'Mesopotamia' [‎57r] (113/152)

Mesopotamia] ECONOMIC PENETRATION
making progress with cargo for Europe. German
commercial travellers soon began to appear at Bagh
dad, and were without doubt welcomed, as it was lelt
that the British lines had abused the monopoly which
they held, and moreover German goods were proving
popular in a market where cheapness is of more
importance than quality.
The most important branch of British trade in
Mesopotamia has for many years been the trade in
Manchester goods. In 1907 the Germans attacked this
trade, first by making Manchester a port of call, and
secondly by introducing a German traveller for an
Anglo-German firm with instructions to push his
German goods first, only offering his British goods as
a last resort. Every effort was made by the German
agent to the Hamburg-Amerika Company to conceal
the amount of trade which was being done.
The result of the first year's working was that
Germany had certainly made a loss, but that three of
the British lines engaged in the trade had reduced their
rates from 305. to 20s. per 40 cubic teet ot space. 1
Nevertheless the German line was still disposed to cut
rates, and was more liberal in the matter of weights.
Within the country their methods of advertising were
admitted to be superior to the British, and they were
beginning to make headway with German imitations
of Manchester goods.
By the end of the year 1907-8 it was seen that the
homeward cargo carried in German bottoms had
doubled, and that they had captured practically the
whole of the continental trade to Mesopotamia.
The result of three years' trading showed that the
Hamburg-Amerika line was prepared to face a loss
over an extended period, provided that they could claim
'As an illustration of the effect of German competition, it is
remarkable that in 1907 the freight for general cargo carried in a
British ship from Manchester and from Antwerp, both in the same
bottom, was respectively £1 las. 2d. per ton from the British port
and €1 per ton from the Belgian port.