WOOLLEN COMPANIES AND WOOL PRICES

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 238, 2 July 1920, Page 9

WOOLLEN COMPANIES AND WOOL PRICES

Sir,—Tho woollen'fnotorics of this Dominion are on a very good wicket, as they havo had the right, under Order-in-Coun-eil, issued, 'I taint, under tho hand of Sir James Allen, to practically pick, the eyes out of-the best parcels of commandeered wool at five-eighths of a penny per lb. over commandeer price. To my knowledge they have exorcised ,th'at right to the fullest extent, and so deprived many a grower of the halfprofit he would havo become en-titled to Tinder the Home contract upon his merino and halfbredwool if it had been shipped, as no less than about ten million lb. of their finer wools havo been so appropriated out of tho /fifteen million lb; used' in these milk during the years 191617 and 1917-18, vide the 1919 Tear-Book, page 55i. . ' t .'. • Mr. Massey immediately stopped it ■when his'attention was drawn ito such a manifestly * unfair and unjust arrangement. which has depleted the half profits to.a' very material extent, as it_ would appear that about thirty million lb. of our wool have beon 60 diverted, without an atom of benefit to any but the shareholders of .these companies. \ The extent 'to which they have 'been enriohed at' the exponsa of the sheep farmer is shown by the various share lists. As an instance, one' Woollen company's 20s. shares; which were not quoted before the war, and therefore had no fixed value, tiro flow listed and saleable at 503. per share and over, and in the case'of nearly all the others, their marlet price has'more than doubled. I -have not- seen particulars 'of. the new . arrangement lately made with Mr. Massey, but these .companies ought _to be niade to pay something' approaching Home prices for their', wool, as so. for oa can be seen import prices have been oharged, for tlie greater part of their manufactures.—l am, etc., . ONLOOKER.