The british contribution to the economic development of the Canary Islands with special reference to the Ninteenth Century

              THE BRITISH CONTRIBUTION TO THE ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT OF THE CANARY ISLANDS WITH SPEClAL
REFERENCE TO THE NINETEENTH CENTURY
P. N. DAVIES
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An extensive commercial relationship has existed between
Britain and the Canary Islands for many centuries and in spite of
visits of Sir Francis Drake and Lord Nelson these have usually
been of an extremely friendly nature. This has been because the
complementary nature of the two economies with their differing
factor endowments has ensured that trade has always been of a
mutually beneficial nature.
This was especially true during the period that the wine trade
was at its zenith in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and
also during the short-lived boom of cochineal exports. The subse­quent
malaise of the economy and its resurrection by the inaugu­ration
of the fruit and tourist industries owed much to the interest
and investments of Sir Alfred Jones and the Elder Dempster
Group in the late nineteenth century. However, this enterprise
would not have been possible if authorities in the Canaries had
not acted to extend their two main ports so that they could cater
for the iron steamships which were being evolved at that time.
The consequences of these independerit but inter-Iocking ac­tions
were, of course, imII!ense for they resulted in the establish­ment
of the foundations of what have become the two main pillars
of the Island's economy to-day - the export of fruit and the tourist
trade.
Much of this work has already been the subject of careful
academic study by a number of eminent Spanish and Canario
scholars. It is hoped, however, that an expatriate viewpoint will
give their understanding a clearer perspective and that, in turn,
the present author will learn a great deal from the anticipated
discussion.
The discovery and occupation of the Canary Islands has been well
recorded in a whole series of works in both English and Spanish so it is
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356 P. N. Davies
not proposed to discuss these matters in this paperl
. Nor is it felt neces­sary
to analyse the early situation in the new colony for this has also
been the subject of much recent research2
. However, as the subsequent
economic history of the Islands is of major importance to any unders­tanding
of the events of the second half of the nineteenth century, it is
intended to provide an outline of their commercial development with
special emphasis on the vicissitudes of their external trade.
From a British point of view the prime source for the study of
these events is the Report on the Social and Economic Conditions of
the Canary Islands which was produced for the Foreign Office in 18923
.
The author of this work was Mr. A Samler Brown who had been a
long-time resident of Santa Cruz and whose Report was subsequently
to form the basis for a guide-book that ran to many editions4
• His view
that the history of the Canary Islands under Spanish rule was, « ... chie­fly
interesting as a record of agricultural progress or decay»5, may have
been true at the time he wrote but it was by no means the whole pic­ture.
It is easy to apreciate Samler Brown's opinion for, in addition to
providing a large degree of self-sufficiency in food for the inhabitants of
the Islands, agriculture also supplied the principal items for export.
The position of agriculture was further enhanced by the absence of
important mineral deposits and by the failure to develop fishing on any
1. ALEJANDRO CIORANESCU. The History of Santa Cruz de Tenerife (of par­ticular
relevance is vol. 4. 1803-1977. Historia No. 48. Santa Cruz 1979).
CHARLES EDWARDS. Rides and Studies in the Canary Islands, T. Fisher Unwin
& Co.. London. 1888.
VICTOR MORALES LEZCANO. Relaciones Mercantiles entre Inglaterra y los Ar­chipiélagos
del Atlántico Iberia. Su Estructura y su Historia, 1503-1973, Instituto de Estu­dios
Canarios. La Laguna de Tenerife. 1970.
OLIVIA M. STONE. Tenerife and its Six Satellites (The Canaries Past and Present)o
Marcus Ward & Co.• London. 1887.2 vols.
See also the works of A. SAMLER BROWN as detailed in Footnotes 3 and 4 below.
2. FELIPE FERNANDEZ-ARMESTO. The Canary Islands after the Conquest:
The Making of a Colonial Society in the Early Sixteenth Century. Oxford University
Press. Oxford. 1982.
3. FOREIGN OFFICE MISCELLANEOUS SERIES. No. 246. SPAIN: Report on
the Social and Economic Conditions ofthe Canary Islands, London. H.M.S.O. 1892.
4. A. SAMLER BROWN. Madeira and the Canary Islands. A Practical and Com­plete
Guide for the use of Invalids and Tourists. Sampson. Low. Marston & Co.. London.
1894.
5. Report on the Social and Economic Conditions of the Canary Islands, op. cit.. p. 3.
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The british contribution to the economic development... 357
scale. Such industry that had emerged was also on a tiny scale, for the
size of population and relative ease of communications with Europe
meant that locally produced goods could not compete with foreign im­ports.
In these circumstances it was inevitable that Samler Brown would
stress the importance of agriculture. However it was the geographic
position of the Canaries that was mainly responsible for the success of
its exports and Samler Brown fails to give full weight to this vital factor.
Thus it was the situation of the Islands on the major shipping routes
between Europe, Africa, the Caribbean, Latin America and the East
that played a substantial part in promoting the wine trade in the seven­teenth
and eighteenth centuries6
. Equally, the growth in tourism and
the early development of fmit exports which Samler Brown recorded
having commenced after the evolution of the steam ship c1early owned
more to geography than to any other single factor.
It is the purpose of this paper to demonstrate that the Canary
Islands were able to survive and prosper economically because of their
position at a maritime «cross-road». It will then be further argued that
British dominance in shipping and trade in the nineteenth century
made co-operation between the two economies mutually beneficial and
this, in turn, encouraged both the growth of trade and.of personal rela­tionships.
11
«Within thirty years of the completion of the conquest (in 1496)
new immigration was almost at an end, a royal administration had
al! but replaced the seigneurial, the leading conquistador, Alonso
de Lugo, was dead. and the surviving native guanches had been
largely assimilated into a colonial society which itself varied great­Iy
from island to ¡sland according to geographic position and
climate ... >,7
6. GEORGE F. STECKLEY. The Wine Economy of Tenerife in the Seventeenth
Century. Anglo-Spanish Partnership in a Luxury Trade, ECONOMIC HISTORY RE­VIEW.
2nd Series. Vol. 33. No. 3. August 1980.
7. NORMAN BALL. Review of The Canary Islands after the Conquest. op. cit.
ECONOMIC HISTORY REVIEW. 2nd Series. Vol. 36. No. L February 1983. pp.
164-5.
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358 P. N. Davies
An earlier priority was to discover an export crop that would ena­ble
the economy to pay for the imports which would permit the mainte­nance
of what the ruling elite regarded as a civilised standard of living.
At first it appeared that sugar would prove to be the entire answer and,
with the aid of slave labour, many plantations were established. These
proved to be extremely profitable and expanded in size so that at least
one plantation, that at Adeje, employed over a thousand negroesl'.
According to Lord Verulam (Francis Bacon) being first in an inven­tion,
«doth sometime cause a wonderful overgrowth of riches, as it was
with the first sugar man in the Canaries»9
.
By 1600, however, competition from Brazil and the West Indies
was having a significant effect on the price of sugar so production began
to decline. Thereafter the industry only continued at a low level though
it enjoyed occasional periods when increased demand encouraged a
brief reviva\. Fortunately, by then, the Canaries were already develo­ping
an alternative export so that by 1650 Tenerife was firmly establis­hed
as a major wine producerlO
.
George F. Steckley estimated that Tenerife exported an average of
10,037 hah-ton pipes in the period 1636 to 1725 and this included an
average of 6,859 half-ton pipes of the choice malvasia variety'l. In the
earlier period the wine was exported to a wide variety of markets of
which Latin America, Portugal and its possessions and Northern Euro­pe
were the most important. Gradually, however, the English market
emerged as the main outlet and by 1690 almost two-thirds of the malva­sia
was sold via London12.
This happy state of affairs which had brought a high level of pros­perity
to both producer and buyer was not to last much into the eigh­teenth
century. A longstanding difficulty had been the imbalanced of
trade between England and the Canaries for the Islands could not ab­sorb
a sufficient quantity of British products. Thus the trade had to be
conducted in «ready money» which was against the mercantilist ideas of
many influential politicians so the business was discouraged by heavy
taxes. At the same time the growth in imports of wine from Portugal
8. CHARLES EDWARDS. op. cit.. p. 50.
9. Report on the Social and Economic Conditions ofthe Canary /slands, op. cit .. p. 4.
10. GEORGE F. STECKLEY. op. cit.. p. 337.
11. Ibid .. p. 339.
12. Ibid .. p. 343.
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'1111' british contribution ro the economic development... 359
was encouraged as England was supposed to enjoya favourable trade
balanced with that country. A change in the taste for particular wines
further enhanced this transition which was virtually completed by the
disruption caused by the «War of the Spanish Succession» 13.
The difficulties in England could not be compensated by sales el­sewhere
but the trade did continue at a moderate level until 1850 when
the vines were attacked and virtually exterminated by a fungus known
as «oidium tuckeri» 14. This attack proved to be so severe that the entire
stock had to be replaced by other variations of vine. This process, in
tum, changed the character -sorne would suggest the guality- of the
wine and although production and exports resumed they were never
again to provide a significant proportion of the Islands revenue.
The decline and temporary cessation of the wine trade did not
prove to be as great a loss as might have been expected. This was be­cause
of the development of an entirely new export which, for a time,
was to make the Canaries so prosperous that all other commercial acti­vities
were either neglected or abandoned. The new items was natural
dye-stuff known as cochineal which was produced from the dried bo­dies
of the coccus cacti an insect which thrived on a cactus which grew
freely in the Islands. The first shipment of 81bs was made in 1831: by
1850 exports had grown to nearly 800,000lbs. and then increased to a
peak of over 6 million lbs. in 1869. This had a value of f788,993 on the
London market which was egual to a revenue of f3.25 for every man,
woman and child l5
. By then, however, the signs of decline were already
apparent because the invention of aniline dyes in Europe was begin­ning
to force down the price. A steady fall in production followed and
exports were down to 5 million lbs. in 1874 and to 2,300,000 lbs in 1886.
Of egual importance was the decline in price. At the height of the
boom the retum for the medium grade of cochineal was 3.25 pesetas per lb.
but by the early 'eighties it was little more than one peseta per lb. In
these circumstances the loans which had been secured to enable the
industry to expand could not be serviced and, except in particularly
favourable situations, it was not worthwhile to continue with produc­tion.
Exports were subseguently aided by the discovery of the water­proofing
capabilities of cochineal which are not shared by artificial dyes
13. Ibid., p. 348.
14. Report on the Social and Economic Conditions ofthe Canary Islands. op. cit .. p. 5.
15. Ibid., p. 6.
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360 P. N. Davies
so it was possible to maintain a smal1 industry on a permanent basis.
However as prices' remained low and as only poor returns could be
secured from the sale of sugar and wine the lslands lost their state of
prosperity and became financial1y moribundo
III
The successive loss of competitive advantage in the export of su­gar,
wine and cochineal led to a search for viable alternatives. One
possibility which appeared to offer sorne promise was tobacco which
was first cultivated commercial1y in 1873. Unfortunately the quality of
the early crop was not goód enough to enable it to compete with Cuban
products. Thus although the government attempted to help by purcha­sing
the output in 1876 it found itself incurring heavy losses and refused
to repeat its assistance the fol1owing year. However, a few planters
continued to experiment with the crop and the government were per­suaded
to re-enter the trade in 1882. The resulting product could not
approach the quality of Cuban tobacco but it did gradually secure a
position in the lower end of the market and so made a small contribu­tion
to the lsland's employment and revenue 16.
In spite of the continuation in the export of the three staples -su­gar,
wine and cochineal- and the growth of tobacco at least as an
import substitute. the level of activity remained very low and much
hardship was endured by large sections of the population throughout
the 'seventies and early' eighties. Fortunately the production of foods­tuffs
for family consumption provided a basic diet for many people,
while sorne cash-crops could be sold for local consumption. In addition,
a traditional trade in cereals, potatoes 17 and onions saw a small export
of these items. mainly to Cuba, and the victual1ing of passing ships also
offered a tiny outlet for both crops and livestock. None of these agricul­tural
sectors appeared to offer any hope of substantial expansion and
the only bright spot was that subsistence farming tended to reduce the
quantities of food which had to be imported when export crops mono­polised
the land.
The non-agricultural industries were in a similar position. Al-
16. OLiVIA M. STONE. op. cit.. pp. 364-5.
17. ¡bid.. p. 262.
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The british contribution to the economic development... 361
though pumice, sulphur and copper were available there was little
effective demand for these items and only a small quantity was extrac­ted.
Tobacco processing and sugar-boiling required only a tiny imput of
labour while basket-making and the linen and lace trades were minute
in character.
Boat building for local consumption was undertaken but the failu­re
to develop the fishing industry left this enterprise without a satisfac­tory
market. This omission is the more surprising because the excellen­ce
of the fishing and the need for drying facilities were pointed out as
early as 1765 by George Glas1R
• Thus although local fishermen were
able to land substantial quantities the lack of suitable arrangements
meant that the catch could only be consumed locally and httle was avai­lable
for exportl\l.
It would seem, therefore, that the collapse of the boom in cochi­neal
had left the Islands in difficult financial straits. Furthermore the
loss of confidence which then occurred meant that the remaining men
of substance were reluctant to undertake any venture with an element
of risk. One choice which remained available to the more enterprising
citizens was emigration. There had been a long tradition of this in the
Canaries and in the eighteenth century many had settled, with govern­ment
encouragement, in the Spanish possessions in the New World
while in the nineteenth century the main flow had been to Cuba. Hard
times at home always promoted further emigration and, in turn, engen­dered
a flow of remittances which could have been used to increase the
level of investment in productive activities. Unfortunately the new ca­pital,
like the old, was customarily used to purchase land and there was
httle inclination of incentive to invest in other projects.
IV
The economic malaise in which the Canaries found itself during
the eighteen-seventies was all the more frustrating because of the
knowledge that the level of world trade had been rising sharply throug­hout
the nineteenth century. There had, of course, been many fluctua­tions
but the overall trend was consistently upward so that between
18. GEORGE GLAS. History ofthe Canary Islands. 1764.
19. A. SAMLER BROWN. op. cit .. 1905 Edition. pp. D. 33-4.
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362 P. N. Davies
1800 and 1913 the value of international commerce rose more than
twenty-five fold. Furthermore, as the following table indicates, most of
the expansion, in absolute terms, took place in the later period -just
when the economy of the Canaries was faltering:-
The Growth of World Trade in the Nineteenth Century: Esti­mated
Aggregate Values. Distinguishing Exports and Imports. in
Selected Years, 1800-19132°.
1800
1820
1840
1850
1860
1872-1873
1895-1899
1913
Total Trade
f niill.
320
340
560
800
1.450
2.890
3.900
8.360
Exports
f.o.b.
fmill.
150
155
260
370
680
1.360
1.870
4.055
Imports
c.o.f.
fmill.
170
185
300
430
770
1.530
2.030
4.305
Sources: To 1840 from Clive Day. A Histoy ofCommerce (New York.
1923) p. 271, but increased by the difference between British «official»
and market value of net imports. namely. f40 millions in 1800. no mi­lIions
in 1820 and in 1840. No adjustment was needed in 1850. It is assu­med
that the declared values of British exports were used in preparing
these estimates. If «officiah> values of British exports were used. the va­lues
cited aboye should be revised upwards in 1800 by fl5 millions. and
downwards in 1840 by f50 millions. and in 1850 by flOO millions. Growth
from 1800 to 1840 would. therefore. be rather slower than indicated here.
Beginning in 1860. the total values are those compiled from various
sources by A.E. Overton in the Encyc/opaedia Britannica. 14th ed. XXII.
350.
To make matters even worse, Britain, with whom the Canary
Islands had usually enjoyed a close commercial relationship, was domi­nating
world trade in an impressive manner. As the «First Industrial
Nation» Britain was the sole source of many manufactured goods
and the cheapest supplier of many others and with her growing popu­lation
she needed to import large quantities of food as well as huge
20. ALBERT H. IMLAH. Economic Elements in the Pax Britannica. RussclI 8:
Russell. New York. 1958. p. 189.
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rile brilish contribution lo Ihe economic developmenl... 363
amounts of raw materials. This is c1early demonstrated in the following
table:
The Preponderance of the British Market in World Trade:
British Net Imports as Percentage ,of Aggregate Non-British Ex-ports.
in Selected Years. 1800-1913-1
•
British net imports
Aggrcgate Valuc Deduction Approx- Per cent.
non- c.i.f. for imate of non-
British Freight value British
exports. etc. f.o.b. exports
fmill. fmill. fmill. fmill. lYo
1800 97 47,6 7,1 40,5 42
1820 109 43.8 6.1 37,7 35
1840 198 81.2 10,6 70,6 36
1850 287 91.0 11.8 79,2 28
1860 515 181,9 23,6 158.3 31
1872-1873 1.047 306,0 36,7 269.3 26
1895-1899 1.631 392.7 43.2 349.5 21
1913 3.530 659,2 65.9 593,3 17
Details of Britain's trade with the principal nations and areas of
the world in the latter part of the nineteenth century are provided in
Table 1 in the Appendix22
. From this it will be seen that trade with
Spain (as a whole) rose from just over six miliion pounds in 1858 to
nine million in 1870, to nearly fifteen million in 1880 and to over eig­hteen
million in 1890. Thus it seems apparent that commerce with
Spain was expanding at arate that was little different than that oí Bri­tain's
other trading partners. When, however, Britain's trade with the
Canaries is examined it will be seen that was a decline in her exports
from f215,781 in 1869 to f163,398 in 1884 and the earlier figure was
only just exceeded in 1887. Canary exports, detailed below,2J show a
stronger decline with the total of f845.390 for 1869 being followed du­ring
the 'eighties' by an average value of under f300,000 per annum.
21. ¡bid.. p. 191.
22. Sce Table I in the Appendix.
23. Scc Tahlc:2 in the Appendix.
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364 P. N. Davies
Somewhat paradoxically it was the growth in world trade and of
Britain's share in this expansion that was ultimately to playa significant
role in restoring the Canary economy to prosperity. This was partly
because the authorities in both Grand Canary and Tenerife were able
to provide harbours that could cope with the requirements of modero
shipping24
.
Britain had confirmed her naval superiority during the Napoleonic
Wars and in 1816 was the largest commercial operator with a merchant
fleet of 2,417 ,000 tons. At this time her principal rival was the United
States which possessed a mercantile marine that was only half the size
of Britain's. It was, however, growing rapidly for the availability of
cheap and convenient timber gave American builders a competitive
edge over British constructors and by 1861 there was only a small diffe­rence
in the size of the two fleets25
.
«~o •• This American success was based on ships built of home
produced softwoods that were not only cheaper than contemporary
British vessels but which were also very much larger and able to take
advantage of many economies of scale. The British ships were cons­tructed
of hardwood which, though expensive, could be relied upon
to give long service. This was. perhaps. the more economical mate­rial
in the long term but any marginal gain in this direction was more
than offset by the superiority of American design ... ,,26
The situation changed quite dramatically during the eighteen six­ties
for while the British proportion of the world fleet remained consis­tently
high that of the United States fell rapidly27. This was largely
because the transition from wood and sail to iron and steam favoured
Britain as the more technically advanced nation but, in addition, the
impact of the American Civil War and the subsequent opportunities
within the continent led to a substantial decrease in investment in
oceangoing vessels. The consequences of these trends can be seen in
the following tables:
24. P.N. DAVIES. British Shipping and World Trade. Rise and Decline. 1820-/939.
Paper given to the International Conference on Business History. 3rd Series. heId at the
Fuji Educatíon Centre. Japan. January 1984.
25. See Table 3 in the Appendix.
26. P.N. DAVIES.The Development of (he Uner Trades. Proceedings of the Con­ference
of the Atlantic Canada Shipping Pro.iect. Memorial University of Newfoundland.
1978. pp. 176-7.
27. See Table 3 ín the Appendix.
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The british eonrribution to rhe eeonomie deve/opment...
Merchant shipping tonnage oí the United Kingdom 1840-19102x
365
U.K. fleet
(million
net tons)
U. K. share of
world
tonnage
U. K. share of
world steam
tonnage
1840 2,77 29,52 24,3
1850 3,57 39,47 23.0
1860 4,66 34.80 31.3
1870 5,69 33,94 42,3
1880 6,58 32.88 50,0
1890 7,98 35,83 49,2
1900 9.30 35.50 44,5
1910 11,56 33,37 40.0
(The American tonnage employed in the Great Lakes has been inclu­ded
for the purpose ofthese calculations).
From a Canary point of view this meant that there was a vast in­crease
in the amount of tonnage that was obliged to pass c10se by the
Islands due to their strategic position at a major maritime «cross-road».
The extent of this expansion can be seen even more c1early when actual
commodities are considered:
Merchandise carried by sea, annual totals. 1840 and 18872Y
('000 tons)
Commodity
Coal
Iron
Timber
Grain
Sugar
Petroleum
Cotton
Wool
Jute
Meat
Coffee
Wine
Salt
Sundries
Total:
1840
1.400
1.100
4.100
1.900
700
400
20
200
200
800
9.180
20.000
1887
49.300
11.800
12.100
19.200
4.400
2.700
1.800
350
600
700
600
1.400
1.300
33.750
140.000
28. H.J. OYOS and O.H. ALOCROFL British Transport: An Economic Survey
Irom the 17th Cenrury ro the Twenrierh. Leicester University Press. 1971. p. 232.
29. M.G. MULHALL. Dictionary 01 Sraristies. (4th Edition). London. 1898. p. \30.
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366 P. N. Davies
This sevenfold expansion took place, therefore, in the period
when the Islands were experiencing the boom and subsequent collapse
of cochineal exports. While the boom lasted there was little incentive to
seek to encourage alternative industries but once it was in decline other
possibilities were given much more serious consideration.
For many years it had been obvious that the primitive nature of its
port facilities was preventing the Canaries from achieving its full poten­tial
in attracting passing shipping. The advent of iron steamships and
the consequent increase in scale further emphasised the deficiencies of
the existing harbours and representations were made to the central go­vernment
as early as 1852. The process of securing funds was extremely
slow but was eventuany successful and resulted in the construction of
additional, new, capacity at Puerto de la Luz (adjacent to Las Palmas)
and at Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
The completion of the first phase of the opening of Puerto de la
Luz in 1883 has been funy described in a centenary publication of great
merit. 30 A similar programme was undertaken at Santa Cruz de Teneri­fe
where the extension of the mole commenced in 1885. By 1893 the
works at both ports had been virtuaBy finished and they could then
offer suitable accommodation to even the largest of contemporay ves­sels3
!. The combination of these new facilities with the growth in world,
particularly British, tonnage was then to issue in a fresh period of acti­vity
in the Canary Islands and, indeed, was to mark the beginning of its
modern economy.
The first consequences of the improved facilities were on the num­ber
of vessels which caBed in at the two main ports and on the quantity
of coal which was supplied as bunkers. As will be seen in the tables
below both of these activities increased enormously after the port im­provements
had been partly completed in 1883:
Although sorne small coaling facilities had previously been availa­ble
in the Canaries the expansion of the two main ports generated much
interest among British shipping companies. Of these the Liverpool firm
of Elder Dempster and Company32 was the most directly affected for its
30. AGUAYRO. Primer Centenario del Puerto de la Luz, Caja Insular de Ahorros,
Year 12. No. 146, March-April 1983. Las Palmas. Of special reference is the excellent
work of Fernando Martin Galan and Francisco Ouintana Navarro.
31. A. SAMLER BROWN. opcit.. 1894 Edition. p. 199.
32. P.N. DAVIES. The Trade Makers. Elder Dempster in West Africa. 1852-1972.
Gcorge Allen & Unwin. London. 1973 (Re-issued 1980).
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The british contribution to the economic development...
Number and Tonnage of Steam Vessels Entering the Ports of Santa
Cruz (Tenerife) and Las Palmas (Grand Canary). with a Statement of the
Ouantity of Coals supplied to them.
TENERIFE
Ycar COi.lsting Trade British 'Y..ofBritish Al! Nations
Numberol"
Nurnbcrof
Tons
Nurnhcrof Tons Vesscls Tons Numbcr 01' Tons
Vesscls Vcsscls
%
% Vcsscls
18X4 195* 263.7(X)* 45 5X 429 457.()(X)*
IX85 206 278.560 44 55 465 501.1112
1886 246 317.669 43 51 553 620.229
1887 250* 395.000* 46 4X 542 X43.440
IX88 51 12.904 310 444.23X 47 47 666 9411.X02
IX89 15X 41.696 349 549.375 4X 49 733 I.IlK652
IX90 1711 40.432 350 575.000 46 4X 766 1.204.026
GRAND CANARY
Ycm Coasting Tradc British IX) nf British Al! Nations
Numhcrof Numbcror
Numhcrof
Tons Tons Vcsscls Tons Numbcr uf Tons
Vcsscls Vcsscls
%
% Vcsscls
IXX4 160* 264.000' 6X 52 238 505.()(XI*
(X85 220 263.0(X) 66 50 336 725.<X10
1886 369 6(X1.500* 72 63 506 950.000'"
1887 414 6XO.OOO" 63 61 660 1.103.700*
188X 51 * 12.904'" 539 X90.977 59 59 912 1.505.0X9*
IX89 15X' 41.696* 601 I .J60. OO()* 59 56 1.022 2.432.000*
1890 178* 40.432* 71X 1.635.000* 57 56 1.263 2.9IX.570*
'1: estimate
TOTAL
Coal Supplied
Total of 80th
Ycar
Groups Tcnerifc Grand Canary Total
Numbcrof
Tons Vcsscls Tons Tons Tons
1884 667 962.(X)O 28.924 6.700 35.624
18X5 801 1.226.382 33.963 18.390 62.353
1886 1.059 1.570.220 38.046 3X.X27 76.X73
1887 1.202 1.938.140 53.277 78.070 126.347
188X 1.080 2.479.699 76.913 130.188 213.101
1889 2.07! 3.634.044 101.432 166.341 267.773
IX90 2.385 4.203.470 107.519 226.409 333.919
SOllrce: Report of lile Social amI Ecollomic ConditiollS (4'he Callar.\-' IslWllls. op. cit.. p. 10.
367
© Del documento, de los autores. Digitalización realizada por ULPGC. Biblioteca universitaria, 2009
36X P. N. Davies
routes to West Africa brought its vessels close to the Islands as a matter
of course33 . Word of the work at Puerto de la Luz reached (Sir) Alfred
Jones, the senior partner of this Line and he visited the newly-extended
port in 1884. He had long wished to develop a coaling depot that wóuld
enable his ships to re-fuel during the course of their voyages for the
more coal they carried the smaller was the amount of space that was
available for paying cargoes. The situation of the Canaries on the direct
route from Britain to West Africa made them an ideallocation once a
harbour was available so Jones immediately formed the Grand Canary
Coaling Company to operate at Puerto de la Luz. The success of this
project and that of a similar enterprise -the Tenerife Coaling Com­pany
based at Santa Cruz- then led Jones to purchase two coal mines
in South Wales. Their output was sufficient to cater for the Elder
Dempster fieet but Jones was gradually forced to buy more and more
bunker coal on the open market and he found it profilate to supply the
vessels of other owners when they called at Las Palmas.
As noted earlier, a direct consequence of the construction of the
new extensions (and incidentally of Alfred Jones' visit) was that the
number of steamships calling at the Canaries rose sharply and the
quantity of coal supplied increased at a dramatic rateo The bunkering,
watering and victualling of these vessels provided useful employment
but their true significance for the Islands' economy lay in the opportu­nities
they provided for two other separate, activities. These were the
fruit trade and tourism and, as will be seen, it was the pioner work of
Jones and other British entrepreneurs that was to lay the foundations
for the sucessful development of these two, crucial, industries.
The British contribution to the economic development of the Ca­nary
Islands was important throughout the whole period of Spanish
rule because of London's significance as a major trading centre. This
was especially true during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries
when the export of wine was at its peak and Steckley identified no
fewer than « ... 158 English merchants who were resident in the Islands
at one time or another from 1600 to 1730»34.
The further growth of British infiuence in the nineteenth century
33. P.N. DAVIES. Sir Alfred Lewis Jones. Shipping Entrepreneur Par Excellence.
Europa Publications Limited, London, 1978.
34. GEORGE F. STECKLEY, op. cit., p. 343. See also p. 347 for a list of the
leading wine exporters of Santa Cruz which includes a predominance of British firms.
© Del documento, de los autores. Digitalización realizada por ULPGC. Biblioteca universitaria, 2009
The brilish conlribution lo the economic developmenl... 369
arose from its increasing domination of world trade and shipping which
was based on the twin factors of early industrialisation and the acquisi­tion
of widespread colonial possessions and territories. These, in tum,
strengthened London's position as the world's leading commercial and
financial centre so it is not surprising that British merchants were al­ways
to the fore during the boom in the cochineal trade.
The net effect of these long connections between the United King­dom
and the Canaries was that a number of British firms and indivi­duals
became permanently established iq the Islands. The Hamiltons
commenced their association in 1799 and developed a whole range of
interests that included wine, banking, shipping and forwarding and,
later, in the supply of coa!. Millers, established in 1853, operated as
bankers, steamship and insurance agents and as coal depot proprietors.
Reids, who set up in 1865, acted as bankers and general merchants and
also specialised in lace and Iinen products. Blandys had commenced in
business in Madeira in 1811 and it was not until 1886 that a branch of
the firm opened in Grand Canary. A coaling depot was then establis­hed
at Puerto de la Luz and the Company subsequently operated a
banking agency and entered into a number of other pro.iects.
Other British expatriates wlio were in business in the lslands at
this time included Alfred Williams (banking and exchange) and Henry
Wolfson who, apart from his interests in banking and shipping, was to
develop a major share in the growing and export of fruit. The Yeoward
brothers also became very interested in the fruit trade and, at a later
stage, diversified into shipping and the tourist business.
As the export of fruit and the development of the tourist industry
were to become the main foundations of the Canary economy in the
twentieth century, the origins of these activities and the extent of Bri­tish
participation will now be examined. J?oth have their roots in the
extension of the major ports for once Elder Dempster ships began to
call at Puerto de la Luz or Santa Cruz for fuel en route for Liverpool,
their Captains sought to purchase any commodities which might profi­tably
fill up empty space. It soon became c1ear that a large market
existed for bananas and tomatoes but a whole series of problems had to
be solved before this new export trade could flourish.
The major difficulty was that of carriage, for Liverpool lay seven
days to the North. The solution of picking bananas (and to a lesser
extent tomatoes) before they were ripe and allowing them to mature en
route required great skill which was only acquired at substantial cost.
Bananas were largely unknown except to the wealthy and, again, it
© Del documento, de los autores. Digitalización realizada por ULPGC. Biblioteca universitaria, 2009
370 P. N. Davies
took much effort to persuade retailers to handle this delicate fruiL In­deed,
the early experimental shipments could not be disposed of via the
normal channels at al! and Jones had to resort to the expedient of dea­ling
directly with the Liverpool «barrow boys». His success in solving
these difficulties then led to a further one in the Canaries as, at first,
the supply of bananas lagged behind the growing demando
Bananas had been produced in the archipelago since the fifteenth
century and had rapidly become a staple item of food. A few had been
exported even during the era of the sailing ship and the advent of steam
meant that a larger proportion of these casual shipments had arrived in
an edible condition. But by 1884 it is estimated that only 10,000 bun­ches
were reaching Britain from al! sources so when Jones stimulated a
mass market it took sorne time for the growers in the Islands to res­pondo
Never aman to leave matters to take their own course he acted
with his customary vigour once he had decided what was required:
«..• the land was Iying waste and the people sunk in a apathy
of despair. Well, observing the prolific character of the soiL 1
bought up what land 1 could and grew fruit on it. Then. as 1 knew
that that was not enough for the trade 1 could foresse. 1 went
round to the farms and offered so much for all the fruit they could
grow and, where necessary. made them advances and financed
them generally. The consequence is that land has now (1898) gone
up to f1 ,000 per acre. the Islands receive a million ayear for fruit.
and the people are prosperous and comparatively speaking con­tented
for they more than pay their way ... ,,35
Jones' contribution to the development of the banana trade was to
solve the problem of carriage, open up a mass market and aid the gro­wers
to produce sufficient quantities of the right quality. Although Jo­nes
was the pioneer in many respects the parts played by the Yeoward
family36 and by Mr.E.W. Fyffe in promoting the export and sale of the
banana should'not be overlooked.
Edward Wathen Fyffe was normal!y employed in London in his
family's business as a tea importer but the illness of his wife led the
couple to spend 1887 in the Canaries. The climate proved to be benefi-
35. A Napoleon af Commerce. GREAT THOUGHTS. 18 June. 1898.
36. ALEJANDRO Cl0RANESCU. op. cit.. pp. 14-15.
© Del documento, de los autores. Digitalización realizada por ULPGC. Biblioteca universitaria, 2009
The british contribution lO Ihe economic developmenl... 371
cial and Mrs. Fyffe rnade a full recovery but while she was convalescing
her busband learned a great deal about the local econorny. The existen­ce
of cheap bananas carne as a surprise to the visitors for the Elder
Dernpster fruit was only sold on Merseyside and the capital had no
regular supply of what they regarded as arare and expensive fruit. This
led Mr. Fyffe to investigate the possibility of shipping the fruit to Lon­don
and he then found that rnany others were also interested in this
potentially profitable trade but that they were experiencing difficulties
in transporting the bananas so that they arrived in a saleable condi­tion37
• This problern was, of course, already well known to Elder
Dernpster but as they paid little for the fruit and used spare capacity to
ship it at virtually no cost they could afford to accept a relatively high
proportion of overripe consignrnents. Fyffe appreciated that without
these special advantages he would have to acquire the expertise to
overcorne these difficulties and that this was likely to prove expensive.
Accordingly it seerns that he decided not to atternpt to ship on his own
account but to provide an irnport agency in London for those potential
growers who wished to find an outlet for their surplus products.
Fyffe's long stay in the Islands had enabled hirn to establish firrn
links with rnernbers of the expatriate farnilies who controlled rnuch of
its cornrnerce. Many of these had gradually becorne dorniciled and had
acquired considerable quantities of land. They thus had a vested inte­rest
in the developrnent of a viable export crop and a nurnber including
the Barkers, Blandys, Leacocks and Wolfsons agreed to back hirn. The
exact nature of their agreernent is not known but it seerns certain that
Fyffe was to sell whatever was sent to hirn on sorne forrn of cornrnission
basis. This rneant that he did not need to layout very rnuch in the way
of capital and rneant that the onus for the provision of saleable fruit lay
with the growers.
The first shiprnent arrived in Septernber, 1888, and according to an
eye-witness, Mr. J. Clifford, it realised a good price even though it was
fairly ripe! This rnarked the beginning of regular consignrnents of bana­nas
and with the benefit of experience the quantities that were spoilt
were kept to rnanageable proportions. Most of the fruit was disposed of
via Covent Garden but Fyffe also developed a wholesale business
37. Author's interview with Mr. Noel Reid in 1980 indicated that his grandfather.
Peter Reíd, had made several unsuccessful attempts lo ship bananas lo London al about
that time.
© Del documento, de los autores. Digitalización realizada por ULPGC. Biblioteca universitaria, 2009
372 P. N. Davies
which sold directly to the «better c1ass» fruiterers in the capital. Until 1892
Fyffe had the London market pretty well to himself and expanded ra­pidly
but in that year Elder Dempster extended its activities from Li­verpool
and began to provide a great deal of serious competition.
In the period from 1884 to 1901 Canary exports of fruit and vegeta­bIes
rose sharply. Details are not available for the earlier part of this
period but those from 1897 are given below:
FRUIT STATISTICS3R
1901-1902 compared with four previous years
1897-1898
1898-1899
1899-1900
1900-1901
1901-1902
Bananas
660.461
783.418
1.044.630
1.208.596
1.597.616
Oranges
8.456
13.389
8.526
14.401
8.505
Potatoes
111.241
155.241
110.396
169.563
224.267
Tomatoes
399.004
492.075
341.136
458.119
414.859
(The figures refer to cases. A banana case sometimes contains two bun­ches.
Reckoning 100 bananas to a bunch. the last year's export ¡s, roughly,
170.000.000 bananas!).
As the largest handlers of Canary bananas and tomatoes during
this era both Fyffe and Elder Dempster enjoyed substantial profits,
These then led, perhaps inevitable, to a rationalisation of the trade
which resulted in Fyffe being bought out and ultimately to an amalga­mation
between the two «giants» of the industry.
Fyffe's success had provided a valuable outlet forhis growers in
the Canaries and they had shared in his prosperity. Nevertheless, for
reasons which are not now clear, the growers' «syndicate» decided that
he was no longer an essential partof their operation and in 1897 they
bought him out. That this was something of a surprise cannot be doub­ted
for Fyffe had taken a MI. James Hudson into partnership only twel­ve
months before his banana business carne to an abrupt end. The net
effect ot these events was that their partnership -Fyffe, Hudson and
Company- was transformed into a «Iimited» concern in which the
Barkers, Blandys, Leacocks and Wolfsons held all of the preference
38. OSBERT WARD, The Value ofOrotava. W.R. Russell & Co.. London. 1903,
p.79.
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The british contribution to the economic development... 373
and ordinary shares. Four years later, in 1901, Elders and Fyffes Limi­ted39
was formed from a combination of Fyffe Hudson and the Fruit
Department of Elder Dempster, and this put Alfred Iones, as the lar­gest
shareholder, in command of the whole business.
The subsequent expansion of Canary banana and tomato exports
to the United Kingdom indicates the importance of these items to the
Island's level of employment and balance of payments.
Imports fram the Canary Islands to the United Kingdom40
Average for Cochineal Bananas Tomatoes Total
1885-1889 f64.579 f f f 99.179
1890-1894 36.184 255.757
1895-1899 '29.805 612.307
1900-1904 14.186 785.559 312.849 1.246.361
1905-1909 19.147 863.120 440.675 1.542.217
1910-1914 13.388 727.396 546.254 1.494.108
1915-1916 85.248 1.077.596 729.660 2.068.928
1917-1918 No figures available
1919-1920 33.223 2.529.420 1.339.525 4.048.975
VII
In addition to his establishment of coaling stations and the encou­ragement
of the fruit trade AIfred Iones was also responsible for the
original development of the tourist industry. Once Elder Dempster
ships began to make regular caIls at the Canaries he adopted a policy of
offering extremely low fares so as to promate a new passenger trade.
By 1887 these were down to f15 for a first-class return from Liverpool
compared with the f25 charged by the New Zealand Shipping Com­pany
and the fl8 required by Ferwood Brothers. Part of the explana­tion
for this discrepancy was that Iones' vessels tended to be slower and
less luxurious than those of the New Zealand line although they were
39. It is the author's intention to publish a history of the British involvement in the
banana industry in 1988.
40. Compiled from the Annual Statements 01 the Trade o[ the United Kingdom, for
the relevant years, H.M.S.O.. London.
© Del documento, de los autores. Digitalización realizada por ULPGC. Biblioteca universitaria, 2009
374 P. N. Davies
regarded as quite comfortable for a voyage of seven days. However,
the major reason was that the Elder Dempster ships were primarily
engaged in the West African trade and the carriage of passengers (and
cargo) to and from the Canaries cost very little in real terms - space that
would otherwise have been vacant was only required to make a small
contribution to overall costs.
Jones was quick to understand that the Islands were worthy of
serious consideration and although they were always secondary to his
main business with West Africa he concluded that further investm~nt
would be advantageous. This decision was aided by the rapid growth in
passenger traffic - in the six months from October 1887 to May 1888 no
fewer than 1.100 people were carried by his ships. Jones' establishment
of the Interinsular Steamship Company in August, 1888, then provided
a further incentive to visitors who could henceforth travel cheaply
and conveniently between the Island. These sailings were available to
the general public and did much to promote trade within the archipe­lago:
they also gave Jones an additional selling point in that his return
tickets entitled passengers to land at Santa Cruz and return vía Las
Palmas (or vice versa) with the inter-island crossing included in the
round fare.
Inevitably competition arose on what rapidly became a profitable
route in its own right and by 1903 Yeoward Brothers were offering
return fares for ten guineas and would arrange hotel accommodation
for a further two guineas per week. To combat this, Jones produced a
special «holiday ticket» which covered the first-class return passage,
plus a fortnight's accommodation and board at the Hotel Metropole,
all for f15. This meant that a person could be away from Liverpool for
four weeks with full board at a price which even with the level of wages
at that time, brought an overseas holiday within the range of many
middle-class families.
The growth of this market produced many new hotels in the
Islands that were specifically designed to cater for the infiux of tourists.
These ranged from the Grand Hotel Taora (currently the Casino at
Puerto de la Cruz) to a multitude of private pensions. Particularly po­pular
were the «first-class family hotels» like the Monopole and the
Marquesa and the more superior Metropole - the latter built by, and
largely filled by, Alfred Jones. Other establishments with British con­nections
included the Pino de Oro Hotel kept by Henry James, Turn­bull's
boarding house at Orotava and the Quiney's hotel at Las Palmas.
Concentration of British residents and long-term visitors gradually
© Del documento, de los autores. Digitalización realizada por ULPGC. Biblioteca universitaria, 2009
The brilish conlribulion lO the economic development... 375
emerged at Orotava41
, Santa Cruz and Las Palmas42 and in the course
of time English churches, libraries and, later, a school were establis­hedo
Although statistics of visitors numbers are not available it is clear
that they expanded substantially in the period up to 1914. The evidence
for this can be seen fram the grawing number of vessels which called at
the two main ports up to the outbreak of the First World War for by
then they had risen at least fourfold over 189043
.
The current economy of the archipelago still relies heavily upon
its exports of fruit and «imports» of tourists. Today much of the for­mer,
especially bananas, is sold in mainland Spain but the structure of
the industry to which the British made such a significant contribution is
still important. The aeroplane has now replaced the ship as the princi­pal
means of reaching the Canaries but the majority of foreign visitors
are still from the United Kingdom - another reminder of the strength
of the British contribution to the development of the Islands.
41. OSBERT WARD. op. cit.. pp. 13-32.
42. S.F. LATIMER, The English in Canary ls/ands, Western Daily Mercury. Ply­mouth.
1888, pp. 331-4.
43. See Table 4 in the Appendix.
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Table 1. TOTAL VALUES OF IMPORTS AND EXPORTS IN THE TRADE BETWEEN GREAT BRITAIN AND THE
UNDERMENTIONED COUNTRIES FROM 1855 '1'01912.
The black figures show the order of importance of the trade with cach country.
(Compiled from the Statistical Abstracts for the United Kingdom.)
IMI'(}R-'"S I\ND EXP()I~TS~. IX55 19(~) IX70 IXXO IX90 19(XI 19111 1911
f f f f f f f {
Franee ............................ 4 19.5ti8.290 4 30.475.409 2,59.590.513 3 ti9.9fi1.257 3 ti9.538.95 I 2 79.469.109 5 85.295.754 4 91.905.2J4
Germany (Prussia. Hanse
Towns Hanover. lill (1870) ... 2 30.740.883 3 34.450.981 4 43.4ti9.742 4 53.411.2ti3 4 56.589.tiI2 4 ti9.724.457 3 96.110.119 3 102.468.044
Russia ( 1956) ..................... 5 14.932.778 5 2I.M7.777 ti 30.ti31.726 7 26.996.212 7 32.596.922 8 38.344.427 7 M.559.311 9 60.4K4.369
Holland ............................. 6 13.630.090 6 18.009.ti52 5 31.619.562 6 41.563.737 6 42.34ti.9Iti ti 46.312.113 K 5K.451.K73 7 6K.331.672
13clgiuffi ' ............... ". o •• o •••••• 13 6.480.939 13 8.043.915 8. 20.043.915 K 24.241.094 8 30.97K.742 7 38.349.910 9 53.567.530 K 63.399.027
China. including Hong Kong. 8 1O.050.58ti 8 14.775.321 9 19.839.840 9 22.571.090 14 15.560.539 16 12.016.444 16 17.957.K24 16 19.K11.449
Japan ................... - 19 167.513 19 1.873.466 18 4.345.018 18 5.212.366 17 11.474.451 IK 15.205.737 IK 16.409.0K7
Brilish India. including
Strait Selllemenls and Ceylon ...326.129.392 2 38.550.136 354.521.127 2 72.726.587 2 80.487.511 3 75.97K.627 2 116.106.15K 2 142.nK.9KI
Australia (and Australia
ti1l19(0) ........................ 7 11.72I.K25 7 17.068.460 7 24.810.745 5 44.411.426 5 54.821.038 5 47.346.3K5 6 69.MK.914 6 74.400.312
New Zealand ..................... - - - - - 14 17.515.173 I1 30..,45.216 12 31.4K9.404
Canada and Newfoundland Il 7.782.235 10 10.813.772 II 16.099.791 10 21.905.007 10 20.717.232 10 31.799.453 10 50.619.3KO 10 56.643.66K
United Stales of Ameriea ..... I 43.804.355 I 67.M3.883 181.110.770 I 145.035.452 1 143.ti23.461 1 17ti.133.216 1 IK2.156.504 I 201.312.770
British Wesl Indies and
Guiana .............. 12 7.452.KI3 II 8.ti33.435 14 9.688.210 15 9.821.167 17 6.ti3ti.929 20 5.006.943 20 6.751.093 .21 5.941.6K5
Soulh America. West
Coast. Chili and Peru ......... 10 8.142.070 12 8.333.460 12 13.330.054 16 8.654.500 lti 9.127.622 IK 10.740.412 17 17.545.691 17 17.K3K.KOO
South Ameriea. Easl Coasl
I3razil. Uruguay. Argentina 9 8.2ti8.775 9 11.570.50K 10 17.420.877 11 17.713.8KI 9 27.230.679 9 34.857.925 4 87.K26.603 5 90.024.073
Central Americana ano
Mexico ............. 18 1.358.247 18 1.451.157 18 2.792.IK7 19 3.931.415 19 4.913.335 21 4.294.242 21 6.027.159 20 6.965.614
South Africa. (Cape of
Good I!ope and Nalal) 17 1.786.3'10 16 3.87ti.233 17 4.836.287 14 12.844.522 13 15.899.IM 12 17.965.201 12 29.917.339 11 33.533.119
Denmark .. ...... .......... .. ... 16 4.107.2til 17 3.491.870 16 5.382.774 17 7.633.340 15 lO.tiK1.395 13 17.911.938 13 26.259.K 17 13 29.155.379
Sweden and Norway (Iogehter 15 17.130.2K3 15 19.167.246 15 20.900.249
ti1l1890) . ............... 15 5.339.ti63 15 5.925.6'11 13 11.809.0M 12 lti.121.20S 11 18.908.614 1'1 9.667.000 19 11.206.376 19 12.953.537
Spain ................... 14 6.093.720 14 6.615.021 15 9.IKO.769 13 14.778.533 12 18.211.337 11 22.216.9K6 14 19.241.9K6 19 n.OKI.62J
SIIIII'n': A. W. KIRKALDY. British Shippillg reprintcu by Augustus M. Kclly. Ncw York. 1970. AppenJix XIX.
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© Del documento, de los autores. Digitalización realizada por ULPGC. Biblioteca universitaria, 2009
Table 2
A Comparative Synopsis of the Progress of Trade in thc Canary Islands23
IMPORTS EXPORTS
Ycar England France Germany Sp'Jin Total Cochincal Winc Spirits Tllhw..'c() Tlllal
f: f: f: f: f: f: f: f: .f .f
11165 179.914 51.004 11.669 47.866 391.492 295.2011 11.007 4.630 Wanting 404.055
1869 215.781 127.979 11.298 162.690 719.544 789.993 5.470 Wanting 845.39lJ
1874 206.714 84.771 8.435 66.000 486.239 429.931 Wanting " " 566.432
Total 1.597.275 1.1115.1177
1884 163.398 38.785 26.923 70.035 335.820 100.844 6.740 5.530 10.380 224.418
1885 210.464 59.574 31.590 75.036 419.944 127.028 4.855 6.358 10.454 351.097
18116 207.380 70.280 49.115 45.966 447.5611 151.486 10.009 10.570 50.937 341.720
1887 224.996 51.675 49.922 48.920 438,340 117.1119 10.957 11.027 25.4511 248,774
18811 273.449 57.306 56.873 50.875 476.793 97.050 21.126 5.456 21.107 2111.1110
18119 286.296 48.642 61.024 42.116 517.9111 82.923 111. M 32.557 302,175
1890 315.259 70.133 85.954 39.465 591.136 60.940 23.963 9.6411 3lJ,064 319.557
Total 3.227.519 2.068.941
llI92" 307.160 55.826 84.141 33.876 575.0111 50.877 20.7115 5.761 - 438.941
Sourcc: A. SAMLER HROWN: Madeira am/IIle Cllllary 1.\1amls. S;.lmpson. Low Marston & Co.. London. IX94 Edition. p. 2.14.
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P. N. Davies
Table 3
NET TONNAGE üFHIE LEADlNG MERCANTILE FLEETS OFTHE WORLIJ FRUM ¡gSO 1'01910. SHüWING;­(
a) Sailing shop and Stcamahip Tonnage.
(b) World's Totals.
(e) The Britis. United Kingdom, United Stales of America. and German Percentage of the World's Total.
(d) These Percentages 'lIso shown in terms of Steamship Tonnage. reckoning 1 ton of steam = 4 10ns sailing.
(The tonnage figures in this Table are wken from Progress of Merchant Shipping in the Unired Kingdom
and Principal Maritime Countris Cd 6180 1912)
CO\;f'<l"I'H.IE.~ 1.~5(l \RIllI 11l7l1 ",,, \Xlj(l lo,\lHI 1'}(15 1')01 I'JIU
Unitcd Kingdom Sailing 3.3%.ó5'J 4.204.3fill 4.577.H5.~ J.~51.()45 2.',136.1121 2.1196.491\ 1.670.766 1.461.]7(1 1.I13.Y44
Stcllm 16.':.474 454.327 L112.934 2.723.4óH 5,1142.511 7.2U7.ÓW 9.lló4.K1lí 10.023.723 1O.442.7IlJ
Brilish Po~~clo.sinnlo. ..... Sailing 64Klí72 1.l1Wl.464 1.3e'>9.145 I.Mlí.H44 1.33H.3ól lJI5.1l% t,ll1t),372 t;H3.44H K7'J.lJ26
S\c;¡m 19.157 45.H17 1\9.2011 22S.HI4 371.IWJ 532. Ix¡.; 6%.43lJ HI4.HOH 92ó ..1l)l}
Brilish Empirc Sililing 4.l145.331 5.300.H24 5.lJ47.lMMI 5.497.HH9 4.274.3.'12 3,U]1.5lJ4 2.577.13.'1 2.344.!i24 1.'NJ.H7(1
StC¡Lm 1.'17.631 5(kl.l44 1.2112.1:'.4 2.949.2.'12 5413.70ó 7.TJ9.'NH lJ,761.26ó IIUGli.531 1l.3ó9.1 1.'1
Ru~sia (including Finland) Sailing - - - 65ó.77I 5ÓO.267 556.614 511,51H 5M.721 5Hl.316
Stcam - - - IIMI421 234,41.'1 4\7.922 440.ó43 5U1.MI': 535.040
Norway Sailing 29.'1.315 55H.927 I.Oí.l9.2(kl 1,4641.5% 1.502.51'4 1.002.675 HI3.M4 750,Hb2 ó2H.ZH7
Stcam - - 13.715 5K.\162 203.115 505.443 óllH.23(J .'l1'J.2H2 lN7.4,ul
Swcdcn Sailing - - - 421.6'J3 3e'>9.6XO 2R1i.6!l7 2ñ3.425 23U42 175.lJló
Slcam - - - XI.lJ4(1 141.267 325. \ll5 45lJ.ó64 532.515 5%.7ó3
Dcnmilrk Sailing - - llíX.1!i] 1'J7.5(\';l IWJ.,u16 15lU03 14!i.3W 141.mS 131.342
Slc;¡m - - 10,453 5J.!i57 112.7.'1.'1 2..'111.137 334.124 4I14.!i4ó 415.496
Gcrman Empirc Saihng - - 900.361 9M.7ó7 7(\';l.7ól SlJ3.nu 553.lU? 533.ó52 5'16.1'l37
Sleam - - HI.W4 215.75.'1 723.M2 1.347..'175 I.IJI5,475 2.25ó.7/G 2.)%.733
Ncthcrlands .. Sailing 2XlJ.X711 423.7911 3711.151J 263 ..'1.'17 127.2(X) 7.'l.493 54.417 4lJ.ó41) 45.936
Stcam 2.7116 1U.132 19.455 M.394 121'\.511 26.'1.43(1 356.Xt,ll1 39X.l12ó 4HR.339
Bclgium Sailing 33,315 2X.X57 211.64x 10.442 4.393 141 2..'l44 %4 ).4112
Stcam 1.6114 4.254 lJ..'iUI lí5.224 71.553 112.51K 9ó.HXO 11"'.223 1.'17.730
Frilncc. Sailing 674.22X 92x.\m "'17.ó33 1'>41.5:W 444.I)<;l2 501.175 lí7lí.193 óó2.K2K ó.'I().I~1
Stcam 13.925 ñ.o25 154.415 277.759 499.921 527.551 711.027 739.K1\l H15.5n7
Portugal Sailing - - - - - 57.925 43.IZ6 3K.J63 43.1'l44
Stcilm - - - - - :i\.50lí 5S.!J77 62.675 70.1.,.3
Spain S¡¡iling - - - :nó.43X 210.247 95.1H7 5H.2nl 45.1.'15 44.~411
Stcilm - - - 233N)5 ,u17.lJ3ó lí79.392 5H5.N~H 676.92ó 744.517
Italy Slliling - - 9HO.l1ó4 922.126 634.149 371.11'>4 541.171 4M.674 432.6',15
Sleum - - 32.IOIJ 77.050 106567 J7ó.1'l44 4AA.432 52lí.5M 674.4')7
Austria Hung'JfY Sailing - - 279.4IMI 25K.M2 IJX.7Y6 52.731l 39.565 37.lí5H 32.235
Slcam - - 49.977 63.97(1 Y7.K52 24ó.YKY 3ñó.tl7t1 41.'1.H3R 477.líln
Grcccc .. Sailing - Zó.'I.u75 39.'1.7113 - 226.702 175.M7 145.312 145.233 145.2S4
StC¡Lm - - 5.3óll - 44.Ni4 14.1436 225.512 ·2..'i7.t}\)I1 3111.7K5
Unitcd StiltClo. of Amcriea
(al Rcgistcrcd ím Forcing Sailillg 1.5,u1.7lW 2.44.'1.941 1.324.25ñ 1.2(1(;.2(16 74Y.llh5 4.'15.352 353.333 2(lIJ.\l21 234.1'4.'1
Trade St..::J.m 44.1)42 97.29ó 192.544 146.604 IIJ7.ó3l1 341.342 líOl.l!i11 6UZ.\25 55.'1.977
(o) Enrol1cd ror Rivcr ami Sailing 1.41X.550 1.9.'12.2"'7 1.795.3Hli 1.650.270 I.XI6.344 2.l121.tílJ\1 Z.3ó1.716 2.4511.405 2._"'72..'173
Lakcs .. Stcam 4XI.lkl5 7711.1'>41 RH2.551 1.064.954 I.MI.45X 231ó.455 3.140.314 3.677.Z43 4.343.3X4
Chinu Sililing - - - 21.694 11.1«11 20.541 19.5till l/UB 14.314
Stcam - - - - 29.7M IX.215 45.ó17 57.N14 XX.XXX
Japan Sailing - - - 41.215 4H.t)l)4 J20.571 334.óX4 3óó.n13 411.K'i9
Steam 93.1'12 543.3lí5 IJ3X.7X3 I.lllí.193 1.233.711.5
Total 9.032.191 13.295.302 llí.7lí5.205 1.,..WI.Hb3 22.2lí5.5liH 2lí.Z05.39H 30 ..'I4IJ.\167 33.132.1)()t) 34.629.742
World's Tul'll Sailing K)IK).37H 11.M4.HIO 14.1I1.(}\)ó 14..'í41.óX4 IZ.llllí.9llJ 9.W:t(l75 9.:'\50.(175 Y,12Ó.1I3 .'1.435 ..'174
Slcam 731.1\13 1.450.4')2 2.ns4.1\}\} 5.451l. I7'-) In.24Kó35 1f..212.323 21.2K9.R73 24.\kI5,Y53 2lí.193.lWi
British pcrcentagc oí wmld's 101'11 46·.'16 43-33 42-ó4 42-25 43·51 41-n2 3.,.-'J'} :W-79 3R·5K
Unitcd Kingdom do .. )L)-47 34-.'10 33-94 32·x¡.; 35-.'13 35-50 .14·XO J4-M 33-37
Unitcd Slalc~ oí Amcrica dI! .... 3H·5H 39·51 25-'12 21"3X 19-.'17 1l}·711 20-92 21-12 21-líS
Gcrm¡m du - - 5·K5 5-91 ó-43 7·40 H-lk) R-42 X·3X
Hriti~h pcrccntugc of wmld·lo. lotal ill
lerms oí stcilmship Ionn;.¡gc. rcckoning
1 ton stc" m - 4 tns lo.ililing ... 42-7 M'''' 43·4li 47-56 4K-IJI 45·39 43-9.'1 43-4fo 41·93
Unilcd Kingdnm do 3fl..25 3:\-"'5 3lí-51 41)·51 4.1-5X 41-32 41"IMI .19-4.'1 3'·HH
Unitcd Statcs uf Am~'rica induding (al
¡md (o)do 4.'i-()I) 44-55 31 ..IMI 21·19 19--16 \7-55 2-4-14 Ill-'" I'¡·líl
(;crm.mdll 5-X5 S-O) lí·79 1·'" '''' ...~ H·l} 1
© Del documento, de los autores. Digitalización realizada por ULPGC. Biblioteca universitaria, 2009
The brilish conlribution lo Ihe economic development... 379
Table 4
MOVIMIEN.TOS DE VAPORES EN LOS PUERTOS MAYORES
DE CANARIAS 1883-1915
5.000
4.000
3.000
2.000
1.000
--- Puerto de la luz
Puerto de Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Fllente: Elaborado a partir de los datos que facilita RAMONELL y OBRADOR. J.: Proyecto dc
ampliación del Puerto de la Luz. Tip. Diario. Las Palmas. 1917.
Source: AGUAYRO. Primer Centenario del Puerto de la Luz. Ciljil Insular de Ahorros. Ycar
12. No. 146. March·April 1983. Las Palmas. p. 14.
© Del documento, de los autores. Digitalización realizada por ULPGC. Biblioteca universitaria, 2009