of foreign traffic shared by the others would be much less
considerable. It is remarkable, under the circumstances, how closely
these Spanish returns of exports to Great Britain approach to our own
valuations of the total imports from Spain direct, as calculated from
market prices upon the quantities alone rendered in the tables of the
Board of Trade.

Our valuation of the direct imports
from Spain being L.1,732,000
The Spanish valuation, 1,674,000

The public writers and statesmen of Spain have long held, and still
maintain the opinion, that the illicit introduction into that country of
British manufactures whose legal import is prohibited, or greatly
restricted by heavy duties, is carried on upon a much more extensive
scale than what is, or can be, the case. In respect of cotton goods, the
fact is particularly insisted upon. It may be confidently asserted, for
it is susceptible of proof, that much exaggeration is abroad on the
subject. We shall bring some evidence upon the point. There can be no
question that, so far as British agency is directly concerned, or
British interest involved, in the contraband introduction of cottons, or
other manufactures, or tobacco, it is almost exclusively represented by
the trade with Gibraltar. We are satisfied, moreover, that the Spanish
consumption of cotton goods is overrated, as well as the amount of the
clandestine traffic. Senor Marliani an authority generally worthy of
great respect, errs on this head with many others of his countrymen. In
a late work, entitled _De la Influencia del Sistema prohibitiva en la
Agricultura, Commercio, y rentas Publicas_, he comes to the following
calculation:--

Imported direct to Spain, L.34,687
To Gibraltar, 608,581
To Portugal, L731,673, of
which three-fourths find
their way to Spain, 540,000
---------
Total, L.1,183,268

Again, Great Britain imports annually into Italy to the amount of
L2,005,785 in cotton goods, L500,000 worth of which, it is not too much
to assume, go into Spain through the ports of Leghorn and Genoa. Adding
together, then, these several items of cotton goods introduced from
France and England into Spain by contraband, we arrive at the following
startling result:--

FRANCE.

Cotton goods imported into
Spain, according to the
Government returns, L.1,331,608

ENGLAND.

Cotton goods through Spanish ports, 34,637
Through Gibralt