Thus it will be seen that in all monumental undertakings of the kind the British are holding their own in a satisfactory fashion. As regards ordinary commerce and the exports of manufactured goods, the progress, unfortunately, is by no means so evident. I have so frequently laid stress upon the narrowness of the home commercial ideas in this respect that still obtains in so many quarters that I am glad to be able to quote the words of another that admirably fit the case. The following is from the Consular Report on Uruguay issued in 1910, and the sentences undoubtedly sum up the situation with a commendable accuracy: "It has been pointed out to me that careful investigation into the commercial methods of our competitors reveals several reasons why British trade has failed to retain the proportion of the imports it held a few years ago. For instance, greater attention to detail is paid by the foreign merchant than by his British rival, who, as a rule, adheres in catalogues and invoices to British standard weights and measures and prices, without giving their equivalent in terms of the country. In tenders for public works German firms study the specifications with minute care, and tender for every item, leaving nothing in doubt, besides drawing up their applications in so clear and simple a manner as to give the minimum labour in examination, and the maximum of facility in comparison to the authorities who deal with them; whereas British tenderers sometimes merely quote a lump sum, ignoring all details, and often, when details are given, the price of many items is left vague, 'As may be agreed upon.' When goods are imported into the country from Germany, France, the United States of America, &c., a detailed statement in Spanish of the contents of each package is generally furnished, with metric weights and measures, which facilitates their rapid examination and dispatch, whereas British firms as a rule content themselves with the brief statement, 'Case containing machinery' or 'hardware,' &c., leaving to the Custom House official the task of working out details and calculations. "Then, again, as regards languages, the British commercial traveller, armed with British catalogues and price lists [although I note with pleasure that some are now printed in Spanish], knows no language but his own, but the German invariably speaks Spanish and English, and he has carefully studied beforehand the needs of the market which he is visiting and the financial position of merchants. This gives him a great advantage over his British rival, who rarely has previous knowledge of his would-be customers, and is dependent on such chance information as he may pick up to be subsequently confirmed by inquiries at the banks. Time is thus lost, and irritation is caused to respectable buyers, who resent what appears to them impertinent suspicion." CHAPTER XXVII POLITICS AND REVOLUTIONS