East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1905-04-24
THEW0OLSITUATION
FINER GRADE OF WOOL
is DEMANDED.
Collapse of the 1899 Boom Killed
Speculation I'm WoOl-WOolen Goods
Market is DisappOinting-Fashion
Constantly Demands an Increasing
Finer Grade of WoOlen Fabrics.

EmSr OIdue Oh hOOlen taDr1CS-
Justice Bateman & Company, the
well known wool commission mer-
chants, issue the following exhaust
i've review of the world wool situa-
ton:
Wool is dull. The main cause of
the dullness is disappointment over
the backward condition of the wooden
goods market, upon which everything
now depends. This is in strong con-
trast with the situation IL months
ago when the wool market controlled
that for woolens, while now it waits
upon the latter. Manufacturers will
not buy wool except to cover orders
which are not yet forthcoming in suf-
hcient volume to give any indication
of whether coarse or fine wool will
be required for the coming seasons
styles Last years fashions required
goods made Of cross-bred wools
Owing to the decline in fine woods.
they are now relatively cheaper than
cross-bred, which fact of itself would
lead to the supposition that the re-
quirements for the coming season
would be stock of finer grade, espe-
cially as the goods that are popular
one season are likely to be out of IA
Vor the next.
As the London wool market more
or less directly dominates those of
the rest of the world, the situation
there, more than elsewhere, must be
considered. The proverb, ITO know
the cause is half the cure" as applied
to the present wool situation, suggests
a review of the past year In order that
the causes for the unsatisfactory ex-
tsting conditions may be ascertained.
We therefore give below extracts
from some Of the best British reviews
of the wool business for the year
1900. From this it will be seen that
the present depression is not local,
but worldwide; in fact, conditions
abroad are far worse than they are
here, merino woods in the United
States having declined only rs per
cent in 1900 as against so per cent
In London. The main cause of the
distress, however, seems to be the
falling off in the demand.
killed speculation in woolens as we'll
as in wool. For the past three years
at least, speculative buying has been
a very important element, and has
maintained a normal balance between
supply and demand which does not
now exist. The lack of any specula-
tive element at this time leads to the
conclusions that no improvement is
to be expected until the mills are bet
ter employed.
The burning question of today,
therefore, is-how soon will the well
authenticated decrease in the supply
have sufficient influence to quicken
the demand? In so far as this coun-
try is concerned, there has as yet been
too little improvement in the demand
to cause any advance in price. Even
the knowledge of the fact that there
was 23 per cent more wool on hand
one year ago than today, SO per cent
more two years ago. and So per cent
more three years ago, seems to have
had no influence other than to check
the decline. The larger supply of the
past three years was always accom-
panied by a speculative element suf-
ficient to furnish a foundation that
supported the demand, which, during
all that period, kept more or less
abreast of the supply.
The boom was started in 1899 by
the knowledge of the decrease of 80
per cent in the worlds production of
merino wool. This condition still
exists, and the knowledge Of 1t is
probably responsible for the fact that
the advance at the London auctions
on fine wool has been double that
on cross-breds. The advance in the
London market may have prevented
a further decline here; but confidence
in wool values in the United States
is lacking on the part OF the cloth
buyer. as we'll as the wooden manu-
facturer, and the market is sustained
only by the firmness of holders. The
demand alone is not large enough to
steady prices which receive their
main support from a knowledge OF
the strong statistical wool situation.
Manufacturers freely admit they
are carrying no stocks Of wool; but
they further declare it to be their In
tention to continue to buy from
hand to mouth until orders for
goods shall be forthcoming in suffic-
tent volume to warrant a return to
the policy Of carrying large supplies;
a policy which was fruitful Of crush
ing losses during the unprecedented
decline Of the past IL months. The
losses from this source were so serious
as to destroy faith in their own judg-
ment on the part of many manufac-
turers who heretofore had been most
successful"