Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1891-02-27

yIRGINIA'S NEW CAREER
GREAT INDUSTRIAL UpnEAvAL.

is uu1 JIG DeSlnnlnB OF career
whose influence must be folt through
out the country. Virginia is Just
commencing to take her place of
prominence among the States on the
strength of her immense possessions
of the chief material of industry.
Why she has not taken this place
long ago; why she is not the equal of
Pennsylvania today in iron manufac-
tnre, is due to no fault of nature, but
to the bent OF her past social and in.
dustrial development. She has the
material in perhaps double the
amount possessed by Pennsylvania,
aud, but for the narrow strip of ter
riSory occupied by Maryland and
West Virginia, she and Pennsylvania
would be sister States. Facts that
1t is desirable to recognize cannot be
repeated too often, and we may again
call to notice tho magnificent fuel
that the great mountain system OF
tho eastern continent, which has
done SO much in creating tho wealth
and prominence OF sIe United States,
belongs mainly to the South. This
TACT, simple as it is, is not sufficiently
recognized by tho people generally.
On account OF the causes on which
VIC have only touched, Virginia comes
late In the field, but no one who is
acquainted with her material wealth
and with the rapidity which charac-
terizos industrial development in
these years, can doubt that Virginia
will soon be all that Pennsylvania
has been.
This fact gives dignity to every
new town enterprise that We read of
as just being started in this wonder
fnl State. This upspringing is not
evidence of n mere speculation or
boom, rife in tho South, but rather
the assertion at ono point after an.
other, of the great natural law that
locates industrial Importance where
tho Chief clements of industry are
most abundant
The new towns that have boen
started in such numbers in recent
years-somo in the last few months
lin Southwest Virginia, have solid
basis of support in the great aNiacent
stores Ct &c aaf, 7f5n and other miner.
ans, with vast timber tracts and n
fine farming country all around, which
must i'll future years maintain n
large population. The settlement of
this great territory is mere matter
oil time, and of short time, when
we consider the rapidity with which
population of the whole country is
increasing, and the consequent no.
cessity OF occupying new ground.
Along with this increase of populu-
ton goes the increase in the needs
of manufactured articles, so that new
manufacturing centres must grow up
10 keep pace with the demand. AS
for the capacity of the State for sup
porting population and new centers,
1t IS enough to say that while Mas
sachusetts has thrty-seven cities of
ten thousand population, Pennsyl
vania thirty two, New York twent.
eight and Ohio twenty two, Virginia
has only ten, and yet Yirginia's sus.
tanning power, if fully developed,
would be equal to that of any of the
other States named. The relative i'm
portance of Massachusetts, Pennsyl,
wanna, New York and Ohio in popu.
latioI1 and other respects is due TO
the prevalence of manufacturing in.
terests, and the large introduction of
manufacturing plants into Virginia
Is the surest means of bringing the
State to the front.
That there is plenty OF room for
town growth in the State is striking
~ shown in the great growth of Roa-
n9ko, which, but few years ago an
obscure village, now numbers over
10000 souls. 1t grew up on the
strength of great industrial works
introduced. AT least dozen places
might be mentioned where the popu-
latlon has mounted by thousands in
the last few months. and these
towns, so far from being in advance
4 of'requirements, are the most active
in further Developments and seem To
be only at the beginning of an i'm
portant career. The extension of