The Dalles daily chronicle. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1890-1948, 1897-11-27
4 WOOL MARKET CONTINGENCY


fail in dry weather, which may be
changed to read, so far as the wool
market is concerned. all signs fail in
unreasonable weather The month
of October witnessed a striking fall
ing off in the transactions in the
wool market, occasioned by the me-
cessity of a breathing SPELL The
import price of wool has not yet been
reached, and the expectation of the
majority of the trade will not be sat
isfied until that has been accom-
lished. The late advance in
prices, however, was much
more rapid than any one had
anticipated, and more progress was
made in given time towards offset
ting the full duty imposed by the
Dingley law than any one had
right to predict. Consequently the
recent decline in activity, after the
enormous transactions previously re-
corded, did not come as dIsagreea-
BILE surprise. All are probably
agreed that had it not come, very
disagreeable state of affairs later on
might reasonably have been pre-
dicted, as a result of speculation. IS IS
But though the activity has been
retarded, says the Globe. Democrat,
the general expectation is that the
retardation will be but temporary.
The heavy weight season in goods
should open not long hence, and it is
commonly assumed that the manu-
facturers will not be in position to
satisfy a normal demand without
greatly increasing their purchases of
the raw material. In short, the open
ing of heavy weight is relied upon
to start another movement similar to
that in the midst of which the wool
market found itself not so many
weeks ago.
If, it is argued, the manufacturers
bought so large an amount of raw
material to fill their lightweight or
ders, and if, as is generally believed,
they have only limited supply of
wool on hand now, may it not be
taken for granted. always remem
being that heavy weights use up
more stock than light weights, that
the demand for wool in the near
future will exceed even that wit
messed during the summer and early
fall? TLis reasoning is, of course,
based on the suppositIon that the
demand for heavy weight goods viii
be proportionately as large as was
that for light weights. The revival
of prosperity which has been so gen
orally noted since spring, has salts
fed most persons that this ls-a safe
supposition to work on.
Safe enough but for one reason.
Up to the present moment no one
seems to have allowed much of a
place in his calculations for unsea-
sonable weather Even though re-
viving prosperity had struck the
mass of consumers much more pow
erfully than has been the case, it
would be unsafe to predict anything
like a normal business in wool manu-
features in the face Of an open win
ter. So lorg period of unseasona-
BILE weather as has recently been
witnessed is, we suppose, bound to
excite fear that conditions during
the next few months may not be all
that is hoped. It would be rash, Of
course, to indulge in predictions
TIE long delay in the advent OF
bracing weather may mean absolute
ly nothing as regards the intensity
and, duration of the cold which will
intervene between now and the
balmy days, which are supposed te
characterize spring. Nevertheless
the contingency of an open winter
is calculated to make itself felt al
this time. Should the intensely cold