126 SHEEP INDUSTRY OF THE UNITED STATES 



body of farmers' wives and daughters were employed ia knittiug and 

 weaving. 



A great drawback also to tbe extension of the woolen manufacture was 

 the scarcity of wool, and the inferior character of much that was available. 

 To the many arguments put forward for the encouragement of the manu- 

 facture the reply was that, in truth, America raised very few sheep in 

 comparison with Great Britain, perhaps not one-tenth in proportion to 

 the number of the inhabitants, and fo little care was taken to raise a 

 good breed of sheep that the wool was ten times less valuable, which 

 gave a hundred fold advantage to Great Britain. As was the wool, so 

 was the mutton, and the prejudice against the mution must be removed 

 before the woolen manufacture could be placed on any considerable 

 footing. The result was, so the answer ran, that although it might be 

 true that we manufactured all our own wool, yet that all was hardly 

 worth notice, because it was manufactured into coarse fabrics which 

 did not greatly enhance the value of the raw material. And to the 

 proposition that foreign artisans should be invited to engage in the 

 woolen manufacture, answer was made that the European manufacturer 

 would be greatly deceived who should come to the United States under 

 the impression of being able to establish a manufactory of any extent. 

 Let him know that very little combing wool was to be met with, and 

 that there were no comb-makers nor a comb machine, and he would 

 soon be persuaded of the infant state of the manufacturing industry. 

 Others argued that the woolen industry was on the decline, and cited 

 the German town stocking weavers who worked wool some months in 

 the year, and who had about 100 looms going at the close of the Eevo- 

 lutionary war, which had been reduced to thirty, and ih twenty years 

 more would be gone entirely unless a great change was made in our 

 manufacturing notions and fashions. 



And, again, there were mauy who thought the country too young for 

 manufactures, and that the arts by introducing luxury would also in- 

 troduce vice aud weau the people from that simplicity of manners 

 which was believed to belong exclusively to agricultural life; and there 

 were very many others who had strong affection for the mother coun- 

 try, and preferred dependence upon her, and who were joined in the 

 influence which the merchants had in shaping legislation. All these 

 and other influences worked against our woolen manufactiires at this 

 period. 



Some encouragement was given to manufactures by a portion of the 

 press and by far-sighted men through its columns. It was urged, now 

 that the country had capital, that it " exchange hands in the circle of 

 reciprocal wants at home. Let us work up our iron, our cotton, our 

 wool, our own earths." It was insisted that our attention should be 

 directed to plain, substantial manufactures, and chiefly such as de- 

 pended on machinery and the saving of labor, and that while it was not 

 our interest to become a manufacturing nation it was our duty not to 



