The weekly Mississippian., 1860-04-11

! luTHSneS lae SplnuIeS anu Lne SLlpplDg, TIL
% southern planter cares but little.
/. The Importance of this product called cot
ton, is apty illustrated in the following extrac
e from the "London Times -
IMPORTATION OF CoTToN.
The importation of cottoh into England has
since the import duty was abolished, increase
i sixteen fold. Having been 100000 tb, il
0 is now /, 1,OO0OOO,OOO fb. This is one of Lhost
s giant facts which stand head and shoulder.
y higher than the crowd-so high and so brcaC
.-. s4as::..ssT ss i. Is. ai4s,,. l.,t
20 see fe~ezisseHee-e o tllsll.
i sand smaller facts that must stand under its
: shadow. 1t tells of sixteen times as many
mills, sixteen times as many English families
living by working those mills, sixteen times as
much profit derived from sixteen times as
4 much capital engaged in this manufacture. 1t
carries after it sequences of increased quantity
, of frcights and insurances, and necessities for
r sixteen times the amount of customers to con-
sumo. to our profit, the immense amount OF
produce we are turning out. There are not
many such facts as these arising in the quiet
routine of industrial history 1t is SO large
and SO steady that we can steer our national
policy by it ; it IS so important to us that we
should be reduced to embarrassment ifit were
suddenly to disappear. 1t teaches us to per
severe in policy which has produced so wan
derful result; its benifcent operation makes
it essential to us to deal carefully with it now
: We have got it.
Ours is the region commanding all this
homage. Cotton is not grown north of lati-
tude 30, nor south of 80, to any profit. As
the Ohio and Mississippi valleys are the centre
of a population producing grain, beef pork,
bagging, rope, and machinery of all kinds
such as the South needs for developing her
agricultural resources and as the South
alone produces that great staple upon which
hangs the Commerce of the world as
that staple can be bought on better terms, in
this valley, and more convenient to the spin
dies that will spin it, than it can be bought at
the East and as the manufactures of the
Ohio and Mississippi valleys can afford to sell
us the manufactured article on better terms
than can the Yankees it would be idle to
doubt that the vast commerce already existing
! between the Northern and Southern parts of
/ this valley will rapidly augment from year
/ to year.
| ST. Louis. as the grand centre; New Or
| leans, as the outlet Of this immense trade
! who can estimate the millions embarked in
such stream of commerce as man has never
| yet witnessed
With this great tide of wealth must and
will flow greater tide of travel; for com
merce and travel 90 hand in hand.
With this valley densely populated with
st. Louis as its great heart, whose Fulsa-
ton is felt in every portion of the Union with
the wants which follow in the footsteps OF po-
pulation, wealth, civilization and experiment;
who can doubt that direct line of Railroad,
connecting this great centre with its great
antIepot, and passing down the richest valleys
OF INC cotton re:ssf,ffS
overhowing That line would pass through
Memphis. The Iron mountain Railroad
would he the avenue to Memphis for all pas
sengers coming from st. Louis, Chicago the
Lakes and the great North West (The shor-
test line from New Orleans to Chicago, is by
Memphis, the Iron Mountain Road, St Louis
anu lle Alta ana CHlCa5u hudu'
The Little Rock Road would throw into
Memphis all the travel for New Orleans
coming from Arkansas. The Memphis and
Ohio Road, which, in two years, will connect
Memphis with Louisville and Cincinnati by
the schortest line, will bring into Memphis
most of the travel for New Orleans coming
Al, oil nj tha Iol- fn ba
line from Louisville to New Orleans, via Mem
phis is shorter, by some ten or twenty miles,
than any other route ever proposed, except
the \. o., jackson and Great Northern Rail-
road. How then is combination of Railroad
influences at Memphis, all making in fauor of
this direct valley line from Memphis to New
Orleans. All these Roads are the allies of
this, from interest. They all start at Mem
phis and each knows that any other line from,
Ne1O Orleans North, takes travel from them.
This Road then has outlets, north of Mem
phis, which no other Mississippi Road has.
Ours is the only line from the Louisville
valley and from the St Louis valley that can,
at all times, count upon the aid and support
ofgreat northern lines oftrayeL The Memphis
and Charleston, the Memphis and Ohio, the
Memphis and st. Louis, and the Memphis
and Little Rock Railroad are all deeply inter-
ested in securing every passenger that starts
from New Orleans for the North, North East,
or North West, come by Jackson and up the
Iazoo Valley. Hence all their influences will
be exerted to Hroao tropel from their lines up
on hiis, as a matter of reciprocal interest.
You see whata fortunate position our Road
occupies. Let us see what it may do, in the
way Of travel.
The travel from the Ohio valley to New
Orleans, and back again, has been estimated
at half million annually. l arrive at the
probable travel in this way.
In 1852, there were 300 landings made at
Memphis by the various steamers on the Mis-
sissippi and its branches. About 400 of
these were made by steamers coming out of
the Ohio. found these facts by examining
the Steamboat register at the Memphis wharf
boat, in person.
The old Capt Of the wharf-boat assured me
that these boats would average 100 passen-
gers. That would be 10000 people, instead
of 100000, passing to and from New Orleans
out of the Ohio valley. l put the amount
however, at only 100000 annually larger
number passes between st. Louis and New
Orleans as the steamers daily leaving each
place for the other would show. But count
it at the same igure-1O0,Ooo. This would
be 2000 900 annually thrown into Memphis,
from the Ohio valley and the ST. Louis valley,
on their way to New Orleans. From Mem
phs to New Orleans, the Valley Road would
be the shortest line by at least GO miles and
the travel would so over this line
But, suppose my calculations as to travel, ]
are extravagant. Limit it, and cut them
down to 100000 From Memphis to Jack
son, is about POS miles. learn that the usu-
al fare on the Central and n Orleans Road is
about cents per mile Suppose we put the
fare on our line, at 21a cents per mile-or,
say SIS from Memphis to jackson Then
100000 through passengers would bring in
$4,000 annually. On all Southern Roads,
the way travel is larger than the through ira
vel and the freight equals, often exceeds both
way and through travel. But let us, suppose
that the way travel and freightscombined do
not exceed the through travel. This will be
$4,000 more, making $1,0oo,0o0, as the
gross receipts. The average cost of operating
Roads in the South, is from 40 to 45 per cent
Of their earnings. The upper end of this val
lev Road cost but SO per cent to operate it
last year. Let US, however, suppose it will
cost one half of its annual earnings, to run it.
This will leave $5ooo0o as its nett earnings
Now, for the cost of the Road. The upper
end has averaged cost of about $4,000 per
mile. The balance will cost much less than