THE LAND.

Auckland Star, Volume LV, Issue 248, 18 October 1924, Page 56 (Supplement)

THE LAND.

HANDLING THE WOOL-CLIP. CLASSING THE WOOL. BIVNTNO AXD GROUPING.

(By "ANCHORITE.")

A distinct modern innovation lor the be.nefit of the small sheep farmer is that recently introduced by what is known as tbe and binning systems. "Grouping" is a terra applied to any number of bales of wool which have been baled as one line for sale by wool auctioneers or broken. For instance, the wool producer may have one or two bales of line quality fleece-wool, which he classes as firstgrades—f o hie particular clip; the same number of bales of coarser wool, which ha classes as second-grade; say one bale of dingy wool; and one each of locks, belly wool, pieces, and stained wool. When those bales arrive at the wool stores they are opened up by the broker, who then groups them with utber bales of the same quality. The term '•binning" is applied to any wool which has been consigned by the grower for his selling agents to either skirt or class or class only. Upon the arrival of such a consignment at the wool stores the fleeces are removed iro-m the original bales, and are then skirted and classed in the bin 9 according to quality, strength, yield, colour, and general condition. When the skirting has been done correctly at the shearing shed (where this work should ahvaye be done) the broker lias merely to class and rebale the clip. By this method the clip is properly got up into even lines prior to its being offered at auction, and if a grower has only a small number of sheep, consisting of mixed breeds and cross-breeds, these fleeces are weighed out, classed into their respective bins and then baled from those particular bins as a uniform grade. .Although a flock owner may have, say, only half a dozen Southdown fleeces in his clip, these fleeces are classed with Southdown wool from other consignments, after which each line is grouped in preparation for the auction at the wool sales. Small farmers would be well advised to have their clips treated by this method, as it is to their very distinct advantage to do. so, because the grouped lines of wool are even in condition and quality, and the wool buyers can make their calculations and valuations easily, and will invariably bid for such offerings with a greater degree of confidence than if all the various qualities of a farmer's consignment were contained in each bale. Uniform Flocks Desirable. Flock owners could save a great deal of thi-s extra classing of their clips if they would breed and keep to only one or two classes of cheep, thus reducing the number of classes to a minimum and enabling the clip to be put up in more generous lines. Frequently wool growers are puzzled as to -why their clothing wool realises almost the same prices as combing grades. The answer is that each class of wool has its own individual buyers. Buyers for worsted manufacturers require a wool with character and strength—chjaracte'r to give it elasticity and strength in order that it will stand the pull of the combing machine. Tender-fibred or weak wool is of no use to a worsted manufacturer. Buyers for other purposes are more "free and easy," as their manufacturers can work up various classes of wool which will come under the name of "clothing" wool. Dingy Wool. In unfavourable wool-growing seaeons a farmer's whole clip may be classed as "dingy," and in such a case, where there is a uniform class of sheep on the holding, two classes should be made of the fleece wool. One class should be made of the weakest and tendereet fleeces, and the other should embody all the strong fleeces which will stand the tension of the combing machines of the manufacturers. The former would be classed as "dingy clothing" and the latter as "dingy combing." Where the flock is a mixed one of "dingy wool" each line should be kept separate, and marked in the following manner on bales:—"Crossbred dingy,' , "halfbred dingy," "Merino dingy," and similar markings, according to the various breeds on the property. Seedy Wool. All seedy wool should be kept distinctly apart from clean fleeces, or indeed any clean class of wool. When sheep are shorn late in the season it frequently happens that the whole of the clip is seedy, and when there is only one breed of cheep to be dealt with two classes should bo made, one containing the fleeces which are only slightly affected, and the other those which are impregnated with seed (burr or hutiwai, or whatever particular seed-weed the sheep have been in contact with. The former should be entered in the wool book as "slightly seedy," and the latter as "very seedy." When the sheep are of mixed breeds, and all the wool badly affected with seed, each breed should be kept separate from the others, and entered according to whichever line it Tbelongs, such as "eeedy merino," Lincoln cross," "seedy Romney Marsh," "seedy Romney cross.' , and so forth. The skirtings should be classed as "seedy belly wool," "seedy stained pieces," "seedy locks" and "seedy fleece," respectively. _ Fanners can, however, avoid the loss and annoyance of seedy wool if they take the precaution of shearing their flocks before the seeds ripen. On badly infected country sheep should be shorn early in November, before the hutiwai (or burr) is provided with its clinging spikes. Sheep sliorn at this period will parry little or any seedy wool. Pressing the Wool. In cases where there are not enough fleeces to make a lightweight bale,, the farmer should skirt the fleeces andT'clasa them in two grades—the coarser-fibred wool into one lot and J.he finer fibred fllceces into the other lot. The coarse fleeces should then be put at the bottom of the bale and a piece of sacking placed on top of them. The fined wool may be then placed on top of these and the bale sewed up. In branding bales a distinct mark must be made on each •ide of the bale, at the spot where the

division comes between the two cam- , plea, and each class marked correctly. The shearing season of 1923-24 made a record as regards the number of woolgrowers who had their clips properly classed for auction, -with handsome ultimate profit to themselves. There is, however, still much to be done in this respect, and the aim of all sheep-owners should be to skirt and class their wool to the very best advantage. There are several ways in which this may be done-—by the wool-broking firms, the employment of a wool classer, or the younger farmers could make a careful study of the sub,je<?t, and thus learn to do the -work fairly correctly themselves. On present indications wool is a promising proposition, and high prices may be expected from this product for some years to come, which should hearten farmers to prepare their clips for sale in the most attractive manner.