The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1892-06-02
'OTTON Mills NORTH ANDSoUTH

The bill pending IN the Massachu-
etts Legislature to reduce the working
lours Of women and children in the |
actories to ffty-four hours per week |
las brought ont some interesting testi-
nony.
The cotton manufacturers Of the
State oppose the bill, and declare that
hey are StraIning every nerve to COM
pete with the Southern mills. TO re-
luce the hours oil labor would make
competition with the South impossible
One Of the manufacturers testified be-
tore the legislative committee that the
nature Of the work and the necessities
Of the times demanded the very cheap
est class of labor.
!. Howard Nichols, OF the Dwight
Manufacturing Company, at Chicopee
sad that competition partly from
Southern mills, "is 50 intense that
small fraction Of cent on yard is
the difference between success and tail
ure, to a Massachusetts mill, and he
adds: "For myself | confess the out
look IS not cheering, and | would not
invest nor advise friend to put one
dollar into any new cotton factory in
Massachusetts. y i x Our men Of
greatest wealth are not putting their
money into mills in Massachusetts.
They can find more profitable employ
ment elsewhere for their capital, and
they see the danger which threatens
them here"
\. K. Borden OfFall River testified:
The Southern States have to-day al
most, lfnOt quite, as many cotton spin
dies us the cities of Lowell and Lawrence
combined, and the building of factories
III those States is increasing all the
time" And when it is considered that
the hours of labor i'll the Southern mills
are from siXty-si hours weekly in Georgia
to siXty-ninc and scycnty-twO hours
weekly in other localities in the South,
that labor is very much cheaper there
than i'll massachusetts; hat the facilities
for transportation OF finished goods are
very much more advantageous there
than here; that there is comparatively
no cost for the transportation OF raw
cotton to the mills, and that even now
the finished product 'Of these Southern
mills is being offered over the counters
OF New DIRK, Boston and other leading
markets, in direct competition with
goods made in Massachusetts, to say
nothing OF cXpOrtatIOn, 1t Will be seen
that he situation is becoming some
what serious, TO say the least.
Elliot {. Clark, of the Booth mills
at Lowell, said:
simply want to give you a few cold
facts IL regard to Southern competition.
1t seems to NE that the whole danger to
our Massachusetts industries is from the
South; that has been brought to my at
tentiOn, especially within the last few
wears, by the fact that Southern mills
are taking away my work from me. |
am losing my contracts Il great deal in
that way. 1t is also the same in regard
to the trade in China, because the
Southern States get ahead of me. | have
looked into the subject carefully, com
pairing goods, prices, etc, where and how
| WAS being beaten. There are several
good mills down there. The PacOIet is
II good mill: so is the Clifton and the
Piedmont. looked at their goods and
found they We're Just as good as mine
They beat me actually in speed. In the
cost per pound OF thirteen to twenty
two yarn | found they beat me out OF
my boots; we are not i'll it with them.
My cotton was costing me 1912 cents
per pound and theirs 9-11 cents. The
difference in the price OF cotton was
pretty near the profit. They are Just ae
coed wcavers, Just as good spinners-so
those who have been there tell me. This
is the sort of competition we are meeting
with.
Other witnesses followed in the
same line, and admitted that their
business was in danger of being trans
ferred altogether to the South in Or
der to be i'll sight Of the cotton fields.
SO great is the competition that the
Northern mills are forced to increase
speed, reduce wages and introduce
new mechanical appliances, and even
with these changes dividends are de
creasing. The Massachusetts, manu-
facturcrs unanimously said to the COM
mite, alt will be impossible for US
to continue any longer in competition
with the Southern mills; and this in
dustry upon which SO much of the
prosperity of New England rests will
leave it, if a law is passed reducing
the hours Of labor
With these facts before US, the thing
to do is to so ahead with our cotton
mills, aud build new ones. Our New
England competitors are already on
the run, begging the law to interfere
in their behalf We must press the
advantage already gained, and control
the manufacture as well as the produc-
ton Of our great staple. This is the
sIrest way to build up the industrial
interests of the South. and we shall be
short sighted indeed If we do not profit
by these admissions OF our COMPETE
tors, and turn their loss into our gain.