Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1882-03-04

the Vulcan Works. at st. Louis. paying
the owners An enormous dead rent.
while hundreds OF operatives and their
families were turned out OF employment
to prevent competition and overproduc-
tion. Yet they call that protecting
American labor. These are merely
specimens. Protection and subsidy, for
they are Synonymous terms, prevent
competition, always develope unjust
aud dishonest combinations, diminish
production, make labor dependent on
the caprice OF the subsidized machine
owner, corrupt legislation, and burden
all legitimate Industries. There Is not
one OF the protected band who would
not turn of halt his hands any day in
midwiutor il he iound new machine in
any part Of Europe that would do their
Work, or employ Cinnamon IN their
stead if they would do their work five
cents day cheaper.
| 1t is absurd tor these men, their or
gans. or their advocates to pretend that
reduction OF even one.half of their
present tariff protection would either
close up their works or diminish THUR
production. 1t would simply compel
them to extend their markets, double
their energies, increase their products,
and sell them at reasonable prices; all
of which would be for the good OF the
country. know no better proof of how
little advantage an infant industry ro-
qulres to compete successfully with an
old and well-established one than is
furnished by the success OF the young
cation industries of the south with those
OF Massachusetts,, indeed OF all the east
which the country has been required to
pay tribute to Tor generations, and most
| extravagant bounties to tor the last six
toen years. Mr.. Nelson, the extremely
careful and intelligent correspondent OF
the Philadelphia Press, in his letter
from Atlanta on the 26th of last Novem-
ber, illustrates what l mean 80 we'll that
1 will read his statements Oh that sub
ject. He says: ..~
stI have already shown in former
communication that British operative
| will run over eighty four splndles,
while the American operative, runs
about sixty; and that this makes an
enormous difference In the wages ac-
count IN favor OF the British mill-owner.
The difference between New England
and the south Is vastly greater. The
average New England operative
runs sixty-eight spindles, and the aver
age southern operative runs thirty -four
| spindles.
! "Thls state of facts does away in q
large measure with the wage question.
The New England mills can afford to
pay very much larger wages to opera.
tives who can do SO much more work
- There is great future before
1t (the south) Ill the way OF manufactur-
ing its own staple. and when that future
comes and the southern factory towns
rival Lowell and Fall River, then will
the southern problem be solved.
t'It has been estimated that the saw.
ing here would be from one to two
cents per pound, or from five dollars
to ten dollars bale. The stMos
phere is SO humid III most parts 0l
the cotton states as 10 provide &C
much moisture that the use of arti.
fetal means of keeping the thread
wet is avoided, The power is cheap.
er, for the southern cotton-mili cai
be built in one of the inumerable
water-powers that abound in tho
south, and which run free from ice
all the year round. The best aud
largest mill in Georgia is the Eagle
and Phoenix, at Columbus. Its ex
hibit here tells the story of what il
can accomplish as to tho quality ol
it's goods. Tho company was organic.
Ell in 1868. Tho paid-up capital il
81, ,250, 900, and on that capital it has
paid dividend of over z per cent
for twelve years. This period, it will
be noticed, includes the panic yeal
1873, and the years of depression i'm.
mediately following. The wages o
the operatives of this mill are about
half those of the operatives Of New
England mill, but the proportion. o
spindles to operatives is only as 35 I.
II, 80 that the wage question Is il
favor Of the New England mill-owu
er, yet that mill now earns more thar
| IL per cent. year. notwithstandin.
all its drawbacks. 1t has been inti
mated that most of the good mills o
the south make from Is 10 20 per cent
q year. The Augusta mill, for ex
ample, which was started in 1858. ha
made since the war about Is per cent
aud the property is worth $400, ,0Ot
more than the capital invested. Tn
Atlanta cotton-miil is now maxim.
money at the rate of 20 per cent. OF
its capital, aud the average July divi
lend of Georgia mills was at the rat
of IL per cen. sef annum. - Tha
saving of froi.eFive to ten dollars
bale IN the cos.on illustrates the pos
sibilties OF the, future for cottol
manufactures in the south. Say tina
the saving is 81 so bsle, and calcu
late what that means TO the mill-own
Tho Ennlo ND mi IN 4
its. 45, 900 spindles, uses, $l3 900 bale
of cotton year. There is a savin,
against a northern competitor usinI
the same amount Of cotton of S97.
500 year. Thls is almost two-thlrd
Of its IL per cent. dividend"
Mr.. President, these are strikin
facts and they illustrate this princ
pie that proximity to the raw ms
terlal and the market for the produc
ls about all the protection an infam
industry needs to enable it to compel
: successfully with an old ana well es
Etablished one.! Georgia has to com
pete with Now England in the cotto
trade upon the principles of absolut
D free trade thanks to the wisdom 9
the trainers of the constitution fire
trade is established beyond the reac
? of congress betw cen and among a.
The citizens aud states of this reput
lic-snd she is doing it successfully
, developing her Industries and con
e. tending with her rich and powerful
F.. rivals under far great CT disadvantage
than New England would have in
!. treo contest in the cotton produt
with Great Britain to-day. wi
: vote cheertully, in order TO give thes
i. young southern Industries somethin
4 like fair start with the old ones W
have subsidized SO long, for a bi
t making all cotton machinery fire.
l from tariff taxation. think th
, southern people have the right, as
takes nothing out of theitreusury, t
} purchase as cheaply as they can sue
1 machinery as will enable each Oper,
t tive there to run sixty-eight or eigt
: ty-tour spindles, instead of thirty
y four rs they now do with their i'm
o perfect though high-priced machine
l. ry. That is a fair and honest way I
g protect aud encourage home industr
/ aud increase the number of factor
I operatives to aid in consuming ou
: subcrabundant agricultural products
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