Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-11-30

Shortly after Congress convenes next
week the tariff board. created for the
purpose of studying matters relating TO
the enforcement of the maximum and
minimum clause of the Payne tariff law
and for the further purpose Of gathering
information upon which Congress and the
President can act in making the tariff
laws, Will make its report to the Presi-
dent and through him to Congress on the
results of its investigations with refer
ence to the wooden and cotton industries
of the United States. The work of inves-
tigating these industries began year
ago. With reference to the wooden in
dustry 1t has been the purpose OF tracing
the costs Of production from the back OF
the sheep to the back of the man.
The first task which confronted the
tariff board was to devise a set of sched-
ules which would enable the wool grower
and the wooden manufacturer so to seq
regate all the various items of his work
that the tariff board would be able to
ascertain the exact status of every fea-
ture of the industry. In making up the
schedule on wool it employed the serv-
ices of an expert from the Department OF
Agriculture, one from the forest service
and professors of sheep husbandry from
several state agricultural colleges. 1t was
assisted In this work by expert account
ants, and the members of the board be-
lieve that the resulting schedules have
been successful in calculating the infor-
nation desired by the tariff authorities
With this schedule in hand, drawn
somewhat differently for the eastern
states than for
Eastern and Western the western
Conditions Studied. to meet the
varying conditions of sheep husbandry in
the two sections, agents of the tariff
board visited some 1900 ranches and
farms in various parts of the country.
One set of agents studied eastern condi-
lions and another set western conditions.
Those Investigating the western situation
began with the hearing season in Texas
and followed it north through the great
sheep country of the Rocky mountain
section. Other agents were sent to Ar
gentina, the United Kingdom. Germany
France, Australia and New Zealand. Here
they studied the foreign wool-growfng In
dustry at close range and endeavored to
secure the same kind of Information that
was sought from the American growers.
A member of the board went abroad
and visited many consular officers in coun-
tries where special agents were not sent,
for the purpose of ascertaining what IN
formation the consular officials might be
able to secure. These men gathered their
information along the same lines as those
who were the special agents Of the tariff
board.
In the United States the western SEIZED
ule contained eight pages of questions
while that used in the east contained a
little more than four pages. These en-
hraced interrogatories as to the smount
of land in each ranch or farm and the
character of the growing whether mainly
for lambs or for wool, or for both). Other
questions related to the value of the land
and equipment and the proportion of II
chargeable to the growing of sheep.
There were also questions intended to
disclose fully the operating expenses OF
the ranch, the output of the various items
during the year, the cost OF marketing
wool the number Of sheep lost, the num-
Der sold and the number on hand. There
were also questions with reference to the
possibility of bringing sheep runs under
cultivation and of decreasing the output
Of the industry in the neighborhood OF
the ranch.
A supplementary schedule was sent out
to be used in showing what proportion of
the activities Of a ranch or farm engaged
only partially In sheep raising were de-
voted to that industry, so as to divide
both expenses and income between the
various kinds of stock raised and mar
keted.