Wool has been the subject of more protracted
and bitter controversy than any other commodity
which has been given tariff protection in the United
States. There are, several reasons why it has been
the "bloody angle" of the tariff battles. It is an
article of common use, the raw material for one of
the largest manufacturing industries. Also, it has
been for many years imported in large quantities
because the domestic supply has not been great
enough for our needs. These facts in themselves
might suffice to make it important, but in addition
the wool schedule of the tariff has occupied a con-
spicuous place ever since the Civil War as a typi-
cal instance of adjustment between the duty on a
raw material and that on the products made from
it. It has furnished, therefore, many a bone of
contention between wool growers and manufac-
turers as well as between both groups of producers
and the consuming public. It deserves additional
attention at present because changes have recently
been taking place in the methods of sheep husbandry
and in the conditions under which it operates.
Moreover, the increase in the rate of duty on wool
in the Tariff Act of 1922 makes it an especially
noteworthy subject.

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