Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1858-1860, 1858-03-23

Dor In the southern fields in the production of
those staples which form three fifths Of the
whole exports of the United States. Ii is
shown by the book before me-one of the best
| compiled authorities have yet found-An-
drews' colonial report, published by order of
The Senate in lS52-that the production of the
cotton crop is some five or six hundred thou
sand bales short of the absolute requirement.
OF the three millions two hundred thousand
slaves which we have in the whole United
States, there are only two millions two hun
dred and twenty-four thousand in the cotton
growing States. ! deduct from this number
two for every STAKEHOLDER for domestic pur-
poses. There being two hundred and twenty
seven thousand Shareholders in those States
there would be over four hundred thousand
slaves distracted by household duties from
the production of cotton and other southern
products / find that in the production of
sugar, seventy-nine thousand nine hundred
and eighty -four are employed: in the rice crop,
sixty-six thousand six hundred and ffty-three;
and the urban slaves. in the towns are up
wards of three h4ndrTd-< thousand. Then YOU
have in the ming otton-trOwing States only
one million three hundred thousand slaves
adapted to field labor. When you subtract
still further all the slaves below ten and over
sixty years of age. you have, in fact but eight
hundred thousand to produce the cotton of
the whole United States.
Now, / ask gentlemen here who are en-
gagged i'll the cultivation of this CROP if four
bales of cotton to the hand is not an Excess
sive average in the production of the south
ern States! According to the census dOcu-
ments of General Morse, of Louisiana, the
average production is three and one fifth
bales; but will say four bales. judge from
the census tables. and from the document to
which | have already alluded, that this is a
reasonable estimate; though perhaps it may
be too large. This gives three millions two
hundred thousand pales of cotton as the max
imum crop that you can cultivate with the
slave labor that You have now in the southern
States. My friend from Mississippi told me
the other day that there were perhaps one
hundred thousand other hands, white labor
ers, Ill Texas and other States. small holders
who are engaged also i'll the production of
cotton. That will account for the excess of
production over three millions two hundred
thousand bales which would be the produc-
ton at four bales to the hand.
The crop of cotton last year fell short some
five or six hundred thousand bales of the alb
solute and imperative demand. What was
the consequence Ii rose to eighteen and
nineteen cents pound; and but for the finan-
cial crisis that overlook this country, paraly-
zing all the avenues of trade and of com
merce, we should have this day been compell-
cd to pay twenty or twenty-One cents pound
according to Mr.. Guthrie's report, amounted
to Sl3O,OOO,OOO; the year before to sSs,OOO,-
900.
In 1852, according TO Mr.. Andrews report,
the total consumption of raw cotton in the
United States amounted to S46. $40, 900; and
in that the late Secretary of the Treasury full
ly and entirely accords. That added to the
Sl3O.OO0,OOO of exports, makes the cotton
crop of this country in 1855. when these TIA
I,l - Ill
for the increased production, the crop of that
staple now is worth not less than Sz20, O00, 900;
all or the greater part of hch you must grow
with slave labor, for the simple reason that
the greater part of the lands adapted to the
cultivation of cotton are in an insaluhrious
climate. They are exclusively adapted To
slave or black labor, and so situated that the
white immigration to this country will not
and could not readily mix with it. The eXpe-
rlence of the past has shown that the north
ern States get the whole accretion resulting
from immigration into this country, because
they have vast amount of territory unOccu-
pied. BY the policy that heretofore has pre-
vailed, a bonus has been offered to immigra-
ton to this country. Grants of the public
domain have been given to them. They
have been invited TO come They have
had Blooms given to them. Speculation
has been excited in that section of the coun-
try, which is now arraying itself against the
great southern producing States OF this Union.
Without depopulatiug the whole of the
five non-cotton-growing States of the South,
the production of cotton in this country is
limited for the want of labor. According to
the returns To which / have alluded. and to |
Mr.. Gutbrie's report of 1856, six hundred |
and fifty thousand bales of cotton were that |
year consumed at home. while our exports |
amounted to two millions nine hundred thou |
III. 4. Il.
two millions nine hundred thousand bales !
was the production of that year, for that !
was an accumulation of IA portion of the |
crop of the year before, which had been held |
back 10y low water and from other causes and |
which had been prevented from getting TO |
market. Hence it was, that last year we |
found cotton rising To eighteen, nineteen. and |
twenty cents pound without correspond |
ing rise in the price of the manufactured ar |
tcle; and we found half of the manufacture
ers of this land suspending and turning off |
their laborers because they could not afford |
to buy it.
What was the picture presented last year in |
Manchester? Meetings Of the people were |
held to form Cotton Leagues to grow cotton |
elsewhere. | might read for the edification |
of the Senate, if they had not turned their at |
tentiOn To it before statements showing that |
up to 1852, all the cotton that was produced
l.Sb
which the United States produced l,350.0JO.-
00O-scvcn tenths almost of the whole pro-
duction of the world Notwithstanding all the
fostering care that the English and French
Governments have given To the cultivation of
cotton, in order to render themselves indie
pendent of Us and of the productions of slave
labor. The time was when the Eaglish Gov
Crnment, in endcavoring to crush out a rising
and successful competitor. was willing To
make large sacrifices, in order to have the
monopoly: but that day is passed. With
every cXertion she has made-with ali the
fostering care she has given to the cultiva-
ton of cotton in every part of the world-in
Egypt, the East Indies, the West Indies De-
marara, Pernambuco, Brazil, China, aud all
other places, | have given you the sum total
of the cotton crop of the world. the United
States producing seven tenths of the whole.
Well may England look To il when the
peace, the happiness, and the prosperity OF
her people; when the strength. power, and
glory of her own country is dependent upon
il; because without her manufactures she is
nothing. The two million bales that she
takes from us form bond of peace, guar
antee, surety. not stronger, however. than
that bond we have upon our northern breth-
rem, who consume now as the basis of the
whole manufacturing system of this country.
seven hundred thousand bales of this same
southern staple, upon which all the manuiac-
turing system OF the northern Statrsis ramiGed
and expanded. The manufacturing system
of this country consumed, according tn the
Secretary of the Treasury last year in eleven
hundred and ninety-Iour cotton-mIlls, ST0.-
964,7l2 worth of raw cotton; and the value
of all manufac;ur, d articles was : ,3gl ,03l,-
2gS The whole value of agricultural pro-
ducts was Sl,2ll ,322 900, making in the aggre-
gate the sum OF s2,6O0.OO0.O00 OF productions
in this land. Allowing $1,000 200 900 of
there productions, to be consumed at the
points OF production, where they were made
by the planters aud by the manufacturers
themselves. We should have lttt for our later
al - n.