The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1914-11-11
THE HAsKIN LETTER
WOOL AND WOOLENS
By Frederick }. Haslein.

English fabrics, like English man.
ners and English accents, have lont
been considered the standard Of cor
rectness In this country. When YOU
tailor spreads out a piece Of cloth fol
your inspection. and tells you that II
Is an English weave, imported espec.
tally for him, and that It cannot BIZ
duplicated In this country, you fee
that you are getting the very best
and that your new suit Is going Il
add vastly to your responsibility and
self confidence. q
This particular method Of tickling
the vanity o fthe customer and OF id.
vertising the tailor has been dealt e
severe blow by the European war
The supply Of wooden cloth that NE
usually import from England has
been greatly reduced, not only b,
the unsettled condition OF shipping
which has affected all internationa
commerce, but by the fact that the
British textile industry is busy films
government orders. The wooler
mills in England are humming ant
wool Is becoming scarce there and Is
rising in price, despite the fact thai
the British government has prohibit.
ed the expectation of raw wool: blu,
II Is nearly all being made into KHAKI
and blankets for the British soldiers
instead Of serges's and worsteds, and
very little Of 1t is leaving the British
Isles. 1t Is even reported that the
British government is unable. to gel
enough Khaki for It's needs, and ii
having uniforms made from serges
and other more expensive cloths
which the dealers have on. hand,
+ Meanwhile, the value of all the
fwoolen cloths imported into this coun-
try decreased from $685., 04S during
the month Of July, to $3,250, 1908 dur
ing September, and there has prob.
ably been still greater decrease
since the latter month. The imports
from England, which has always
sent us more woolens than any other
country, have greatly decreased
while those from Germany and Bel
GUM, which stood next, have almost
ceased. An even greater decrease
is noted in the importations of WON
ems dress goods, which fell of from
S2,654.413 during the month OF July
to $1,667 ;014 in September; while the
carpets and rugs imported during the
same period fell from $542,819 worth
in July to $S1S,s42 in September. Most
OF the carpets and rugs come from
Turkey in Europe and from Asia, and
the entrance OF Turkey into the war
will doubtless result in still great
er decrease in these imports.
The most important effect Of this
dearth of foreign made woolens has
been to give the American textile
industry an opportunity not only to
make money now, but to build up a
permanent demand in this country
for home made woolens. Whether he
wants to or not, the American citi-
zen will probably wear American
made clothes this year and next, and
the American textile industry is equal
to the occasion thus afforded. There
are a few English weaves that cannot
be duplicated in this country, 1t is
true, but the great majority Of suit
ings are made just as we'll here as
in England Moreover, it is well
established fact that a demand, once
created, is slow to de-. and there Ia
little doubt but that the American
manufacturers will hold onto a large
part of the business which the war
is throwing their way.
The greatest difficulty which the
American manufacturer now faces is
in getting the necessary dyes. Ger
many has heretofore furnished prac-
tically the only large and adequate
supply Of textile dyes In the world.
Despite the British blockade, these
dyes are still reaching the United
States by way of Holland, but not in
anything like large enough quantities
to satisfy the increased demand for
them. This has led to the sugges-
ton, which is Just now being much
discussed in American textile jour
nails, that the United States should
manufacture Its own dyes. and that
the present situation affords a splen-
did opportunity for the establishment
of such an industry in this country.
Americans might then wear clothes
which were grown, woven and dyed
without the aid Of foreign industry.
This scarcity of dyes is being felt
even more by the English manufac-
turers than by the Americans, and
may thus be an important factor in
keeping down the supply OF English
woolens. The British government has
forbidden the importation of German
dyes, and the British manufacturers
are forced to depend largely upon
the supply from Switzerland.
Another difficulty which the Amer
lean manufacturers faces in meeting
the new demand upon him Is caused
by the fact that our importations Of
raw wool are falling of, and that a
shortage may result. During the
month Of July we imported $4,s22, $50
worth of raw wool, and during Sep
tember only 1855, 1858 worth. In ad-
dition, the British war office has re-
Gently placed an embargo upon the
expectation Of raw wool from Eng
land. This has been done to prevent
Germany from obtaining any wool
from England, and also to insure an
adequate supply for the use OF the
British army. The United States pro-
duces much less raw wool than she
needs. and a considerable quantity
has always been imported from Eng
land, while some Of the English
crosshred and mountain woods are
- 80 =