SELLING MY WOOL

Otago Witness, Issue 2808, 8 January 1908, Page 21

SELLING MY WOOL

[ ..By Otjtback. '""Value your" fleece wool at a shilling offering clip this week." So read the wir< handed to me by my wife on reaching the homestead after a trip out to the bacli' paddock, to see if the . train' had put an^ ■ water in t -the tank, which was so. close wj my. "neighbour's boundary as to 'cause that worthy individual to think, h$ 'had as mucH right; to l it as myself. •' .' ' '• 'This^ was" a ; ''facer indeed. Twelyepenee for the Gum Creek wool, the best clip I had ever ~ grown, beautifully bright, absolutely free from fault, and classed by, myself. " ' - . ■ r My neighbour jiist- across the fence had reoentiy received ] hie , returns of 14d for, thin.j stuff, with no < breeding; and ■ a touch 1 of crossbred, cut from sheep ■fch-afc ihad jaet managed to exist j while mine,- all 'six-tooth ,w.eth<srs, had. been fat fight through, the year. Words 'failed to express . the opinion I had of my brokers .at .that, moment, and a .visit to the waterhag, which was empty, did not put matters in any better light. \ * There, remained but one thing to do, and that was to run down to town and just 'talk to my agents in a plain, convincing , way, that" did -not admit of translation 3 h* * ordinary black ink. Unluckily, it was rac» j time, and I hate being -crowded} but I I must put up with that for "the honour of j Gum Creek^ .and if by chance I happened j on the course I must make 'the best of i% and put in a, day or so. Besides, on* might pick, up a pound ,or two, as th» j big race on paper was a certainty for th« brown horse bred across the range at th« . back of . the house, and only a few mile* .away as the icrow flies. So, as Gordon says, "there was bridling with hurry an<f saddling with haste," for it was a long ride to catch the early"local train'that con» neoted with the new gorgeous- expreeaw After a parting" injunction ' to my partnet in life to "look- after the welfare of th« rabbit^inspector, who', I heard, was in th« district, and to make Jack' keep a' careful eye on the grey mare, a descendant of Snowden's, # who was daily expected to ad<? to the equine population of the district, 1 cantered away down the flat, with just » glance at the, valise to see *if the usual antidote* was ~ in? its place. '. -• <, -' 1-v managed to reach ' the '-little halfway "£uJ>"_ju6fc before the inmates had 'retired for the night, and my smouldering indignation, was fanned, into fresh flam© whenfilarke,. representing another wool firm than ''the one I, was .doing, business with, -showed me a list of the prices his firm had been srettinjr. - • -

I quite forgot to ask what district they came , from,'-', but inwardly \ promised .^ounji M'Bwan' a warm, recepticn^next year 7 , ' when he came round, if his firm could not d» better than a paltry bob for the beat bit of stuff that eyer came of Gum Creek. On reaching the station platform in th« early' morning, *T met several men on th« same errand as myself, and the weary two hours' trip to the main line was devoted to diecussing rabbits and the shortcomings ,of agents. Arrived at the junction, we joined another contingent, among them one thirsty individual, who did not- neglect a " sin'gto chance at, any of T the' refreshment stations, and who ultimately reached'town thoroughly determined to wipe the floor with thesa foreign coves who came out here to get ou* Australian wool at their own price.. ' Next morning early found nic waiting at the capacious warehouses. Had no sooner got out of the lift than ,1 met M'Ewan, who greeted me ., with, "'"Hullo,"' old chap, down for the races?" and it took some- time to disabuse his' mind of that idea. Finally h« exhausted, his taleof/the great gallop pu^

-by -the- favourite the morning beforehand nalising- 1 "was in earnest whisked me -off >fch# manager, who was "very< anxious to xxnr if the late r*ina- had done me any jpod. and seemed inolined to talk on any Sbjeot except that wbicß moot nearly conflrned myself. A. ttooky individual, whoso •Soent betrayed him. a* not bering Austxalianbffrp. Treating tome arrangement that (ooked like %.- cross between a khnonk and I motor ooa*. was then introduced aj . "our T*luer," *2ia «r* a^ain mounted io tho 'Sbow coom. fi«ro \r* mMtk atyiieroua faxdlvidaaia »or« tw less attis«4 "^* f* l * Kaide, who weretomby onge «ia fa Juiilinp; handfule of WOqI

throwing -them ..down. _on the floor for the next man to~walk on. These men were, pointed out to> me, in a, whisper, as' Mr So-and-so, from America, or France, or -Germany, and some ..tall figures ware hurled at me as to the number of bales each one -bought, and his almost superhuman knowledge of yields and values uatil my brain, fairly reeled.

After walking up "and down miles of wool bales, or so it seemed to me, listening to a long dissertation, irom the valuer on the disquieting influence of the American financial crisis on the world in general and'wool -values in particular, we stopped in front of corns dingy-looking wool, that only a oArtrsJ. examination of the. balei

convinced- me was my .own- treasured Gum Creek clip of 1907. "Fairly good!" said the valuer, in answer to my query, as he absently unrolled a belly out of one of the bales, the only one that was not taken off, but very heavy in condition, although the extra' weight should make up for the reduced price on that account. It was not broad enough for America, even if it was lighter, nor fine enough for the Continent, and I might- think my6elf lucky if Bradford, came it. In fact, it seemed to have no qualities at all, and was a kind of. pariah among all the other wools, and my spirits fell to zero ; all the fine things I had meant to say vanished iu/a tJua. *>k as I listened, to. the

indiotment of its shortcomings, which seemed to be heinous crimes in the eyes of its judge. Luokily M'Ewan came to the rescue, and I meekly aesented when he suggested we should have a. look at the luncheon-room, where the Ishmaelite feeling -that had invaded my being gradually died away. Later on we went up town to the Wool Exchange, dodging motor-cars of such violent colours that would make the old-time bushman convinced he had "them." Long before that stage had been reached, and 1 after another lift, found ourselves at the auction-room.

Here I was jammed, with some hundred other unoffending wool-growers, with their wiv«S and friends, into a stuffy attic-sort of loft, which, on a real hpt^day, must be unbearable, and glared at by an overpowering official in uniform, who strictly admonished ua In (severe tones to keep 6ilenoe during the salj. After collecting my senses eomewhat= I "saw fchac we were looking down- upon a glorified operating-room, tier after tier of seate, rising high up in the building, facing a" rostrum, oocuped.by a debonnair-looking' individual, supported" by ' sprucely-attire4 ■ young men on either side. I I 'had just noticed the hands of the j clock pointing to 3 p.m., when a fearful yell arose, and for the next few minutes pandemonium '.reigned supreme.' A course of football training had not" prepared me for 6uch.a wonderful performance by the human throat as that which was now in full blast, -each lull in . the uproar being succeeded by a more violent outburst. Some time since I had been induced by a musical friend to attend a Wagnerian concert, the memory of which I shall retain for ever, but this knocked that hollow, and through the midst of it all the -imperturbable individual in the box kept smiling and occasionally pointing at some foreignJooking individual, who, with both hands flung out in front of him, was wildly beating the air and indulging in a prolonged high C that would put a respectable dingo to shameFinally quietnees was restored, and I was just wondering when the Gum Creek wool would be put up when young M'Ewan appeared at my elbow and shook hands in the most' effusive manner. " Splendid sale, old man ; wool did much better, than we expected. Good cable just out from Home !" were a few expressions I managed to grasp, while h$ pointed to I the catalogue he carried, where X saw 14c! scribbled against the top lot of my wool. Thereat the manager and valuer both showed up, and congratulated me "on my success and 'their judgment, and. finally led me away for some liquid refreshment, • of which I stood in much 'need after the sweating chamber I had just left. - Everything 1 came out satisfactorily' my position -was vindicated,- the . reputation of my clip, thanks "to . some change in tops (could" they mean .Brennan'e gyroscope?) had' been upheld, and the rams I had put-^ chased at the Melbourne sales were not atiitethe rubbish'- the local ram-breeder had pronounced "them to be. - ■ , It, therefore, was. quite in accordance with the fitness of "" things that I 'should find my way out to Flemington, drop my 'money on the favourite,"* lose my watch in the crowd, and stand up in a packed compartment of the express most of the 'way - back. — Melbourne Argus.