Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1893-01-16
AN EXTRA SESSION
a WOOL EXPERTS OPINION ON The
NECESSITY or HOLDING IT.

Tile situation That Confronts the Wooden
Manufacture Il Grave and Must BE
Paced Unless a Free Wool Bill Is Passed
soon the Industry VIII suffer.
The following letter to the New York
Evening Post H. from Mr.. Abraham
Mills, "A recognized authority in the
wooden industry. II there were not hun
dfeds Of other reasons. those given by
Mr.. Mills would be sufficient 10 justify
dozen extra sessions Of congress;
sin WIZ you permit me a. veteran IN the
trade a. thank sou FOR your editorial Of the
18th upon wool add woOlens, and 70 present
some ideas upon the same subject which would
hardly ucCur 60 any except those familiar with
tie tochuicaliUcs oi the trader
The situation which oonfronts the WOODEN
manufactures ~ this In the near future we
nro 20 have free wool and smart reduction Of
the duty on woolens. This - as certain a. any
thing human eau be-, and the situation must DO
faced LOSSES must Inevitably be made. and
the thing nJw "a 20 make Jhem as light as POI
albio. This. think, eau only b. done by either
getting the senate this winter @ pass the free
wool hin now before II or 90 get pew congress
o. pass such a bin iu extra session next spring.
II ihis is not done, and done quickly, all Europe
and the continent particularly, will run its
machinery night aud day making staple goods,
WIN liit IifHfAA tWtNF MbNl anu INV Ntt-ka
aud cheap money there. 20 De sent 70 America
the moment the tarin barrier l. down. The
amount OF gouds then thrown Ia here viii
probably he large enough 10 food the American
market perhaps for two years. The condition
~ our WOODEN industry during this period Will
be- ptiable. Many mills viii be closed and the
remainder viii run short time. This means
disOrganizatiOn aud great suffering TO both
propriotors and worSmen. II would also pre-
pare the way for the roimposition of the heavy
oh
have with such difficulty and labor Just ernan-
cipntcd ourselves.
In confirmation of this view we have just
learned from Europe that English woods have
advanced penny - pound, fine woods are
much stronger, the wooden industry much
more cheerful, aud that the Titus salt com
pany, instead of going into liquidation, are to
resume making goods for America.
The immediate abolition OF the wool duty
would put us on par with the European man
ufacturcr as 90 the cost OF the raw material,
and would advance Il smartly and naturally
with 05tOO,0OO people coming into the markets
Of the world as customers. And this is the
only way the American viii be able to get any
benefit from the protection of 40 per cent
which the new law win likely allow him. IL
the hill Is postponed. TO say, July, 1884, there
win bc enough goods made in Europe before
We can get as cheap wool as our rivals TO
swamp us when we come into the markets Of
the world nt a much higher price for our raw
material,
These arguments have an equal bearing upon
the price OF domestic wool. Stocks are now
smaller than have ever been known. The west
Hocms completely cleaned out of everything
but territory kinds The effect OF the new
tariff upon present small stocks would be con-
sequcntly trifiing As 60 the next clip, il for
eign wool were made free Jniy. 1888. there
would he great advance all over the world,
aud the domestic article would participate in
that advance and find a ready market. But il
the change Is postponed and the anticipation
OF il hangs over us for eighteen months, do
nestle wool viii drag along at panic prices be-
cause woolcn goods viii do SO. Much MAJ
rhincry will be idle, and the whole industry,
wool and voOlons, will be Ia disorPanHed
aud lifcless condition pending such a radical
change.
The situation IN the gooda market is much
the same. IL Is only this year that the stocks
OF foreign goods imported in anticipation of
the Mckinley bill have been worked OF. This
has given the market largely 10 tie American
manufacturer aud has enabled him to sell his
goods close upto production. There has rarely
been time when stocke. either IN first hands
or among the johbers, have been smaller. Dur
ing the next Xix months IL H. safe TO say mills
viii run merely ON orders aud carry no stocks,
aud dealers will carry only what their abso-
lutte nccessltios call for. In fact IL Is an ideal
situation aud most opportune time in which
10 reduce duties. Nothing can be gained by
delay. and much may be lost.
am deeply impressed with the seriousness
of the situation, and thoroughly believe that
the path OF safety Is that of courage.