Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1893-12-14
Fergus County Heard From.

The following is the reply of the
woolgrowing firm of Perrine, Green &
White, in the Billings Gazette, answer
ing the statement of the Independent
that "woolgrowers have received no
benefit from the Mckinley tariff"
"Relative to the effect of the Me-
Kinley law on wool, will say that we
fail to see how free wool will benefit
the woolgrower if the mere threat of
putting wool on the free list forces
the price down on an average OF z
cents per pound for Montana wool.
We think the tariff has been benefi-
cial 20 the woolgrowing industry of the
United States. We also think it nec-
essary to maintain a tariff on wool.
| The Mckinley law cuts but little figure
i'm the present price OF wool. 1t is the
prospect OF free wool that has forced
the price down, and the uncertainty
as to the proposed tariff legislation"
Daniel w. Slayton writes from Fol-
some as follows:
"Your circular of the 18th came to
hand in due time: also the glorious
news from Ohio, where the woolgrow-
ers evidently believe in Bill Mckinley
as well as the Mckinley bill. In an
swer to the first question l say, en-
phatically, no! The cause OF the low
price of wool is not the Mckinley bill,
but the prospect OF the repeal OF that
measure. Every woolgrower that had
wool in the eastlast November, knows
the above statement to be a fact. To
remove the duty pm wool could have
but one result and that is to keep
wool as low or lower than it is at
present lin anticipation of such re-
m1val and none of us desire that.
Ask the Independent to publish a list
of the many who favor putting wool
on the free list as the best means OF
making a steady market for the Mon
tana product at living prices" Fergus
county contains n great many sheep
and amongst all her shepherds that
have met not one wants to see wool
90 on the tree list. Woolgrowers are
not fools, in spite OF the Independents
efforts to make them appear so, and
when they are hurt they generally
know what does it, and in this ease it
is the prospect of competition with
foreign wool. The Independent is not
truthful when it talks tariff. Only IA
little over a year ago it declared that
the Musselshell wool growers, ire
spective OF party, would vote for
Cleveland, but when the returns came
in that lie was effectually refuted. The
truth is that a great many are ready
to quit the business if congress does
remove the tariff, and the actual
value of sheep and sheep ranches in
this valley is not much above so per
cent. of what it a before the Demo-
cratic party came into power. Al
ready wages of herders have been re-
duced 25 per cent, building and fencing
have stopped and many have had to
ship sheep to Chicago to obtain the
necessary funds to keep things run
ming, their wool clip this season in
many leases not netting half what it
did last year. Let the Independent
come out and say that it don't be-
lieve in taxing the many for the bene-
fit of the few and we can argue the
question, but when it persistently mis-
states the facts and publishes opin-
ions of the w~oolgrowers that are not
theirs the easiest and deserved answer
is: "Thou art a liar and the truth is
not in YOU"