Sir Oswald Moselysaid, he held in his hand a Petition from the merchants, factors, warehousemen and others in the city of London, engaged in the trade of Cotton piece goods. The petitioners stated, that their trade was at present in a dreadful state of depression. This was, no doubt, owing to a combination of causes; but one of the most important was the unrestricted exportation of cotton yarn. This, in the opinion of the petitioners, was giving an encouragement to foreign manufacturers at the expense of our own. He should have moved for a select committee to examine into this subject, but he was deterred from so doing, not because the petitioners could not prove their case to the satisfaction of any committee, but because the period of the session was so much advanced, that no report on the subject could be received before the prorogation of parliament.
§ The petition was brought up and read.
§ Mr. Philipssaid, it was necessary that a much more enlarged view should be taken of the subject, and that more liberal principles should be applied to its discussion, than had been laid down by his hon. friend. His hon. friend had stated, that in proportion as the exportation of cotton yarn had increased, the exportation of cotton piece goods had decreased, and that the increase of the one was the cause of the decrease of the other. It appeared from official returns that the importation of cotton wool, on an average often years, I previous to 1814, amounted to 72,000,000 of pounds; whereas, on an average of the three years, ending in 1815,1816 and 1817, it amounted to 95,000,000 of pounds, making a difference of 23,000,000 of pounds weight increase in the three last years, compared with the ten preceding years. 236 The cotton yarn exported only amounted to 30,000,000 of pounds, leaving a difference of 60,000,000 of pounds weight, which must be absorbed in the cotton piece goods The observations in the petitions, and the remarks of his hon. friend, might lead the House to suppose that Great Britain had an exclusive possession of skill in the spinning of cotton yarn: but Great Britain possessed no such exclusive skill. Establishments for spinning cotton yarn existed in France, the Netherlands, Westphalia, Saxony, Silicia, Prussia, Austria, Bohemia and in other places. Had his hon. friend visited these countries, he would have found excellent yarn spun in their factories. The average nature of these factories was better than that of the factories of Great Britain. They were in possession of all our recent discoveries: the establishments were mostly directed by British spinners, and the machinery constructed by British mechanics. Great part of the nations of the continent had already either excluded cotton yarn, or loaded the importation of it with high duties. In Austria all yarns, but a small proportion of the very finest, were excluded. In Russia and Prussia the exportation was subject to a heavy duty. Under these circumstances, what other effect could be produced by the imposition of a duty on the exportation of yarn, but to shut it out altogether from the continent. A proposition more absurd than this never was uttered in any assembly. The great complaint on the continent was, that we were too much disposed to exercise an exclusive control overtrade; and this led to jealousies on their part, attended with very serious detriment to our trade. He had little doubt that if the proposition of his hon. friend were adopted, it would lead to a bounty to cotton spinners, and an exclusion of British yarns. His hon. friend said it would lead to a temporary relief to the cotton weavers, and dealers in piece goods; but this he very much doubted. The fact was, that the sale of cotton yarn on the continent was at present nearly impossible. His hon. friend had said that the exporters of cotton yarn sold it on the continent cheaper than they did at home —how any person in his senses should incur all the risk and trouble of conveying his goods to a foreign market, and subject himself to the risk of bad debts for the sake of selling his goods at a lower price than he could obtain at home, he was at a 237 loss to conceive. The average annual importation of cotton wool for 1792, 1793, and 1794, was not more than 26 millions of pounds weight; whereas, for 1814, 1815, and 1816, it was 95 millions. It might be said that this increase of trade was owing to the improvements made by the manufacturers of piece goods; but the fact was, that the whole increase was owing to the improvements made in the spinning machinery by Watts, Arkwright, and others. In this country the cotton spinners had great difficulties to contend with in the high taxes, and the high price of subsistence occasioned by high taxes. The rate of wages of cotton spinners on the continent was not half of what it was in this country. The hon. gentleman then went in to some details, to show that the opinion that the persons employed in the cotton factories in this country were in a miserable condition was totally unfounded, and that these persons were in general better off than persons engaged in other departments of our manufactures.
§ Lord Stanleythought restrictions on the exportation of cotton yarn would only excite expectations which he was afraid might prove illusory.
§ Ordered to lie on the table.