Goldsboro weekly argus. [volume] (Goldsboro, N.C.) 1885-1909, 1893-01-12
THE STAPLE OF THE SOUTH.
. thoughtful and Comprehensive
Review Of the Situation, the Pros
poets and the Results.

Say what you will, it will be many
years-if ever-before cotton will
cease to be king among the agricul-
tural products of the South, and
therefore whatever tends to the
strengthening of It's domain with
profitable results to the farmers of
the South, should be carefully con-
sidered by them and wisely acted
upon.
The c%oncepsus of Intelligent
thought and consequent opinion
upon the situation in regard to the
South's leading agricultural staple
is contained in the following well
digested article, which we take from
the Wilmington Star of Sunday:
If cotton-planting is to pay in
the South there must he one of two
things, either a productlon-restricted
within the limits of the markets we
now have, or We must have new mar
kets. Even with restricted produc
ton rev markets are desirable, for
the more markets the greater the
compe ton among purchasers and
the better the prices. But under
present conditions there are, and
can be practically but two markets,
the home market and the European
market. Thee is a large section, or
rather sections of the world in and
on the other side Of the Pacific
Ocean which would become large
purchasers of American cotton, but
which are now practically beyond
our reach on account of the circuit
Gus routes we have to travel to get
to them. China, India, Japan, all
offer inviting fields for American
cotton and cotton goods, and yet we
cannot profit by them because we
cannot reach them.
We ship cotton to England where
it is woven into fabrics and shipped
to the nations of the far East, which
are among EnglaLd's best customers.
They are clothed largely with
American cotton, but after it has
passed through British spindles and
looms. England with her superior
shipping has the advantage of us in
the matter of transportation, and
being afree trade country has the ad-
vantage of US in trading with other
nations, but ln addition to this she has
the additional advantage of a shorter
route than any we have, by way of
the Suez Canal, through which most
of her traffic with Eastern countries
is now done. The only way we Can
hope to compete with England for
this great trade is by securing a
shorter route to those countries, and
the only way we can do that is by
the construction of the Nicaragua
Canal which will cut off the round
ing Of South America.
Mr.. Henry G.. Hester, the Secre-
tarv Of the New Orleans Cotton EX-
change, and one of the best authori-
les on cotton in this country, has
, written Il paper on the effect that
the Nicaragua Canal would have on
the cotton industry of this country.
According to him, Great Britain
snips annually $34o.0O0,o o0 worth
of cotton goods, $170,O00,000 Of
, which goes to British India, China,
!, Japan and other Eastern countries.
During 1891 the exports from the
: United Stat es to Asia and Oceanica
; amounted to $43, S14,0o0, of which
) only S., $4,000, or less than one
fifth, were cotton manufactures,
Thus" he says, "while England
sends the product of her looms and
spindles, worth one hundred and
, seveuty-odd million of dollars. to
c!othe the people of the far East
We, who produce the raw material in
the greatest quantity and under the
: most favorable circu instances, send
: considerably less than one-twentieth
: of that amount"
5 England buys about half the cot
S ton Of the South, runs it through
: her spindles and looms and makes
. it bring her more money than the
Southern planters get for the
whole crop, and she finds in the
people Of those Eastern countric
S purchasers for one-half the amount
she ships.
!. OF the 9,035,OO0 bales raised ii
the South in 1891 but 100000
bales we're manuf actured in thi
!, country, and our planters had Il
seek a market elsewhere for tb'
n surplus of over 5000, 900 baies ane
take for it what the foreign pur
chasers we're willing TO pay, TIL
: consequence naturally was Low
0 prices, as there always will be witt
g. an over large product and Unite,
le markets. OF the crop of 1891, tn
n South manufactured only $500
e. bales.
.e The construction of the Nicar
o aqua Canal by reducing the dis
d lance between US aud these Easter
countries many thousands of miles
f. would not only open up a val
r. field for American cotton and col
N ton goods, but would give tn
!, South advantages which would i