Considerable consternation was caused. to the trade by the report that the Nanking Government tended abolishing: the existing interior Likin taxes on cocoons. and filk and substituting a new set of ttanafit dues which would have been almost double those paid under the present system. Seeing it is so well Yaown that the China industry can hardly hold its own against the com. patton of Japan and Italy, 1 think we: yqust assume there was some misunderstanding in official circles ven this increased scale of taxes was formulated, as surely no Gov-ronment, would deliberately—contemplate the strangulation ofts aust valuable export trade. -Your Association allied itself to the representations which were addressed for Nanking by the numerous: Ghinese and foreign bodies con Qgred and T am-glad.to say: that {Goring farther has been heard of Ther fu stitution of these revised Hexen, Tt is to be hoped that the idea has been definitely abandoned, or that if any change is still contemplated it will be in the direction of lightening the burden on the industry.
The Inspection Bureau News has recently reached your Committee that, in" company with numerous other articles, silk is to be objected to the care of a Chinese Government Inspection Bureau, but fu the absence of any definite details as to the proposed operation of the scheme it is impossible to advance full criticism. I. might mention, however, that it is difficult to! vagine'the reason for any compulsory government! inspection or Tandling of silk, for exportation, as the normal and primary object of such bureaux isthe certification of food products as fit for human consumption, or animal matter as free from infectious disease. The Govment of no country, so far as 1 equites any certification ality, qua quality, of the commodities it imports, though. very rrvperly, safeguards of their condition insofar as the latter may affect public health are very generally enforced, Since by no stretch of imagination can it be supposed that Raw Silk can be a carrier disease, it is difficult to sce what useful function the proposed Bureau can fill in respect of its examination of Silk shipments to foreign countries, for it is safe to say that its certificates of quality will be entirely valueless in consuming markets. We all know the usual commercial. tests of the article are carried out either by the buying flurns or else by recognized trade fastitutions which—speeialies in this work, All the foreign silk export firms in Shanghai have their own testing departments and silk faspectors to. care for this part of the business, whilst. the Shanghai International Testing House, which came into being about ten years ago and has earned the full confidence the trade, la always available for independent tests. The silk export trade has been built up and firmly established on these lines, an\ any change must ha ing condition tions.
with markets in Europe and America.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.