Enlightened Wool Growers

Enlightened Wool Growers.

New York Sheep Men Discover That the Wool Tariff Is a Delusion.

The farmers are beginning to understand this matter. The Wool Growers and Sheep Breeders' association, of Ontario and Livingston counties, in New York, is one of the oldest and strongest and most representative organizations of that kind in the United States. There, sir, is one of the great centers of the fine wool growing and sheep breeding industries. The members of that association are in the main Republicans. They were protectionists. They are so now on everything but wool--the one thing they know about.

But when they got together and looked each other in the face in January, 1891, they concluded to stop political wool growing and to look at that matter in a practical way. They had not neglected their political duties as they saw them. They had only a short time before elected to represent them from Ontario county Mr. Raines, and from Livingston Mr. Wadsworth. But when these wool growers and sheep breeders got together after election, and their party was not at stake and all they had to consider was the wool business, here is the conclusion to which they cause:

Whereas, It has been the policy in the past for this association to annually pass stereotyped resolutions praying congress to restore the wool duty of 1867 or its equivalent; and

Whereas, This association finally recognizes the unsoundness of its past position on this question, and, ever ready to correct any error into which it may have fallen, we beg leave to submit the following:

First--We recognize that the wool duty is a delusion and a snare to the wool growers, and that it has been largely instrumental in driving to the wall an industry it was calculated to benefit.

Second--Prior to 1867, under the various changes of the wool duties, the price of wool fluctuated not in sympathy with the tariff, but by reason of the ever controlling law of demand and supply, the grower having received high prices and low prices under high tariffs, and, conversely, low prices and high prices under low tariffs.

Third--The success of the wool grower depends on the success of the woolen manufacturer, while the American manufacturer is seriously handicapped by reason of being compelled to pay exorbitant tariff taxes on every pound of clothing wool imported for necessary admixture, while all foreign countries of any consequence have the benefit of free wool, and are thus enabled to undersell the manufacturers.

Fourth--The great wool tariff of 1867 resulted in driving from the right chief wool producing states--for whose special benefit said tariff was conceived and passed--more than 50 per cent, of their sheep in a single decade, while the price of wool declined in a nearly corresponding ratio.

Fifth--The importation of foreign wool increased from about 26,000,000 pounds in 1867 to more than 126,000,000 pounds in 1871, just four years succeeding the highest duty ever imposed on wool and woolens.

Sixth--During eight of the past eighteen years the foreign price of imported clothing wools at the last port of export actually exceeded the price of our domestic fleece in the markets of Boston, New York or Philadelphia, while in no single year did the domestic wools bring the foreign price, plus the duty.

Seventh--England, France and Germany are the only three countries in the world that export woolen manufactures in excess of the imports of raw wool; in other words, these countries by admitting wool free have created a demand for their home wool in excess of all wools required to clothe their people, and after giving employment to labor export more wool than they have imported. The United States, on the other hand, by imposing a high duty on raw wool has not only destroyed our export trade, but so throttled our manufacturers as to ruin the market for domestic fleece and give to the English, French and German manufacturers the cream of our markets for cloths.

Eighth--The free importation of raw wool into the United States would knock out the imports of woolen goods, and would retrieve the present depressed state of our own manufacturers, thus giving employment to labor here and create an increased demand for our strong wools for necessary admixture.

Ninth--Recognizing the truth of the above facts, therefore, we, the members of the Ontario and Livingston Sheep Breeders and Wool Growers' association, in convention assembled, most respectfully petition congress to immediately place wool and woolen manufacturers on the free list, in order that their industries may again thrive and assume the magnitude commensurate with a nation of 63,000,000 of people.

--Speech of Hon. John De Witt Warner in Congress.