The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-10-04
ALL MUST GET TOGETHER
Discussing Organization Among
Wool Growers.
TO WAREHOUSE THE WOOL
Money Could Be Borrowed on the Re
ceipts-The Buyer Is Now Abso-
lute1y the Master OF the
Situation.

Great Falls, Oct. 3.-Early in the sum-
nler this column advocated some kind
Of an organization among the wool
growers of Northern Montana to the
end that they might have a word to
say about the sale of their clips rather
than leave it entirely to the buyers
AS the market Is now conducted the
grower is practically at the mercy Of
the buyer; like one of his sheep, he
meekly waits to be shorn. However,
the growers are beginning to see the
advantages of some cooperation and
discussion of it is heard in various sec
tons where the wool business is promi-
nent 1t is being talked in the Judith
Basin and this week the Teton Chron-
icle has the following to say on the
situation:
1.-The method proposed by we'll
known grower to obviate the difficulty
is for all the large growers to get to-
sether and run things themselves in
stead of letting the buyer run the mar
ket and pay what he pleases. If the
buyer gets mad and won't bid the wool
can be stored here, and when the Ros-
ton man finds out that the grower is
in earnest and won't go to him he will
go to the grower. The idea is to ware
house the wool and borrow money, if
1T be needed, on the warehouse re-
ceipts. the same as is done in the case
of grain.
AS the system is now the buyer is
absolutely master Of the situation. He
threatens you that if you don't put
your wool on the market when it suits
his convenience you will get no
| bid on your clip. If the grower does
| anything one year that does not suit
| the buyers combination the next year
he has to go to the head Of the combine
and do penance on his Bonded knees be-
fore they will look at his wool.
1T is the idea of those who propose
a new order of things to stop all this
and to make the buyers eat the humble
| want wool and they want it had-espe-
cially the Montana woods, which are
| classed with those of Ohio. If it is
| found that they cannot bulldoze the
growers they will soon come to terms
as they absolutely and positively must
have the wool. In fact, the experiment
| of holding wool here was tried by some
parties several years ago and the buy
ers tumbled over themselves to come
out here in the middle of the winter
and secure the clips.
Another matter to be discussed is
| the question of reviewing the project
| of the establishment of a sample wool
| securing. plant, to be IN charge OF a
| competent sorter A grower would not
only thus be enabled to know what his
wool would shrink, but would also have
! it guarded, so that he would know just
| what he had to sell and would not have
| to rely on buyers guess that it was
| not of good grade and that it would
| shrink 65 per cent.
"a well-known citizen, who has been
| in the business of buying wool and has
| also been intimately acquainted with
| the methods of commission men and
wooden mills. said recently that this
was a move in the right direction and
| that if the large growers got together
| he had no doubt that the banks would
! be willing to advance them money on
| the warehouse receipts and help them
| to get nearer the market value of their
wools.'