Bee
The Omaha
unday
MAGAZINE
MAGAZINE
VOL. XLI-NO. 24.
Flockmasters and Tariff pxperts Coming
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n live shsep ccmo to Omaha to b
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ab! la tha world. So tho ..onal
vccl Croer3' association . . 11 feel
entire. j ai home when tl-a iorty-
N eighth annual convention mutia hera
December 14, 1", tnd 16.
Eeijlnnlnc on December 13, a day ahead of
the wool growers, the National Mid-Winter Sheep
Bhow will open in Omaha. Yhile the national offi
cers will run the wcol srowers' convention, local
men are in chargo of the sheep show arrungements
Hugo H. Brnndeis Is chairman (of the exscutiv
committee, W. H. Buchoh is treasurer and A. F.
Btryker is secretary. Other committee chairmen
ere: Finance, Arthur, C. Smith; arrangements, E.
Buckingham; exhibits, W. II. Bucholz; show, T. B.
Mcpherson. Prize sheep from every section of tho
country will compete in this show for ?4,300 In
cosh and other valuable premiums.
Since the Omaha wool warehouse was estab
lished in 1908 this market has attracted more and
moro attention from the flock masters of tho west.
Tho Opaha varebouso has a capacity of 5,000,000
l ounds and at tho present time there is in storage
3,000,000 rounds of western wool "in the grease."
The cleaning end srourifig is done in Chicago and
Bo6tcn, the Utter roir.t getting most of the Omaha
wool when it goes east.
"Wo have been heavily handicapped by dis
crimination in freight rates," said C. H. King,
manager of the Omaha warehouse. "Mr. McVann
of the traT.c bureau and myself have but recently
returned from Chicago, where we had a hearings
before the Int'Tsfate Commerce commission on this
point. At present tile wool rate runs to the Missis
sippi river, and we are, asking to have the rate
broko at the Missouri river instead. If we can get
this freight rate corrected It will belp very ma- .
terially to make the Omaha wool market what it
should be. Then it will be but a question of time
until Omaha will have woolen mills, because here
Is the natural centralizing and distributing point
for the wool grown In the west. At present a
woolen mill in St. Joseph and another In Minne
apolis are doing a good business." ;
The national officers of the wool growers
assure the local committee that the Omaha conven
tion will be the greatest yet held, and preparations
are being made to take care of anywhere from
1,000 to 2,000 delegates and exhibitors.
Famous Schedule K M ill Be De-battd.
Aelde from the interest In the sheep bhow
schedule K-" famous In recent discussions of the
tariff will be the top liner of the Omaha conven
tion. This Is the wool schedule of the national
tariff act. Secretary W. 8. McClnre of Gooding,
Idaho, arrived In Omaha last week fresh from pre
senting the esse of the wool growers to the tariff
commission which was appointed by President Taft
and from which so much definite information 's
expected on the subject of a scientific tariff whei
congress meets this week.
Secretary McClure, who has studied the wool
question for a good many years, has some very
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deflnlte Idens as to what form the t?rlff sho'iM
take. lie insists that for the last half center t!o
sheep industry of tho United States Iiub been tho
subject of fittuclc from muck-rakers and politician
who-st no time have told the people the whole
truth as. tQ its real importance to the nation.
"I am unalile to understand," said Mr. Mc
Clure, "why this Industry should have been singled
out, unless it bo because the public has been led
to believe that the tariff upon wool has been an
Important factor in raising the price of the people's
clothing. ' From 1816 until the present time there
has been during most of the years a tariff of one
kind or another upon imported wool. At the pres
ent time the duty upon wool Is 11 cents per pound
and In the stories which are given to the public
the people are led to believe that this 11 cents is
carried into the cost of tbe finished clothing. Re
gardless of what public belief be, the fact remains
that Investigation has clearly proven that this tariff
of 11 cents has resulted In Increasing the price of
American wool only from 2 to 5 cents per pound.
Therefore, In determining the Influence it may
have had upon the cost of clothing it is unfair to
assume that it has been increased by 11 cents.
"The present duty of 11 cents a pound upon
imported wool does not give the American wool
grower a protection of 11 cents, for tbe following
reason:. Wool as it comes from the sheep in the
United States Is two-thirds dirt and grease and
.only one-third wool; that Is, if a sheep sheared
nine pounds of wool by the time it was washed and
ready to be made Into cloth but three pounds would
remain. In other words, American wools as now
produced in the west shrink In washing 66 per
cent. Now, we have a duty of 11 cents per pound
on wool, but It does not mean 11 cents to the west
ern wool grower, for the reason that a pound of
imported wool will yield from two to three times
as much scoured wool as Is yielded by a pound of
American wool. Thus, if a pound of Imported wool
' shrinks 30 per cent in washing and ft pound of
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SUNDAY MOKNIN'O, DECEMItEU 3,
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American wool shrinks 00 per cent In washing the
impe l ted "wcol hai displaced Just tvo pounds of
domestic wool, and as the duty paid was 11 cents
the protection our grower received would be one
half of 11 cents or 5', cents.
"We must not forget that In every instance
the price paid for either domestic or imported wool
is based absolutely upon tbe amount of scoured
wool that it will yield after washing. The manu
fflc.'vrer does not pay for the dirt or grease that
may bo In the wool, and before buying wool bis
first duty is to determine the amount of scoured
wool that it will yield. In this Illustration I have
used a pound or Imported wool shrinking 30 per
cent, but wools are brought to the United States
shrinking as low as IS per cent, which you will
readily understand displaces as much as three
pounds of American wool, and in such cases our
protection Is less than 4 cents per pound. The
people, however, believe that it Is 11 cents per
pound, because they do not understand the facts."
Many Thousands of Hlieep Owners.
Touching another angle of the question, Secre
tary McClure combatted very strongly the notion
held by probably ninety-nine out of every 100
people in the United States that the sheep industry
Is owned by a few barons In the far west. He holds
that thla belief has done Irreparable Injury to tbe
industry and points out that 610,000 individuals
own 52,000,000 sheep reported by the last census.
There is hardly a precinct in any settled county in
the United States but bas some sheep. No other
Industry, aside from general farming, is so widely
distributed through all parts of tbe country. Ne
braska farmers reported 162,899 sheep to the state
bureau of statistics last year, and this is far short
of the real number owned In the state. Nebraska
railroads handled 1,582,788 sheep In 1910, accord
ing to reports to the same bureau.
"Tbe eastern flocks are small," said Mr. Mc
Clure, "but even in the west, where the sheep
15U1.
'baron Is supposed to hold sway, the average flock
is not by any means large. In Oregon, for in
stance, ono of the great sheep-raising states, the
avorage number of sheep owned by the growers Is
430; In Utah, 650; In Montana, about 1,100. While
we still havo a few great flocks, In the entire na
tion not to exceed fifty men own 10,000 head of
fcheep each."
x Hlieep Industry Valued at Vast Sura.
That the sheep and ool growers have solid
basis for their claim that this Industry Is one of the
greatest in the country seems to be borne out by
tho returns of the last census. The sheep alone
were, valued at $250,000,000, and the lands, build
ings and equipment of the sheep owners repre
sented $350,000,000 more, thus making tho tre
mendous total of $600,000,000.
"This Is surely an item to be taken into serious
consideration by the whole American people," said
Mr. McClure, "and they must hesitate for very sober
consideration before taking a chance on destroying
this industry In tbe Interest of political expediency.
Just Imagine, If you will, how the price of mutton
keeps down the cost of meat to the American
people. Last year the sheep slaughtered tor food
purposes in the United States numbered 16,000,000,
In round figures. Granting that these animals
dressed fifty pounds each, they gave to the con
burners 800,000,000 pounds ot mutton. This is
tbe cheapest meat available to the American
people, and if the sheep industry is destroyed by
removal of the tariff, the cost of living is bound
to be increased by an Immediate raise In thejiell
ing price of other meats."
As to what the sheep of tbe United States pro
duce, the following figures will be of present In
terest: First comes the wool, 330,000,000 pounds
per year, enough to make 50,000,000 suit of
clothes. Socond Is the 800,000,000 pounds of meat.
Third la the item of hides, furnishing leather for
gloves, shoes, fancy leather, book bindings and'
other purposes, Even the chamois skins of com
SINGLE COPY FIVE CENTS.
to Omaha
merce are said to be largely made from sheep skin.
Hides with the wool attached are tanned and dyed
In many colors, for use as ruga, and a goodly per
centage are also used in the making of fur coats.
From the glands of the sheep, in these modern
days, a great marly medicinal compounds aro made.
The bones are made Into buttons, combs, knlfo
handles and other articles, and the oars, head and
hoofs are converted Into glue. Even the "catgut"
strings pt violins are now almost entirely made of
sheep Intestines. The sheep is Immune to tuber
culosis, tho great bane of the tattle and hog yarda
of the nation, and is likewise proof against every
other disease transmissible to the human family.
Thus the meat is universally considered healthful
and nutritious. As a matter of fact, a large book,
could bo written on the virtue of tbe humble sheep
as a purveyor to the needs of man, even from the
earliest day.
Live Stock Industry Needs Conservation.
VWe bear much today about conservation," said
Secretary McClure, in discussing the great con
vention that is soon to meet in Omaha. "The talk
is mostly about conservation' of mines, trees, water
powers and game, but tho greatest problem in that
line Is the proper conservation and development ot
our live stock industry."
Of schedule K be spoke freely, admitting that
the American wool-grower is asking for revision of
the tariff. "But he will be satisfied to receive the '
difference In the coat of producing wool in this
country and abroad, taking our high wage and
every other element into consideration. We have
done everything In our power to enable 'the tarlfl
board to find out what it costs to produce wool In
this country, and now all we ask Is, that the people,
after they understand the true facts, settle the
tariff in accordance with the report of the tariff
board, whatever that report may be."
The national convention of the wool growers
will draw to Omaha a large number of men ot
national reputation, as well as practical sheep men
from all over the country. The west will be espe
cially well represented, but the far eastern states
will also send men vitally interested In the grow
ing of sheep for mutton and for wool. One ad
dress that Omaha will be particularly interested ia
at this time is to be by J. Fred Brown of Boston
on "Marketing the Wool." A related topic, "The
Wool Warehouse," is to be discussed by President
F. W. Gooding, of the National Woolgrowers' as
sociation. Assistant Secretary of Agriculture W.
M. Hays will come from Washington to talk on
"The Breeding of Animals, Plants and Men." Sena
tor W. K. Borah of Idaho Is down for an addresa
on "Conservation," and Congressman Rucker ot
Colorado will have for his subject "Tbe Producer
Against tbe Consumer." Other men of note and
wide Information are to talk at different sessions.
On the evening ot the opening day, Thursday,
December 14, a reception and theater party is to
be. given at the Brandeis. Friday evening will be
given over to a dinner, smoker and vaudeville en
tertainment at the Live Stock Exchange building.
South Omaha. Chartered cars will convey tha
delegates from the Rome.
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