Fergus County Democrat. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1904-1919, 1904-12-06
The WOOL MARKET.
Demand Not so Great hut Prices
Are Still Firm,

Are Still Firm.
In its review of the wool market for
the past week. the American Wool and
Cotton Reporter says:
The demand for territory wools is
decidedly less than II was and no
large lines worthy of note have been
sold the past week. The smalness
OF the stocks available unquestiOnably
curtails business. Supplies of medium
and low wools, especially have been
well cleaned out. A very good de-
mand has been experienced for half
blOods, as before noted, but these can
not be secured in any great amounts.
Montana wools generally are pretty
well cleaned out of the market, and
while some business has been trans
acted in these wOols, the bulk of the
trading has been in |lahos, Utahs,
Wyomings and Nevadas and the sales
made have been on the following ba-
sis: Fine medium clothing, 62@65c,
clean; strictly fine clolning, 65QD67c;
strictly fine staple, CSC; half blood,
62@6fc; three-eighths blood, 60@62c;
quarter blood, 5S@60c. One straight
clip sold at 67c for good fine and fine
medium staple. In tho grease good
half blood has sold at 23@24c, and
some choice light conditioned wool
brought as high as Csc; quarter bloods
| in the grease have SOLD at 27W27Hc
! for the best wOols. Prices are rela-
lively stronger in half blood and low
or WOois than on the finer wOOlS.
Among the sales of the week was one
of about 10000 pounds of Montana,
80 per cent staple, in the original bags,
at 25c, the wool grading half blood
and three-eighths, and costing, clean,
63064c. This was n very nice, hand
some lot OF wool.
The business of the past week has
been principally with the big mills.
The smaller mills have taken lit
prominently at all In the business
| of the week. The smaller mills. who
are not well stocked and have yet to
purchase their supplies of wool, can
scarcely hope to compete with the big
concerns, who laid in their raw mater
| ial earlier in the season when prices
OF the latter were much lower, and
who can name prices for their goods
which the smaller concerns cannot
meet except at a loss Tor themselves;
and some of the smaller mill men say
that they may have to shut down IL
they are obliged to pay present prices
for wool unless there is sufficient ad-
vance in the price OF goods TO offset
the rise in the price of the raw ma
teriai Everyone is now looking for
ward, therefore, with unusual interest,
to the opening OF the next heavy
weight season, to see what will be the
extent OF the advance on the new
Goods, as compared with the previous
season
The lakings by manufacturers COM
| prisc a good sized line of secured
| wool by Rhode Island worsted con-
Cern, Il line OF quarter and three
eighths unwashed fleeces by another
worsted mill and the sale of a line OF
| Montana medium wools. These wools
| were sold at the top price of the year.
A feature of the week has been the
demand for half blood territorial
vools. One house report sthat the de-
nand which it has experienced has
not been for anything else. The injury
| has been especially noticeable from
yarn spinners, both worsted and wool
| On. Half blood has, in fact, sold at
clean cost ranging from 62 TO 6fc,
which is really equal to the cost NJ
| fine medium clothing. Some OF tAe
| mills now buying half bloods are
| those which formerI" we're taking
quarters and three eighihs. ii tne
Two latter grades were in plentiful
supply, these mills would vcty likely
be free buyers of them.
While the tone of the market as
whole is strong. the big consumers
are fairly well supplied with wool, TAX
en- as a whole and quiet time is an
| ticipated during the month of Decem.
her,