Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1877-03-24
MANY INTERESTING PARTICULARS
From the Essex County Press, Newark, N. j.


of the Passaic, occupying several acres of
ground, upon which are buildings, the loor-
ing of which measures nearly eight acres,
are situated the largest thread works in the
New World, employing about fifteen hun
dred hands and paying out every two weeks
from sixteen TO twenty thousand dollars IN
wages, to be distributed by the employees
among different classes and occupations in
the city, and from fifteen to twenty thou
sand per month to other parties here, who,
in various ways, are connected with this
vast establishment. Although having the
largest pay roll of any employers in New
Jersey, and contributing more to the well
fare and prosperity of the city than all its
financial institutions combined we hear
less in the newspapers of this world OF
wealth makers than OF some second class
money lending shop on Broad street. 1t
would be useless for any one to attempt to
trace to their source all the varied indus
tries which have entered into the production
of Clark's CONT" Spool Cotton, which
is sold by every merchant dealing in dry
goods, fancy goods, hosiery, notions, etc, in
the United States, and contains two hun
dred yards of that indispensable article,
strong, smooth and beautiful. 1t is made
up of
NEARLY. FORTYTwO MILLION DoUBLINGS,
and yet is so fine as to be hardly visible a
few inches from the naked eye. The i'm
mense capital invested in The Clark Thread
Company's Works and the vast volume of
business, amounting to several millions per
annum, extending to every part of the
United States, is one of the principal
sources of Newark's prosperity. What it is
and the blessings which flow from it, are
not realized by one i'll thousand of the
people who dwell within the sound of their
tower bell. Notwithstanding the large
amount OF money which the establishment
was to pour into the hands OF every mer-
chant and trader in the city, as events have
shown, the first thing which the City Fathers
did when these works were being erected
was to tax the bricks and material not yet
shaped into buildings 1t was on par
with the intelligence and appreciation Of the
REAL SOURCES OF WEALTH,
usually exhibited by the average politician
Had it been some trust company or curb
stone broker that asked exemption, it would
probably have beenEranted. Some idea OF
the value of these works to the community
may be had by an illustration OF a thing
which might really happen at any time
The Clark Thread Company employ as
stated, about fifteen hundred persons, pay
ing out to them sixteen to twenty thousand
dollars every two weeks. These hundreds
of hands pay out that money to the
butcher, the baker, the grocer the clothier
the dry goods merchant, and all who have
anything to sell get part of it in some
way, either directly or indirectly. From
their hands it goes to pay debts, NEE
obligations and fill the channels of trade
with the circulating medium called money
and which is to business what blood is to
the human system, giving it life, ANNA
ton and power. Suppose tonight thosC
works were
DESTROYED BY FIRE.
They are fully insured. The Clark Thread
Company receive their insurance in casl
from their underwriters. They say to them
selves Cuisines is dull, sales are uncer
tain, profits are small, the future is un
known, and our taxes are heavy. The vas
business requires close attention anC
persistent energy. We will not take TIN
money and rebuild the works, but adop
the plan pursued by most moneyed men
viz: go to Washington, buy government
bonds bring them home, put them in til
box, pay no taxes, and sit down to tax
/ our ease, eat, drink and be merry, with n
thought of care, supported in luxury with
out risk by the interest on our bonds, pai
by taxation of the producing classes" Ca
any man calculate the wide spread rui
which would follow such calamity an
course of action by The Clark Threa
! Company? 1t would be incalculable. Al
those. people who earned money to purchas
what they wanted to buy, would be adde
to the list of paupers who to-day clamor fo
work or bread. Misery, want,
STARVATION AND CRIME
would be the fruit of such course. Blu
this is exactly what has been done through
out the country, and explains why one i
twelve in Newark are to-day supported b
the city. The productive capital of III
country, which employed our now idle mi
lions, has been put into government bond
and appalling destitution and want are @
every hand, and increasing at fearful rat
Labor is the source of all wealth and pro
perity, and there is no loss equal to tn;
which follows enforced idleness of the pr,
ducing classes. There is no music so fu
of Joy and peace and good will to men
the song of labor and the music of m
chinery. Better far that all other songs
hushed and every note be stilled, rath
than those, and to them we now introdu
the reader.
ON THE DOCK
of the Clark Thread Company, which
five hundred feet long, is mountain of tv
or three thousand tons of COAL drawn oil
of boats at the wharf by donkey engin
and the bales of cotton find their way fro
the same wharf to the brick house, for Il
storage Of that precious material, Oh
pound of which will make one hundrt
miles of thread, containing about forty-tv
million doublings. The mind cannot graz
the numerical fact. But four grades
cotton are ordinarily used in the manufa
ture of CIark's CONT" Spool Cotton al
known as "Sea Island Cotton" TT
comes principally from South Carolina al
is grown on The small islands along t
coast. Considerable is raised on the peni
sulas and around the bays and inlets, but
I is not equal to that of the sea islands, viii
is the finest in the world. The first bag
this sea island cotton of the crop of Is
was purchased by the Clark Thread Coz
pany at fifty cents per pound. The isla
cotton is not used in the manufacture
thread being too short in the fiber.
these sea islands we're the richest planters
( the South in
THE OLD SLAVE DAYS,
many of them having as high as six hi
bred slaves, and compared with whom
feddal lords of England were children
luxury, hospitality, and elegance. But
day all is Changed Those vast estates {
cut up into small plantations, many
them owned by the tieeroes, who now @
no man master. They bring IN thsir 81