Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1881-08-12
WEEKLY CHRONICLE.
KING COTTON

Rapid Growth of Manufacturing Interests
in the south.
Extensive Mills Being Erected--Negro
Labor Found to be Failure in the
Factories.
New York Herald
VIcKsBURG, MISS, July 28, 1S81-Per-
haps no industry ever inaugurated in the
Southern States was more rapidly develop
ed than the manufacture of cotton yarns
and coarse goods has been in the past ten
years, and the 9 boom =" is still rolling on.
From Carolina to Teas the demand is far
greater than the supply for skilled labor,
improved machinery and more capital. The
statistical reports of last year show the av-
erage annual dividend of the principal mills
South to be 22b per cent. The result is
that Eastern capital lis seeking this
class of investment. Southern mills on a
small scale having paid WELL their proprie-
tors desire to double their capacity. Ac-
cordingly, In a great number of places new
mills are being started AT Huntsville, Ala,
for instance, a year since there was no sign
of mill. Now, both cotton factory and
a cotton-seed oil mill are being built there
The superintendent of the cotton mill comes
from Rhode Island and invests his capital
Within the past six months an Ohio man
has started the spindles humming at Tus-
cumbia, Ala, spinning yarns direct from
the seed cotton, and says he will make %
per cent. on his investment the first year.
A 5,000-spindle mill is being erected
at Montgomery, the capital OF
the State. The Tuscaloosa Gala. }
mills have more orders than they can
| fill, and want to double their facilities. The
Selma Gala mills are a success, and Others
will shortly be erected there Huntsville is
the handsomest, the most healthy and one of
| the wealthiest cities in the State and if ex-
perienced New England manufactures would
| go there they could enlist $500, 600 in fac
| tories. Arkansas has several successful fac
tories which have been built in the last few
years. The largest and most successful are
at Little Rock. Pine Bluff, Ark, has a
| $500, 900 cotton mandatory movement on
foot, with more than one-half the capital
paid in. Fort Smith is building a $780,
600 cotton-seed oil mill. At Royston, in
Pike County, is the Oldest mill in the State.
1t pays handsomely, and the owners are
anxious to enlarge it. Capitalists have Just
advertised at Little Rock for bids to erect
another mill there to contain 500, 900 bricks.
MANUFACTURING INTERESTS IN GEORGIA.
Georgia, the Empire State of the South
| is now and probably will continue to be the
| leader in manufactures among the South
ern States At Columbus, upon the finest
water power in the land, are now the largest
cotton mills in the South. Among the en-
terprises there is corporation which has
grown from one little mill of $500, 900 capt.
tai, in the past half-a-dozen years, to COM
pany of five mills to-day, with a paid up
capital of 81, $50, 900, paying 20 per cent
Other mills have been built up around them
and are enjoying a successful career. Next
to Columbus comes Augusta, with her
splendid canal water power In 1879 she
declared a dividend of % per cent. on
$500, 900 invested In cotton factories. What
was the result? Since that time a company
has been organized there with capital of
| 1000, GOO to manufacture cotton goods,
with privilege to increase its capital to
| So, 900, 600 Another manufacturing COM
pany of the same city have increased
| The mills at Macon are being en-
larged. Another splendid factory
is to be built at Atlanta, where there is one
of the finest in the South now Dalton, Ga,
has, within the past year. organized a move
ment, and philanthropist of Rome, Ga.
told the writer Il short time since that he
would start the Rome cotton factory with {
subscription of S100 900. The Chattahoo
chez mills, at West Point GA, recently de
stroyed by fire, are rising, Phenix-i like from
the ashes, and will soon be in operation
again. Columbus, has the only baggine
factory in the State, which makes ten mills
in all, in that city. The Enterprise mills OF
Georg la have recently doubled their capacity.
There Is the finest water power in the South
IN this State. and room for more mills upon
It, But while Georgia enjoys this advan-
tage Alabama can boast the finest coal mines
III the South, which supply all her foctories
with good coal at from 81 to So. so per ton.
Next to Georgia comes South Carolina.
and, while the former is proud of the larg.
est mills in the South, the latter can boast
of having the smallest cotton factory. moi
only in the South but the smallest in the
United States. This mandatory, located
at Westminster S. c., is not only the
smallest factory in the country, but, ac.
cordlng to its report, is the most profitable
one. The capital employed in 81, 600; one
cord, 200 spindles, seven hands This spins
cotton direct from the seed by new pro.
cess, and reports profit of 40 per cent
Her largest and best mills, built within the
past few years, are paying q and % PEI
cent The average dividend of all of the
mills in South Carolina is 22b9 per cent.
The most marked result of this is thai
within the past half year, since that repor
was published, half million dollar cotton
factory has been started at Charleston, S4OO,
0O0 of the stock being already subscribed
much of it from Boston. One of the mills
built this year is at Orangeburg, S. c., an6
reports profit of over 20 per cent. A large
manufacturing company at Columbia, S. c..
desire to double their stock-from 5000. O0C
to $500, 600. A well-known firm of Provi
dence, r. l., are expanding several million
dollars in developing the grand water power
of Columbia and expect to erect severa
large mills on it. An extensive manufacture
ing company has just been organized al
Sumter, S. c., and the company has ordered
improved machinery from Lowell, Mass
Gatfney City, S. c., is new town, yet they
have subscribed $40, 900 for factory there
North Carolina is making rapid strides il
the line of factories. The manufacturing
company in operation at Graham, N. c.
are building new MILL to be called the
Glencoe. A few years ago the falling
waters of the Little North River flowing
through CASTOR County, N. c., rolled OF
uninteuuptedly through that beautiful val
ley, their roar making the only music tina
fell upon the ear of the honest farmer
Now, within a radius of seven miles, and il
the triangle of three railroads, those sam,