The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1869-01-30
TynoM OUR OWN CORRESPOND ENT !

! ing will soon be one of the lost arts. Wh at
with the abolition Of capital punishment, now
getting more and more fashionable everywhere,
and the substitution OF iron for the o,d-fash :
ioned hempen bands, the rope-walk will soon
become deserted. From the general favor
which the iron-tie seems to find, suppose its
use must be more to the advantage, OF the cot
ton packer than the rope which it has sup
planted. And yet there are those who regret
the disappearance of the rope. The manufac-
/ turers and dealers are OF course, Of this num-
ber; but nearer home, we find the perqui sites
of the proprietors of the cotton presses IN our
shipping ports very materially reduced. I have
been told that some OF our presses, in the
good old times, before rope had given way to
iron, netted as much as $4,000 per annum from
the waste rope ends. IT'S an i'll wind that
blows nobody good, and uice uersa. In the
course Of my travels have seen cotton bales
tied with four, five and six iron-ties; very are
ly any tied with rope. As o general thing,
however, the cotton now seen at railroad de-
pots is in good condition-rather more so than
used to be the case in former years.
Spartanburg, as you know, is not cotton
country, though moro or less cotton has al
WAYS been raised in the district, and sold in
this town. The census of 1860 gives the pro-
duction for that year at six thousand two hun
dred and seventy-nine bales. The population
of the district is set down at twenty-six thou
sand niue hundred and ten, Of which number
eight thousand two hundred and forty were
slaves. There were then, according to the
same authority, one hundred and ffty-six
thousand acres Of improved lands, and four
hundred and fifty-six thousand acres of unim-
proved. The cash value of farms is given at
81 $4,000. As tho number of slaves in this
district bore but small ratio to the white
population, the change Of the labor syst EN-
has not worked as dsadvantageously here as
in other parts of the State.
The war also, so terrible in its ravages in the
lower and middle parts of the State, passed by
Spartanburg. True. she gave her sons and
her treasure, Us freely as you did who dwell by
the SEQ; but she was spared the blighting tread
| of hostile and contendng armies, and the
wanton and wholesale destruction Of the accu-
mulatsd wealth Of years. Consequently she
recovered more speedily from the shock caused
by the disastrous close OF the war, than other
parts of the State; and land today is as valu-
able in almost every part Of the county as it
was in 1860. In some sections it is more 80.
The reason is obvious. The population is prin-
cipally composed OF small farmers. Large
planters are only found in the rich river bot
toms. These farmers and planters have nearly
all nado moro or less money tiIi, Jenr, aI1d land
offers the only sure and profitable investment
for this surplus. Besides, Spartanburg has
valuable iron, gold and other mines, and an
almost incaculable amount Of water power
all now exciting attention, and promising to
bring large iufux Of population and capital
from abroad. No wonder, therefore, that land
owners should be slow to part with their pos
sessions at present figures.
As am son the wing" and have only been
travelling along the line OF the railroad, have
not had the opportunity Of visiting the maDy
factories Of this county. Spartanburg is an
old manufacturing district. Batesville and
Biyingsville have long been known as cotton
spinuers, and the rolling mills on the Pacolet
have supplied the. whole up-cou1try with nails
and iron for maDy. years past. Still, manu-
factures are only in their infancy. Not hum
dredth part of the water power of the county
is in use. This is all but certain to become
the manufacturing county Of South Carolina.
A communication. published in the Pho nix
about month ago, under the signature Of
'Pacolet," and, if mistake not, republished
IT, fill nd
tory account Of the extent OF the water power
of Spartanburg. "Pacolet," who is throughly
familiar with his subject, states that he does
not know Of any territory of the same area in
the United States that has tho same amount
of water power as Spartanburg.
Labor is abundant here and cheap. The fac
tories already IN operation have no difficulty
in obtaining all the labor they require; and
much larger number of operatives could be
obtained from the poor paopo who live at the
foot of the mountains, within twenty miles OF
Spartanburg. hope that ere long the Paco-
let's the Tigers and the Enoree will be crowded
with mills, as the Connecticut, the Raritan
and tho Genesscs are to-day; nay, more,
fully believe that maay of your readers will
live to see the full realization of this hope.
Spartanburg is q pretty stirring place for
business in this respect resembling Walhalla,
as sketched in one of my letters. Being
railroad terminus, it. is the converging point
Of hundreds, if not Of thousands of wagons.
coming long distances, laden with produce OF
various kinds. Corn, butter, eggs, fowls, ap.
pies, &c., are purchased here at about the
same rates as in Walhalla. The local con-
sumption is much greater, however, than at
the latter place, as Spartauburg is quite con-
siderable town. Population, probably, about
5000. There is large number of stores here.
and some Of them appear to be doing very
fine business. i heard Of one firm whose re-
celpts during several weeks before Christmas
averaged about $so0a lay. This is not bad for
an up-country village store. 1 do not know
whether our Charleston friends are alive to
this fact; but I found in the course Of my trav-
els, that the business men OF New York, Phil
adelphia aad Baltimore Or, disposed to nurse
all these little avenues Of trade; and their
drummers are to be met with at every railroad
depot aud cvory CROSSROADS country store.
Let your Charleston importers aud jobbers,
factors and commission merchants, bear this
| -, ,,,;nd opd o,o M thnjr couraa accnrtlnrly.