Evening star., 1914-10-09
War in the East May
Help American Trade.

AP % ortuni-
ties to this country's industry and
commerce that will more than balance
it's share of the expense for the colos-
sal destructive bacchanal. The realiza-
tion of this prosperity should enable
American women to pick out their
winter furs and to obey the orders of
fashion with furry fringes around their
cuffs and collars. their jackets and
their skirts.
Again, there is a question of the ade-
quacy of our stock of furs. There has
grown up a policy in the American
trade of deferred purchases" the de-
laying of the replenishment of stock
until dealers feel certain how winter
styles are going to jump This appears
to be sound policy, the jumps are
skins are accepted as the leading nov
city for the coming winter. America
buys most of its furs from European
markets. even of those furs taken in
ers took little from Europe during the
Arst part of the year, and held back
for a Frightening of the trade. it is
possible that our supply of furs is in
sufficient.
1t is more probable, however, that
our furriers are well stocked. In any
case. the war disorganization of the
trade should bring about much in sup
forts to build up a national fur in
dustry. The government inaugurated
the auction of seal skins taken on the
Pribilof Islands in the American fur
center. St. Louis. In former years M
sale, that being the principal market
of the world for seal skins.
In some years London received as
many as 10000 from. the Prthilods
alone. The English metropolis has
in branches
through the prestige of being the
worlds greatest barket for" Our
government ordered the skins taken on
the Pribilofs in 1913 up for auction IN
be sold in this country as adVan.
tageously as in London. The war will
undoubtedly aid in the development OF
American fur auctions, and likely the
home trade will be in position to add
sufficiently to it's stock by the pur-
chase of home furs at home:
On the other hand, the greatest fur
producing nation is fully occupied
with ths
Russia Now the Source business Of
of the Worlds Furs. sia ant
more particularly Siberia. is now the
principal source of the worlds furs,
and practically the only source of the
fur of all furs, ermine. In the vast
unsettled territories of northern Rus
sia and Siberia, ermine. sable. sea OF
ter, otter, beaver. mink. musquash.
squirrel, fox. skunk, woodchuch, mar
mot, badger, glutton, minever. rabbit,
hare and other skins are produced.
OF course. ermine is the highest
priced of all the furs. 1t is found onl,
in the northern part Of the Russian
empire and in Scandinavia, the fnest
qualities coming from Ischim and Bara.
binsk in Siberia. This little animal be-
comes pure white against the brilliant
arctic SHOWS of Siberian winter, save
for the tip of it's tail, which remaini
black. 1t is trapped or shot in this sea.
son. The skins rarely measure over 9
foot in length War may cause US 8
scarcity of this royal fur. but as very
few genuine skins ever reach this mar.
ket we may not notice 1t.
some skins being valued as highly as
$4,000 each. The best grades come
from Yakutsk, Siberia, the Lena rivel
and from Kamchatka: They range
and from Ave to eight in breadth
About $4,000 sables are annually caugh,
in Russia. and they are sold mostly in
London.
The muskrat is caught in great mum.
bers along tthe Volga river Large
numbers of fox skins are taken in Rus.
sia and Siberia, and some 10000, ,00t
squirrel skins are shipped from Russia
each year. Beaver skins, however
come chiefly from America. There is q
famous annual fur fair at Nizhni Nov.
gorod. which, to great extent, fxe.
the prices of the Russian product
Other we'll known Russian fur markets
are Kazan. a center for Siberia; Kiat.
ka. near the Siberian-chinese bound.
airy, and Astrakhan, at the mouth o1
the Volga. which Is the distributing
point for the noted Persian lambskins