The day book. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 1857-1867, 1860-02-06

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labor; labor makes profit, and profit enriches
the ommunity. 1t follows therefore, that
when community can supply her own wants
| from her own labor, she is adding to her
profit, and as consequence, to her wealth.
Does Norfolk do this Does Norfolk supply
the demand for any one article of consump.
ton from her own labor? Where does the
cotton which makes our under garments
Sbme from? Where do we get our hats,
our gloves. coats, vests, pants, pens, ink, pa
per, or any of the multitude of small arti-
Giles which enter into our daily consumption?
From the North! II!
Where do we get our meat, our butter and
cheese, aye! the very staff of life itself,
bread Do we produce it at home? Do
we grind enough meal in this city to feed
us? Or rather are We not dependent upon
the enterprise of our neighbors for the very
bread we eat More than that Are we
net dependent upon the very elements for
what we drink ? Oh mons rous state of
affairs! Speak of Norfok's being great
Cltyy Spthh VI DidhlHP Hef ''tue CUInnefclal
emporium of the South"
First of all, you visionary schemers, let
US advise you to come down to plain prac-
tical view of your condition; loose sight, for
a while, of the boosted natural advantages
of this city; forget for moment what ma
ture has done for your city, FOR we are clear
ly of the opinion that her apparent kind
ness has been your curse !! Like the wag-
goner in 1Esop, you haye called on Jupiter
without ever putting your shoulders to the
Wheel you have relied too much upon these
"latural advantages" and have built your
hopes upon them until you have become the
ubect of the SCOTS and jeers of your mere
enterprising neighbors, who have placed
their shoulders to the wheel and pushed
their wagon out of the mud without waiting
to call on Jupiter. You have been like the
tabled hare; certain that you could win the
race, you have laid down and slept, while
the tortoise has passed slowly and toilingly
on and dfstanced you in the race. The old
song of "natural advantage is about "play
lued you into Rip-Van- Wrinkle sleep, and
a belief in it has been the effect'of damning
you. Let us hear no more of such nonsense,
but rather let us look at things through
the optics of rason let us take a plain,
practical common sense view of our condi-
ton, and we shall then be enabled to apply
the remedy.
AS limited above we want manufactures,
we want to prndace a0hat zoe consume, we
want to convert our raw material into an
article ready for use, and by so doing, not
only furnish labor for our poorer classes,
but keep the profit on that labor among US
to help to enrich the community. We
must drop all visionary schemes, and resolve
to invest no more money save in machinery,
or some other manufacturing auxiliary; let
US produce our own bread, our own clothes,
indeed everv article which can be produced
here and for WI ich the surrounding country
will furnish the raw material
The effect will be two fold we shall not only
be enriching ourselves by this system of
home manufactures, but will be assisting in
aiming death blow at northern aggression,
and by becoming independent of the North
| shall be able to reduce that fractions spirit
which now threatens dissolution of the
Union. 1t is said, he who makes two blades
| of grass grow where only one vegetated be-
| fore, is greater and more worthy OF con-
| sideration than the general who conquers
| an army, that is no doubt true, and we as
| sert that he who establishes single piece
of machinery in our midst, whereby the raw
material, which covers our wharves every
| day in the week, nay be converted into ar
tces ready for use, will. be worthy of more
consideration than all the old fogies in the
| country. Who will make the move? who
will break the ice and establish cotton
factory, a shoe factory, a corn mill, or any
other kind of establishme Mt, which will give
employment to the poor, help enrich the
community, and make us independent and
| prosperous? We await response.
The CARNIVAL OF MUD.--Mud, mud, mud
has been the "order of the day" for the past
few days. In Portsmouth especially is this
true, for very few of her streets are paved,
which renders some portions of them abso-
lutely impossible to pedestrians during such
weather as this we have baen blessed with
since the fall of snow last week. How our
heart felt for the "dear creatures" as We
saw them tripping through the mud to the
various places of divine worship yesterday.
Dinwiddie and Queen streets, in the vicinity
of the Methodist church, are outrageously
bad. Now, if in dry weather, the Council
and property holders would resolve to pave
the thoroughfares, how much better a state
of affairs would prevail, and when completed
how much better an impression sight at
| thn citu Mnnld max e up0n the minds of stran.