Show P IS THEIR PLAIN statements OF facto TO CONGRESS the experiment oT of axing wool ant been briod lon loli l oli En tilty tiey chiok ali I 1 in biow it they alolu to t wool nod Det metio lit in lomer to the honorable the senate and ilauro ilou m of representatives or of the united states the wool consumers association rv rc fully petitions tile the fifty congress to change schedule K delatin re relating latin to wool and woolens wo oleus in the tariff let act cf 1 I 1890 for toe the relief of woolen jurers and for the benefit of all consumers of woolen n fabrics it is of course undesirable in gen general crill to change tariffs frequently but the general principles of the let act of ISOO 1800 its as applied to wool anil and woolens are ilia iho same as have been tried im unsatisfactorily satisfactorily fot for very many years except that it aggra aggravates 0 o vat s some of tile worst and mo most st oppressive r dessive features of former acts lit in relation to wool tile tho act lias has therefore practically been tested by the ilia trials of many years anil there is no occasion to test it longer b by expert experience cuce it is not truo tint alio act c t in in its present form can call work no harm to woolen inabit manufacturers fact tire rs it works 0 alio same injury to the lie makers of woolen and ami worsted cloth that the lie restrictions restriction 3 on oil ilia uso use of wool always have pro alcea and aad in the case of the carpet trade which consumes a very large pro coition of all the imported wool it is the alio most oppressive act ever passed Thov the woo ocl schedules schedule K of the tariff act of 1890 offerman off offers ersan an exceptional opportunity unity by amendments iii ahing wool free and relatively decreasing both tho the specific and ad valorem valoree duties on oil woolen goods to benefit immensely the woolen manufacturers rs by giving givin them free access to the supplies of wool of various qualities such as all other oilier competing manufacturing fac turing countries enjoy and by reducing thui without injury to kanuf c jurers the cost of their goods to them and to the ilia consumers while leaving sufficient fici ent protection with free raw materials te the tax on imports of competing goods would bo be almost entirely for tha th a protection of labor and as is free raw materials would greatly increase consumption there would be an all increased increase Ll demand annd for labor neither is it true that no harm has como come to consumers by the law of 1800 in ili the first place the increased cost of wool as compared comp ired with prices in europe lias forced the use of cottonard cotton cotto nand and other adulterants adulte rants to a great and unusual extent and secondly if woolen goods have not advanced they might have been lower but for tho the duties on oil wool there is no question among manufacturers that the act of 1890 was ili intended to advance prices nor that it was well calculated to do so to the extent that consumers could afford tho the almost universal fall in prices was caused in very small degree if at all by tho the tariff act of 1890 the tremendous inen dous losses in the argentine argentina republic awl and elsewhere the failure of the dar bar ings the distrust caused by silver legislation the alio low price of cotton in the lie south on account of an all enormous crop tho the failure of crops in the lie north anil and west wl t prior to 1891 causing dull trade au aud I 1 reduced consumption are tho the principal causes that brought distress and falling prices what those ami growers who arranged the wool schedule with tho the intention of increasing prices want is no lie doubt to lie io let alone so that the tariff act may produce under more favorable auspices tho the esulto I 1 they expected and worked for but tile the rest that the public needs is a i permanent relief front from taxes tasea which oppress both the then mid ami which hamper tho the latter as every manufacturer admits and which largely increase the cost of woolen goods to the public the growth of tho ilia wool lias has undoubtedly been great during the past thirty ears forthe for alie country with its vast natural it sources and enormous immigration lias has increased vastly in population and ami wealth but the growth of it tile tho manufacture would be much more prosperous pro berous and ami much greater with tree free wool and its growth anil and prOs prosperity mean larger uso use of domestic wools and higher prices for all competing wooli it 4 clear from the statements of the rational national association of wool manufacturers and from undoubted facts emphasized pha sized by the vast increase indrea in thu imports of wool ince since f the alio passage of tiia let act of 1890 and by tile falling prices of ohio wool that this country pio produces duces pra practically no carpet wool to hipply the demandil dc mand for neatly pounds po unda needed nee led by tho the carpet manufacturers and only it a part odthe of tho clothing will and combing wools herded net ded and it is further to be cowd con dered that the its use a of wool for go BO called wool woolens ells would lie bo much lar larger er if tho the restrictions ot of the ilio wool duties ditl not greatly i educe deduce the consumption of wool and largely inci easa ense tile lie uso of shoddy and cotton in bo called worl woolen I 1 cal goo goods ds aud and this is ii the caso case after a ion long series of years of high duties on oil wool in tho theory of tho the new naw protection it i is s la laid id down is as IL principle that the necessities entzi ing into tile the daily life of ilia nabs of tho the people which we cannot econom ecanow iball produce should be made tree free on oil this principal wool should ly ay lo be made free it is a most article for all ilia people Itis it is produced in in this countr country y in inadequate quantities and not in alio llio ill necessary essaiy varieties s and qualities somo some indispensable grades can call lie bo produced in this country only under conditions unfavorable as compared with those of other countries high duties fur a quai qua ter iter of a century lave have failed to produce any carpet woul wool in this country and have also failed to produce an abc duato supply of tho wools needed for and wor worsted stAl manufacture ure and as wool can lie be made fr arma with a largo reduction in cost of and ami with nth vern little of trado or of interference interfere with protection it is only reasonable that hint the alio I 1 changes in Eclie dille K of the act of 1890 should lie bo mado fur for tile liono bono lit fit of the whole people eo iilo ART livit T lenim METCALF WILLI Alt U B wardi IN G C s CHARLES M droit GnA Cit T acy brower executive committee of tile wool consumers association coston |