Grainger County news. (Rutledge, Tenn.) 1917-current, 1921-02-09
'LOV PRICE Of WOOL
BY Frederick J. Haskin


wool and few buyers at any price,
is damage to the wool-growing in
dustry in the United States which it
would take many years to repair.
This point was brought out by ID.
A. Spencer of the bureau Of animal
industry here, who has charge of the
government work in improving
breeds of sheep.
Wool prices have been inordinate-
ly high for several years. Now at
last they have come down, forcing
the price of clothing down with
them.
LET them stay down." you are in
clined to say: 1.-THE wool-growers
have had several good years. They
should now be able to weather a lit
tie adversely"
The answer to this seems to be
that they are not able to weather the
period of adversely which they now
must face, without substantial help
of some kind
The wool-grower, according to
government men, did not make large
profits during the war. In fact, the
grower of any commodity in this
country seldom makes large profits,
unless he is also a broker or dealer
of some kind. 1t is the nature of
the industrial system that the largest
products are made by distributors,
not producers.
Thus wool before the war was
bringing the producer about 30
cents a pound. During the war it
brought him about IS cents for the
same grade. But at the same time
the wages he had to pay to herders,
the price of feeds, and all the other
expenses doubled or more than doub-
led. Most of the growers were fair
~ prosperous for two or three years.
A few of the large operators perhaps
made good money. Some growers,
by reason of unfavorable weather
conditions, lost money. But whatever
may have happened to fortunate or
unfortunate individuals, the WOOL
growers as a class did not make
more than fair percentage on their
investments.
A Dead Market
Then came the drop in the pricee
of wool. Wool is now hard to sell
at any price, and 25 cents a pound
is considered good price. But the
wool-grower can scarcely produce
wool at that figure. All last winter
his expenses of production were at
wartime level In addition to that,
in many sections~he faced unfavor-
able weather conditions. Now his
wool crop for the year cannot be sold
at anywhere near what it cost him
to produce it, if it can be sold at all.
At the same time, he has not money
enough to stay out of the market
until conditions improve.
Especially is this true when you
consider how uncertain it is when
conditions will improve. 1t is said
that there is enough wool in this
country now to supply all of our
needs for nearly two years. And,
with wool on the free list, more wool
is pouring into the country all the
time. In Australia, in the Argentine
in South Africa, there are enormous
quantities of wool which seek mar
ket in this country because Europe
has not money enough to buy it.
Wool can perhaps be produced some.
what more cheaply in those countries
than in this, but primarily the flow
of foreign wool to this country is due
to conditions created by the war-tc
the impoverishment of Europe and tt
the rate of exchange.
For example, American buyers car
now buy wool in New Zealand fol
% cents a pound. But the rate Of
exchange is such taht about 20 cents
in American money will buy pounc
of wool in New Zealand. Hence
American buyers are buying the
New Zealand wool and storing i
against the rise in price which mus
ventually come. And the American
wool-grower cannot produce wool a
20 cents a pound, much less sell i
for that.
Sheep Men Quit
What is the result? The result il
that sheep men are going out of thu
sheep business, that We are being
put in the way of becoming depend
Before the war, the sheep indus
LTy Ill LllS COuIlCIy AdSCO uilIlSuiCico
Western rangeareas were being eu
down by the taking up of homestead
for farming. The wool industry fac
ed a change. 1t was evident tina
sheep had to be raised on smalle
areas of range, and had to be givel
more fodder. In order to make thi
pay, the breeds had to be improved
so that each sheep would produce
more wool, and so pay for his keep
This process was going forward nice
ly before and during the war. Sheel
men who made little more none.
than usual were investing it in pur
( blooded rams to improve their stock
At the government station at Dubois
Idaho, experiments were being con
Quoted in the production of type O
sheep which should combine as ia
as possible the hardihood of the ma
tive stock with the wool-producins
qualities of the pure-bred sheer
Some success had been attaine'
along that line, and the more enter
prising sheep men were following tn
government lead.
Now all of this slow and careful