WOOL CLASSING

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 7301, 3 December 1910, Page 2

WOOL CLASSING

THE BENEFIT TO THE GROWER. The failure to market wool to advantage constitutes the greatest leakage in tuts wool-growing industry, and trie loss is relatively just as great to the small | as to tno large grower. A striking instance of the benefit of classing was j afforded at the local sale of last Mon- | day. A small Manawatu clip of twenty- \ ,tuo bales sold unclassed last year" at• lOd. The condition wd then better, and being very suitable from a quality view point for the American trade, appealed to the local speculator, who, by skirting and classing, could procure a decent line of flet-ce wool to turn oyer to American operators. This year, with a rather weaker demand for* this . particular wool; the beet wool of. the lino readied ll£d, and taking the return over all tho grower made just on £GO more than last year, and this while he anticij>ated a loss. Last season the fleeces were baled just as they came off the sheep’s back and were marketed in the ono line. This season they were prepared for sale by an expert, Mr C. L. ./aggar, a Sydney claSser, who made up the clip in order to demonstrate the value of classing, whatever size the line. The clip was sorted as follows: —AAA crossbred, 4 bales, 44's to- Id’s, AA, medium to strong crossbred, 6 bales, 40's, 10|d; A, cotted crossbred; 4 bales, 36’s to 40’s, 9jd j pieces, skirts from first two classes, B£-d; A‘and B, cast of broken, shabby and slightly seedy fleeces (sold as a star lot), D£d; bellies, 2 bales,' 7fd; picked locks, 1 bale, 4jd. The lino was described as a Lincoln-Roiuney crossbred. The condition was light and inclined to be a little dry; practically free from seed; the character of the wool was irregular, bn account of it throwing to the Lincoln on one; hand and the^Romney on the other; the colour was generally good, but net too lustrous; 'the two finer classes had a ©oft, kind touch; the clip was well skirted, in the alirst two classes; the A, or ootted bale,i ;was not so deeply skirted, having only the bellies and dirty tips taken blit; tho pieces wexe a very good lino, being 1 of good length and. a nice colour,, indi-. cated by the price realised,- Bjdj the bellies were nice clean "spreads”; the locks were picked table and floor ; locks blended with the stained pieces; the whole clip opened iip in very nice-con-dition. .

The prices realised provide a striking demonstration of the economic value of presenting, wool in a manner which will capture the full force of the buying power in the saleroom. Not only is such a line made suitable for all sections of* trade, but wlien'buyers come to such a line in,tlieir work of valuing they have confidence in competing for it, and general confidence , begets competition, the best; means of- securing limit values, is, of course, obvious that when a hno is unclassed the price of the lowest grade is the price of the. line; .and it is suchwool that is generally left to the dealer, who thus is afforded- a chance of-making a profit by 'doing .work which, the., farmer has .failed to do. ; • ; -V Of course there, is classing and’ classing, _and < if the full benefit of proper; classification is to “be ■ secured the work must Ije'.done, systematically', and ..well. ■ There vi&ffh' danger-•ih> over classing, for while, it is fatal to proper .value s to bale varying'..qualities together. tß© aim should be «to make f ; aß big lines' as pbssible, consistent with, evenness of quality; and to thereby attract the attention, of the best operators. Where a smaJU line is made 'up into -a big: collection- of, say, single and two bale lots, the leading buyers not inclined to compete’and the wool is .left to the locals operator and dealer. ' .. • '..• r'-.- v :