WAR'S SPUR TO TRADE

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2420, 27 March 1915, Page 30

WAR'S SPUR TO TRADE

INSTANCES OF WHAT BRITAIN IS DOING OPPORTUNITIES SEIZED . Reports .which are coming to hand nom the ohief manufacturing centres of the United Kingdom all indicate the gradual return of trade to its customary channels, ivith a tremendous expansion in tnosc industries engaged in supplying material- for. the armies in the field... Never in all thoir history were the many thousand .mills of Yorkshiro humming to a more incessant note of ceaseless activity I The Midland towns engaged in the manufacture of boots and hosiery have more orders than they can cope with. Birmingham is in the throes of an unprecedented boom. Tho ■pianiifacturing centres of'the North 'of . England'and of Scotland report that, in addition to tho tremendous' fillip to trade creafed by tho needs of the Navy, the demands for commercial shipbuilding are ; now steadily increasing; whilst even Lancashire, tho hardest hit of all' our manufacturing centres,'first mitigating the- evil of. unemployment by transferring jnan'y thousands of her idle operatives'to the busy centres of the woollen trade;'is now, receiving orders from all : parts'of: the world iii sufficient quantity to promise a speedy return to normal conditions. '

If all this' activity has been made possible by any one thing more than ■ it certainly owes its inception to the enterprise, and alertness revealed • by-'the conservative: British' trader in his search for, and. experimental trial ' of, new materials to replace those' cut f 'off by. the war. An account of how. the 'textile and other: trades dependent upon colours have coped with the serious de"'ficiency. in dye stuffs will form a land- . mark in our commercial history, and is •' a brilliant augury of f victories in . the trade war now being waged. , The Searoh for Raw Materials,. . 'At "the outbreak of hostilities, and during tlie first two months of the war, ; it was feared that the problem of sup- . plying the'textile trades with the oni- . lines and alizarines products which have . become necessary to their existence . would;, steadily increase in difficulty as ■ existing" supplies were utilised. This obstacle was one'of the greatest created ,: by the War, for tho industries affected by this deficiency give employment to more than' 15,000,000 persons throughout the British Isles. To aid in over-

■ . coming this grave . manufacturing dis- ' ability the Government appointed a Chemical Supply Commission, which, in ■. addition - to-our chief manufacturers in- .? forested in the problom, included many men of scientific distinction. After a number ..'of-semi-privato-conferences be-- : tween manufacturing chemists and'firma dependent upon these dyes, a meeting was held at the Board of Trade,'which ■was attended by the representatives of over twenty important associations whose members, are engaged in industries in- which colours in • some form are indispensable. • No better illustration of the spirit ofdetermination which'animates both the Government and the commercial world in seeking ri way out of our present difficulties could be given' than that .afforded by the work of the gentlemen - sitting on this Commission; l For:.they boldly ■ outlined and: - ratified a scheme .' for tho. ' immediate ', of ■chemical works, on : a scale broaij. and ! - big enough to cope ivith our .national : needs. The capital of the new «Jmpany is to bo no less than £2,000,000. • The Government is to subscribe a quarter of the share capital, and to guaraii-

tee the interest on a largo debenture issue for a term of years, Every precaution has been taken-to make , the company for all time exclusively British ; and, because of tho bigness of the enterprise and its quasi-national character, careful consideration was given to the framing of its articles of association so that its work would in no way encroach upon other branches 6f the chemical industry. • '

In the West Riding of Yorkshire aiid other manufacturing areas of the textile industry the suggestion of this combined undertaking at once aroused great interest, - and willingness was everywhere expressed to take up the shares. As the organisation _ was more communal than, monopolistic in character it. was understood that the dyes would bo produced at a price considerably under the usual rate. This would obviously be greatly to the advantage ol all industries dependent upon colours, and would at the same time deliver a virtual deathblow at the monopoly which Germany has hitherto held. A national need has thus been coped with on a national scale.

with the Government's co-operation with the ' manufacturing world, a remarkable discovery cama to light. Two gentlemen hailing from Huddersfield recently came forward with a new invention, which, within a few days of its announcement to the textile world, created what almost amounted an international sensation. Mr. Edward Lodge and Mr. James Morgan Evans had discovered a method of producing a first-class dye; which not only takes the place of the aniline variety, but practically banishes the bugbear of future' German competition when, as must sooner or later happen, pcace is declared. This new discovery is a sulphur dye. Its efficiency has already been demonstrated to a number of firms, which are now using it in their works, while.a company lia6 been formed to exploit .it.:-

As a proof that this invention is no mere.flash in the pan, destined to flare up and fizzle out, it- may be mentioned that its discoverers invited the investigation of the Board of Trade. The Board appointed Professor A. G. Green, an expert in tinctorial chemistry at the University of Leeds, to make an analysis and prepare, a report. This ho has already done. , His report was of such a character that the Board of Trado bus been able to endorse the value of ■the'new-, process. ' The "Drapers' Record," viewing the invention solely from its commercial side, is also convinced that it is destined to prove of the utmost value to the textile industry. At the time of writing over forty of the most important engaged in dyeing iii the country have signed agreements under which tliev are permitted to make use of tfe Lodge-Evans process, and inquiries are being received from all parts of the world.

In view of tho fact that sulphur dyes can bo produced in large quantities with a cheaper plant and at much less cost in material and labour than aniline and alizarine dyes, the auestion presents itself as to whether the'new company to be supported by the Government will, manufacture sulphur, or aniline dyeS. - Exnert opinion on this'subject is interesting. It is stated that hitherto, under the old process, it requires from £1 to £2 worth of capital to turn-out £1-worth of dye stuff per annum. _ Thcnew process needs only five shillings' worth of capital invested in material and equipment to produce four timqs th'e quantity of dye 'stuff. This lieing. theVcasn," the sulphur process is receiving the consideration'of ;t'he. board of the new comrmny, esticcially' -as the .equipment which'has jnsfed.'.for-.the manufacture of other dyes can easily be adapted for the production of sulphur tljc.i. .

The. bold, manner'-.in which .the dye problem'has been solved is one example of the initiative displayed in finding substitutes for materials which • are

11 lacking owing to trade dislocation. At ■ the same time it is an instructive comi mentary on tho query which has been I raised by many doubters as to whether • we can equal Germany in her scientific , rosearch. On this subject the opinion > of the .managing director of Messrs. i Boots, 'the well-known chemists, is nii foresting. "The old idea," he .stated I in an interview, "of Germany possessing . any monopoly of skill in scientific chemistry is a myth. We have allow- ! Ed ourselves to become almost wholly dependent upon the Fatherland for many'iudisponsable drugs and medicines, . and we have permitted the successfulexploitation of many proprietary pre- , paratioiis, bccause the public has been . hypnotised, with the belief that theso ; can only bo successfully prepared 'in ] Germany;' We know this to be a fact because we have unequalled opportunity to hear what tho public thinks of these and similar goods. But German science has no secrets which our army of trained analysts are not capable of solving. And, as the public is doubtless aware, since the early stages of the war we have been pursuing an aggressive advertising policy in order to oust ! these alien goods, and plaoe on the home ' market British articles, which serve tho same purpose equally as well and iu many cases even better.". Another instance of enterprise in tho search for now materials is the measures which have been taken to ensure a supply of pit props—an indispensable article, the luck of which would liave seriously .crippled important mining industries. Reference was made in October to. the good'work done by tho Commission which the Government promptly formed, and which at once sent representatives to Newfoundland to arrange for'importations irom Canada. Meanwhile, iu view' of {he emergency oreated, many importers have been offering an excellent substitute which comes from Spain; Cargoes aire ' also arriving from Archangel. Tho journey through the North Sea no doubt requires careful pilotage, but the faofc that we have gone successfully to tho New World, to Spain, and to tho shores of the White Sea for the surfports which make coal-mining possible is a sample of how, in another industry,we are meeting the big issues of tlio crisis. When Mr. W. R. Fletcher, managing director of the Fletcher Hardware Com' pany of Birmingham, was asked as to how the hardware trade was faring and what new resources of supply he had discovered, lie roplied that a great pun of the energy of his firm was being directed in finding substitutes for materials and' articles formerly made by the enemy countries. • Though there are some classes of hardware for which' it is difficult to. find a substitute, a good deal of success had already been met with, whilst many other articles whoso production presents no manufacturing problems were nbW beiiig turned out and sold at a price to compete with the German products.. Planning for the Future. One of the secrets of Germany's successful invasion' of the important market for fancy goods, toys, stationery, jewellery, china, glass, and pottery is the periodical holding of German fairs, where every buyer of importance meets every manufacturer of any significance. These meetings are arranged to alford all possible facilities for business trans- , actions; so much so that they, have become;:' important events in the year's history of the trade to which they relate'.. . It - 'is true that some 'of our trades' already hold their annual reunion at the ..Agricultural Hall in Lonbut these, in comparison with tho fairs held in. Germany, lire almost parochial in their,.results. The. famous Leipzig Toy Fair attracts buyers from every civilised country in the globo. Tt is safe to'surmise' that next year travelling facilities iu Germany will be great- i J. ly curtailed, and the annual meeting ' > . ■ ...

will not be held. ."Willi commendable enterprise the International Trades Exhibitions is already organising a Britjsli Leipzig Fair, which will in due time be opened in London. The proposed meeting is being organised with such thoroughness that it will hold 'out inducements- to attend, to important traders throughout the world. Designed in the interests of the wholesale and manufacturing traders alone,, it is expected to be of great assistance to all buyers, and of the utmost-value to all manufacturers and wholesalers in gaining an entry to markets hitherto closed to them, or in increasing business relations which already exist. • The exhibition will be divided into tho following sections: — Fancy goods in all branches. China, glass,' and - pottery. Toys, games, sports goods. Jewellery, silverware, and allied trades._ .Fancy stationery, Christmas cards, and fine art productions. Colour printing and posters. Hardware in all its branches. Lighting, heating, and cooking apparatus. Musical instruments. Electrical apparatus of all descriptions. The meeting of the Leipzig Fair and Market was fixed approximately for March 14-24. In addition to this Toy Fair and Market, the Drapery and Ladies' Wear Exhibition, and the Clothing Outfitting Exhibition will he held on a 6cale greater than ever before because of the new opportunities and new emergencies which have arisen.. Readjustment all along the line of trade and industry reveal British business at its best. Adaptability' and refioureo are found on all sides, from the important manufacturer 'to the small shopkeeper. It may be a trivial example,' but the same principle has induced a Birmingham firm, engaged primarily in turning out | huge girders and steel cranes, to devote a part of their vast equipment to the making of such e, trivial thing as small springs for mechanical toys.' " As another example, Messrs. J. Walker and Company, makers of walkingsticks, are utilising the large stocks of. hard wood .timber they liad on hand for the manufacture of motor-car bodies. Having in stock a .big supply of- fine woods from every quarter of the globe, they quickly stopped from the manufacture of walking : sticks and umbrella handles by the hundred thousand to building motor-car bodies by the hundred. . ■ ■ '