The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-09-04
MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY.

! Commerce., agriculture and that prlnGpa
agency in the promotion OF the success ant
progress OF these two great resources Of ma
tional wealth and progress, that Of trans
portation and inter cornmuDieatioD have oc
cupied the largest share Of our attention r
| our annual statement and our previous ed
| torals These ever engrossing topics coult
not. even In a general and cursory manner
be handled with greater brevity.
| The large spa given to them, and the eIab
Grafton Of their immense results, and urgent
demands upon our attention and enterprlse
must not be construed into any lack Of appre-
citation OF the great Importance TO our city'e
future and permanent growth, Of larger ap,
plicatfon Of our capital industry and enter.
prise, to manufacturing and mechanical pro-
auctions. There Is most regrettabe dis
couragipg disproportion between the products
OF these several forms OF Investment and In
dustry. The effect Of such di5proportion Ia
to give our city the character Of q depot, q
place Of deposit and shipment Of the raw pro-
ducts Of agriculture, rather than that of a
great Industrial mart, requiring and supply.
ing large thriving population, and inviting
q large immigration. The history of the last
city to become Of the first class through com
merce alone; and by such commerce as
ours. IL has shown, to the contrary, that
cities may become very large, wealthy and
popuous with very limited commerce..
Manufacturing industry has built up more
large and solid cities than commerce ever did.
1t Is more permanent form Of investment Of
the capital Of community, and o more reia-
bic basis for the future growth and mainten-
ance Of It's position. Commerce. is frequently
diverted 1t is fugitive and cannot be held
even by great natural and geographical ad-
vantages. 1t does not build up great com
munity, which cannot be pulled down and
dispersed by ordinary causes. We need not
dwell on these familiar facts. The commerce
OF New Orleans, as now conducted, without
an alliance with manufactures can never de-
rnand that large Increase OF population, or at
tract or encourage that rapid growth Of on
terprise Or Industry to which we look
forward. 1t Is limited to the In
portaton OF the raw products, which are
manipulated and converted into more vaIna-
BILE forms by the dense populations Of innu-
merable distant industrial cities. If these
would be 81 great demand upon these remote
communities for the ekilt and labor needed
for these conversions. Thus would New Or
leans become one Of the richest and greatest
cities in the world. Thus would the staples
OF her agriculture be qnadruplsd In value,
and her trade correspondngly increased.
Take the single item Of cotton, Of which she
receives her million and half bales, that are
dumped on the levee or in the presses, and
with no other mechanical application or labor
than that OF COMPRISING them merely to
cheaper or hasten transportation, are bur
ried on board Of ships which are owned
abroad. Thus is this raw staple sent to dis
tant towns for conversion into cloths, yarns
be the increase in the value of this article, and
81 the population and trade Of the city, If this
raw product were here subjected to these in
iustriaI processes and conversions by our own
oeOpel With all the advantages Of cheapened
security to the producer and
constant and easy access to their source OF
supply. why could not this staple be more
manipulated here than in Mancbess-
,er or In Lowell2 Why should we export raw
cotton to distant towns and import the same |
cotton In the simple form Of yarns when we
nave every facility to make such conversion
lere ON the spot where this raw product |
grows. and thus give employment to a large
lass OF laborers? There is no satisfactory an
'wer to this question. At least there will not
% when the great enterprises to secure cheap
and intercom
throughout the great Valley of the Mgsjs-
ippi shall be assured. And such assurance
We now have through our projected and pro.
.ressiDg railroad and canal lines and vehicles
u trade and travel. The suggestion of the
ack Of capital ID not pertinent to the in
Iuiry. The capital will come when it is de-
handed when it discovers the object to
which 1t can be proftably employed. Manu-
enterprise In the present crcum-
tances and prospects Of our city only needs
fair start to demonstrate it's enormous pro-
tableness 1t must start under the auspices
i those who have achieved like SUCCESSES
lsewhere-o those who understand the bust
ess and possess the skill and experience In
andling the requisite machinery. There
eed be no approximations Of want Of labor
re- or Of the price of labor.
Our commercial policy has produced a large
rop Of unemployed poor people. who wouln
9 greatly relieved by employment in any
description OF labor, and would rejoice to Sc
ure moderate wages In the line OF manufac-
lrlng and mechanical industry. Labor and
ne cost OF living would not command higher
ates here than in any Of the great nanufas-
1rtng towns of the North.
All the circumstances Of our city commend
nd invite such application Of the great ac- /,
lmulated and Idle capital OF the Northern
nd Europe an towns. ;
We rely with great confidence upon the q
agacity OF their capitalists to discover this /
cid and sphere Of investment and enterprise t
hen once entered upon, we do not believe !
lat even the history Of this country will ex-
bit an instance OF more rapid development I
I'd expansion than that Of Naw Qrleaua