Page:Craik History of British Commerce Vol 2.djvu/180

country, which is stated to have been communicated by a correspondent, and is probably therefore an account of an actual transaction. To begin at the beginning and follow the progress of the manufacture as well as the commercial history of the finished commodity, a clothier is first introduced who buys at market 50 packs of wool, picked and sorted, at 10l. per pack, or for 500l. With this wool he makes 100 broad-cloths, the manufacture of which, in carding, spinning, weaving, milling, dressing, &c., as such cloths were "usually brought to and sold white at Blackwell Hall," would amount to about the first cost of the wool, or 500l. more; making the whole cost of the article 1000l. The clothier's profit, of course, is on the manufacture, and is included in this sum, which is that for which he sells the 100 cloths to the merchant, being at the rate of 10l. per cloth. Then, the merchant has the cloths dyed, one-third in grain colours at 7l., and two-thirds in ordinary colours at 30s. per cloth; making in all 333l. 6s. 8d.; and he also pays 15s. per cloth for selling, drawing, pressing, packing, &c.: so that they have cost him altogether 1408l. 6s. 8d. To repay him for this outlay, and for all other charges, including interest and insurance, he must get at least for his cloth in Turkey 2200 pounds of Persian fine raw silk (called Sherbaffee). Having brought this home, he manufactures the half of it into plain coloured tables, for which he pays at the rate of 13s. 7d. per pound, or 747l. 1s. 8d. in all; and the other half into rich flowered silks brocaded, which will cost him 1l. 19s. 9d. per pound, or 2186l. 5s.; besides which the charge of dyeing only an eighth part of the silk into grain colours at 9s. per pound will be 123l. 15s. Add the freight of the cloth and the silk, computed at 40l. 12s. 6d.; the duty on the import of the silk, 156l. 15s.; and his factor's commission abroad on the sale of the cloth, and the investment of the proceeds in silk, 100l.; and it will be found that the entire expenditure of the merchant, omitting some petty charges, has amounted to 4762l. 15s. "If any is to be added for the merchant's and the mercer's gain," continues the statement, "(and we may depend