Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-12-12
The Growing South.

/ Judge William d. Kelley, the we'll
/ knowh Pennsylvania protectiOnist and
/ nsEessman, returned 10 Washington
/ from his Southern trip on Thursday, and
i gave the newspaper men and his friends
/ In the House glowing accounts of his OBJ
I servations in the South. Judge Kelley is
1 particularly well qualified to speak Of the
changes which have taken place within
4 the last ten or fifteen years in the portions
the South which he visited on his late
! trip, for the reason that he visited them in
| 1867 and again in 1873.
| Judge Kelley spent most of his time
while at the South in Tennessee and
| Alabama, and he says that the evidences
| OF progress which he saw are simply
marvellous. He is convinced that the
South is at present more prosperous than
the North, and that the people of the sec
tions which came under his observation
are making more money than the people
of any section of the North.
He fatty contradicts Mr.. Blaine with
| respect to the wages paid colored laborers.
| Mr.. Blaine, it will be remembered, told
the Pittsburg iron workers that the ne
!
| Tennessee and Alabama for from 40c. TO
60c. day, and that the cheap negro labor
| of the South threatened to drive them to
| starvatiOn's door. Mr.. Blaine made this
statement without having visited the IRON
producing regions Of the South, and with
| out making any effort to learn the truth.
/ What does Judge Kelley say about the
wages of negro laborers, Why, after per-
sonal investigation. he says that the rate
of wages paid negroes in Southern
iron mills and mines is about
| the same as that paid
| in Pennsylvania. Under the circum-
stances Mr.. Blaine, if he has any respect
tor the opinion of worklngmen Of the
country, will promptly acknowledge that
he made an untrue statement about an
| important m after of which be knew moth
| ing whatever.
! There is another point TO which Judge
Kelley calls attention that can hardly
fail to have beneficial effect ON public
sentiment at the North. 1t Is that the
negro children are afforded as good educa-
| tional facilities as the white children,
and that these facilities are being con-
stantly improved. He calls especial
attention to the fact that these
facilities are far superior to what they
were ten years ago. This statement is
highly important, because the impression
has been sought to be created that the
Southern negroes were denied educational
privileges In order that they might be
kept in ignorance and their labor OBJ
tanned for mere pittance.
But the statement of Judge Kellev's
that will command the attention of the
whole industrial world is that iron can
not be produced anywhere near as
cheaply in Pennsylvania as ii
can in Alabama and Tennessee
Others, of course, have made this state.
ment, and those who are familiar with
the iron trade know what it costs
to produce iron both in Pennsyl
Vanla and Alabama, but the an.
nouncement by the man known as
Pig Iron Kelley, that the seat of the iron
industry OF the country will soon be al
the South, will cause capitalists to give
the iron and coal fields of the South more
careful consideration and lead them to
make investments in the Southern
States on a much more extensive scale
than they ever before thought OF doing.
There is every reason for thinking thai
the South is about entering upon period
of marvellous growth and prosperity
Those who have money to invest are be
ginning to understand how great the
resources OF the South are. The conse.
quence is that numerous railroads are
being projected. Mines are being opened
and Industries OF various kinds are being
established. If Judge Kelley lives tel
years longer and visits the South at tn,
end OF that period, his observations vii
furnish material for more glowing &C
counts of Southern progress than ever
those of his late Southern tour.