Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1919-02-04

On almost the same spot where
$50 years ago old Pierre Laclede
bargained with trappers, who brought
downs furs from the great unknown
northwest, now stands the worlds
greatest fur market. At this mar
ket, in st. Louis, S IL million dol
lars worth of furs sold at a nine
day international auction:
It's far call from Pierre Chou
teau and his rugged, coonskin capped
patrons to the richly fed and richly
CARRIED buyers of the fur auctions
today. And there is a vast stretch
between the prices, too. In Chou
teau's day the annual value of the
entire fur catch sold in st: Louis
was only about 100000, and that
territory, of the northwest. Now the
total yield of the three annual sales
held in st. Louis runs up to some
thing like Is million dollars.
These furs come from almost
every land on the globe; Many of
moments of Georgia and Alabama
and Carolina farm boys. Others arc
the prizes of daring voyagers into
the little known and dangerous
skurg and the humble 'possum to
the royal sables' of Russia and the
glorious silver and black fox.
Zig Dealers There
Buyers at these @ales-they arc
held each January, April and Octo-
become, too. from from. many many coun1
German buyers have been among the
more conspicuous foreigners, but
they are largely absent this year.
Still, Ivanoff, a noted Russian buy I
er and seller of rare furs. is at this
sale with collection, Of sables worth |
{. fortune. Ivanoff is a Siberian, AND
the proceeds of his sale are to Zoe |
devoted, for the most part, toward |
stimulating agriculture in Siberia. 4
London and Leipsic used to be the
great fur sale eenters of the world, |
1915. In that year the United States
government officially recognized st. |
Louis as the leading international
center, and accordingly sent its Alas |
at the St. Louis auction. These |
skins formerly had been sent to
London. Also the Japanese govern
ment now sends isealskins to st.
Louis to be sold. ~
The enormous present day market
posts maintained at st. Louis in the
days before the Lewis and 20 Clark
expedition. st. Louis then was the |
farthest outpost of civilization.
TPappers and traders from the north
west annually came down the Mis-
dispose of their goods and to obtain
supplies. After old Pierre LacleGe
came Pierre Chouteau and the Mis-;
souri, Fur company, the earliest rival
of the Hudson Bay company. KS
extended to the. far
reaches OF" the Missouri river up inLo
Minnesota and as far west as Santa
re 1t sent a steamboat up the
supplies for outlying posts and stray
strapperS,. along with money with
which to buy the years catch OF
furs. The departure and the return
IN those days. Finally the Missouri
Fur company united with John ia
cob Astor in the formation of the
merican Fur company, a concern that
covered the entire west in it's scope.
Its influence lasted until about
1850. After that date until. 1906, the
fur trade in and out of st. Louis
was conducted by several.-concerns,
the business sometimes reaching the
value of a million dollars annually.
Fur Deals of 8 1-2 E1il1ions
The January "a ygso 1s1Ss aTGtion yield
week went above 8 IL million dol
lars.
Rows and rows of turs hang i'll
the warehouses. To these ware
houses before, sales go the buyers
for the worlds great fur dealing
llIHS-, 4u6y lHSpSCI anu SIdOS inc
samples of each lot of furs, then
bid on them in bulk, once the auction
opens. At the present auction there
last week some three hundred and
seventy buyers, the largest number
ever attending the sales. 1t is like
any other auction in appearance.
Catalogues of all the various sorts
of furs are printed and distributed,
each lot of furs bearing a partiC-
ular key number. The auction is
held in a big room in which chairs
and desks are provided for each
buyer. These sales often run late
into the night.
Most of the buyers are men. Wo-
men, it is said, rarely are good
judges of undressed furs. However,
there is one woman who always al
tends the sale and helps her hus-
hand in his selections. She is de-
clared to be one of the most expert
tended these sales. There is an
other woman who usually accom-
ranies her father. He is a French
Canadian buyer from Montreal. The
TWO compare their conclusions and
the father, it is said, usually abiGes
by his daughters judgment.
Furs are bringing moro this year
than ever before and that includes
virtually all kinds of furs from the
princely ermine to \the muskrat OF
the southern creeks. There has
been more trapping, too. than fer
several years back. Those two fac
tors have contributed to make th@
present the worlds greatest sale CT
furs.