The world's yearly clip is a little more than two and one-half billion pounds, of which the United States produces about one-eighth. In Europe and the United States, owing to the increasing value of the land, the area of production is decreasing; in Australia, South Africa, and Argentina, where land is cheap, it is increasing. From these three regions wool is exported; most European countries and the United States buy it. In the latter country the consumption is about six pounds for each person.
WOOL
The wools of the Mediterranean countries—France, Spain, Italy, Algiers, Egypt, etc.—are the best for fine cloths; those of central Asia for rugs and shawls; the others are used mainly in medium and low grade textiles.
Other Wools.—The Angora goat, originally grown in Anatolia (Asia Minor), and the Iran States (Persia, Afghanistan, and Baluchistan), furnishes a beautiful white wool, commercially known as "mohair." Smyrna is an important market for it, and England is the chief buyer. The Angora goat has been introduced into South Africa and California, where it is successfully grown. From the former country there is a large export of mohair.
Cashmere wool is a fine, downy undercovering, obtained by combing the fleece of a goat native to the Kashmir Valley in India. A single animal yields scarcely more than an ounce or two, and the best product is worth about its weight in gold. It is used in the manufacture of the famous Cashmere shawls, which are sold at prices varying from five hundred to five thousand dollars. They are made in Persia and India.
Llama and alpaca wool are fine textile obtained from animals of the camel kind native to South America. The wool is either black or brown in color. A considerable part is used for native-made articles, such as saddle-blankets, etc., but much of it is exported to England.
Most of the "camel's hair" of commerce was originally worn by goats, being called by its commercial name because of a similarity in texture to that of the camel's hair. The camel of Turkestan, however, furnishes a silky textile that is much used. The brown wool often found in Hamadan rugs is natural camel's hair, and a considerable amount mixed with sheep's wool is used in certain textiles. The camel's hair of China is made into artists' brushes.
Silk.—The silk of commerce is the fibre spun by the larvæ or caterpillars of a moth, Bombyx mori, as they enter the chrysalis stage of existence. The silk-growing industry includes the care and feeding of the insect in all its stages. The leaves of the white mulberry-tree (morus alba) are the natural food of the insect, and silk-growing cannot be carried on in regions where this tree does not thrive. Not all areas that produce the mulberry-tree, however, will also grow the silk-worm; the latter cannot exist in regions having very cold winters, and therefore the industry is restricted by climate.
The moth, shortly after emerging from the chrysalis stage, lays from two or three hundred to seven hundred eggs. These are "hardy"—that is, they will remain fertile for a long time if kept in a cool, dry place; moisture will cause them to putrify, and heat to germinate. If well protected, they may be transported for distances.