New-York tribune., 1890-01-03
VIEWS OF THE WOOL MEN.
ARGUMENTS BEFORE THE HOUSE WAYS
AND MEANS COMMITTEE.
THE PRESENT PROTECTION AGAINST IMPORTS
ESPECIALLY FROM AUSTRALIA, INsUFFI-
ty. cIENT-oNE QUALIFIED PLEA
FOR FREE WOOL.
TBr rELEaRAPH TO The rKIBuNEd

TBY TELEGRAPH TO THE TKIBUNEd
Washington, Jan. 2.-The Ways and Means Oom
mittee of the House resumed its hearings Oh @io
tariff schedules today. A number of representatives
OF the woolgrowing interest came forward " ~sao
for changes in the present rates OF duty. an s,o
actual growers who gave testimony asreou '""e
msstic wool was insunicientE prouecoeu ae
foreign, especially Australian, imports anu ,
cept in of the finest grades the Aio,i . 80
uct had already been driven largely Ou1 y, Ss0 80
kef The number of sheep in this country hdu s'0"u
ilv decreased in recent years, ana growers "eiO
unable to maintain their herds at pio"'' ~
Australian wool had broken down tne uoii""u ''-
eoarser domestic grades, and had' there'oIc' ~ "S
valueess the fee es of those breeds OF sheeP "noA
vvera especiany fitted for producing mutton %, u"
A. .he provisions of tariff, the growers sunere"
doubIe loss the one direct. from the oisappei.O
NJ their market for the commoner sorls VI WIZ nv
second indirect, for the forced su0sutu'On Va "on
routton producing breeds like the Merlno' iof 'nos
r. cearser- grained neeces and bigger ana sonuei ~
easses The wool schedules in last sessiohs ''
hill will satisfy the growers . -, l.,
The sitting was not without few enhVenine -"
cidents Mr. Brecklnridge, OF Arkahsas oo"N Wv =,
the witnesses, George c. Wallace Oh 'iiSSo i, -
hand and asked him series OF quesuonS , uooeuoS
10 show that the sheep grower is obhgeu " ~ spnu
oro money through the increased price OF clotheS
than he makes by the duty on the raw ma'eii'i'
The witness did not give the Arkansas tarin reloin'
nouch comfort "The more we study the quesuon'
,aid Mr. Wallace, "the more we are cOhVlhoeu 'n"'
orotection to the wool grower, to The manulacVuer'
and 10 all American labor, IS essential 10 our su000'
Tho beneft we get from the duty is not overcome
hv what we pay for the maintenance OF other AIerF
can Industries" - ,.r
Won will find that whole question discussed with
great ability in a recent Presidential message sa'a
Mr. Mckinley to the Arkansas Congressman anu
everybody except Mr.. Breckenridge joined In the
laugh =, .bo
The witness who occupied the largest part Oh 'ne
committees time Frank a. Bennett, OF Boston, was
not woOlgrower but an editor OF 'r~uo - ~
manor eThe American Wool Reporter" he hau
circulated tbe two petitions which have been gohs
- .,ron, the American manufacturers of wool,
ono for free raw material, and the other lor
ad valorem, instead Of specific duties Five huhureu
and thirty names, he said were attached 10 .ne s'
netition and 2O6 to the second. The Witness uien
read a long printed statement, enumeratlhs 'ho ii"
renresented on the two papers, and arguing lor
hncs IN lower duties on raw wool. Having men
TONED Joseph Kitchenman, of Phlladelpma, aS
signer OF the first, he added that Mr. hltchennan
had contributed to the celebrated S4oo'ooO rhn"
delphia campaign fund Of 1885," ana "aS' uh'i ~
Gently, a Republican. ,,, ,o~
Al this point Mr.. Oates another Philadelphia manu-
,ctnrer arose TO saw that Mr.. Kitchenman was
rtelong Democrat, and had once run for shcrin "i
philadelphia on a Democratic Ticket Inc "lIieSS
was abashed. but read on In minute he struck lus
line: "No effort has been made to ascertain u"
politics Of the signers of these petitions
: AZ this there was a general laugh and the Witness
looked more uncomfortable than ever. There was
more merrYment when he read off the statement that
.Only little coterie of Ohio politicians stood IN u"
way of free wool for the manufactures"
This diplomatic collector of signatures would NOV
commit himself to free wool, however. lie favored
norsonally an ad valorem duty Of say, 20 per cent
ON carpet wool, and 40 per cent on cloth wool Inc
Democratic members were surprised that he "dh'ou
anv protection but he said that tarli was necessary
on account of the American laborer But te factory
laborer needed it than the laDoier on te sHeeP
ranch ,,,, ,,,,,
Congressman Bayne then produced statistics ~mch
sbowed that only one seventh OF the woollen goooS
consumed in this country were imported "iule inoio
than one-fourth of the raw WOOL USED ID Hauiao'u?
came from abroad. Why, then he asked, had hoV INC
rover the greater competition to overcome, ana to
greater need of protection No satisfactory answer "
mis- ouery was obtained from Mr.. Bennett
Mr. Mills the Texan economist, got back THIS morn
, from the Boston tariff reform dinner and is ready
10 resume his business Of tai1i-smasng at Uhe olu
stand He dropped in on the committee for lew
inntes IN day but soon tired Of the discussion III
may he that the Corsicana statesman doesn't ee qute
AT home in a committee which has so completely dis
cayded his own dark lantern" methods.
Mr.. Wallace of Missouri, the first Witness read
prepared paper, abounding with stausucs 10 uelnon
strate the necessity for maintaining the duties on I'M
norted wool and suggested adjustable tariff whch
would diminish when wool was scarce and msh IN
price and increase when il plentiful ana low IN
price lie dealt at length upon what he described
ss imperfecoIs of the present classicauons' saying
that in Mr. Wanamakers store could be seen trousers
made Of thrdclass carpet wool and soid at % oo
per pair The importers of carpet wools sald ulat
this grade of wool used everywhere ana LOT all
Kinds of wool manufacturing, well as for carpets
This demonstrated the fact that the importation oI
thirdclass wool under the present law Is olhhishius
the production of wool in America
Representative FIowes questioned MT "aNaoe
closely as to the actual cost of wool production In
Missouri, elictng the fact that the land was worm
from S35 TO $40 per acre. and that it would MAINTAIN
one sheep per acre. Representative Carlisle Joined IN
the inquiry and ascerained from the witness that the
fleece averaged about 81 80. The actual cost Oh
production OF the wool was about twenty cents
pound. There was no money TO be made at that
figure, but there other considerations 10 De
needed, such as the manurng of the land and the
fact that sheep cleared of brambles and weeds and
otherwise benefited the farm. Mr.. Carlisle remarked
that that was, he supposed, the sheep were hoC
valuable for wool and mutton only.
Mr.. BrecHnridse sought to ascertain the prooncuoh
of third class wool in the United States but the wit
ness said that owing the fact that the class Oh
wool used for carpets varied according TO the quality
Of the manufacture, he could not give any exact
figures. The wool growers had found the earpetmah-
ufacturers Teticent in giving information.
Mr.. Bennett Of Boston, the next witness, said that
the Two peNtiohs dHeduy IVIVilOU w.
himself, showed that the rank and ME OF slhdIer
manufacturers willing to express IhelT
in regard TO the wool duties were the EIeaI
of the trade. petition for reduced duIes PTh uPToi
wool for the benefit Of the manufacturers VINO Iuhlsn
our domestic wool growers the sole market lOr lieH
fleece, would secure great many slgncrs among tai
portion OF our agricultural population concerned III INC
raising Of wool. ,
The witness next spoke of the advalorem petition,
de- scrbing sners among the largest merchants
and manufacturers, and reading letters from experts
Sayorng this system of tariff The experts advocated
compound duties on manufactures of wool, because
~ the C.~>icuy Of determining their value, but the
Same oblectiOn could not be made to adValOrcnl
dutv on raw wool, as the prices known all over
the world and unde-Valuauon could not be practsed
penIvinp TO Mr.. Carlisle, witness said that il was
..ePi; trne thai land Increased the