Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1898-10-08

elecUlO0 was assured DIDN'T you DuN
sheep? Didn't you think they would
go up? What made you think that?
Was it because you thought that
more wool or less wool would be inn
ported under the laws he would give
US? Didn't you know that his Tariff
law. his Protective Tariff Law. on
wool would shut out most of the cheap
wool that was coming from the four
corners of the earth, and that the law
would enable our home farmers to
raise wool at a profit? Hasn't that
made sheep go up in price? Isn't that
where you get your profit? Answer
me.
But he answered not.
.sNow, think of this" she proceed
ed. '.Taking the average of all our
people, the country over, it takes the
wool of one sheep to supply the needs
of each person, possibly trifie more
In 1897 it took about S1'pounds to each
person, while the average weight of
fleece of wool was about 81 pounds.
Yet on a basis of amount used in 1894,
1895 and 1896 that quantity would
have very nearly supplied each per-
son. Then we have it, one person.
one sheep needed. We have over 72,-
600, 900 Inhabitants, but how many
sheep? Look up the Government rec
ords and you will find that in 1893 we
had about 47,O00,000 in the entire
country, enough to supply little
over half our wool. Did the Tariff
reform party that was in power try to
help you and me by saving our home
market for US? You know as well as
l do that they put wool on the free
list, so that it could come from every
where; and in four years our fiocks
dwindled down So that in 1897 there
were only about $4,000, 900 sheep in
the country, not enough to supply
half our wool.
''Why this decline? 1t was because
the American farmer could not pro-
duce wool at a profit and compete
with the cheap wool of the world.
Think of it, husband-think of it.
We, an agricultural people, suffering
hardships during these Tariff reform
times, looking for diversified branches
of agriculture, actually sending every
where for wool. when we could have
produced it in abundance on our own
pastures. Why, that coat that you
have on you don't know whether the
wool came from Servia, or Turkey, or
China, or some other country of cheap
la Dor and cheap living. In the last
year of that Free-Trade in wool poll
cy England sCld us over S28, 900. 900
in lint
bought of Russia and Servia and
Spain and Turkey and Argentina and
| Peru and Falkland Islands and Africa
and Australasia, and goodness only
knows where not. That wool was
gathered from all over and brought
here for you and other farmers to
wear.
''Think of it. What nonsense, Yet
too true; over So, 100000 worth
in single year. That is raw
wool alone, to say nothing of the
nearly $50, 900, 900 worth of manufac-
tured goods that came in Can you
wonder that there was great reduc-
tion in the size of American fiocks
and greater reduction in their value,
which went from over 1925, 600, 900 to
about S67, 900, 900 in those four years?
Think of it, will you, and then say
shat Free Trade doesn't hurt the far
mer?
what makes sheep values good
again? You know and 1 know that it
was the protection given wool by the
Dingley law. Taking into considera
ton the raw wool used in our factor
les and the manufactured wool inn
ported, our flOcks will have toget con-
Siderably above the 100000 notch
before they will produce enough wool
to supply our own people, with but
about Sc, 600, 900 left from our Free
Trade experiment to start on. Any
one can see that it will take some
time to get up to that notch, and we
can look for continued profit in sheep
and wool raising. That is one way
in which the Mckinley Tariff helps
the farmer, and l can name other
ways And she went in the house.
Three Doctors In Consultation.