§ COLONEL HARRISON-BROADLEYI beg to ask the President of the Board of Trade if he is aware that a large part of the exports of muslins to Germany are not genuine exports, but consist of muslins in the grey, sent to Germany to be finished there and subsequently re-imported; and whether he has any information showing the magnitude of this finishing trade.
§ MR. KEARLEYI am aware that a certain portion of the cotton tissues including muslins, exported from this country to Germany are sent in what is termed in the German official returns the "improvement trade," i.e., for the further manipulation, finishing, etc. Very little of this, however, comes back to the United Kingdom, the whole amount of the German re-exports of ordinary cotton piece goods to this country in 1905 in this "improvement trade" amounting only to about £90,000.