The morning times., 1897-01-07
The sheep Stock.

The domestic growers now produced
about 212 900 600 pounds annually, ieav-
ing some 352 1000 900 to be supplied.
With adequate protection the sheep stock
of tie United States could within four
years be increased so as to yield all the
| wool consumed here. Some $4,000 900
| was now being paid abroad each year Tor
wool
| Adequate protection would give Ameri-
| can farmers this sum annually for labor.
| He referred 10 the Wilson-Gorman law as
the most disastrous measure ever aimed at
the wool industry.
Under il the number of sheep had de-
creasedabout 5000 900 annually, and $780,
100000 in value, in three years. Last
year some Il, 100000 pounds Of wool were
imported from Australia, and about H.
600, 900 from South America.
He suggested that Australian unwashed
| wool, W hich was equal To any other washed
| wool, be classified washed wool, 80 as
to put it on the same footing with other
woods of the world.
| He would place tariff Of II cents On
all merino wools, except Australian, on
which rate of "a cents was desired, be-
cause of its ''siIrinkage't qualities.
The woolgrowers desired the ''skirting'
clause OF the present law dropped. II
this was done it would give employment
to thousa ndS of American wool sortcrs
and keep d million dollars annually at
home which now W ent abroad. on washed
mcrino they desired tariff double that
on unwashcd. and on secured wool treble
the duty on unwashed.
Australian wool could be placed on
board ship at Melbourne at 8 cents pei
pound and this was the wool the Ameri
can farmer had TO compete with.
South American Wool.
Asked if law Of the kind he proposed
would hot keep Australian wool out ol
the country, he replied that if it should
it would prove beneficial. in case it did
We could take wool from South America
and buiid up trade>~Hith those countries
which in return would take our products
Australia never took anything from US
He argued in favor OF specific duties
saving that the advalorem system was
THE most damnable system ever proposed
by set Of rascals:'
He asked prohihitory duties on foreign
ragSand >hoddy About S. 600 .O0opouI,ls
OF Shoddy per year Were now imported
, which was equal to about 54,OO0,0OO
had been driven to the use Of shoddy il
order to compete with the cheap foreigr
manufactures articles, imported.
He was against wool tops paying the
! same duty as secured wool. They shoul,
| pay higher taxes. being really wool il
the first grade OF manufacture.
Congress- ne said, should, if possible, n
| the present session, pass a bill with on,
| section. declaring that all articles importe
after the first day OF the first session of tn,
Fifty-fifth Congress shall he subject to tn
rates of duty prescribed by any tariff bill
/ winch may become law during that scs
| sion. when such rates are higher than thi
| existing law, and that no article shall b
Withdrawn for consumption except upo
i the execution Of q bond to the Unitet
States, with sureties approved by tht
! proper collector of the port Of entry 70
the payment OF such increased rates
duty.
/ Mr.. Theodore Justice of Philadelphia,
dealer in all grades of wool, spoke fo
II the consumers, who, he said, had been il
| Jured by free wool. In one year ther
was loss 10y this schedule alone, to tn
i American people, of $42S, ,000, 900. TIL
loss to mill h3nds and laborers by fre
Il Wool had been about $50 100000, dul
ing the last year. The woolgrowers @
/ New York, he said, had lost on an averag
Il of S430 per annum, while saving on clotl
Il fag about SS.