A second great industry of Great Britain is its WOOLLEN MANUFACTURE.
This industry is specialised in England, principally in West
Yorkshire, a district which is as well supplied with coal as is South
Lancashire. LEEDS (410,000) and BRADFORD (232,000) are the two
principal seats of the industry, but HUDDERSFIELD and HALIFAX are also
important "cloth towns," and many other communities are identified
with the manufacture of woollens. The noted "West of England" cloths
are made principally in Gloucestershire, where their manufacture in
the town of STROUD is a survival of an ancient industry once general
throughout the whole county. In Scotland there are two centres of the
woollen industry. The first and most important is in southeast
Scotland, where, in the valley of the Tweed (in GALASHIELS, HAWICK,
JEDBURGH, etc.), the celebrated "Scotch tweeds" are manufactured. The
second is in the valley of the Teith (STIRLING, BANNOCKBURN, etc.). At
one time the sheep that were pastured on the wolds of Yorkshire were
the chief supply of the raw material for this industry in the whole of
Britain, but that time is now long past. The total annual import of
wool into the United Kingdom is about 750,000 pounds, of which about
one half is retained for home manufacture. Two thirds of this import
comes from Australia. The number of wool and worsted factories in the
kingdom aggregates over 2750. The value of the woollen goods produced
annually is about $250,000,000, which is about one fourth of the total
product of the world.