THE PRICE PAID FOR OUR WOOL CLIPS

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 213, 28 May 1918, Page 6

THE PRICE PAID FOR OUR WOOL CLIPS

Sir—ln a letter which you were good, enough to accept from mo last year I pointed,out that by reason of the unfortunate blunder in taking Dominion speculative prices a 6 a basic value for the Dominion wool clip of 1013-14, instead of London value, less charges, the Imperial Government payments for the 1916-17 dip had fallen, short of the promised 55 per cent, by no less a sum than .£3,300,COO, the percentage of excess over 1913-H being 18 per cent., instead of 5,1 per cent. The figures for the'l9l7-18 clip have just been officially quoted, and can be dealt with in like manner as under: — J! Official Tear Book value of i9H shipments, plus value of wool consumed by woollen mills in Domiuion, estimated at Is. Gd. per lb 9,815,218 Add 55 per cent, accretion promised .'...... 5.395.G53 . . ,£15,213,901 Cash payments for 1917-18 clip, ' 505,1?3 bales, at .£22 17s. 9d. per bale, or Is. 2Jd per ib. ...11,485,235 Or no less a sum than JE3.728.G6S short of the mythical 55 per cent, which our wool producers never havo received, and never will under Sir James Allocs method of assessing basic values. This year' 6 excess works out only 17 per cent, over 19U values, and the sum now short for this and last year's clip is therefore a. shado over -£7 ; 0fl0,00O. Tlib over-all price of Is. 2U. per lb. for this year's clip is startling when we read about Ihs figures being realised at auction at Home —I am, etc., AGKICOLA.