Bisbee daily review., 1907-04-30
WOOL BUYE RS COMBINED IN
 NORTH
Representatives of Large Buy ing Houses Seem to Have Formed Pool In Order to Beat Down Price of Wool,

When it is considered that there was not an extra pound of wool on the market for the first of the present year, that there is a constantly grow. ing demand for wGSi. and that the prices offered this year by the wool buyers from eastern markets are from two to three cents lower than last year. 1t certainly appears that there is combination, or trust, existing be, tween the representative of the large wool concerns" said B. H. Hooking, of the firm of Hooking & DueIl, to a representative of the Journal-Miner at Prescott on Monday, before leaving for New Mexico.
 q noticed" he said, that the sealed bids offered for the purchase of large lots of wool submitted by the Boston wool buyers at the different shearing camps in Maricopa and Yav- apai counties were in almost all cases invariably the same. That is to say, three or four of the buyers would submit the same prices in their bids, and enc you'd be from one-half to three-quarters of a cent higher. When bids for other lots would be submitted the successful one of the previous bidders would be among the low, and one of the others would sub init the high bid, thus securing Iue lot, providing the wool grower sold,
 This state of affairs has continued through the season, until all of the buyers succeeded in making pur- chases. A number of the wool grow CTS, however, refused to sell under the circumstances, and shipped their clip to the eastern market, where they were given from two to three cents more for the shipment than they could secure from the wool buyers on the ground. Wool which buyers bid 17 and IS cents for here neIted 2I cents on the Boston market
 'In my opinion" continued MT Hooking, wool Is bound to advance in price, for the reason that the popu- latiOn of the country is increasing at a rapid rate, thus increasing the de- mand for woolen goods, while on the other hand the number of sheep on the ranges is not increasing either In this country or Australia. Under these circumstances, it is reasonable to expect that the demand for wool Is growing greater annually, despite the fact that the Boston wool buyers who were here this year, offered smaller prices than last year"
 Speaking of sheep shearing and the introduction of power shearing rI-- chimes, MT. Hooking said:
 Better results are obtained than by the cid hand method. The fleeces avs erages from s to 20 ounces more for the reason that the power machine does cleaner and better work. The sheep owners prefer machine shear ing, as the sheep look smoother and better than when clipped by hand. and -e.s s-fTS> -,-> E sss atseeT price inhe Kan been abandoned aEfand8 entirely in the east and many emoefh wool grow CTS put their flocks through a sweat ing process before clipping, as they claim the sheaTing is made easier this way on account of the softening O. the wool by the sweat. It costs two and Cne-half cents more to shear a sheep with a machine than by hand, but this Is cOunter-balanced many times by the increase in the weight of the fleece. Another advantage is that machine shearing is, on the average. nearly 50 per cent faster than hand shearing, when the flocks are in this condition. The hide of the sheep is not injured by the machines when reasonable care is exercised by the operator"
 Hooking 6 Duell have a twenty shear machine plant and shed in plant at Corder, this county, both of which they intend to increase to thir- ty shears next season. Mir. Hooking has gone to Roswell, N. M, where he says he will start a shearing plant, in spite of the fact that the New Mex jeans are very much opposed to shear ing by the new method. He believes that he will convince the New Mexico wool growers that machine shearing is cheaper and better in every way than the old method, and that he will establish good business for his firm in the sister Territory He also stated that he intended to return here early in the fall for the reason that a num- Der Of the wool growers of this ter ritory intended to introduce fall shear ing, believing that better results can be obtained by shearing every eight months, instead of annually, and that it will prove more profitable.
 Shearing is finished at Cordes. The clip of nine carloads was shipped last week to Boston.