Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1881-03-17

Interest" ..""....-".-.... ......" z, A3 90
Expense Account..."."."..........4 4,l13 80
All other expenses........."...-2 2,G37 55
Net profits for the nine months from
March 81 to December 81, l870.".....S68,2 ,211 Oh
This is 20 a 10 per cent for the nine months,
or at the rate Of 251 per cent. per annum.
The total balance to the credit of profit and
loss, December 3lst, 1879, after deducting
expenses and dividend paid January 3lst
1879, was s86, ,74644.
The result of this showing was meeting
of the stockholders on the 29th of January
last, at which it was determined to double the
capacity of the factory and to increase the
capital stock to $50O,000. The full details Of
the meeting have already been published in
the Ne,rs and Courier.
| asked Mr.. Hammett, the president, what
he thought of the relative advantages, disad.
vantages and cost Of water and steam power,
and he said that in his opinion water power
was very much cheaper and far superior to
steam. As to the prospect Of manufacturers
in this State, Mr.. Hammelt said ave have
never had at any time since the war future
which was so encouraging to manufacturers
as the present, and it will not do at all to base
calculations on the present condition Of
affairs. | think well constructed and we'll.
managed cotton mill, in favorable locality,
is one of the best pieces of property in the
State 1t should not yield net profit of less
than Is to 20 per cent. on the capital invest
ed."
The machinery at the Piedmont Factory is
all American and all new.
To use Mr.. Hammets own words: "There
is no improvement in machinery in either
Europe or America to improve the character
or quantity of the goods manufactured that
we have not got.
With regard to the legislation necessary
to induce the establishment of manufactures
in the South, Mr.. Hammet said II don't
think any national legislation necessary.
What you want is money, and if you can't
get men with money here to 20 into manufac
tories, you can get as much money as you
want from the North. think the State ex-
emption from taxation on all new manufacto
ries for ten years is a wise provision"
Mr.. Hammett was not very enthusiastic in
his concentrations of the Clement Attach
ment. This is the third time,," he said, "that
it has risen up like sea serpent. A man
that can run Clement Attachment can run
the Piedmont Mills I don't think the plant
ers can make any money with these machines
unless they employ experienced operatives,
and they can't afford to employ skilled labor
on such small scale Their goods will not
stand the test of the market. There is not
enough uniformity in their yarns"
AS to what the success of cotton mill in
Charleston, run by steam, would be, Mr. Ham
NETT said T.: 81 should think that yarn mill
in Charleston, properly constructed, to make
coarse yarns alone, out of the rejected and
cheap cottons that could be bought there,
might be run to great advantage and profit to
the owners. l rather think negroes could be
used to do coarse yarn work. think they
could be trained to make very fair goods. |
don't think the labor would be much cheaper
than with white operatives. We give our op-
eratives good wages and take care of their
morals. If you take our people at Piedmont
and compare their morals with any other class
of people similarly situated, the comparison
will be very favorable to our people here
We get our labor from the natives living
around in the neighboring county,
The stock of the Piedmont Company, with
the exception of 100000, is held in this
State, and $l46,000 of it is held in Charleston
Westminster (the Clement Attachment Mill.)
Having made personal visit to the'cotton
factories of the State and having in conver
saton with the manufacturers themselves, re-
ceived opinions unanimously adverse to the
practicability of establishing "The Clement
Attachment" with any reasonable prospect of
profit to those engaging in the enterprise, l
thought it would be valuable to those who are
discussing this matter so generally in this
State and out of it, to have placed before them
not only the objections which the large man.
ufacturers make to the New Process Machine,
but also the answers to these objections which
the agents and advocates Of the Clement At
tachment urge in its favor, together with my
own impressions and calculations, based upon
personal inspection of the process. Accord
ingly l boarded the Air Line Railroad at
Greenville and after a ride of about fifty
miles, arrived at the town of Westminster,
which is in Oconee, miles from the Georgia
line. For some time previous to arriving at
the station l became aware, from the conver-
sation of party of gentlemen in the car, that
I was not the only pilgrim in search of "The
Clement Attachment" and when the train
stopped three gentlemen stepped out with me-
was in the act of inquiring something about
the location of the mill, when one Of the par
ty, who seemed to be oldest, saved me the
trouble by asking the station master if he
conld tell him "Whereabouts was that Little
Spinning Jinny?" We were told that "The
Westminster Mills" were located about two
miles off, and that hack could be procured
after we had gone up to the "hotel' and taken
breakfast There is perhaps nothing which