Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1872-06-24
Letter from Lowell. Mass.

Correspondence OF tno alexandra IaAette
LOWELL, june 20.-Having given you in
my last letter partial list of the Organization,
&c, of the principal cotton mills located IN this
great city of looms and spindles, | will not emu
plcrate but one or two other very important en-
dred and eighty factories, for the manufacture
of steam engines and machinery of every des-
cription. brass foundries, wood factories of
many varieties, wire workers, silver and Britannia
ware, chemicals powder, &c. One of the most
important is the laboratory Of Dr. James G.
Aver & Co., a name familiarto the whole world
as the manufacture of Ayers Pills and other
medicines. This was established in S43 and
now employs over two hundred hands, and
consumes 400, 900 lbs. Of drugs Of the value of
one million dollars, 100000 gallons of spirits Of
the value of S6OO,0O0, 10000 lbs of sugar
costing 100000, 100000 bottles, 900
pill boxes, $50, 900 square feet packing boxes,
ll2,UuO feet of card boards. He pays $780,
600 annually for Advertising his paper and
printer ink cost him $4,000; five and half
million copies of his almanacs, printed by steam
in his factory, are sent out annually gratis
through England, France, Germany, Norway
Spain, China. and other nations; and this, we
might say, is the great lever for bringing in u
return for the outlay, amounting to millions
every year. He pays for freight on his printed
matter S4S 900, and $4,000 postage every year.
Another Of great importance to the city is
the extensive iron works, owned by Mr.. Scwell
&. Mack OF this city. Mr. Mack is one of the
most eutcrprising and popular Of Lowell oiti.
zeus, and correctly so, if | an a judge of hu-
man nature To him | am indebted for great
kindness and all the information sent you. The
interest he has taken, dsinterestedly, in giving
me his knowledge and views as to the best
means of making use Of the advantages we
have in our own State, and the kind feeling he
has expressed for our future welfare, was more
than | had expected to have received from a
Massachusetts gentleman (for such be isl to q
Virginia rebel MIR. s. Mack has, besides
the large mandatory in this city, several others
of equal importance near Boston. He is also
President of the gas works and bank, and is
interested in many Of the enterprises of the
city, and was once Mayor. Now to give you
some idea of the amount of raw material to
run the cotton and WOODEN factories, taken from
the city statistics, | will name the amount of
some Of the leading articles consumed; Total
number of spnd!es now i'll operation estima-
ted at 500, 900; looms, $4,000; annual consump-
ton of cotton, the product of the South, &c,
600. 600 lbs; Of wool, about 5000, 600 lbs. or
OnO tons of iron, 10000 tons Of coal, 100000
gallons of oil. 40 O0n bushels of charcoal, 800
hblS Of -four, 900 bbls starch. besides enor-
nous quantities of SOAP coppcras, alum, &c,
are consumed by the mills alone in one year.
The annual production Of the Mills is over
- non yards, including calicoes, carpets,
cotton cloths, bro;ld.cloth, and cassimercs. or
more than 300 miles Of cotton goods are woven
daily, or enough to go twice around the earth
III one year There are several very large mills
now in course of erection About -, 900 per-
SONS are engaged in the various manufactures;
the rest of the population are engaged in mis-
cellaneous pursuits. Very few idle persons are
to be found. The operatives are all looking
healthy. Much attention is given by the mana.
gers to providing good boarding houses; every
mill owns large numbcrof good well ventilated
two and three story brick houses which they
rent 10 the clearinghouse keepers on stipu-
ation that the operatives are to be provided
with board ut not over $50 per week. The
working time is II hours each day The ave-
rage wages of the females, including young and
DID, is about 81 80; some make ST. 80, per week.
Many of the operatives have by rigid economy
and self denial not only supported themselves,
but have saved sufficient to start them in a
small business or buy themselves a home, to
endow their future husbands. Two-thirds of
the deposits of the saving bank, which amounts
to several millions of dollars, is now owned by
the operatives As is usual in all prosperous
manufacturing towns, real estate keeps pace
with the advance of manufacturing interests
The present value of real estate has over and
over paid the cash of capital invested in manu-
features, and continues TO advance from year
to year. 1t would, do believe, pay our peo
pie to spend one half what they now own, in
manufactures; it would enhance the value Of
the other half to more than double the amount
invested, and in a short time. Amongst the
noted residents OF this city is one whose
name is familiar to the whole South, Gen. B.
I. Butler, better known with US as Beast But
Ter. He is not by any means popular with this
community. The people have no confidence in
him. He has fine estate here, and is said to
have become rich from the proceeds of New
Orleans collections during the war. Although
in Congress he does not represent his own dis
trict, but took up temporary residence in the
district he represents, in order to be candi-
date. He could never have been elected by
his own people. lie is too we'll known by them.
EIpcINt,N