents and strokes of genius are not to be depended upon. Judg ing the matter by ordinary scientific prin- ciples the garrison is inadequate for the de- fence of the colony and ought to be very largely augmented. The conditions have greatly changed during the last few years and will be changed still more when the Siberian Railway is completed. Formerly there was no European power that main- a large military force tained striking distance of Hongkong and in those days the local requirements of the colony were sufficiently met by a very small garrison; but now Russia is reported to have between eighty and a hundred thousand men in Siberia and if she had a clear way at sea she could send down a very formid- able army for an attack on Hongkong. The position Japan has attained as a military power must also not be overlooked. There is no present reason to apprehend any rupture of the friendly relations ex- isting between Japan and Great Britain, nor, according to our view, is there any cause for quarrel between ourselves and Russia; but the only safe principle to pro ceed upon is to be prepared for all eventu alities and ready to hold our own against all comers.
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The question of the defence of the coaling stations was touched upon in the debate in the House of Commons upon the Navy Estimates. The Times, in its article on the debate, puts the case very clearly, as fol- lows:-
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"The Navy has always persistently opposed the policy of making it respon "sible for the military defence even of those foreign stations on which in time of war "its efficiency and mobility must largely depend. This attitude was supported on Friday alike by the present representa- "tives of the Admiralty and by their pre- “decessors; and though there is not a little to be said on both sides, we are inclined to "think that the instinct of the Navy which exclusive "leads it to regard the sea as its “element is, on the whole, a sound and
salutary one. But this conclusion
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