(c) Since the Government controls and directs the use of wool and the manner of its use, it should also control and guarantee the price and the distribution of wool.

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Mr. Wardlaw.

We should now like to hear from Mr. Fred T. Earwood.

STATEMENT OF FRED T. EARWOOD, PRESIDENT, TEXAS SHEEP AND GOAT RAISERS' ASSOCIATION, SONORA, TEX.

Mr. EARWOOD. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen, my name is Fred T. Earwood. I live at Sonora, Tex. I am a producer of wool and mohair and am in the ranch business. I am also president of the Texas Sheep and Goat Raisers' Association.

I think the general picture of the wool situation has been very well covered. I shall deal with short wools and mohair.

The domestic producers of food and fiber have been urged by the Department of Agriculture and the War Production Board to increase production of these essential commodities as necessities in the prosecution of the war.

Certain W. P. B. regulations imposed upon growers of short wools and mohair have served in such a manner as to discourage their production, as well as to demoralize certain producers of longer fibers. Short wools and mohair, although presently without specification in military fabrics have inestimable civilian value and are thus of importance to national safety in these times of shortages in order to conserve wools of military value.

With reference to Texas and other short wools, it is estimated that Texas produces from eight to ten million pounds of "fall" wool annually. The total domestic production of these fibers is estimated at 20,000,000 pounds. These wools are produced by sheep shorn twice annually-in the fall, after 4 months' growth, and in the spring, after 8 months, of growth. Shearing in the fall is a necessity in certain parts of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California in order to overcome ewe death loss caused by extreme heat and poor wintering conditions. It is also necessarily practiced in these areas to secure proper breeding of ewes in order to produce the maximum of lamb.

Noils-fibers resulting from combing worsted wools-are similar in length and use to fall or short wools. Under W. P. B. regulations, noils are exempt from all restriction. Short wools are specifically restricted in W. P. B. allocations, thus prohibiting their use and, as a result, they are accumulating in a surplus which is destroying their normal price levels. Fall wools have no definite specification in military fabrics, and wherever they may be used, they must compete with noils which can be secured with no restrictions, and at a much lower price. Short wools properly directed, could be of great value in civilian or in the military program.

With respect to mohair, immediately following the Pearl Harbor attack all domestic wools were placed under jurisdiction of the W. P. B. This included mohair, a specialty fiber wholly different from wool. Texas produces over 85 percent of this nation's mohair, or over 17,000,000 pounds annually. This is the only specialty fiber produced domestically in quantities large enough to be of any significant military and civilian value.

The ordinary market for mohair was principally in the upholstering of automobiles and furniture. This market has been necessarily destroyed for the duration of the war.

The first fiber allocation order promulgated by the W. P. B. set aside mohair in the same quantities as wool for military purposes. It was soon learned that this was a mistake as military officials had no use for mohair, and to date no specifications have been made for its use. Mohair remained in its military_category for a considerable time during which growers urged W. P. B. officials to release it for civilian use as there were no military specifications for the fiber. After approximately 3 months, adult mohair was removed from this classification, but rationed to civilian manufacturers. This rationing was based upon the exchange of the limited amount of wool allocated to mills for civilian use. In order to secure adult mohair, manufacturers were required to exchange 1 pound of their civilian wool allocation in grades of 46's and finer, for 3 pounds of mohair on the worsted spinning system and 1 pound of the finer wools in exchange for 6 pounds of mohair on the woolen spinning system.

Kid mohair, although of no military use, remained classed as a war quality fiber. This fiber remained in this classification for over 6 months, or until June 1, 1942. On this date, kid hair was removed from its military classification and allocated to mills on the same basis as adult hair.

Although both kid and adult mohair have been given a limited basis of allocation, manufacturers do not wish to trade their limited quantity of war-quality wools for civilian manufacture in order to secure a fiber which must be blended with these wools in order to be spun into civilian cloth.

Today there is in existence 18,000,000 pounds of mohair in surplus, a large portion being in the growers' possession. Within the next 60 days an additional 10,000,000 pounds will be shorn and in many cases this will place three clips in the growers' hands.

It is therefore grossly discriminatory for the W. P. B. to ration and restrict the use of an essentially needed fiber in civilian clothing, when its ordinary markets have been removed, when there is no military use for it, and of which there is an abundant supply. This fiber, properly directed, could be vitally used in civilian clothing, thus conserving essentially needed wools in the military program.

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Mr. Earwood. Before you leave the table, Mr. Gillis wishes to ask you a question or two.

Mr. GILLIS. Is there today anywhere in the world a market where the grower can dispose of any substantial poundage of mohair? Mr. EARWOOD. Not that I know of.

Mr. GILLIS. That was the question I wanted to ask. There is no outlet for it anywhere, in any amount?

Mr. EARWOOD. Not under these present restrictions.

The CHAIRMAN. It can be used, though?

Mr. GILLIS. Without the restrictions it could be moved?

Mr. EARWOOD. That is my opinion.

Mr. GILLIS. Thank you.

The CHAIRMAN. We shall hear now from Mr. Vestel Askew.

STATEMENT OF VESTEL ASKEW, SECRETARY, TEXAS SHEEP AND GOAT RAISERS' ASSOCIATION, SONORA, TEX.

Mr. ASKEW. Mr. Chairman, I do not think there is much that I can add to what has already been covered by Mr. Wilson, Mr. Wardlaw, and Mr. Earwood on the wool and mohair situation. I should, though, like to point out that since December 8, 1941, following the attack on Pearl Harbor, when the first restrictions were placed on mohair, the grower organizations took the matter up with the War Production Board and asked it to give the growers some kind of relief.

At that time we were informed that, in all probability, mohair might be used for military purposes, and it was set aside in the same quantities as wool for that use.

The CHAIRMAN. I do not know whether or not the record shows it, but just what was the form of those restrictions that were placed on mohair?

Mr. ASKEW. The first restrictions were a group of developments that we might call restrictions placed on mohair. The first was the mistake, as we call it, which Mr. Wilson pointed out, in the first allocation order, in which mohair was set aside for military purposes in the same quantity as our domestic wools. In other words, to the 85 percent of the domestic wools set aside for military uses, the mohair was set aside for that purpose in the same proportion.

At that time the grower people were not using it, and to date no specifications have been made for its use.

Then, after a couple of months the W. P. B. released, so to speak, the adult mohair on the basis of this rationing, 1 for 3 and 1 for 2 on the worsted system and 1 for 5 on the woolen system. The kid mohair remained as war quality fiber, although there were no specifications for its use. That remained for 3 or 4 months. Practically no kid mohair was used during that period. On June 1, just a few weeks ago, kid mohair was released on the same basis as the adult mohair, which basis has not worked to remove or use any mohair from the growers' hands in any quantity. That has been of no use to the grower whatsoever.

As I was saying, what I wanted to point out in particular, that had not previously been brought out, was that all during this period the grower organizations had asked the W. P. B. group to take this problem under consideration and grant some kind of relief to the growers.

Our only request for relief, and the only one that would get relief, was to give the right to the mills of unrestricted use of mohair for civilian manufacture. To date the only relief or relaxation that has been made in these restrictions is this allocation of the fiber, which, as I said before, has not worked out. The same has been true in regard to fall wools.

This has been brought to their attention time and time again, but they have to date done nothing to relieve the growers.

That is all that I have to add to the statements that have already been made, unless you have some questions you want to ask.

Mr. GILLIS. The restrictions on mohair and on fall wools are the restrictions that are imposed by W. P. B. Order M-73 and the amendments thereto?

Mr. ASKEW. That is correct.

Mr. GILLIS. That is all.

The CHAIRMAN. Since we have no other witnesses this morning, we shall stand adjourned until 10:30 Tuesday morning. At that time we may have some other witnesses. If we do not, we thank you anyhow for coming up here.

(At 11:45 a. m. an adjournment was taken until Tuesday, July 7, 1942, at 10:30 a. m.)

PRODUCTION, TRANSPORTATION, AND MARKETING OF

WOOL

TUESDAY, JULY 7, 1942

UNITED STATES SENATE,

SPECIAL COMMITTEE TO INVESTIGATE PRODUCTION,
TRANSPORTATION, AND MARKETING OF WOOL,

Washington, D. C.

The special committee met, pursuant to adjournment on July 3, 1942, in room 224, Senate Office Building, at 10:30 a. m., Senator H. H. Schwartz (chairman), presiding.

Present: Senator Schwartz (chairman).

Present also: Senator Thomas of Idaho.

The CHAIRMAN. The special committee will please come to order. We shall proceed to take the testimony; the record will later be printed and be available for reading by the members of the committee and others.

We shall call first this morning Mr. C. J. Fawcett.

STATEMENT OF C. J. FAWCETT, GENERAL MANAGER, THE NATIONAL WOOL MARKETING CORPORATION, BOSTON, MASS.

The CHAIRMAN. Please state your name, your occupation, and your relation to this matter.

Mr. FAWCETT. Senator Schwartz and members of the committee, my name is C. J. Fawcett. I am general manager of the National Wool Marketing Corporation, 281 Summer Street, Boston, Mass.

The National Wool Marketing Corporation is a national cooperative wool-selling agency serving 20 State wool-marketing organizations. It is grower-owned and grower-controlled, serving membership of about 100,000 growers annually.

Regulatory measures governing the use and price of wool invoked by the War Production Board and the Office of Price Administration has created an unstable situation in the wool and textile industries. This has reached alarming proportions and, in the judgment of our executive committee, calls for prompt and vigorous action in order that the wool-growing industry may be preserved in its present status of production. In the interests of brevity we shall refrain from a lengthy review of either the wool or textile industry but begin with the fixing of price ceilings upon grease wool that were placed by the Office of Price Administration on February 28, 1942.

May we point out at this time that the Emergency Price Control Act of 1942 specifically provided that ceilings on agricultural commodities could not be placed lower than the highest average price

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