OUR YORKSHIRE LETTER

Otago Witness, Issue 2647, 7 December 1904, Page 8

OUR YORKSHIRE LETTER

(By Ottb Special Cobbesfondent.) BRADFORD, October 7* 'A FEW FACTS FOR GROWERS. ■ A good deal of attention seems to bo centred around the approaching new Aus- \ faalian clip, end users her© are already speculating 'as to \ what it is going to be- , like in point of quality and condition. The drought the last few years has played »ad havoc "with many a. well-known New South Wales clip, and buyers whom we could mention who have a "pet" notion and particular liking for certain marks were sadly disappointed this last season. However, the' frequent reports to hand ifrom Australia respecting the excellent season which has been experienced since last shearing have raised! the hopes of buyers that they will be treated this next year to some excellent grown wools, and spinners will be none the less pleased' at being able to receive wool with more elasticity and spm-

ning property about 'it. It goes without saying that a badly nourished wool is always devoid of life 'and vigour, and when , that is bo it is a well-known fact that such ; wool means a greater loss in manipulation, the yarns and pieces also being like- | wise d&ficient in strength and soundness. ! Tender, mushy wools make tender pieces, j and when the latter are returned with the 1 buyer's thumb nails having been put I through the pieces, it is frequently a seri- ' oti3 matter to the men in charge. It is a remarkable fact that very seldom indeed do we meet with tender wools from New Zealand, the tendency b&ing to find excessive heaviness in grease, which seldom means anything but a good, sound^jstapl© of wool. Reports tell us that we" may expect plenty of seed and burr from Australia, and if that is so, growers will do well to skirt their fleeces deeply, and try | to market their combing and clothing with jas little seed and burr as possible. We have lately come across growers who seem to think that vegetable, matter can be treated with impunity, and that in the process of manufacture it can be dealt with very easily. Such a state of affairs exists nowhere, for seed and burr are still troublesome, are expensive in removal, and they cannot always be removod' without injury more or less in the colour and strength of' the, wool; Carbonising 10-day can be done very well by several firms, but no one likes -to resort to that process when it can ' b© dispensed with, and this .is :an item that needs impressing on .growers at a time like this. I do not know any section of the Bradford trade in "whick grumbling is heard so persistently as it is with our yarn' spinners, and their position is iuidcmbted'ly difficult in the extreme. They have fought an up-hill battle 'for months past, simply because raw material has advanced much quicker than yarn prices, and among those shippers wßto do a Continental trade,' their "offerings and takings have been sensibly below even normal. I was talking on Thursday to the manager of a large spinner whose principal "died a short time batik, and left over £200.000. The man's success had been largely due Jto his manager's ability, and he informed me that .they oould stir; no way and) found it impossible to make ends tie — a different experience to the pas*. He put it like this : "We are wanting 19d for our 2/32's, and v.c are offered lt?£d, consequently we cannot stir." That firm's position is about idehtical with nine out of every ten, and in face of wool being dearer they find their hands- ti&d. _We have here in Bradford! a, good many" ""commission -yarn * spinners, individuals who rent room and ; | power and spin, on commission for any man j who will send in his- top?.- The rent paid :is3s 6d per spindle run or stand. That ' being the case, it is imperative that these I me-n keep their spindCes going, otherwise | they' will be in the wrong box at the y&ar- • t end. Naturally there is a good deal of cut- { I ting to obtain work, these commission men j j arguing that they had better accept a low : i price, ~ s even, if the "returns only pay them j jat the rate of -2s 6d' per spindle. Any man '. had better run at- the rate of 2s 6d' than-; stand -altogether, and pay-3s 6d ; and yarn ' merchants, being -able, -to grind these com- j mission men in this way, are able to sell { „. their .yariis-at less money than the ' ordinary j spinner with his own big plant. Another ! man gave me a quotation that the 40's tops j hb firm bought he could not buy to-day ! under 14£ d, and for the.yarn spun from those \ i tops h& "was wanting IBJd, but 19d was all I he could oonimaiid 1 . A representative of j a I>ig yarn-exporting house pu.t the mat- j ter thus: Said he, "Yarn fpinners y»nt J work, and for a man with' an order,' anil i , particulars down, 'with a speedy delivery, he ' can buy' at his own price. "~ r London haa j just shown that the raw material cannot ! be -bought for any less, consequently I can i find very few who seem, disposed to accept ' contracts at lower quotations than they are to-day. If men were certain that \rool" val«£a.. wereK going to keep up at their present level"/ I have -no__d'oubt .some fair orders would' be placed; but who knows what the future has in stoVe? WOOL GROWING FIRMER. . _ Th& wool market to-day i 3 in. a very interesting condition, though things are moving, in some directions a little slowly. There is no gainsaying the fact that Bradford so far has, not come up to the standard of London, though the effects of the recent auctions are plainly to be seen. There is about the market an increased! firmness on the part of all holders of the raw- material, and in view of certain developments which are* taking place, wool • doe* not seem likely^ Hb <£& 'any,, cheaper 1 for a long time" to comfe'. Mof* khaki orders "are stirring, and this is ' a "satisfactory sign to all sellers of the raw material; and ' there- continues- to be- a good" call for Vool in manufacturing districts, as -well as export. If consumption can be guaran- j teed there is far less danger about prices easing, while there is a growing tendency to regard- the future with - feelings of .complacency than what obtained a month i ago. There is. still some difficulty in fixing up yarn contracts, both" in merino 1 .and! crossbred' qualities, spinners refusing • to accept any less than what they quoted j 1 three weeks ago. There is no doubt that ; foreign hous&s are going to buy as little ; as ever' they possibly can, preferring to go from hand to mouth, end await developments. There is certainly a more healthy > feeling abroad as the direct result of London s verdict, and! several orders which • were hanging fire have been consummated now that no relief can be expected on She question of price. Botany spinners, are a little busier tha"n what they were ; andi merincs are certainly going into con'- • sumption on a larger scale. Some topmakers are asiking 24£ d for a super 60's top; but such a price cannot possibly be made, the difficulty of topmakers being to produce them at less. But even at that > figure spinners say that they are a full - penny too much when compared with ther priee3 offered' by manufacturers* for the j, spun yarn, and the fact of there being on the market some lower-priced yarns which are being made to come in is rather oh&ck1 ing prices. Crossbrede are very sound, i good support being forthcoming from home I and foreign markets. The leng vacation - which confronts the trade before the next r serie3 begin is a good 1 "bull" factor, and , as consumption shows a ve-ry full main- - tenance, holders of the raw material are i » confident of making still higher prices. I j Mohair keeps very quiet indeed.

The Waihemo County Council expended £181 103 for small birds' eggs and nests during the past year.