YORKSHIRE WOOL LETTER.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1556, 27 September 1912, Page 3

YORKSHIRE WOOL LETTER.

MERINOS STILL TO THE FRONT, . J J; (From Our Special Correspondent.! | Bradford, August 16, 1912. jj Business. is proceeding on somewhat | quiet lines, due entirely to the prevalence || of holidays, .August being the 1 time of | the year when, in the natural order oi things a large number are away from the market. This must not be taken as f, meaning that placos of business are closed, f tut tho tendency is to leave buying and s selling alone until the principals return, s As a matter of fact, on several occasions this year thero have been big buys, and | when the spinner has covered his wants } for two or three months ahead, ho quietly 3 retires until he feels that circumstances : j are such that ho can operate again. Selj dom do wo find August a busy month, j though when manufacturers can see more I clearly info tho future, and especially ) when tlrey begin to make arrangements ; for the following spring trade, somo fair • weights of tops and yarns are purchased. : The present unseasonable weather, in fact 5 the climatic conditions of the whole sumJ mor, have to a large exteut been handicapping business, and considering the ad- [ verse factors which have had' to bo fought i against, it is really surprising that the j turnover should have been so good. We havo known times when the drawbacks ; which liavo had to bo faced would havo ! meant wool values slumping straight off • 10't0,20 per cent., and the continuanco of steady anil firm values for the raw maj terial is proof positive that manufacturs iug conditions are healthy. It may bo j said that tho showing for next spring is ; largely over. On the whole manufacturers ( are satisfied with tho reception which new j patterns have had, and think the prospects of business remaining fairly good '< is satisfactory. When all things are | taken into consideration, no fault can lie i found with the amount of trade .which has been done by the topmakers, spinners, and manufacturers of tho West Hiding'during, the past year, it being only tho margins which are at fault. How- " over, some sections of tho trade have done moderately well, and we do not'supposo anyone lias "been. working at a loss, although topmakers especially have reason for being dissatisfied, with their posij^pn. FASHIONS STILL FAVOURING FINE WOOLS. .Fins wool and tops.still claim the most attention, and to all appearance are likely to remain first in the saddle. It . is surprising that fine soft, handling fabrics remain so popular, still this taste on tho part of the public is but natural. No doubt crossbred serges and thick yet light woollen fabrics havo come to tho front during the past two seasons, but there is no disguising tho fact that mer- ~ inos are' to-day entering new avenues of consumption, which means that a big •weight of tho raw material is wanted, and will bo wantwl. One lias only to look at the almost universal craze for the fine blue serge, and perhaps more especially tho largo demands made by tho hosiery spinners and manufacturers to see "where fine wool is going. I' was talking to the head of a leading business bouse in Dewsbury the other day, who mado tho statement that the class of products which I is being turned out in the, heavy woollen district 4 is, if anything, somewhat better in quality and character than formerly, and Bradford spinners themselves admit that they are selling.mora'worsted.yarns in Dewsbury, Batley and district than ever they did. This is good news, and offers one reason for the present briskness of-the spinning industry in Worstedopolis. We all know that it is impossible to adulterate tops and worsted yarns, and there are many firms throughout the West Riding who are to-day using worsted yarns and woollen wefts—a very happy combination. No doubt tho price cmestion is an important one with the wholesale trade, tyut we do not think woollen' merchants and wholesale clothibr3' are 'so particular about paying a penny or twopence mote per yard so long as tho fabrics suit their purpose, and possess tho attractiveness and wearing capacity necessary to meet their' customers'- wishes. I veuturo the opinion, which has been. con-, firmed over apd over ;agnin, 'and "which the condition of the wool' industry supports, that moro.iw material is being consumed to-day 'throughout L tho, West Hiding than ever in its history, arid hero wc have one reason why wool occupies such an important position at the present time. / MERINOS STEADY AND FIRM. The market remains somewhat slow, but is healthy. As already said, this is not tho'time of the year when a big business can be expected, especially after tho activity seen in July. There are many firms who are having to deliver fine tops at Id. to ljd. less than they can buy at to-day, and unless topmakers have somo cheap imports to come in, they cannot feel very comfortable at Having to deliver Gi's at 25Jd. to 26d., at which figure wo know many firms have uncompleted contracts'to fulfil. This is no doubt right enough for the spinner, but cannot : be so for tho topmaker. Spinners. who are wMI situated say they pr.efer to use off their old orders, • and for the remainder of this year to buy from hand to mouth rather than commit themselves further by placing new contracts. • Some fimis -are buying part stock and using it in conjunction with their cheap purchases, thus "averaging" the cost of their output. Tho present trade is only ..limited, but where transactions nre nut through, full current prices can be obtained.. Commission wool-combers in the merino department remain very busy, nndare making deliveries in a very-credifnb!e„way. The Bradford wool-combing industry this year has enjoyed a period of prosperity, and after the satisfactory balance-sheet, published a fortnight ago by Messrs. Isaac, Ho'den and Sons, Ltd., one equally as satisfactory can be looked for from the biV combine known as Woolcombers' Ltd. It is' quite true that some crossbred combers are onlv nuiet. but there are reasons for this which need not be entered into here. Tt. is still right to say that an average (M's top can be purchased at 2s. 3d., though, some firms who nre evidently in urgent need of reDleni.-hing their stocks of wool will not take ]">ss then 2s. 35d. an impossible nrice to-dav. Some havo c o much confidence in the future flint thev do rot-hesitate to sar that 2s. 3'd. will yet be tho market price of a good Gi's. but," many prudent member-? of the trade K-li»v e 'fl'at we are nbont. at til" top. During the past fortntebta reid many-buyers'have left for Australia to 1w in readiness for the opening of the first. Adelaide sale next Sentemb°r 12, and it look* as i f a crond tin"' will be exnerienced in the markets "down under." ON THE QUIET SIDE. Tho position of cro«>>rcds shows rcracHfnVr no rhnrxro. TVio intr asoect of this section of tho'-maTV°t continues to bo the rnodera to 'v pond sn!°i of wool, end if tons, were hoiw? of th» raw ren<erial. description would he. nourishing. Kt t!"> came Hme ■n-e nre inclined to beb'ove that annearances are 1 not n s«fe criterion of whet is coin*. on I>°bind tV scenes. Out vision mnv not b» cuo°rhuman. Hut it is suffipi/mtly nenefralinn to en?Me us to seo H.pt « Imnrl'in" of wool tlfltl tPTIH t > ctil' nroce"'l, ir nr. sinners are verv hu=v. and'the measure of ennsumntion is thaf come hi" weiVhfs are shifted wekly. If tV «Tv>rt yarn end of thp. trade were a= P?nHhr as the home industry, we ere esitisfi°d tW cro«-M-nnl<l coon "buck up." However, nrices remain verv sto.idv "'id firm, and, (ilt-honfh many snortine bids nre h"iwr met with. it. i« siirnrisinir how tonmaVers are standing !>«• their stock*. an<' refusing to accent less 133 d. for an average nrenared 40's top. _ There is relatively, moro doing in cardf/, ,-tft's. nltd eVATI 48'fi l)nv» liMy in ef"is'deva'.le riiumtities ljoth on ITonif and exnort nei-ount. Tf ic (ilso rewoA-nVile what weight of wiadiiiw ern.«hn->ds is being cojisu>»<id in tt,,, lia!c«i-v trn''e. immense nnnnt'ties of H,; 5 info llASi^rV varns for Indies' coats. peo-w-i>o aro c->te'in» for fi'e trade eiv rerv bii c <-, utiil it is snrnrisinu what ranees of vavne are beinir turned out specially suited for sweaters and jackets. • AMERICAN WOOL TARIFF, 'anticipated ri"sident Taft vetoed (he Ta Follette Bill which wns= pr»sentfd to him 'i-t woeV-end, but evidently politics are being tak"U very s"rio»slv across the Atlantic, "Schedule K" being the nlnha and oiiieso'of the whole proceedings, th in patent.'-that, the, Tffifitiw. licsjjs »ad t!i« progressive remocnti aifl.l.

not going to let the thing drop becau: President Taft feels disposed to exercii his prerogative, and all the more' so. whe the findings of the late Tariff Board f; your a reduction both on ran" wool nil partly on fully manufactured textile The House of Representatives took up tl question again. last Tuesday, and passe over tho President's veto a. motion n affirming the tariff, the vote being 11 for and 80 against. This Bill will 110 go again to the Senate, and it require ' a two-thirds majority in. that augu: Chamber for tho Bill to become law i spite of the President's veto. Accordin to cable intelligence the Senate will nc rido dr.vshod over Mr. Taft's determii ation that the tariff shall not becom law, and as this will he the final appe; before tho next election, we cerlainl think that in- the course of a week th La Follette Bill will ho relegated to buck seat until there is a more favoui able opportunity to consider it. Th fact of the new measure beinj reaffirme by the House of Representatives, whic corresponds to our British House of Coir mons, shows that the people at any rat are in favour of a revision, and as w said a week ago, President Tnft is not s much opposed to the proposed now dutie on raw wool as what no considers th inadequate rates for semi and fully man ufactured articles. His excuse for vetoin tho measure is stated to be that it "wouli irretreivably injure the maiiufacturin conditions of tho United States, and throi thousands of operatives ; out of emplov mcnt." There is one tiling in Presulen Taft'9 reason for vetoing the La Fol letto Bill which is significant. Ho fays "I nm ready to approve, of a revisioi of the tariff to 35 per cent ad valorem but I do not consider a duty of 29 cent sufficient to affect tho lower cost of pro duction in foreign countries." It will b remembered that the La Follette Bil provided for a 35 per cent duty on rat wool, but the insistence of tho Demo crats that something' nearer tho figur of the tfnderwood Bill,-which originall; was 20 per cent, is what the Prosiden cannot agree to. It-was this fact tha led to the compromise of 35 per cent a< valorem as tho new, duty on importer wool, and probably this will form tin basis of "Schedule K" when the new du ties ultimately become law.