San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1888-01-10
TUESDAY, JANUARY, 10, 1888.
WOOL GROWERS FIGURES.

WOOL GROWERS FIGURES.
The literature OF this wool growing
business is growing into respectable
proportions. Scarcely day passes that
some new document is not put before
the American public, setting forth very
concisely and very plainly with an
array of figures which can not be easily
set aside, the wool statistics OF this
country; the comparative cost Of raw
material; production as compared with
other wool growing countries; price Of
manufacture as compared with such
other countries: condition Of labor;
hours of labor, quality OF
labor in relation to cost, and
In fact everything that In any way bears
upon the wool industry and the effect
of the wool tariff in determining the
possibilities Of the wool growers In the
case of a revision OF the tariff and the
removing in whole or In part Of the
present duty upon wool and wool pro-
ducts. Some OF those statistics are quite
instructive, and the presidents message
may at least claim the credit OF awaken
ing an unwonted interest in this whole
matter Of wool values.
Taking the woods of Michigan, Ohio,
Pennsylvania, New York, and Canada
olassed as "washed combing" and COM
pairing them with the value OF foreign
woods on the basis Of the secured value
In London, we find that in the prices of
these woods there would be necessarily
falling Of Of from o! cents to II cents
per pound on the average Philadelphia
price in order to bring these woods down
to the London market price. The price
OF the unwashed comblngs does not
cover so great range, the difference
being from 6 cents to u! cents. The
variations In washed clothings and IN
washed clothings vary very nearly the
same proportion as the washed and IN
washed cOm6ings. The drop In Texas
woods to meet the free trade price In
the London market would be from to
5! cents as follows: Texas fine, u months
choice, 81 drop; Texas flee, short, 2
cents drop; Texas medium, choice, IL
months, cents; Texas medium, heavy,
a cents; Texas, fall clip, short, choice,
cents; Texas medium, fall clip, short
heavy, 3 cents; Texas carpet, 4 cents.
The woods with which the Texas woods
come into competition are the South
American woods and the New leland
woods and the difference between the
American prices for these woods and
their South American competitors rating
the foreign secured woods at the London
market price and the American WOODS
at the Philadelphia price ranges from
z to 16 cents.
These figures show the actual amount
OF protection which Texas woods get BY
the,present tariff, when imported in anun-
washed condition, after they are washed
and secured. The Texas, fine. y
months, choice, are protected Is cents
worth; Texas fine, short is protected 7
oents; Texas medium, choice, is pro-
tected l6 cents worth; Texas medium,
heavy IA cents. Texas medium fall clip
both grades, II cents, and Texas carpet
cents. This is the difference in the
cost OF secured wool In favor of the
foreign manufacturer and yet there are
some so called protectionists who
would only tax manufactured product
and leave raw material free. Take not
only the difference between the cost OF
secured wool into consideration, but the
difference in the cost Of labor in the
American and in the foreign mills and
the difference becomes startling. The
New York Nation, a free trade
journal, says that fifty-eight per
cent OF the manufactures of
Prussia run on Sunday, and
that many Of them run far into the
night, and there extra hours are rot
paid for at anything like the rate which
obtains in America for over work OF
this character. The only question Of
com petitiOn with foreign manufactures
in the minds Of American cloth makers
will be the reduction OF wages or the