Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-08-07
THE NATIONAL COTTON EXCHANGE

4 Talk with the Savannah Delegates
Some Pertinent Questions-A Few
Points to be COnsidercd-The Port
of Savannah Must GrOw-Facts vs..
Figures.
Learning that number of the delegates
representing the Cotton Exchange of this
city at the National Exchange held at
Old Point Comfort, Va, last week, had
returned, a reporter Of the News called
upon two of them TO ascertain their views
and Impressions regarding the delibera-
tons OF that body.
The gentlemen selected as delegates 10
the convention made use of the opp0r-
tunity offered them to look into the con-
ditiOns Ofthe cotton trade, being thorough
" practical in their views, and well IN
formed of existing matters relative TO our
cotton interests. Remarked one of our
practical. deliberate, and farseelng cot
ton merchants. sSwe could not help but
realizing the fact that as
far as connections with Europe and North
ern ports are concerned, Norfolk ENJOYS
advantages by virtue of her situation ana
harbOr facilities which are wanting IN
Savannah. and that the business men OF
Norfolk have put these advantages 10 the
best use. As compared with savannah
Norfolk is at a disadvantage, lnasmuch as
il is many hundred miles more distant
from the real cotton belt thti, 80
and vet il seems douDtlul Nhethei odN all
MI bsr received the benefit of ner sltua-
lion in that respect as she ought to have
DONE"
Remarked another of the delegates:
For some reason or other. it appears that
produce Of ali kinds can be hauled cheaper
bv the railroads having their terminal
points in Virginia than by Georgia roads.
As an example, it may he mentioned that
the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad de-
livers coal at Newport News, free on
board ship. at So 30 per ton, and in many
instances even at a lower price, which
they bring from Huntingdon, West Nir-
ginia, while it is impossible, according to
the statement of several of the savannah
railroad authorities, to deliver coal here
from the coal fields of Georgia and North
Alabama at less than 50 30 per ton,
although the distance is about the same
Ii is a fact becoming more and m0Ea
apparent every day that the Virginia
ports threaten those of Carolina and
Georgia with more dangerous competition
than is imagined or contemplated by our
business men. and unless our merchants
display extraordinary activity and energy
all the chances would seem to be III favor
Of our competitors, whose skill and enter
prise cannot be too highly commended"
--ltDW Nut5 tue llbIl vi -NtlAuAh NpiiiptiAC
with the port OF savannah inquired the
NEWS representative.
Much better in every respect at pres
ent. The Norfolk port consists of large
bay Of the ocean. giving from 20 to y
feet of deep water right at the wharves of
Norfolk aud Portsmouth with no bar in
terfering TO stop the entrance or the de-
parture Of ships of that draft at any stage
Of the tide-the width of the bay makes
= fp0nfnUa
by building out piers, and thus creating
room to moor three ships, whereas,
originally there was only room Tor one.
what is necessary to build up our port
as one Of the first on the south Atlantic
coast. and To divert the greater bulk OF
cotton this way. which Is finding an out
let through other channels?" inquired the
NEWS representatives.
In the first place. there should be
cheaper COMPRISING Of cotton and
lighter charges in the shipping of the
same, which places the port at great dis
advantage"
Another source of disadvantage is the
great discrimination between interior
towns COMPRISING and the COMPRISING
in Savannah.
Another reason is the refusal of foreign
shipping in savannah to take interior
compressed cotton. This refusal has been
owing to the fact that the savannah COM
presses are more powerful than those in
use at Atlanta and other interior points.
thus enabling ships. on an average, to
carry ) per cent. more cotton.
The following figures show the decrease
in the shipment of cotton from this port:
The croD Of lS>O-Sl was 6,6OO,O00 bales.
Sayauuah's receipts amounted then to
~. - bales.
For the crop of ISS1-S}. which is estima-
ted 10 be 1000, OOO bales. the port of SaVan-
nah will get a much smaller percentage
than she did for the crop of 1880 and 81.
Why is this? Perhaps if our shipping
merchants and steVedores had not dis
eliminated against interior compressed
cotton the receipts would have reached a
million bales per year.
No doubt the information obtained by
our delegates Will be pat to good use as
soon - our busy season begins.