The Manawatu Standard. (PUBLISHED DAILY.) The Oldest Daily Newspaper on the West Coast. MONDAY, SEPT. 14, 1885. THE WOOL-GROWING INDUSTRY

Manawatu Standard, Volume X, Issue 1454, 14 September 1885, Page 2

Manawatu Standard. (PUBLISHED DAILY.) The Oldest Daily Newspaper on the West Coast. MONDAY, SEPT. 14, 1885. THE WOOL-G ROWING INDUSTRY

: In the last issue 10 hand of the Pastoral and Af/ric/dfuml Kew^ uthere is a contributed article on the .subject of the wool-growing industry, which is deserving of some attention. The article is one of a series that has appeared m that periodical, under the heading of " Agricultural Clods," by an " Old Farmer," all of which have been written m a plain, practical, matter-of-fact strain that commend them to ;the class of readers for whose information m particular they have evidently been compiled. In the paper now under notice the author refers to the great depreciation m the value of our staple product which has taken place during the past few years, and the effect of which has re-acted so disastrously on •the general commercial prosperity of *the Colony. The writer plainly expresses his opinion that the prospects of improvement m the immediate future are certainly not very, .hopeful or cheering. A' gentleman' largely interested m squatting property has informed him that the returns for last year's clip are now coming to hand, and that m the case of a great many the net proceeds show a decrease of about 25 per cent, compared with the previous year. Such a reduction m the value of wool, as this statement indicates, 'is of the most serious import to this Colony. At a time when depression is felt m every branch of trade from one end of New Zealand to the other, the fact quoted above cannot be regarded m any other light than as a public calamity. It would appear, observes the writer, as if the often-expressed opinion was about to be verified, viz., that the production of wool, which has been so greatly increasing for some years, has at length overtaken the consumption. There are several indications suggestive of the near approach of the period when the chief markets for "wool will be glutted, and when the 'price must recede to a figure which , will only allow a margin of profit to those producers who carry on their operations under the most favourable conditions. The fact is patent that of. Jate years wool production from countries outside of the Australasian Colonies has been enormously on the increase. Buenos Ayres, for instance, shows a large increase m wool production, that of last year being greater than the preceeding period by some 40,000 Bales. Neither must the fact be forgotten that a large tract of unoccupied country m the great Republic will soon be opened up by an extensive railway system, which will tend to a still more largely increased production, as the scope for operations m that direction will m course of time become practically unlimited. "Of course, it is not denied that the of the wool produced m South America is not equal to that sent from Australia and New Zealand ; but an improvement m that respect is only a question of time, of enterprise, and of capital. Nor must it he. forgotten that for the requirements of continental manufacturers, the coarser wools sent from South America are generally preferred to the finer varieties produced m the Australasian Colonies. There can be no doubt that South America threatens to be a formidable competitor to these Colonies m the production and export of wool, which year by year will represent a vastly increased quantity. The writer appears to arrive at the conclusion that there is not much reason to anticipate any material improvement m the tone of the market under the existing conditions of commercial depression at Home, a diminished consumption of woollen goods,, increased production, with no hew markets opening up. He promulgated the view that possibly Japan and China might become buyers of our wool, through being induced to use woollen clothing instead of the cotton material they now almost universally employ. A Government statist supplies the following wool statistics, which are of startling interest m connection with the possible trade with Japan and China. In the year 1880, it appears that " the total number of sheep m the woolgrowing countries of the world numbered 407,000,000, the total quantity of wool produced amounting to 1,647,000,000, equal to 4.1 lb per sheep. The total population of the world is usually supposed to number about 1,200,000,000, The production of wool is therefore about equal to l£lb per head of the whole population of the world. Now, it has been reckoned that the consumption of woollen goods m civilized countries amounts to Slbs and a fraction per individual per annum. If this is correct, the whole population: of the globe might require annually, instead of the 1,647,000,0001bs now produced.

9,600,000,000." The above m- j formation is extracted from a letter m the Melbourne Argus t where this, important question of an extension of markets for wool has lately been dis.ussed with considerable ability and shrewd sug .estiveness. Mr W. Lockaiit Moktox, another writer, m advocating the establishment of a wool-growers 1 association, says, — " There is a large field to 1 -be broken up and cultivated. How I is it to be done? . In reference to China, a suggestion has been made that the proper method of bringing woollen goods under the notice of the Chinese would be for a company to start operations m one of the English colonies m China by introducing the best machinery, afew skilled English workmen to teach the Chinese workmen, and have the whole establishment under the superintendancc of first-class English overseers and a local directory. By the employment ot cheap Chinese labor, goods could be produced at such a moderate price that any surplus which could not be sold m China or Japan would not subject the company to I any loss, because it could be exported at, a profit. With a manufacturing 1 establishment on the spot, the late Mr Svnnot's idea of supplying the. Chinese weavers with ! yarn could be followed up. Time would be required to produce much effect on such . a people as the j Chinese. In Japan much has | already been done towards adopting European dress, and great changes come rapidly about m the present 1 day. ' The extension of markets j for the wool product of these colonies is the great desideratum, and to attain that end every effort should be put forth. From what [ has been said above it must be clear j that so far from there being, any : reasonable expectation of the value of wool becoming enhanced, the reverse is much more likely to be realized, unless new markets arc discovered or " created" by dint of enterprise and the extension of comi mercial reciprocity. One thing is* morally certain, which is that while wool remains at its present unremunerative price, depression must continueto be the portion of the great bulk of the pastoral community, which means a diminished circulation of money among all classes, and increasing stagnation m every ramification of commerce and m every factor of material prosperity.