TRADE AND COMMERCE—HAWICK AND GALASHIELS. (Hansard, 19 May 1881)

§ MR. JOHN BRIGHT

Sir, I am bound to rise to the Question of the noble Lord. To the two or three paragraps of that Question I will give such an answer as it will admit of. The House will see that the first portion of the Question merely asks the name of the gentleman who stated to me some facts concerning trade on the banks of the Tweed to which I referred in a recent speech. I do not think it necessary to give the name of that gentleman; but I will mention that he has occupied a high position in the municipality of Hawick, and is one of a family who are largely interested and connected with the trade in the district. The next Question relates to the bankruptcies in Hawick since 1875. Now, I did not know of this Question till I came down to the House. But I have just received a telegram from Hawick, which, by the statement of two or three facts, furnishes a sufficient answer to the Question. The telegram comes from the secretary of the South of Scotland Chamber of Commerce, and is to the effect that some serious failures of manufacturing firms took place in 1875 owing to circumstances altogether outside the manufacturing industry of the place; that trade was healthy; that the heaviest failure took place in consequence of the wild and foolish speculation of one of the partners resident in London, and had nothing to do with the trade at Hawick, which was profitable at the time, and has been since in a very satisfactory state, especially when the condition of trade in many parts of the country is taken into consideration. Then he says that the other manufacturing firms have failed for trifling amounts; that the trade has been steadily increasing; that last year higher wages were paid than in any preceding year, in spite of the depression of trade, and that the Census shows an increase of population of 42 per cent in the decennial period. He also says that wool—there was no reference in my speech to the price of wool—is certainly low in price; that farmers took land anticipating that prices would be higher by 50 per cent; that rents are too high; and that the Border pastoral farmers are paying rent wholly or partially out of capital. He says, in continuation, that if I ask the hon. Member for the Border Burghs (Mr. Trevelyan), I shall probably get further 814 material with which to answer satisfactorily the noble Lord opposite. The noble Lord opposite asks whether it is not the fact that the export of tweeds is greatly hampered by foreign tariffs? Well, no doubt, if all foreign tariffs were as free as our own there would be a larger trade in this country. The night before last I was speaking on this very practice to a gentleman eminent in the political life of Canada, and he told me how in that very article of tweeds there was an interference with the trade of this country by the imposition of tariffs in the Colony. He added that the time was not far distant when the policy at present pursued would be reversed. The Question asks— Whether any steps will be taken by Her Majesty's Government in any treaty of commerce now negotiating or to be negotiated to secure that so important a home manufacturing interest is relieved from the unfair and unequal duties now imposed on it by foreign tariffs? Unfortunately, this Parliament can only deal with the tariffs of this country; but, of course, any Government in Office would do its utmost in case of any negotiations to obtain as favourable terms as possible for the trade of tins country. This is what the Government has tried to do with France, and what it will do as occasion offers in the case of negotiations with any other country.