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

Inc capacity or the 1actOry Is II ,coo SPIN
dies, 1923 looms and 101 cards. The machin-
cry is all American, and was made by the
Lowell (Mass) Machine Shops. The water
power is obtained from Horse Creek, and 300
horsepower is used. By means of extensive
dams two ponds covering All area of 7lS acres
are formed above the factory which furnish q
fall Of 20 feet upon an American Turbine
wheel. The Langley factory has an advan-
tage over the Graniteville and Vaucluse fac
tories with respect to its water supply, as it
has the use of two or three tributaries to
Horse Creek, which flow in below Granite.
vile
The classes of goods manufactured are: 78
Langley A shirting, 4 Langley shirting, Z 8
A drills, 7.8 B drills, IA Langley A drills
and A. Langley B drills.
The production Of the factory is shown in
the following statement taken from the com
pany's books The consumption Of raw cotton
for the year ending 9th Of December, 1879,
was 2,416,622 pounds or 5,598 bales. The
amount Of cloth turned out during the same
time was 2, 1925 pounds or 6,39S, 1884 yards.
The waste is estimated at 13a per cent. net.
The number Of operatives employed is $50,
all white and two thirds female. The aver.
age rate of wages per day is 7S cents, and the
pay roll for the twelve months ending Decem
ber 27, 1879, was $77,5SS.40. During The
last twelve months two semi.aunual dividends
of per cent. each have been paid, and du
ring the three years previous dividends of 4
per cent. semi.annually were declared. BE.
sides the payment of the dividends the COM
pany has laid aside commercial capital of
S15O,O00, and has made improvements to The
property costing many thousands Of dollars
l asked Mr.. Foster, the superintendent Of
the factory, who is man thoroughly informed
upon all matters relating to his business, what
he thought Was the prospect for manufactures
in South Carolina, judging from his own ex-
perience and knowledge of the advantages af
forded by the State. He replied: "The man,
ufacturing business is 25 per cent. better than
it was year ago, and the exhibit which can
be made by the manufacturers of South Car
olina is as good as anywhere in the world.
There is more encouragement for manufacto
ries to he started in the South than any other
section in the world. don't say South Car
olina alone, but she has as good chance as
any. She grows as much cotton in the Sec
tions where factories would be likely to start,
and has climate equal to any in the world.
She has superior advantages to those of New
England or Old England and Of India. We
have great advantage with respect to labor,
and the advantage with respect to the procu
ring of the raw material is immense. We
can ship our goods to the Western markets
just as cheaply as they can from Lowell, and
at the same time save all the the freights,
commissions, stealage, insurance and lisk on
the cotton. We have an advantage OF fully
II cents on pound over the New England
manufacturer l don't think we need any
National legislation to encourage nanufac-
turers in the South. If the question of man.
ufactures is taken into Congress it will be
bound to 60 against the Southern manutactu.
ring interests. AS to Stale legislation, |
think that the exemption from taxation for
ten years on all new machinery should be
continued The exemption is necessary to
place this State on footing with other States
where it is in force. think the exemption
should be on the capital stock of the com.
pany. Our property has increased in value
under the present management 30 per cent.
as shown by the sale of our stock in the mar
ket at 13O"
AS to the relative cost of running factory
by steam and water power, Mr.. Foster said :
"That ia a matter which depends greatly upon
the situation. IF you can find water power
on the line of railroad it possesses all the ad
vantages of steam and is cheaper, but if it is
located away from the railroad where you
have to haul your goods 1t cannot be COM
pared with steam near the railroad. The
first cost of applying water is greater than
steam. A steam mill could be established in
Charleston near one of the wharves to as
much advantage as anywhere in South Caro-
lima, provided you have railroad running
to the factory so that the cotton can be deliv.
cred at the mill and the manufactured goods
be shipped directly from the mill by rail or
water. Under such circumstances a steam
mill in Charleston, where the coal can be
obtained cbeaply, and there is market
for cotton all the year round, would be as
cheap as any water power in the country"
How about the Clement Attachment? /
asked. What do you think of it? Mr.. Eos
ter replied: 81 think the Clement Attachment
is humbug. might as we'll call things by
their right names. As a practical man
should object to it on its mechanical construc-
ton. | believe that manufacturing is spe-
cial business that requires skilled and edu-
Gated labor, which the planter cannot COM
mand without paying for it, A small factory
can not be compared to large one with re-
spect to the cost Of production, and the profits
on small machine, such as the Clement At
tachment men propose, would be so small
that it would not pay to employ the class of
labor which would be necessary to make &
style of goods which would stand the test OF
the market. This Clement Attachment is
simply revival of the Henry Attachment,
which proved failure thirty years ago"
In answer 10 further inquiries MIR. Foster
stated that labor was very plentiful and that
they could get 20 per cent. more than was re-
quired to run the mill. The operatives, he
said, are made up entirely of the people born
and raised in the vicinity. The overseers are
New England men. One-half the stock is
held in New York and the other half is
equally divided between Charleston and Au'
gusta The cost Of land in South Carolina is
almost nominal MIR. Foster said: "The land
around Langley was not worth dollar an
acre few years ago. 1t is now, OF course,
without the Improvements, increased in value
more than hundred per cent. The health
Of the place when we first took hold was not
good, but by thorough drainage and strict
sanitary regulations we have made it healthy
as any place could be. We have had but
thirty deaths in three years, and fifteen of
these were infants"
The Langley Factory is in good hands, and
with continuation Of the present favorable
condition of affairs it can not fail to yield a