TRADE TOPICS.

Press, Volume L, Issue 14975, 23 May 1914, Page 16

TRADE TOPICS.

MOSAIC WORKERS' AET.

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LONDON, April 17.

A small band of Sicilian workmen aro executing tho mosaics in the Chapel of St.. Andrew and tho Saints of Scotland, situated in the .south aisle of Westminster Cathedral. Tho donor of the chapel wished the decorations to bo the bret possible, and as Sicily is the ancient homo of fine mosaic work, her craftsmen have been brought to England expressly. One of the greatest difficulties confronting the mosaic worker is tho fact that whereas he is executing his work at close quarters, he has : to allow for the effect at a distance, j lJluo and white will be the dominant | noto of the colour scheme, and beautiful grilles, with gate» of bronze-gilt, j will separato tho chapel from the south j aisle. The marble pavement, will re- J present tho sea, and Do inlaid with j italics of coloured stone. Tho altar j canopy will bo while marble, and bluo Hy met tan raarbio will torm tho Jower dado of iho south wall. ' BRITAIN'S DHJNK BILL. Last year a total of over 166 mil- j lion pounds sterling was spent on alco- I holic dr'wk in tho United Kingdom, an increase of five millions on 1912. Boer shows tho largest increase in popularity, for £3,007,000 was spent on an increased consumption of 1,022,000 standard barrels, and nearly two millions more was spent on spirits. The following is the nation's drink bill for 1013 :— * 1 British spirit*, 31s 6d per proof gallon ... 41.207,000 Othor spirits 8,947,000 Boer, 00s per etandard barrel ... ... 104.747,Uu0 Wine, 18s per gallon ... 10,2<JO,UU0 British vinos, cider, etc., JJs per gallon ... 1,500,000

1 £1G6,681 5 00< The average expenditure per head wa £3' 12s od, and much less alcohol wa consumed in the country than in thi towns. Thero was one licensed beer o; spirit shop to every 20U of the adul population of the country. Tho prem ises in which drink was sold retail —or and off licenses—numbered 141,000 Clubs totalled 0295, their drink bill being £3,500,000, or less than 2J ver cent of the national drink bill. The pro portion of clubs to licensed premises i; 6 per cent., so that it follows thai club men drink less alcohol than the general public.. A NEW VEGETABLE. Mr W. L. Rothschild ie stated to be anxious to reintroduce kohl-rabi, which has been described as a new vegetable, . but a Covent Garden dealer declare* that it has been known for more than a century. Kohl-rabi has a peculiar pungent flavour, suggestive of a. combination of artichoke and leek. ' The root, however, resembles that of tho turnip. , GEIIMA2S" COAL CO3IPETITION. Germany has become an unusually keen competitor for coal export business, and nas succeeded in diverting a number of important orders from the North of England. The news that tno Finnish State railway contract ior about 130 jUCO tons of steam coal has just been allotted for Scotch and Westpbalian qualities in the proportion of aboni 80,000 tons and 60,0U0. tons respectively, adds another to fhe formidable .list of her recent sucoesses. Hitherto the Finnish railways. nave always taken British coal, and invariably a large proportion of .Northumberland ar Durham steams, the balance being usualJy Scotch coal. This year, however, tho Westphalian {Syndicate lias tendered prices which .have left tiie North Countiy English coal out of the running, and, in consequence, Dot a ton of the business will be drawn from Tyneside.

BOOT TRADE OPENINGS. Plenty of opportunities exist in Latin American countries for manufacture of hoots. Along the west coast, 0 nited States makers have toe trade almost entirely in their own hands, altnough, in Chile some English boots of the best class are found. There aro local factories, but the people of .taste: seem to prefer imported footwear. The demand is for a boot for example, would sell Wk at from 2.60 dole to 4 dote., but the most popular would be about 2.80 dofs. to 3 dols. In ■Peru, 'in fact one might say everywhere, there is a brisk demand for "a minir-'s; boot, that is, a nigh laced one. A strongjy-made Uand of good appearance js mad© in the Uniied States, with a I7in leg; It sells f.o.b. at the port of shipment at 6.25 dols. a pair. A, mining boot should be reinforced at the.back to protect it in going down hills. Tho regular trade calls for no particular style; an ordinary smartlooking boot will sell if it can compete m price. Boots are preferred to shoes ns a rule and both Tilack and brown leathers are required. The only point worth mentioning is that the average' American foot has a high instep. Patent leather is very popular among native-born Latin Americans.

AUSTRALIAN FURS. Now that new processes -Lave been found permitting rabbit skins to be used as imitatfons of scarce furs, ifc is said that Australia is becoming to bo regarded as a fur-exporting country. iLast year £600,000 worth of rabbit skins -were exported, -while others {opossum, kangaroo, wallaby) amounted to £700,000; Great Britain, Germany, the United States, and Belgium are the largest buyers, France taking only small quantities, at least direct. The fur skin most in demand is that of the wild Australian rabbit, which is becoming more and more numerous. The opossum follows, but these have reached such high" prices that the Government has been obliged to close the export till the end of 1915. and the native bear and platynus till the end of 1924. The grey or red kanganxv is also in large demand o naoount of its resisting hide. To the different fur-skinned animala must be added the fox, of wh : ch several hundreds of thousands of skins are exported annually. UNITE PKINGDOM TAKEN" TO TASK. The London Chamber of Commerce recently asked how it was that in spite of the preferential tariff, the trade of the United Kingdom with Canada appeared to encounter so many difficulties in expansion. The question ia partly answered by the Montreal Chamber, which in a report states that ir the United Kingdom wishes to retain her present share of the trade of the Dominion, let alone to extend it, Home firms must change their methods. The manufacturers ought to maintain agents in Canada who would study the commercial conditions prevailing, and would keep their firms informed of the wants of the country, and the way in which these are met by the United States and German firms. They should substitute he decimal system for their present currency, extra charges, such as packing, commissions, stamps, etc, should be avoided, and more speed should be employed in tho execution «,«to- In certain cases goods l Ghould be kept in store in Canada i to avoid deb 7in supplying requirements. ■ McCliaton's Colleen Soap keeps skin eoft, clear, smooth. Countess ofEssex writes:—l have used McClinton's So»ps for years." 7