The day book. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 1857-1867, 1866-06-11
The Cotton Manufacture.

The Columbus Daily Enquirer urges the re-
a.,ct;on of the culture of cotton and the in
ossass of its manufacture by the South, until
~ whole cotton. crop shall ultimately be
n,anufactured at the South. The heavy ship
INC and insurance charges from the seaports
r. t6a manufacturing districts.iit says, would
y. entirely saved, and the direct trade with
vi ,,orts OF the world, which the commerce in
aotton fabrics would certainly secure, would
cbeaben the price Of all ARTICLES the SOUTH
.,orid have to import The Enquirer further
.h;nks that India, China, and Egypt, might
oontinue to raise their large crops Of mostly
nfsrior cotton, which has rendered necessary
alterations of British machinery, and Great
pr;tain might continue to manuacfture 1t as
~ ter,siyely as she has manufactured hereto
fore. but the superiority of the Southern lint,
ond the at least equal cheapness at which
Southern fabrics could be sold, would secure
the sale Of all Southern manufactured goods
at rerauneratiye prices, An additional rea-
.on urged in faver4 OF an equal culture
and manufacturel of cotton is that of a
humane and philanthropical character, that
EMPLOYMENT could then be given to the
thousands of families of poor white people
with which the South is hlled--creating, as
the manufacture on large scale would, de-
mand or market for the only capital they
have their labor Many of these, it is added,
orc disabled soldiers, and the wives and chill
drsu Of soldiers, for whom provision must be
made. ,sss-s, -s's... a
The Enquirer concludes, by stating that
.oroethinp should be done to protect the great
cotton interest of the South, in its present
perieus position. (.
These views are in accord with those Gene
raj James. Of Rhode Island, expressed years
ago, wLo concludes his paper urging the
South to embark in the cotton manufacture,
by saying to the South, let your attachment
to YOUR own interest and the Interests of the
community, united with love for your species,
combine to stimulate. you to enter with reso-
luton this field of enterprise, and to cultivate
il with the full determination not to be out
done. The idea Of the Enquirer is very ex-.
banded one, embracing an equal cotton cul-
ture and manufacture. u fsdH9H 3as 4Hts
There would be required long time be-
fore this scheme could be accomplished, unless
the South were determined to raise no more
cotton than she could manufacture. And
that certainly at present she could not be in
ducsd to do, for the reason, we presume, that
the cultivation of cotton would prove more
remunerative az crop than perhaps any
other product of the soil, to the cultivation of
which she could devote her labor. The more
practical plan, it seems to us, is to adopt the
p0ulatin process commence the manufac-
lures upon less expansive scale than that
which contemplates the manufacture of the
entire crop. Let us by all means establish
manufactures practical beginning
and increase the capacity Of the mills either
by charging them or erecting new ones
throughout the cotton regions. 1t is by thus
bringing "the plough, the loom and the an
vii" into close juxtaposition that we shall
avoid all these charges of transportation to
market and the commissions of the "middle
men" which make such fearful ravages in
the nominal price per pound, at which the
planter is told by his factor, he has sold it.
Let us be our own "middle men" as far as
circumstances will allow raise the cotton,
manufacture it on the plantation, or at the
mill which may be established within most
convenient reach, and instead of remaining as
we have been to considerable extent, the
hewers of wood and drawers of water for the
European and Northern manufacturer let us
get to work and accumulate wealth for our
selves and our children. The advantage
which the South possesses as manufacturer
OF its own staple over the northern manufac-
turer is indisputable. General JAMES writes
--"were there room for a rational doubt Oh
this subject, the, reader might be justified in
regarding it with some degree of skepticism.
But when he reflects on the we'll known fact,
OF the much more rapid increase of capital
and wealth in the manufacturing community,
than in that of the cotton planter, he will be
constrained to acknowledge that the effect
cannot be without sufficient cause That
cause he will seek for in vain, unless he find
IT In the greater profits of manufacturing,
compared with those of producing the raw
material" M sdl 5tis "a 1A
CouNTERFEIT NoTEs-Peterson's Detec-
tor for June gives the following list of recent