OUR YORKSHIRE LETTER.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 931, 26 September 1910, Page 3

OUR YORKSHIRE LETTER.

-—— — THE TEXTILE INDUSTRY OP YORKSHIRE. (From Oar Special - Correspondent.! Bradford, August 12. The textile industry of tlio AVcst Rid-, ing is, of gigantic proportions, its ramifications are large, antl the work cannot be analysed as it ought to be. jTkis is due to the fact that it is divided up into so .many sections, each district seeming as it wore to specialise in the production of one textile or another. Woollen cloth, has been made in Yorkshire for 'some hundreds of years, but it is only just over a century ago since the first mill was built in Bradford. Since that time a great:, development has. taken place. Tho first Australian . wool that was brought/to England was worked up at. Park Mill, liawdon, near Leeds, King' George 111 .having a'suit made off. the very cloth. Since , that, day things have., bounded forward at a tremendous speeds and with the 'manufacture of the raw material the whole countryside has : prospered . and grown. In reviewing the textile, industry of the West' Riding ■ it • is . necessary . to. state that certain districts are . devoted : to the production • of worsted- fabrics, and . others to that 1 : of .voollens. The general reader makes no distinction, but there is'a big difference 'jptween worsteds and woollens. It . is : right to say .that both fabrics are made .'from' raw wool, it. being the .different .methods emploj-ed in manufacture which produce Varying results. , - - The, market for raw wool .centres preeminently in the city of Bradford.. 'As.a consuming 'centre .Worstedopoiis stands •first in the World, no other city and district using so nniph .raw: material: in a single year/, as Bradford , and, the imme-: diate neighbourhood. - No reliable details.as to'the. quantity of raw material consumed can be given, suffice to say .that the-,-city, was never more, prosperous than it :isr.to-day,' lhore. machinery was never running, and the, weekly output of tops, : yarns,' and pieces, was never, larger.; This is really marvellous; ili, view, of, the: hostile tariffs which have to be . overcome both/; on the Continent, aud in/America, and,'' notwithstanding tremendous odds, business to-day is. excellent; - Hero also is the home: of /the mohair, arid, alpaca ".trade..-;- Wo '.should say that 75 per cent, of the'-'mohair grown in Asia Minor and South Africa finds : its way to the city of -Bradford to' be made into a great j variety,;of-.- materials, i Large.' wclglits, of ! : moh,air ; spun yarns -'are. shipped to the. Continent, besides, being, made . locally, into 1 , dress -goods. . As already said • Bradford is the/home of the worsted industry. Associ a ted ■■'i;ivi tli ~this: district ; are i such towns as, Halifaxi Cleckheatpn, jßin'gley,' and];Keighlcy, arid all.-,the i'ntoryeni'ngi villages. .In that,' part, of .. Yorkshire 'worsted'.boatirigs"and.. 1 Adies; fabrics 'are / Very 'extensively made/'nearly, "all produced -from worsted yarns.. Of course,: a ./large..; quantity 'of. cotton yarns are' also used- in, the ' production : of • ladies'; dress /goods, but. Bradford 'and- district. is essentially. tho home - of the worsted' apd 'mohair /trades. -It-is'well -worth- putting : on .record that Bradford .does .annually a . trade with . the/' United; States, and, ivhen-the M'Kinley tariff was passed: in ■ 1892 there , were. , many ; prophets; ; 'w;hb, : declared' that it wouldVnot;be'; long, before grass, .was growingMn "the .' streets;. of Worstedopoiis, . There is no doubt that for. aUimq the ;local trade suffered severe-; ly, but by 'degrees.-spinners and manufacturers rose to the 'occasion,-, and by 'adapting, theniselves : to . current' requirements they' overcame the .loss,- arid instead: of 'retrogression,' .progress is to'-.'bei. seen, .all' along , tlie line.' A. larger trade than over .is'being: done in: the export of; : raw . wool' and 1 semi-manufactured artioleswith' tlie; United States,. the/ Continent, and.other countries, while Bradford .manufactures are to-be. found in every .'country ofthe world.'.'.ln, a word, 'Worstedopoiis. is-to-day' a- front rank centre ot' wool liiariu.:faeture,'"arid;' it is'. sigriißcant'.'that.less quantities. of: French-made' dress. goods' are being' sent into this country, thanks, to Bradford's production beingsmarter and -better than ever.;.' ■ V ; - •' ; The^jvQo.llen. industry, is no doubt older' than toe-.worsted, and dates back'ii good few hundred years. Leeds, Pudsey, Parsley,'- Calverley, Batley, -Dowsbury,' Ossett, Horley,', Huddersfiold, ' and. the .innumerable .villages;surrounding .the larger towns,„ are-all . given: up- to the. production, of, woollen fabrics of one grade "or another, arid/ here . again it is /. absolutely -rieces-,-sary-.to' differentiate between. the various, fabrics produced. - 'Leeds is essentially : a' woollen -city,, although Worsted coatings', andOserges 'are, largely , made-by' certain firms.. The; class of goods; here produced are.; ihostly -. of; an average, character. ■Most;of the, army goods' required. by, the British \Government are' produced in; tho neighbourhood of iL'eeds, ;and at the'present;, time/ sonie; .very important' -kliaki orders : for. other Governments- are■ being' .executed V/in ..the; district.'. The-custom among woollen 'manufacturers is to -buythe raw material and;turn out same in the' finished ; ,product,. , this'. seldom being done 'by . those producing 1 worsted fabrics.', .Whilo dealing 'with Leeds,; it is also in.terestiug- to know, .that , for its size, it is/the;-most important city in Great Britaiii: in the,production of ready-mhdo suits; there ..being inany firms/ devoted-to the: wholesale clothing •industry.*'.-,Tri/fact, ■ in • this; respect Leeds is in the very 'Tan ; in-producing,,;garments for. the" million, and a big: export' trade is also done in, ready-made garments with the outside; worlds Unlike i Bradford; Leeds / has, riot , all its eggs in one basket, the latter city ; having' no fewer than three leading in- - dustries, -woollen manufacture, :wholesale clothing,'-and the. iron; trade. Next, we • come 'to:what is known as the' heavy woollen'; district, ■ this comprising such towns,- and ; villages ' as , Batley, t' Birstall, .Ossett,.-.. Morley,;. and; Dewsb.ury, and; here -'the production - of' woollen, fab-, rics is extensively carried on. AYhj' this dig, trict: should, have made ./its name as the .'heavy woollen'centre is hardly - so clear, but we'take.it'.that originally Dewsburj and Batley were the centres where : cloths. such as beavers, presidents, iloltons, and the. like,'.were largely made. Even so.re-cently-as a 'dozen years ago a . popular idea prevailed that. the. suit which was heavy or bulky was uncommonly good; but: such .an opinion is an entire fhllacy. It 'is ' possible to ; produce, a ; heavyweight fabric;o'ut of the commonest shoddy.;imaginable/and the same /has little capacity: for retaining'the heat of the body, or'resisting hard wear. :A thin all-wool fabric is far superior in this respect to' a heavy-made. one,.and this fact is being to-; day understood more by .tho general pub.lic than it' used. to 'bs. Tho heavy woo u district. makes, a variety of. fabrics, and it is significant that of recent" years large weights of .worsted yarns ha.ve. been. consuiued. Cheap fancy; tweeds,; -mantle cloths, ladies'; costume , .cloths, overcoat-: ings,, cotton . warp./>serges, meltons,' -vrcunas, as well as khaki cloths are all produced in. that,district.-.'.'. . ' Following the course of the' country our next leading manufacturing centre is" that of : Huddersfield, and here we have a district producing both' w-oollen and' worsted cloths. A man can buy in Hudders-field-almost, any . fabric hp desires,- the range of prices varying from Is. 3d. per yard broad width, up to-155., just according to what, he wants. Certain firms are known for the production of very cheap tweeds, the Colne Valley . manufacturers, standing out the: most prominent.-' ' VALUES WELL MAINTAINED. There'is not a great deal of change to. report 'in the. business of the week, all the' sound factors previously ; noted remaining intact.' Considering . 'this is a holiday mouth the amount of' actual trado doing is creditable, and tho better feeling; which has come over the market' has .found expression in renewed purchases of-both merino and crossbred tops. There is sufficient doing to fully •• test prices, and without doubt they arc firm and very' steady. Wo hardly think it. possiblo for more. money to be actually made than before tho holidays, but all tho same there is no shading being done to induce business, and on all hands a feeling of confidence is expressed over the future. Many local feasts are taking place weekly, but mills are standing as little as possible, and machinery is running to tho utmost extent. Never was greater pressure being put upon spinnors to make delivery, and there is no disguising tho fact that many firms, aro in hot water on . account of lato delivery. It does indeed seem 6trango yet very satisfactory,' that after, eighteen months of great pressure there arc yet no signs of congestion anywhere; in fact, tho export doinaud for both tops, yarns,, and pieces J

is still of a very satisfactory order.' It' is quite true that lately thero has 'not been so much buying of tops-and yarns on Continental account as 1 we have seen, hut this is due to nn ardent longing 10 see prices lower, and not to any slackness or slowing down of trade generally. There is a most healthy consumption on homo account, and wool is still being shifted'in a most satisfactory way. On all hands one cannot, but observe healthy trade conditions, and - manufacturing areas in the West Riding give amplo proof of pronounced briskness. Merinos are very steady, but as' yet' nohigher prices can bo made. There seems on tho part of the largest topmakcrs 110 desire; to force business, and- beneath the surface there is an ardent longing for signs which indicate a move towards lower prices, , but that does not seem at present , likeiy. There is yet no talk about forward sales of tops for next year ,delivery. Crossbreds are very steady and ■firm,' and on the whole a little more is doing than what .we have .recently seen. Prices here too are very sound, but it is hardly ■ fair to say that more money can yet bo made, although.some Will not sell at what they have--recently been accepting. Mohair is quiet, but' prices are firm. • ■ • '-' . '■' ; '.