ENGLISH WOOL LETTER

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 131, 20 February 1918, Page 10

ENGLISH WOOL LETTER

1 ARRIVALS OF WOOL FAIRLY LARGE (From Our Special Correspondent.) Bradford, December 20, 1817. The question Unit is still uppermost in the minds of the entire trade :'h that uF ' supplies, and thu only source of infor- | million rejpirding this important subject is the monthly Board of Trade returns. It is significant) that up to Hie present no issue of Dalgoty's annual review is hand. This should have been published early in July. Thorn has been no .Australian, mail now for many weeks, and we sewn to bo going through a period similiir to that v,Lrr: Australia and lingland. were only contacted by sailing vessels. Nowadays wails n.ro arriving throe months alter being posted. Ilowevftr so long aa the Board of Trade reItirne arc published the industry will bR ■Mb to fain an intelligent idea "far- j r/vnls, and the monthly figures are being Hatched like a cat looking for u mouse, fflio cutting down of the civilian ration •for the current lour months has struck consternation into (he entire trade, including workers, because everyone now realises that it Menus short 'iino "r else the stoppage of considerable machinery. The National Service Department; raises serious objection to Tunning short time, and urges the stoppage of machinery. This is not the klf-a of spinners and manufacturers. In days gone by, when a firm has been slack, they have not adoplwl the American method of shutting down entirely, but rather jelling bawls play in their turn. It has been no uncommon thing in days gone by to pee a weaver on "felling out" stay at home one or two weeks, and they have resumed work in their turn. That is the policy favoured to-day, but the officials of the Department in their superior wisdom think otherwise. During the ■•.nut twelve months it has been seen that men who have never been inside a tietory, and who do not know local conditions, profese to be able to manage 300 to lOnO work-people belter than those who Iwvo been at the job all their life. The fair, ost way in face of the present shortage is to let masters run what machinery they like and the hours they like, leaving* it to them to dole out: work to the operatives. We have little doubt this would find acceptance with their whole staff. These wise officials seem to overlook the important fact 'lint when machinery comes to stand it soon spoils, and leaving masters to do ns 'hey think best would mean the running of thp.ir machinery i" ll iva . v which would keep rombs, spindles, ami looms in a fit condition for runnine full time when supplies were adequate. The Statistical Position. Last week-end the Board c-f Trade returns for November were published, and tlie imports of overseas wool supplies set forth below caiinal bul. be regarded as fairly satisfactory. Tim imports have been maintained in a better way than the majority, expected, in \iew of the rumours which have been mirve'it. According to Messrs. Dalgety and Co., Ltd., tin Australasian wool bale during recent, vears has averaged round 33011k. Taking thai as Hie. basis, the arrivals last month totalled 106.H6 bales, compared with 86,713 bales in the corresponding month of 1016, end 71.1t? bales in. November, 1915.' In an ordinary time. November always sees Ihe arrival of considerable quantities of Australian new clip merino wool, and about 100,000 bales can be regarded us a.verage arrivals, because frequently at Hie.last series of London sales there were available 90,000 bales of new imports. If we take the elevpn months of this year, the amount, of colonial and foreign wool retained in I his country, that is, after dpducting reexports from imports, was 1,730,977 bales, compared with 1,658,245 bales in the same period of 'flst year. No fault can be tound with the weight of wool (o hand. If w<? go back to 11)15, which the reader will recall as an exceptional'year, duo to all exports being shut off to neutral countries, Mid when Ihe Australian markets were practically closed, we retained in that, year 2.356,349 bales, while for the eleven months of 19U the total was 1,051,277 bales, and in 1913 1.131,723 bales. It will therefore bo 6een that t,hn arrivals for the first eleven months of this year comparo very favourably with those of previous years. Of course I here is as an offset to be reckoned in the tremendous consumption that is proceeding, for no doubt: bigger weights of raw wool have gone into consumption during the past eleven months than during any previous year in. the history of the textile trade of this tryThe following is a very significant table and gives in 'a nutshell the statistical position. In each case, a colonial bale is reckoned at 2301b.:— fie- • Import, exports. Retained. Jan.-Nov. Hales. Bales. Bales. 1917 I B'-'9,4f>.i 78,478 1,750,977 IOKi 1,788,273 130,(128 1,058,245 1915 2,1)91,788 331939 2*156,8+9 l<ll4 1,038,392 857,015 1,051,277 1913 ' 2/326,458 794,735 1,431,723 Britain's Textile Trade. As already indicated, the Board of Trade returns r.rc the only source of information regarding Great Britain's wool textile industry, and we must turn to that source for information. Although we are living in war times, and shipping is fica'ce, we have in no sense lost our export trade in wool and textiles. In fact, although the German submarines are frying to destroy our overseas trade, the figures we are able to give show conclusively that they have not yet succeeded, and it is doubtful if they l ever will. The most astounding features to lie observed in the figures below , ie (he large imports of v.ool, and also the export? of woollen and worsted fabrics. If all tlie piecw which are now held in stock by manufacturers nnd export bouses iiad been allowed to neutral countries, the rgu.res would have been many millions more, but when neutral countries were re-exporting British-made textiles to Germany, it was high time they were stopped. The following are the principal items of the Board of Trade returns, which make very significant reading to-day:— Imnorts. Jan.-Nov., Jan.-Nov.. Jan.-Nov., 1917. 1916. 1915. lb. lb. lb. Wool 603.720.282 530.130,137 882.290.035 Alpaca, etc. ... 5.424.238 5,530.459 7.312,599 OameFs hair... 2,884,326 2106.670 2.710.098 Mohair 3.577,048 11,001,803 14.057.736 Re-Exports. Jan.-Nov., Jan.-Nov., Jan.-Nov., 1917. 1916. 1915. lb. lb. lb. ! Wool ...25 69-7.714 42,909,127 110,529.941 I Alpaca, etc. ... 22,428 9,290 49,409 CiameTe hair . - 95,382 100,719 I Mohair .... 14,928 267*364 3.550,677 I British Kxpurts. j Jan.-Nov., Jan.-Nov., Jan,-Nov., 1917. 1916. 1915. Wool lb . 8,625.900 12,239,100 27,963,700 fops' 1!).' "•••■ H. 767,100 21.043.7C0 14,065,500 , Woollen yarn. .^ T'lf*.™ 17,667.700 mm 11.133,000 paciyarn, ?b* 1.927,100 3.W8.700 2,592,600 Woollen tissues. yards 114,043,700 1J3.340.7W1 83.894,400 Worsted tissues. yar( jg -10,394,100 45.481.3C0 51,504,900 Flannels anil delainee, yde. 10,128,600 14,569,6110 i,9/9,7C0 Carpets and rugs, sq. vards .... 4.302.5C0 5,854.300 4.555,109 Blankets, pairs 1,913,148 1,044.009 1,911,105 South American Wools. The Bon.nl of Control at their ninth meeting last Tuesday hail up for consideration the importation of South American wools, and at last it has been realised what a huge blunder the lie-, partment has made in practically telling the trade that when the opportunity served any wool landing on these shores from South America would be com-

mamleeral at their price, and not a market one. Thia meant holders being faced with serious loss, hence r.o buying has been done since last June, much to the detriment of sioeks in this country. It has taken the wise members of the Department six months to wake up to (he situation, and now (hey are prepared to "rant facilities tor buyirg. But it is too late. The bus has teen missed, for when freight was obtainable end wool could have been landed here safely, not a bale came to hand. There has beon great heart-burning in Liverpool anions Iho se'.lin? brokers there, who for many vears have handled some or the best '"[•own South American crowbrcd clips Swneri by Bnglishmen, for fvery bale has jrone to Boston. However, the Board of Control now suggests the advisability of granting every facility for members

<>f the trade operating at Buenos Aires, Biihia Blaiica. und Monte Video, mid no objection is to be made to the sale of this wool providing it comes to hand. High as values hnve been in South America, llradfird lopmakers could easily have paid the ligures, lauded wool here, mid sold same at a profit, but for Stale interference. The Joint Rationing Committee has now to go thoroughly into the question and to "co-opt advisory members with a view 'if considering it in all its bearings. All that (hey hnvo to do i.-» to guarantee importers a profit of 3 to b per cent., because whatever wool arrives- io worth all that it will cost.