The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-12-13

UIUUTUTUE. WCT WTWU-
erty destroyed, she commenced the battle OF
life anew. No people ever undertook the
task under more depressing and adverse sur
roundlngs. Conquered and impoverished.
the south had not only to contend against the
poverty that follows the desoiatiOn OF war,
but she had to maintain an unequal and humi-
latlng struggle to preserve her civilization
ana to re-establish self government"
THE FUTURE OF THE SOUTH.
am not here to-day To discuss the dead is
sues of the past, Let the dead past bury its
dead" The welfare of your state is now in
your own keeping. ] think am warranted in
saying that henceforth you have naught TO
fear from hostile federal legislation or inter-
position. Living questions are before you for
discussion and determination. Lying in the
future pathway Of the republic are problems
as difficult of discrimination as any that
have in the past tested the courage and the pa
triotism of our fathers. Inspired by the words
and the deeds Of those who have gone before,
let US with courage and with faith turn our
faces resolutely TO the future. You need no
prophet to tell you what another decade will
accomplish for your state and section. With
your great natural advantages OF climate.
cheap water power and raw material. the
south in the future can be as successful in
the manufacture of the finer, as 1t is now in
the manufacture OF the coarser fabrics of
cotton.
With the return of the era Of good feeling
in its highest sense of national feeling
sectional lealousieS and dlStruSt will forever
disappear; and capital will here seek and find
dbuuudnI anu pIOuIdDl6 investment. relI-
crate the inquiry of your own distinguished
citizen: with coal, iron and timber
N abundance here, why should not the
south have her own foundry, machine
shops and factOrieS?" During the decade i'm
mediately preceding the taking Of our last
national census. the increase in population and
in the assessed valuation of property in the
city of Augusta was more than 30 per cent
What IS true OF your own cityis also measure
bly, true OF many other portions
Of the south. The eloquent. your own
lamented Grady declared: In the six years
following the cotton exposition, l73 new cot
ton mills have been built in the SOUTH start
ing one million new spindles The south is
witnessing an industrial revolution, for
which history has no precedent Figures do
not measure 1t, and amazement is simply
limited by comprehension" To this l
may add that during the past
twelve years the total taxable
property of Georgia has increased more than
S2000J0.OOO. And what will be surprising and
gratifying to many, is the fact that from 1879
to 1898 the increase in the assessed valuation
of property held by the colored population in
your state has been over 9l0000,000.
The Vice President suggested that it
might be well for the promoters of the
exposition, through the press, to call the
attention of capitalists and home-seekers
to the great advantages of their
state. He concluded with another
eloquent acknowledgment of the
magnifcence of the Georgia well
come" that had been extended to
him. He reminded his hearers that
visits should not be one-sided. II bid you
come to the Prairie state to the valley of
the Mississippi and the great northwest.
Visit our magnificent farms, our great in
dustries, our matchless cities, our happy
homes The welcome you will receive
and you could not ask for mOre-will be
the welcome you have SO generously
given"
HERBERT SPEAKS.
Secretary Herbert of the navy was the
next speaker. He brought President
Cleveland's regrets at not being able to
accept the invitation to be present to-day.
He Contrasted the peace of the United
States to the revolutions in Central and
South America and the mention of our
small standing army in comparison with
Europe's great forces was greeted with
loud applause. His speech was one of en-
couragemont to the south, and he de-
clared that this exposition of your in
dustries, carried on so successfully in the
midst of these hard times, is a mOnu-
mental sign board to point out the road
to renewed and continued prosperity"
AN OVATION TO HoKE SMITH.
President Walsh introduced Secretary
Smith as a man of pre-eminent ability.
and declared that "his administration
will compare most favorably with that of
any other man who has ever filed that
position, care not how great his ability
may have BEEN
1t was the first occasion that an Au-
gusta audience had of greeting Secretary
Smith, though he is a Georgian, but
they made up for it in giving him great
ovation.
He touched on the financial policy of
the administration briefly, and the refer
enCes were greeted with significance and
hearty applause. He referred to the
work of the exposition as a means of in
tensifying the zeal of Georgians in the
material development of the state, and
also of presenting the resources of the
state to the knowledge of the people
of the union. He referred to the
condition which existed in the south
prior to 1860 as one calculated to prevent
material progress, although it produced a
high order Of mental and moral civiliza-
tion He showed what the change of
southern labor and the financial shock of
the war had produced until about 1880.
Since that time the results had been
most gratifying. The taxable property
of Georgia in 1880 was S235, 900, 900, while IN
1898 it was $3.50 000, 900.
OPPORTUNITIES OF THE STATE.
He called attention to the fact that the
opportunity WAS kJItSCuG III NICUEBld lOI
every variety of agricultural products. In
the Piedmont region the elevation was SO
great that the agricultural pursuits of
the New England states could there
be followed with great remuneration,
while the gradual change from
this northern section of the state
to the southern portion bordering
upon Florida gave opportunities for
all varieties, reaching even semi-tropical
products. and these lands can be pur-
chased at from 81 to so an acre. He
then called attention to the fact that lum-
ber marble and every variety of mineral
except silver could be found in limitless
quantities within the state of Georgia.
He called attention to her coal and water
power as offering inducements
for manufacturing. He held to
his statement as to an opportunity for in
vesting in manufactures by reference to
the city of Augusta. In Augusta, he
stated, in 1880, there were only "a Geo
spindles in her cotton factories, consum-
ing but Il, 600 bales of cotton per anuum,
while in 1892 there were 100000 spindles
consuming $4,000 bales. But the fea-
ture of greatest interest connected
with the cotton factories of Augusta
upon which he dwelt was the fact that
during the past summer, not a factory
discharged single hand, not factory
stopped a single spindle, and every fac
tory paid an annual dividend. He then
dwelt upon the duty of the people of
Georgia to present to the attention of the
people of the world her varied resources.