Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1878-05-03
a short Sermon On the Fall River ne
YelOpmcnts

tTrom the New York Times
The experience Of the city Of Fall River for
the last few years is but type Of that Of the
whole country. 1t was substantially pro
duct Of the "flush times In $500 1t was
q quiet manufacturing town of less than H.,
900 inhabitants, given TO steady habits and
mcthodical but unpretentuus modes Of bust
ness. In the next fifteen years its population
was more than trpled. and its industrial ac-
tivity increased in % much greater ratio
When expansion and bold enterprise were the
rule it was poss, ssed 10y the eager spirit of the
time, and capital and labor were drawn into
it as to- a vortex. Corporations multiplied uu-
I'll there were nearly forty of them, Of which
no less than sixteen were organized IN the
three years Immediately following 1870 Fac
tories were run up in a hurry to get advau-
tage of the profits OF an industry to which
there seemed to be no limit Thousands of
looms and spindles whirling up into the mil
lions, were set in motion. Plain cloths and
prints were turned out 10y hundreds of mil
lions of yards annually Capital not only
came from Boston and New York to carry on
these enterprise, but the people Of the town
were reused into a speculative excitement and
brought out their little boards of money 10 in
vest IN mill stocks and many Of the operatives
acquired the dignity Of part owners More
than one mill was built aud run ON the pro-
ftch0 bl Alltnt hlllAll nNh1lIl lllOlh Nv IElnDl1
of moderate means. OF the vast increase IN
population. fully three quarters were made
up of operatives IN the cotton mills, most Of
whom were foreigners. either just arrived
from the manufacturing districts of Great
Britain. or drawn OF from the older cities of
New England by the promise of high wages.
Tho fever of oyer-production stimulated by
large profits reached its highest point IN Fall
River and with it blind confidence. or rather
an utter disregard of the adverse chances Of
the future, prevailed.
When the reaction came and the dull times
set in. the pressure was most severely felt at
the centres of the most intense activity and
the.most reckless OVERRIDING. and ON Fall Riv-
or il bore with peculiar severity There was.
indeed. much 20 lose, but that fact did not in
crease the willingness to lose IT, Corpora
tons had grown rich. but at the same time
cxtrayuguut The four savings banks Of the
place held $4,000, 600, and the number of
depOslturs was almost equal to that Of the pop
ulution. But the future bad been discounted
there as everywhere else. and continual
prevalence Of high prices and ready markets
was calculated Oh. The day Of depression
found them with enormous stocks on hand.
produced at high cost. and a. the markets
became chokod up and the demand for manu-
featured goods died out they had TO uccumu-
late more or sell at sacrifice, or else close
the mills in which their money was invested
and on which their incomes depended They
were in the midst Of q huge machine whose
wheels they could not stopand which threaten
ed to grind them to ruin. They set about re-
duciug expenses. extending credit borrowing
money, and resorting to every expedient to
moderate the velocity OF their activity or avert
/ the peril which it threatened. The vast pop
| ulatlOn of operatives which had become con-
/ centrated within few square acres Of cOrpO-
[ ration property, contained much inilammable
/ material drawn from the socialist element of
| foreign labor unions. To bring the pressure
/ to bear upon them was u perllous experiment
/ but It had to be done. 4 proposal to reduce
wages or even to decrease work met with yio-
/ lent opposition. and Fall River became the
/ centre Of strikes of the most spcruting
/ kind As am incidental effect of the reckless
/ hurry with which It's industries were built up,
| under tho stimulus Of the flush times, the
/ burning Of one OF the mills may be recalled.
/ when. aus viii Zoe remembered. IL was found
/ that 40 adequate appliances for dealing with
/ fire and no means of escape from the upper
/ stories Were at hand
But another phase Of Fall Rivers expert
/ cucc is that which has Just been fully develop
J ed. in the height Of its prosperity. ambitious
and energetic men rose rapidly TO positions Of
/ trust and responsibility. and in proportion to
.
/ for sagCity, and even for integrity and sta
bilty of character, which is so apt 10 have no
/ foundation but material and worldly success.
! They were sunshine capitalists. into whose
hands great interests had been thrust and who
| knew nothiAg of dealing with emergencies or
withsiundiug strong pressure Their train
ing was al acquired when things Were boom
| Ing and their character had never been put
10 O. test. Over-conhdence and disposition
| TO take chances We're the natural result. Chace
| and hathaway are specimen products Of the
flush times IN Fall River, which. indeed,
made the city itself what it is to-day but
their couuterparts have been produced all
over the country by similar causes. How
many more OF these mushroom men of impor-
tauce are To be found there, with no more
, moral fibre. and no more stability Of charac-
ter and how many mills will be forced 10
fac, bankruptcy and ruin OF account OF m
/ Irregularities lnismanagement 'unmerciful
. disaster. we cannot say but the Affections
OF Fall River only illustrate again the great
principle Of compensation, which sets pric,
upon iDciitious prosperity, US upon all thing
cls..