YORKSHIRE LETTER.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 998, 13 December 1910, Page 6

YORKSHIRE LETTER.

LOCKS FOR TOPHAKING. (From Our Special Correspondent.) Bradford, October 28. News comes from Australia that cvei locks are being used by French topniaker for combing purposes, and. the announce merit is certainly interesting and instruc five. I must admit that in my time . have seen all kinds of wool mixed to Bother for the purpose of combing, bu never, beforo have I heard of locks cc cupying- the dignified position of boini fitted for the processes' of wool combing Of. course, for a large number of year; pieces and bellies have been employed ii this direction, but never locks, at least not in Bradford. This class of staple owing to its shortness has only been fi for use by woollen manufacturers, thi principle of operation in their case beinj somewhat different to that of wool-comb ing. It is perhaps a little hard to mab the average reader understand clearlj the difference. between worsteds and wool lens. In the former there must alwayi ensue the process of combing then spin ning, which is an altogether different operation from that employed where ( woollen yarn is wanted. It is quite trui that there is woollen spinning the sam< as worsted spinning, but the processes, an very different. All woollen yarns an spun on the mule system while worstee yarns are spun on what is known as the cap and fly system. It is not so mucl the spinning operation that determines t( what purpose wool should be put. Th< principal factor in deciding is the lengtl of the material, and the all-importan' process is in the carding and combins operations. If- a worsted yarn, is wautei then each separate fibre of a wool staph is combed out straight, each fibre bein; placed longitudinally,, whereas in the pro duction of a woollen yarn, theshort fibre: are mostly employed, these being cardec together, that is, the fibres worked on< into the : other, and not separated. Tha is the essential difference between thi ' two, and always decides to what purpose the raw material.shall bo put. I musl say that .1 am very much surprised tc hear tell of locks being employed for the process of wool combing, and tho mor< one looks at it the more surprising does it become.' It is said that: locks are employed ir tho production only of terme tops. Whal is this article ? 1 had sent to me a fev weeks ago a sample, of this very top from Roubaix, and it is rather significant thai it differs considerably from the top produc ed in Bradford. What struck me most ii connection with this, top was its short ness, but the 1 mystery is easily'explained. This opens out a very big subject, name ly, the French combing principle compared .wit'u . that of Bradford. Here ii Worstedopolis we have a firm that comb: on commission on the French principle that is; they have, a number, of French combs, and these tops are essentially produced for spinning on the mule system, 'I do not want to be too technical, bui for years back there has been in Bradford .quite a hubbub -owing to.the numerous complaints of London wholesale buyers of dress goods about French materials being somewhat better dyed and finished.. I have always taken this statement with- a grain of salt, for Bradford dress goods are in thousands of cases sold to Parisian wholesale houses,' and the same then resold to London firms as French-made . dress: goods. 'It is re'allj surprising after; air what prejudice does, and. even tho head buyers of several big London firms have admitted when they have seen the exhibition of Bradford manufactures at the- Brussels .exhibition that they were equally as good, .if not superior, to. anything produced on the Continent. Now, French topmakers have laid ■ themselves ■ out for - handling • very shott wool fibres, "and they are to-day combing shorter raw material than Bradford topmakers would look at. The secret seems to have leaked- out . that these short tops are largely composed' of pieces, bellies, and locks,, : and they are doing very well for • mule. spun yarns. So far Bradford., spinners and manufacturers have taken very badly to; the production of these yarns, and I think there is a gefod' deal of' prejudice entoring into the situation. I don't see any reason why, if-miilo spuii-yarns-are producing a fuller handling fabric, Yorkshire manufacturers should not resort to a larger use of them. It. is not everybody who wants a thin slippery article such as worsted yarns produce, and the reader can see that a worsted top being spun on tho same principle, i.e., the mule, as the woollen yarn,' the fabrics when .woven will handle very similar to a woollen-made material. Here we have an important item which cannot but make for tho good of the lower class of raw material. THE GETTING ITP OF LOCKS. What I have already written raises .the important, question of what should be the attitude of the grower towards such descriptions of wool as nieces, bellies, and.locks. Surprise has oftentimes been expressed at the high price which locks have ' realised, and' only this very week, while looking' through the catalogues of - the last London sales, I see good, . clean Queensland scoured locks mado up. to ■ Is. 5d.. per lb. These are big figures, but the wool must have been worth the ' price; otherwise it would never have been paid. I have always maintained that if a clip is any. size at.all it will pay. a grower to spend an .extra week in picking l tho pieces, bellies, and locks. I . would specially' suggest the keeping of tho stained parts to themselves/for mixing the good white wool with the discoloured at once reduces, tho value of that wool anywhere from id. to 2d. per lb. Anyone with a practical knowledge of the trade will see the force of this, for they know that all stained wool has to 1m dyed at one stage or another, while if. it is white it can then go straight away to be combed into"a good clean top, whereas, if the white is mixed with the faulty parts,' it then; is only fit for' producing a discoloured top. ■ •■ Then again, discoloured tops are only fit for .dyeing .into .dark shades, whereas if-a top is a good colour it can be taken and. dyed any light shade that may bo required. The same thing obtains in the woollen trade as in the worsted, and I could name half a dozen of the best firms whose speciality is the . purchasing of locks free from stained parts, as they can be got. I havo . seen hundreds of lots of good locks passed by buyers simply because they were too discoloured and too mixed, and they would oftentimes have realised 2d. per lb. more if they had been clean and a good colour. Of course,, wo all expect to see shivs, burrs, and other vegetable matter among pieces, bellies, and locks. These can be dealt with very successfully by resorting to carbonising, but when the wool is mixed, with discoloured it is then when there is a reduction in value. French topmakers who buy locks want them as good a colour as possible, hence growers will be wise in taking the tip that I now give them. MARKET STEADY. Turning to wool matters, there is again little new to say, the market more or less marking time. The whole wool situation can be summed up by saying that conditions are a duplicate of what they were a week ago. Sfost interest is still associated with "futures,".and even here there is as yet little development. The market is featureless, simply because there is the same determination on the part of spinners not to pay current quotations. Some topmakers will not take what they would a week ago. Yesterday week several firms in Bradford would take 2s. 2d. for super GO's, .and a penny more for Gi's, but the same parties are to-day asking 2s. 2Jd. for the former, and 2s. S\A: for the latter. Some affirm that they are trying on a game of bluff, but when all-is said and done there is on the part of one and all a strong feeling to let things take their own sweet course. I daresay the bulk of spinners have-pur-chased a few hundred packs from the (inns they, regularly buy from, but all alike 'are wanting to be iii at 2s. 2d. and 2s. 2-ld., otherwise they are going to wait until necessity compels them to again nperato largely. It is quite true that the way the raw material has sold in Australia during the. past month has surprised a good many, but no doubt the Serman section has been covering their requirements, and it is generally thought :hat when they have got filled up they •■'ill manifest less keenness to buy to itock. Bradford users see absolutely no wcessity to play a forcing game, and mine think that with Yorkshire bouses JUying a little more keenly during the last fortnight it. is all on account of the iritis Wanting to. cover what-they have ioJd forward. As I have already said ail dike see no-solid, reason for prices 'advancing, .consequently there, is locally a ;ery easy feeling regarding tho future. >o. far as. spot .delivery.. is- concerned here, is no. change, '