YORKSHIRE LETTER.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2166, 3 June 1914, Page 10

YORKSHIRE LETTER.

■ :™.-- wool values . . AMERICA'S DOMINATING \:^ s ;. . INFLUENCE. ■■■ . • iFrom Oar Sjiecial C<irresj>oiiileßts.) . ". ■ ■■■■•: Bradford, Aps-il 17. With'-hulitliiys iiituriwing with ili-c dajiy iomid and cutumoA 'task of the wubk's intiiiiMs, ivu nru naturally tied doiyii to a i-eneval review o( eouditions Yi'tticn arc wool values, siiirt wfijsavc to admit that on tho ffiiolt coniiitioiis ar<! moderately gouii. Thoru is one aspect of t-hfi market which is recciviiiK a good deal of attention, awl that is the Aittcricuu side of JJradt'ord's litisiiwss. We have to admit thai tilings are better tbsu the majority ever cs}»v;etod, and tiaere swms .nothing scrio«3 to i>i'«vent a stcadiiy expanding business with what was oiice Uradford's bc&i customer. Of course, conditions are vorr different to-ilay from what they were when ttm last low tariff prevailed i'rom J 895 to 1897, the past, fifteen years enal>lin.y the United States spinHera and ■manufacturers to complete Their nsilt organisation,' and bewme more «{tivicnt in the prificipies ef successful u'oolion ami worsted waiujfactme. For, after hi), experience is tho best toaehcr in this fespw.'t. A man may have the best e<jui]vm<-nt possible, lint unless ho knows how to handle that equipment he will teru out n, very disapjsoiMtiiij; fabric. The writer hiss seen u-iftvl enter one of the best mills that mouey could erect, but the resultant fabrics have bceti greatly deficient, siiniil.y becaust m Imd nwnngesiiEiit. To beg.iu with, there must bo goixl raw niaterinis, and nothing cars ever tako the place ef wool. During the past ten .years we have heard a bt about vegetable and marine fabrics* hnv; they u«re going ta be of itmfeHsl aid to uool; in fact, if ftue emild Judge T>y tlio fpreub . siJpiaussr attciufn.ui upon their .first ttse, wool was going fo have to lake a back sent. After what we Iravc wituesswj this last hy-o years, we have enwr. to the eanrkision that nothing whatever is going to lift found o.v tnade to ssij:«rse<lo tfea exedknt mamifaetvirinu; pwipcrties of the floecfc of tiie &becp>

Limitations. It is only some two or three years bites ttiar a great flourish of trumpets liwraldftd the manufacturing properties' of so;we#J, awl perhaps' as wneh was uinde of it in certain districts of the West Ridttt)4 of \orfeSiiiiru as anywhere. \V<; ssmv htiirics insula from a. mixture of iv-obl ;md se-jt w«ecl. and while, they were eertamly good, they dii.s net possess Use strpngfi or the w-osir Which fabrics c!o tliat are ruad.c from a mix-' tare of vrtrol, mungo, or oottou. Aim). \vii,v? Simply because fflariuo fibre being purely and simply of vegetable growth, possesses W hfe or vitality irftcr it rras hecn separated front its mat, and it etm.be tsfeen as a i'nndiamuhtal principle in the manufacturing worid that any fibto that docs not j»ssess this can never tesome nn important competitor witli the itoece oi the siieei). If we take cotton, wo find that oven that aritek bas its limitations. It possesses a staple, and to somo estrnt. it is net iifelfss, iik« sea? weed. After jiiany ycsrs , «xperiinentation, a iudioious use of eottovi, WMiMso, or shncMy, in oon.jttfletioH with, wool, has boeti found to pttitltwt a γ-ity desirable fabric> and us foiie. as the wmM lasts, even i>etteti' itsett iviSi play au iimtortavit part in the ptedfletio-ft. β-l nian.v fabrics for htlttinu wear. \\'e lu'urd the otlHir <lny ef ramie- fibre iwiiJg lisoci in coiijiuietion with wool, tat even lien;.' tbfe safnc- ctmjpkmt lias to be Made .is at«mt other fibres lite china [jrass, r!wa, ami rftinie. It can fee taktii as an unaltefiiWo principle tliat life, vitality, ami elasticity, as weft as kngtlj af staple, arc all osseiitmi pjvopcrties i» tii« preduetioii. of sound, suitable, as«l woaraWp woeileii, <»' worsted fahries, u»d stothiaa has yet been found to BU.pei-Bedc au article made of woeK •

V/ftat Are shoddies? Quite an interesting eenvefsasioH titrftett tho other day upon the, question of sisatidy, Tiro irtefe mentiott of the ward is "not t Tieipf nl to one's nnci- feel' ings, tviit at 'rave s-aiiro time, wo are afJakt that iit many eases tho term is not clearly and intelligently understood. The wr.ifor has just finished looking ever a ttee'ii sampies of siwddy which aw goi.ii.2 to t)t' shswn rmiu<l th© 'mills of tiro Onitoti States. They canve from tlio district oi Dewshury-, and present ?i gead deal of . attKictieti as *'c ; il as be* Mig useful. Let .118 empliaticsill? state that .shoddies differ vcrjp roateriaHy ham mwugocs. Tho latter are -pulkd from hard i'ags. new aw.d old clippiftgs, cast-off suits, -etc., tot slwddiee are wrnply pulled frem soft'rags, or roally Steekjtijvs, pants, nitder-vests, jersej'Sj and giutjtar articles. It iflay snrpriso naa,ny rea_d(>rs to know tOiat.slwd<Jy varies Sμ jJrice'from 6d, to Is. p- rt r h., and they will Kee. that when shoddy is worth neighbourhood of ICfd. vo-12d., ifc partates very largely- of the nature of nil wool. In fjtct, at A rcfieiit sale in x D«vs%av\", Which is tTio homo of the riis and shfldeiy trades, good scotch ■Stockjjigs :.ind casteff Jaeger ViiKlerwear ••nma l&.'y&t tts. in the ttiipuliod state, Tliat proclaims eloquently tne vttty «sehil natitr-e of this class of shotWy, i.n fact if it were carefully worked, *v*rjfew indeed -woukl. fc aWe to tpll the ■sJi.ft'eieHce jietwooH that aad an alH'Ool fabric. "We are living in au. age when every_ fragment is utilised to its jitteost enpaeity, and it wowkl surpvieo ii goeij many readers if they co«!d see. what iu lieing ased, to-day in the ceinpo&ilimi of fabrics. The introduction of caAonisi»K rentlpred possibb tbo use of ivhat- at Jirst sight appears to lm a mass of iTKttcriel impregnated tt'ith vegetable fibre, but when this is eaten avfay wool, fibres reniain which, when propotly ipulatedj prodwee a acceptabie. ajvd oi'tei! a soimel wearinu; article. Tkoro has lately been a jwrtumkrly keen tlemaiul At tiro lian-ds of Amcriciu manufacturers fof soft pnllcd wastes all tnanwfafitiired from pratiows processes. ,iwd such nscfnl wraterfals ■ as'summer's and weaver' .tvastes aw all fctdui«» very Ins pi'ices, solely on account of ~ their scarcity.

Bosinpss tafgfity statlwrary. . Seldom is tl-iffi'o an active market to he fhroniclwi after a holiday, ami this wt>t!ls lias been no cscoptvon to the rule vVo tmd users absorbed-iu carrjina out comracts previously luatle, awl "lnismcss to a birge exten; i s a -thiplication of what we have swn tluring tho past fortii>Sht. liiero continues to be a hoal'thv (lemajid for wool, principally mcriims awl fajip crossbreds, m& tjw fi.« of the ftni! bwng steady Is an indication f&itwnstimptkin is i-egiijar and well Bla .in. tamed. Thero is ii»r(>asin K evkfciice <if merwos bwug ht small coMipnss. -~m\ tho Homo trade is by nn moans well sim-p-fu lvith material, riiwe is twerv pres■p«et ot lh& small offerinn of fine wo;jl* at the next scries .of London tsaks tieusx rwnJilj; absorlnMi, and not ,i t«w are expectins v*rv firm m hnrtfenifa prices AVliat quantity of sceomlWl parrels will be-tajtaiagn«l no one eiin sav, but no ..iotibt those wlio huve mi.rchaswl - wools in Australia l n - m .v of speciiliitinii, will leafier tho \\<mU \] wy own, and fvom what w.*. hvur there will l)i> anno vory. fsootl Jij iO a from South AiiKtralja as well as Vmteria and NV W hojiM. \m!os. Thu fart is tiie wlm),, lnar . K.,- ~< ~..i>1.v to be a hve!y ew. |>artitnjftrtj- I or iM.onnos, »i«) as far ;is one fan ostrnirtte the fiitMre, llicrc i = no prnipet «F nny β-utphis ■■itHi.-ks \vhalw«r. Onr hitt>ifc t!Osvfrow I'reueh taamifatturiHg centres is to

i.lw effect that TOBibprs and spiuuerg are t sobnsy that tlio.v wi« wed all tiier col-omol-bunght supplies, ami tljwtbfe the anticipations of some J.isn,xiforxl buyers thnt tlio Contilienv will be sliiiipinjr kick oig nnant-iticK kiitjly look like bi«in!j realised. There is no news at piebent as ta Un> number of baycrs *ho <vifl come from across the Atkntit, but if tno.v want gftofl erossbreds, Uμ: iw»st series sill fm-iu'sh an oxcollent supply, and it will be to thoir advajitage to 'lay in stock fos- use later in the vear, But what interests the West Itidins most at tho nvMlwnt xe the short supply-of morilios, and what it will nioau to them. No oisc is talking of cheaper uiiitcrial, ami we can easily see th<s very top prices of Inst wrics again ruling. It v.fll bo remembered' towards tiii fiuiali values slightly f»asL'd, mitil secaixi-uaiul piireels couW not op solrt. hat tl'.oro w erwy nro-spaet of these -again coining to tho trout. . ■ The Piws trad?. There is really nothing matc-mlly new' to say about the piece iradc wit It the United States. A nice 'ftrtlthy business is [M-oMcding, which is fallowing lamely upon recent linos. We understand that tremendous of cotton linings are besn;j shipped, wi the art of dyoiiig atul finishing thesti has ahout vciwhed pwfcetioji. 'JTn' iJi'iidforcl Dyers' Asswiation sseifis to liave spueialiserf in this class ef fabric., and is Biaking illl cotton linings handle,' ami appear as if they were mado iyow silk. A ttifl»ufarturer who has mildo liiff lijioa of j tlw.se hns said that ttey wevo produeinj;' fabriss which could be sold to tlje tailor 1 acoitwJ Is. ild. }»r vard, and tl«y γ-ere very goad linings indeed. Then, too, there is no diminution in the call for alpaca limags, though mohairs <).O Hot' Hioi-e as one would like to see Twsi'e i> no markml degree of activity m worsted coatings, but considerable shipments (Mtitifiuo of woollens, particularly tweeds, as well as dross goods. Fasl\is«s k>«ejf arc favouring very forgely fattcy voloncs, and flit! sweaters worn last season by tise gentler sex seam to hare drained out of the basket bsttoin eatireiy. 'To-day they -certainly present all tiie colours of tiic minbett , ,' FasWcms arc changing very <j«ickly in regard to dress gontls.' Rtid to-day wo are living in an rtfcp. of show. GreoßSj reds, fawns, atiil titles scoin to be tho popular sharks. Manufacturers aro iiot'at all busy, particular!} , tjwse Miakitts: worsted, dress goods, arid even Gabardine nianufactßfSrs aw* complaining liitterly at tb* afesetiee of new business. Big stoclcs have hwl to Ix> got through; tlspy afeuot yet exhausted, and with trad* falling off with sivree coiuttries, crou an increased Ainericau detiinucl fw- "gabs" is not running kcil spindles and looms iit all w-oH.