OUR YORKSHIRE LETTER.

Otago Witness, Issue 3414, 20 August 1919, Page 13

OUR YORKSHIRE LETTER.

PHENOMENAL PRICES PAID FOR COMBED WOOL. (Fbom Oub Special Correspondent.) BRADFORD, June 5." It is not too much to say that all sections of the trade are looking to the future with more or less concern. The question of supplies" does not loom very large in the minds of many, the possibility of being able to get woal through _ the different processes of manufacture being paramount to-day. P» rhaps there were never mow steamers afloat bringing wool from Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa to Great Britain, ihe recent announcement of Sir Arthur Goldfinch that by the end of the year trere would be nearly three million bales landed in English ports surprising everyone. And yet' the prospect of big supplies has so far had no effect upon the position of prices. We are face to face to-day with an" unparalleled level of values. No one can say what tops are really worth, and it has been said with considerable truth that a man to-day could make his own price if he could guarantee the delivery of 64-'s tops within a week. It is common gossip on Bradford Exchange that 9s per lb has been paid for 64's-70's tops, and no surprise is expressed at that. -It is not to-day a question of price, but being able to lay one's hands upon the semi-manu-factured article, and production is apparently of far more importance than the price question. This has never been known m the wool textile trade "for the past 50 j'ears, and what is going to be done, in the future to satisfy export demand is a problem which will have an important effect in the future. HIGHER WAGES AND SMALLER OUTPUT. Tho woolcombers of Bradford have had another sensible advance added to their wages, and they are to-day receiving more money per week than was ever known before. It was high time that the weekly wage of the wool-combing operative met with considerable reform, for that section of _ the trade was undoubtedly the worst paid of any. Those who work for 10 hours on in an atmosphere at which the thermometer stands at SOdeg deserve to be well paid. Thank, goodness the days when women were receiving 12s per week and men workers on the night turn about 20s to 24s are a thing of the past. To-day they are receiving in the neighbourhood of 56s per week, and that is none too much. The crux of the question lies not so much in wages as the output, and one regrets that here there is room for considerable comolaint. A responsible member of the wool section of the Government remarked to the writer last week that the lessened ouput of the merino combs in Bradford was equal to 18 hours per week. That statement may appear to be a little complicated to the average reader. What the speaker meant was that the lessened output of the combs to-day in the merino section was so serious as to amount to a further working of 18 hours per week in order to reach the total output when women as well as men were working hours per week. Of course, this lessened output affects both the day and the night turn, for commission wool-combers reckoned 24 hours per day as being an average working week. Of course, there are two shifts. It does not need the wisdom of a. Solomon to see that before the output of six months .ago is equalled there will have to bo a sensible augmentation of new machinery, a problem which cannot be solved before months, if not years, elapse. All this is tending to cripple the industry, and is bound to seriously affect the wool trade right away from the raw material to the finished fabric. TOPS SCARCE. The natural outcome of the above is that tops are exceedingly scarce, and likely to be. There are topmakcrs in Bradford who will not soil a single pound of top for delivery this side of next November, and somo

have closed their books entirely. This certainly is an important factor, and one that, is going to become more serious as time goes on unless more individuals can be found to mind combs. It is an ascertained fact that the men who have been used to working in this department, and who have been demobilised, cannot be induced to return to their old occupation. They have had a taste of outdoor life; they know the pleasure of being- in the open .air, and havo derived considerable physical benefit therefrom; hence they prefer the lot of a common labourer at is 5d t>er hour rather than go into a broiling mill and receive a smaller weekly wage. Then, too, an Act of Parliament allowing- women to work on the night turn has been revoked, this also crippling the industry still further. The reader will therefore see that there is bound to be a lessened output of tops, and in their great struggle to keep their frames running, spinners are prepared to pay anv price _ providing they can get tops mto their spinning rooms. THE FRENCH TRADE. News from France indicates that more spinning machinery is being got to work, and there is every prospect of a larger demand for wool at no distant date. This certainly is very satisfactory; long may it continue. This also implies that more combing machinery is coming into operation, and before long France must become a keener competitor in the markets of the world for colonial wools, as well as South American. This is as it should be. There is in sight enough wool to satisfy the whole of the machinery of our Allies, and the fact of there being an Antwerp sale, with provision made for export licenses to be obtained, indicates that even Antwerp is making a bid for outside competition. It > is too early as vet to know what is going to bo done by Great Britain and her Allies to Germany and Austria. But the writer maintains that the Central Empires can no more be denied raw materials than we can do without sunshine and fresh air. Germany and Austria, having once signed, the peace terms, must be allowed a fair weight of wool in order to earn something with which to meet their indemnities, and therefore Germany must ultimately become a competitor, and an important one, too. I believe that what Germany will be allowed to take will be coarse qualities, the better wools all being reserved for Great Britain and her Allies, in which America is bound to play an important part. ALLOTTING SEATS. This matter has been considered by the British Wool Federation as it relates to the seats occupied by buyers at the London sales. It is a fact that some of the largest buyers have no front seat, and complain bitterly that they have to suffer accordingly. _ There is no doubt that anyone occupying a seat on the three front benches stands a far better chance of commanding the attention of the auctioneer when bidding than those sitting further back. This matter came up for consideration at a meeting of the above association' last Monday, when strong representations were decided upon and reforms strongly urged. It is high time that both selling brokers and buyers' representatives had a conference and discussed this important matter. There is room for reform, although certain firms are bound to be offended when they are asked to leave their present snug positions, and allow larger firms to occupy their seats. This is not hitting at anybody, but is simply an expression of a desire to let the law of cause and effect operate, as it always should. Then, too, one wonders where the German contingent ■ will sit when they reassemble in Coleman Street Wool Exchange. There are bound to be many •new faces from the Fatherland, and they will never be allowed preference over British, French, Italian, and American buyers. Surely it is useless on the part of any selling broker with a German clientele to urge their claims for a front rank position. They should be called upon to occupy.. a. secondary position, and preference be given to those whose friends or relatives have fought and died to maintain their integrity of the world and the free dom of humanity.