Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1921-01-25
OUR THREATENED
SHEEP INDUSTRY
WASHINGTON, D. c., Jan. 21.-What
w threatens this country today, as re-
By Frederic j. Haskin


which it would take many years to repair
This point was brought out by D. A. Spen-
Ger of the bureau of animal industry here.
who has charge of the government work in
improving breeds of sheep.
Wool prices have been inordinately 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 inclined to
say 1.-THE wool-growers have had several
good years. They should now be able to
weather little adversely"
The answer to this seems 20 be that they
are not able to weather the period Of adver-
sty which they now must face, without SUB
stantial help of some kind.
The wool-grower, according to govern
ment men, did not make large profits during
the war. In fact, the grower o. any commod-
ity in this country seldoL makes large profits,
unless he is also broker or dealer or some
kind 1t is the nature of the industrial sys-
tenn that the largest profits are made by dis
tributors not producers.
Thus wool before the war was bringing
the producer about 80 cents pound. Dur
ing the war it brought him about 65 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
we're fairly prosperous for two or three years.
few of the large operators perhaps MADE
big money. Some growers, by reason OF
unfavorable weather conditions, lost money.
But whatever may have happened to Tor
ltunate or unfortunate individuals the wool
growers as class did not make more than
a fair percentage on their investments.
Dead Market
Then came the drop in the price Of wool.
Wool is now hard to sell at any price, and 70
cents pound is considered a good price. But
the Wool-groWer can scarcely produce WOOL at
that figure All last winter his expenses OF
production were at a wartime level. In ad-
dition to that, in many sections he FACED I'M
favorable weather conditions. Now his WOOL
clip for the year cannot be sold at anywhere
near what it cost him to produce it, II 1t can
be sold at all. At the same time, he mas not
money enough to stay out of the market I'M
til conditions improve.
Especially is this true when you CONSIDER
how uncertain it is when conditions Will I'M
prove 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 a
market in this country because Europe mas
not money enough to buy it. Wool can per
haps be produced somewhat 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-to the i'm
poverishment of Europe and to the rate OF
exchange.
For example, American buyers can now
buy wool in New Zealand for 28 cents
pound But the rate of exchange is such that
about 20 cents in American money will buy
a pound of wool in New Zealand. Hence
American buyers are buying the New Yea
land wool and storing it against the rise In
price which must eventually come Anc the
American wool-grower cannot produce wool
at 20 cents a pound, much less sell IL Ior
that
Sheep Men Quit
What is the result? The result is that
sheep men are going out of the sheep Dusl.
ness that we are being put in the way OF
becoming dependent upon 1mportat1ons TOT
our wool.
Before the war, the sheep industry in this
country faced difficulties Western range
areas were being cut down by the taking up
of homesteads for farming. The wool IN
dustry faced a change 1t was evident that
sheep had to be raised on smaller areas OF
range, and had to be given more fodder. In
order to make this pay, the breeds had to be
improved, so that each sheep would produce
more wool, and so pay for his keep. rms
process, was going forward nicely before ana
during the war. Sheep men VIII made a III
| tie more money than usual were investing 1t
oCOSAA
At the government sheep experiment station
at Dubois, Idaho experiments were being
conducted in the production of type OF
sheep which should combine as far as pos
sible the hardwood of the native stock with
wool producing qualities Of the pure-bred
sheep Some success had been attained along
| that line, and the more enterpr1s1ng sheep
men were following the government lead.
Now all of this slow and careful work to-
ward putting the American wool-growing in
dustry on a permanent and scientific basic is
being rapidly undone. Sheep men are send
ing their sheep, blooded and otherwise, to
the slaughter house. Most of them can do
nothing else They have got to quit raising
sheep and raise something else, or take jobs
| One man recently sold his herd of 2,O0O
sheep. He had no choice. He could not sell
his wool. He could not stay in the sheep
business and continue to eat. So he sold his
sheep for about $2.10 head. When all ex-
penses had been paid he had about 35 cents
head for his sheep. This was not profit.
It was his net return on sheep which 1t had
cost him nine or ten dollars head to raise.
| He was ruined man.
Sheep Being Slaughtered
| And not only little herds like this one, but
| large herds of 10 and 20 thousand sheep are
being wiped out of existence. 1t Is this fact
which constitutes a crisis in the American
wool industry. The wool-groWer is the chief
sufferer But the whole country will suffer II
such a valuable economic asset as its WOOL
growing industry is damaged as badly as now
seems inevitable.
| 1t is emphasized that the question is not
primarily question Of tariff. The wool SIT
uation is due to various abnormal conditions
which grew out of the war. It is due to over