Lynchburg daily Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1852-1861, 1860-03-21
Tho Cotton Trade, and The Wealth Of tho



ton is King" and there are moro left to dispute
his supremacy, Ne have not met with anything
lately thss sets forth, u sech brief but striking
terms, The real influence Of This great staple o
the Soath upon tie industry and commerce of the
world ,-as is found Ia the following from The
Cotton Supply Reporter" On English publication
/ The amount of capital invested in cotton ma
nufactures, in the United Kingdom alone. is be
tween 60, 0O0. 900 and 10, 000 900 pounds sterling
| and the number of persons dependent for their
subsistence upon the trade. is 100000 When
we remember that five seventies Of the raw mate
rial, constituting this immense source of wealth
and revenue TO Great Britain. is contributed BY
the Southern States Of America, and the product
Of slave labor; We zee what a stake England hns
in the continuance of that system Of labor and in
the prosperity of these States.
Every State comprised within the limits Of New
England might be blotted from the map Of the
world, and tho effect upon that great Power
across the sea. would be trifing and evancscent;
but let any calamity overtake the Slave States.
and We are assured that employers would be
incd; railways wosld cease to pay ships would
lie rotting at their ports, and famine would stalk
abroad amongst hundreds and thousands who are
now fortunately we'll employed
Nor would it bc any better, il as well, with our
New England brethren for any CONFUSION in
our social system that would unscitlc the present
relations Of labor and capital, would carry blight
and mldew throughout the North. How strange
then how passing strange, that the patrarchal
,n.,;,,.;or ., N. so,,h nh;o, :. tho ho., oa,,,.
49,,
eo 70 'he CLASS 'or VINO" pro''"eu' anu ~ INC
same time, is laying the whole world under con-
tribution cannot be left 10 work out ts own des-
.;nv ,,;,ho,, hond;,o ,ho ,.o,l1 ooo;,., i,
~ -.
We suoJo'n .ho n'''cio re'rrrcu w.
Upwards OF oo0,ooo workers are now emhloyed
in cotton factories. and IL has been estimated
that ut least 4.oO00O0 persons IN this country arc
dependent upon the cotton trade Tor subsistencc.
\ century ago Lancashire contained population
Of only 800 900 persons; it now numbers 200, 900
In the saneperiod Of tine this enormous increase
exceeds that on any other equal surface OF the globo
aud entirely owing 10 the development of the cot
ton trnde. In 1886 there werein the United King
dom 2.2l0 factories running 2s,0O0,0O0 spindles
and 800 600 looms. by $1,000 horse Power. Since
that period n considerable number of new mills
have been erected and extensive additions havo
been made TO the spinning c.rd eaving machine
ry of those previously in existence. The amount
- actual capital invested in tho cotton trade of
this kingdom is estimated to be between CGo,0o0..
900 and Go, 000, 900 sterling. The quantity Of
cotton imported into this country in 1859 was
Lisp millions pounds weight, the value of which
Mt 6d per b il equal to E30 coo, 900 sterling
Out Of 2,s29 10 bales of cotton imported into
Great Britain, America has supplied US with .
OS6 34l, that il 5-7ths of the whole. In other
words. out Of every lbs imported from all coun.
tries into Great Britain, America has supplied 5
lbs India has sent us about 800 900 bales, Egypt
100, 900, South America l2l 900, and other
countries between 900 and &, O0o bnlcs. In 1859
the total value of the exports from Great Britain
amounted to El3o,5l3, lsj, of which eil7 800. 20
c consisted of cotton goods and yarns. Thus. moro
than one third, or 81 out Of every E3 of our en-.
tire exports. consists OF cotton Add to this tho