The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1876-02-10
MISSISSIPPI VALLEY TRADING co.
Itcport al The English Drpuiation Facts
~ Importance and Figures ~
Magnitude.


Our readers will remember that last
Summer Memphis was visited by II dep.
utation of Englshmen sent out by the
" Mississippi Valley Trading Company
n British association regularly organiArd
and chartered, with an aggregate capital
Of one hundred million of dollars its
operations embracing a variety Of manu-
featuring and mercantile interests and
Il mammoth business Of dealing in sup.
plies, This dcputaton visited the
southern and western states for the pur-
pose cofrcportingu upon the feasibility of the
association establishing direct relations
with the grangrrs for a mutual inter-
change Of products The full report as
published in the Cooperative News
evidences that the dcputation has been
both careful and precise in their inycs-
tigation, great stress being placed upon
the enterprise Of opening general direct
trade between Great Britain and this
country by means Of the Mississippi
river; and "thc removal Of the bar at
the mouth of this river is an object OF
the greatest interest not only to the
United States but to England. " as such
would cheaper the transportation Of pro.
ducts between these countries High
tariff rates. say the dcputatlon, "mcan
for England dear bread and cotton, and
for the American farmer Il smaller re-
turn for the products Of his land and a
higher price for the manufactures he
wants \ few cents on each bushcI OF
corn will stop millions Of bushels that
should find their way to English mar
kct,. Ii is further shown that the Mis-
siSsippi valley is fitted to hr the granary
of the world, and could he made to sup
port four hundred millions of people
and if cultivated aS it might be, thi,
population could be increased to one
thousand millions. The corn growing
states of the Mississippi valley will pro.
ducc an annual surplus Of four hundred
million bushels Of cereals, which would
find profitable outlet TO Europe by the
river and the gulf streams. |
Eighty per cent. Of the wheat surplus Of |
the west is growing in localities easily |
accessible to and bordering on the Mis-
,issippi river while more than two.thlrdS
six out Of nine million tons) Of the agri.
cultural products not required in the
states raising the same seek an outlet
rom districts to which the Mississippi
md its tributaries would offer better and
more accessible transportation, If rem
.lcrcd available for cheap carriage. The |
lcputation report iavorahly upon the |
ictty improvements, which,
with the removal Of distractions at
other places in tine river, would reduce
the cost of transportation to England ON
grain at least ten cents per buNhcI
This is all the more important when we
see that Of the five hundred and twenty
cieht million one hundred and iorty-one
thousand eight hundred and siNty-onc
weights Of grain COR its cquiya.
lent in flour) imported into the united
kingdom for the fifteen years ending
1872, more than two-thirdS was obtained
rom the United States, aud less than
pnc-third from Russia. This grain was
transported to the sca-board principally |
" the lakes and railroads, "thc export
N any great scale by the great natural
highway of the Mississippi being pre-
vented by the impossbility of bringing |
argc ocean steamers with safety TO New
Orleans ON account of the impcdmcnt |
II the barr The report says further;
The conclusion at which we have |
limcd. after careful review OF all the |
facts. is that when the channel at the |
mouth of the Mississippi is dccPcncd to |
thirty feet, and the impcdmcnts to its
free navigation up to It. Louis are re-
moved, there is no road which can com
pete with it for chcapncsr and regularity
in the transportation of the heavy agrl-
cultural products Of the west. The re-
sources and trade of the south and west,
the wants of the Patrons of llusbandry
and the wantsofthc cooperative societies
Of the united kingdom warrant the
formation OF the Mississippi Valley trad
ing company. In every town and city
of the south and west which we visited
We found the people and press favorable
fo direct trade with England. 1t is i'm
po,,ihIc to doubt that the development
of direct trade with the Mississippi val
ley will give a great impulse to the
movement in favor of free trade in the
United States, and tend to promote
more cordial and intimate relations be-
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