The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1881-12-15
NortherR and southern Cotton Mill

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New Orleans Times Democrat: Two
papers up in Lewiston, Maine, the Ga
zette and the Journal, have just been
carr wing on a very animated and in
teresting debate OH the question
whether cotton manufacturing was
more profitable in the South or in
New England, the Gazette unfolding
the Southern cause, and carrying of
the victory.
Taking the question Of dividends
the Gazette shows they are strongly
in favor Of the Southern mills. The
Graniteville factory of South Caro-
lima paid a dividend of % per cent.
last year. The Augusta, Ga, mills 10
per cent, the Langley mill 10 per
cent, the WoodIawn and Lawrence
manufacturing companies, Of North
Carolina, 10 per cent, aud so on
throughout the South. These are not
isolated cases, as is shown by the fact
that the july dividends of the forty
five mills in Georgia averaged over
u per cent. On the other hand the
mills at Lewiston, Me-, did not pay a
cent of dividend, and two of them
found it necessary to scale down
their capital to Is and 80 ger cent. re-
spectively.
Water power was to be obtained in
the South, the Gazette showed,
much cheaper than in New England.
At Lowell, North Carolina, it could
| be obtained for new mills for moth
! ing; and even at Augusta the cost was
| ten times cheaper than the same power
any where in Massachusetts.
Labor, similarly, was cheaper.
/ Thus the Eagle and PhREix mills at
| Columbus, GA, EMPLOYS 1900 opera
! tives, and pays out annually 100000
in wages, an average Of 1926 per
week, while the wages in the New
England mills average fully SO a
| week.
The climate is advantageous to the
/ South as a manufacturer of cotton
! goods. In the Northern mills work Il
! frequently stopped on account of {
and drouth, and it. is necessary 10 use
an instrument to create an artificial
moisture of the atmosphere, which il
necessary to create a smooth running
yarn. This is not necessary at the
/ South, nor is il necessary to keep the
mills srtifcially heated five month";
during the year so as to make then
habitable by the employees, nor t.
have men constantly employed at the
sluice-ways to keep ice from the ma
cbineTy. On this point Mr.. Atkinson
who has been generally quoted as
authority Of this statement that tho
climate of the South was not adapted
to the manufacture of cotton goods
declared emphatically at Atlanta, the
other day, that he had never takcI
any such stand.
On the question Of skilled opera.
tives, it is shown that while many o.
the haads in Southern mills are greer
ones, the same can be said OF the OPP
eratives in the New England mills. A
majority of these are Canadians, alb
solutely uAacquainted with any me
chanical work when they took theil
places in these mills, and yet they have
driven out the native New England
labor.
With cotton, water-pOwer, wages
etc, lower, IL is evident that the
Southern mills can manufacture cot
ton goods cheaper. The Gazette gOe
. further,and tries 20 see just how mucl
cheaper il can be done. This advan
tage it finds to be exactly l3l6 pc
cent. in favor Of the Southern mills
so that the latter can sell their good
. much cheaper at all points where tn
freights are the same-that is, as IA
: North as Baltimore. South Of tia
city, where the freights are favorable
to tile Southern mills, they can furnish
cotton goods even cheaper. ltfoiloW
r from this that the Southern mill
= ought to supply all the goods needed
. by the Southern markets, and so thel
! will in time.