Some ten years ago I went out to Panama to have a look at the canal works.  On board the mail-steamer there were twelve commercial travellers representing British firms, bound for the West Coast of South America.  Ten of these twelve were Germans, all speaking English and Spanish fluently in addition to their native German.  The other two were English, not knowing one word of any language but their own.  I had a long talk with these two Englishmen, and asked them whether they were familiar with the varying monetary standards of the countries they were going to visit; for the nominal dollar represents a widely different value in each South American State.  No, they knew nothing whatever about this, and were quite ignorant of Spanish-American weights and measures.  Now what possible object did the firms sending out these ill-equipped representatives hope to attain?  Could they in their wildest moments have supposed that they would get one single order through their agency?  And how came it about that these young men were so ignorant of the language and customs of the countries they were proposing to travel?  During the voyage I noticed the German travellers constantly conversing with South Americans from the Pacific Coast, in an endeavour to improve their working knowledge of Spanish; meanwhile the young Englishmen played deck-quoits and talked English.  That in itself is quite sufficiently characteristic.  In Manchester there is a firm who do a large business in manufacturing brightly coloured horse-trappings for the South American market.  I speak with some confidence about this, for I have myself watched those trappings being made.  Most of the “ponchos” used in the Argentine are woven in Glasgow.  Why is it that in these two great industrial centres no one seems to have thought of establishing a special class in any of the numerous schools and colleges for training youths as commercial travellers in foreign countries?  They would have, in addition to learning two or three languages, to get used to making quick calculations in dollars and cents, and in dollars of very varying values; they would also have to learn to think quickly in weights and measures different to those to which they had been accustomed.  Why should British firms be compelled to use German travellers, owing to the ineptitude of their own countrymen?  The power to learn is there; it is only the will that is lacking, and in justice I must add, perhaps the necessary facilities.  People who do not mind taking trouble will always in the end get a pull over people who hate all trouble.  I think that our present King once cried, “Buck up, England!” and his Majesty spoke true; very few things can be done in this world without taking a little trouble.