YORKSHIRE LETTER

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 109, 25 January 1918, Page 10

YORKSHIRE LETTER

WOOL WASTES AND THEIR USES

CONTROL OF BY-PRODUCTS

(From Our Special Correspondent.) Bradford, December 6. The ovent of the past, week lias been tho issuing of a revised list of waye prices, and there has never been a time in the history of the textile trade of the country when so much was being made of the byproducts of the trade. This business has always been large and important, but it liaß been done in a quiet way, chiefly duo to the fact that it has not been standardised in the same way as topß and yarns. The writer made an attempt some two or three years ago to standardise noils, laps, and wastes, t remember well the opposition with which 1 was faced, and how 1 ■was met on all hands with one verdict—

"impossible." After a little perseverance n- standard list was obtained which camo to he recognised in the trade, my weekly quotations for noils, laps, and wastes being regarded as fairly reliable. As a matter of fact, the quotations that the writer gave weekly during the month of March formed the basis for the Waste Department- of the Government in arranging and fixing its first schedule of values, and in tho new schedule published this week it has been extended. Of course, it did not. suit many waste dealers to have current values for by-products published, because it let spinners and hoiscry Arms know their actual value. But that did not matter. Every first producer is entitled to know the market value of a commodity as much as the dealer who sells, and so long as the principle is right, the writer always pursues that course. Some B|g advances, A careful examination of the tables given below will repay tho reader. It will show at once, how the by-products of the wool trade have become specialised, and how. the dif. ferent qualities arc dealt with. There is Wisdom in this, because auy ordinary reader can see the folly of mixing, say, coarse crossbred with me.-iuo. This would in no sense facilitate consumption, while it would mean disaster in the finished piece. The reason the rank and file of society are able to put on their backs a suit of clothes or a costume uniform in quality is'entirely duo to the careful classing and sorting in the first instance, and if this is done right at the beginning, it will be right in the finished fabric. In the. first table laps are dealt with. These are short, lengths of tops, and can either be recombed or used in the woollen trade. Laps are indeed a very valuable commodity, and the following tables shows what was tho Government price in the first list published, and the new list which came into operation on December 1:— Old ISew Govern- Government ment price, price, d. d. 36's and 40's (white) 28 3(1 36's and 40s' 'khaki) 30 32 36's and 40's (mixed colours) 27 29 Below 36's 23 ?6 44's and 46's (white) 30 34 44's. and 46's (kh.iki) 32 36 44's and 46's (mixed colours) 28 32 48's and 50'b (white) 33 40 48's and 50's (khaki) 35 42 48's and 50's (mixed colours) V... 31 38 54's (white) 39 46 54's (khaki) 41 48 54's (mixed colours) 37 44 56's (white) 48 51 56's (khaki) 50 53 56's (mixed colours) 46 49 58's (white) 52 53 58's (khaki) 64 60 58's (mixed colours) 50 56 ffl's-64's (white) 62 66 60'8-64's (khaki) 64 68 60's-64's (mixed colours) .. 58 62 70'8-80's (white) 64 72 70'b-SO's (khaki) 66 74 70's-N's (mixed colours) ... 61 69 What Is Thread Waste? The question is well .vorth discussing as to whr,*, spinners' hard waste is. If the average reader is not versed in the technicalities of the textile trade, let him take a bobbin of ordinary sewing cotton and break it into Bhort olengtbs, throw them together, then he will have a very clear idea of what hard waste is. It is simply short lengths of worsted yarn made by the piccers during tho shipping operations. When a thread of yarn breaks it has to be pieced, a littlo thread always being wasted ''n tho operation. These arc collected by the operatives, sold and then sorted by the dealers into different qualities, These thread wastes are then taken and garnetcd, that is, opened out and made just as free and open as scoured wool. They are all used by tho woollen trade, and are fetching a big price to-day. The fallowing are the old and new lists of values for spinners hard waste:— >T , Old New Govern- Govern. ment. ment. price, price. (1. d. 36's and 40's (white) 22 ' 24 36's and 40's (khaki) 24 26 36's and 40's (miUtary shades) 22 24 36's and 40's (mixed colours) ?1 23 Below 36' a J8 20 44's and 46's (white) 24 27 44's and 46's (khaki) 26 29 44's and 46's (military shades) 24 2 7 44's and 46's (mixed colours) 22 2o 48's and 50's (white) 26 31 48's and 50's (khaki) 28 33 48's and 50's (military shades) 26 31 48's and 50's (mixed colours) 24 29 56's (white) 30 35 56's (khaki) 32 37 56's (military shades) 30 35 56's (mixed colours) 28 33 58's (white) 32 37 58's (khaki) 34 39 58's (military shades) 32 37 58's (mixed colours) 30 35 60/64's (white) 35 39 60/64*8 (khaki) 37 41 60/64's (military shades) ... 35 39 60/64's (mixed colours) 30 37 Inoreased Use of By-Products. It was never thought that the waste trade would be controlled, but circumstances have made its control absolutely essential. The prime reason is that the by-products of tnc trade are being called into use more and more lor military fabrics, and as ail the various wastes aro being made from Government owned tops, it was natural for them to be controlled. In order to save virgin wool, increasing quantities are being used in the production of military fabrics, chielly drab and tartan serge. I have before explained that these are mado from worsted warp and woollen weft, and all these wastes can bo used in addition by the woollen manufacturer. Really speaking these wastes are as good for this purpose as pure wool; in fact, they are pure wool, and have in no sense lost their manufacturing properties by having gone through the ma. chines once. If we take the woollen wefts which aro being made to-day, the blend approximates to the following: 50 per cent, of virgin wool, 20 per cent, wastes, 30 per cent, khaki mixture mungo. This blend makes excellent wefts, and when the Bame is woven in the piece .milled and finished, tho resultant military fabric is exceedingly sound and well made. With the huge quantity of miUtary fabrics which is being made, there is naturally an exceedingly big demand for wastes, consequently stocks do not exist, and with the lessened production of civilian yarns, everything indicates a correspondingly smaller production of the by-productß of the trade.