The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1894-09-19
DEVELOPMENT OF THE SOUTH.
Iuteresttng Historical Facts In Rel.
erence % the Land which we Love
10 Well.

Iuteresting Historical Facts In Ref
erence % the Land Which we Love
So Well.
The recent convention OF the Southern De
We opmentAssociation In this city has awaken
ed y great interest In the affairs OF Inc Sootn; n
and brought 10 light indisputable iac's ano
and even the South itself. The purpose vi
this convention was TO organize permanent
ex position OF Southern industries, anu 10 con-
slider methods Of attracting capital aha im-
migration to that section.
Nome OF the facts concerning the progress
and development OF Southern INDUSTRIES anI
their future possibilities. gathered rom tnis
convention and various masazlne articies'
mny prove Of interest 10 your readers.
In order 10 thoroughly appreciate the
South's wonderful strides or progress, ~ wiz
and lust alter the war. When We speak OF
the development OF the South. the meaning
conveyed 10 the rest OF the world ls that tne
recent progress and development OF tnat ,:, stc,
ii,,E is something new. brought about entirely
by foreign money and enterprise. That ls as
unjust as II is untrue.
that prog gresa and enterprise In the south u j.
no late condition. but has existed since ils
history began, and that she was apreast VI
the tiinea In all business interests before the
wsr. and that achievement Rhe has made In
building up great industries from that tine
10 this IL due 10 Southern brains ana Inoney.
Value OF foreign tapital and the iinInlgrat,lon
into her borders OF all good people. regaIoiess
of political distinction, are not 10 oe aePreS,
ated, but IL Is only just TO Insist that ine
South shall receive the measnre OF creut uue
they who "biazed out the path 10 prosperity
when shrouded In gloom from the close OF tne
war 10 1876. II was they who first attempteaa
enterprises and demonstrated 10 tne "or'u
the Drohtablenees OF them.
When Southern men had builded tne iron
Furnaces OF Birmingham and foundeo tne ous
tne,a interests OF Atlanta, IL was then, not na
ested In the South. The people OF tnat SIC
tion have never lacked energy and enter
prise. They have been In the iront 10 poil-
tics war, science, literature and business un
Ieriaki ings since tie formation OF TINS gov.
ernment. The records prove this. IL is true
that lust after the war they seemed 10 lace
energy. but II Was because The masses iacKeu
the opportunity u, prove their enerRy.
There was work ior sca rcely hall oi the pop
uiation; agriculture war the only WORE a.
must: coitUn> was the only crop k,r whicn
market couid be had; markets could not oe
fonnd for other farm prbducts; there WAS no
work for mechanics and day laborers general.
ly, because there was an entire Absence oi
South. But with the development ot manu-
fsctures there came great change. The peo'
pie found employment aud clearly demon
strated that they only needed chance 10
blessings. that Industrial activity has 6rough,
10 the South Is that new work IL belEf created
1Or thousands Of idle hands, and e latent
energy Of The people has been stimulated ln'"
But 70 understand the South In It's business
relations IL Ia necessary To study It's business
History before the war brought absolute pow
The Southern States prior to 1850 devoted
far more attention TO manufacturing than j.
generally known. Early In the eithteenth
ested in iron making. Maryland, virsinla
the Carolinas and Georgia pioduced-for thust
days-iarge Quantities of high grade iron. Mr
saS !aS1 Is thst Tne peopie % Who built these iron
furuares we're nos only bold aud entsrprislns
but they appear 70 have been born with gem
tus for iron NJ king. The enterprise OF these
pect when viewed In connection With the
primitive methods of manufacture wnlcn
were employed by them. II is curious iact
that these daring men founded an Iron inaus.
Try which stiIl retains many Of It's primitive
features" Such were The pioneers OF iron IN
the South. Some OF these furnaces were 10
Gated in York and Spartanburg 10 lslo9
nnas and Georgia manu- ufactured products ex-
ceeding In value all those OF New England
The southern Colonies were also making
strides In other directions With the lntro-
duction Of the cotton gin Ia 1875, the cotion no
croprjum ped from two million pounds In l7O
10 ten million pounds In 1885, and 10 forty
million pounds fn ls9O. while in lSO the yelid
was Une hundred and sixty million POUNDS.
with The prices OF this cotton ranging from
as 70 10 cents u pound for forty years, from
$500 to 1889. we cannot wonder al the olsposl
efforts TO cotton cultivation TO the exclusion
OF industrial enterprises: The low prices o.
cotton 10 lSiS, however. brought about re,
yival OF interest In other pursuits, and the
natural tendency Of this people TO industrial
matters is evidenced In the mar ked growth
in Southern railroad and manufacturing In
There was no decline, however. In the agri
cultural progress which was maxim tne
South one OF Tho richest agricultural sections
In 1850 the south had 1885 miles OF railroad
and the New England anu Middle states had
47ss miles; by 1850 the South incI essed lts
mileage to sSs7 miles while the New Eng land
and Middle States had Increased 70 only soio
The Increase In population In the South dur
inx this decade was "a per cent and IN the
New England and Middle States II was ~ per
railroad mileake 8l9 per cent, and the New
England and Middle States only 2a per cent,
showing that the South with less population
was building more railroads than the rest OF
Willie devoting great attention to railroads
the South made rapid progress In diversified
manufactures. Flour and meal made there
in 1850 was worth $N, N,OO0,0 QUO and Increased TO
A45,OOOO 900 worth In 1860 Sawed and pianed
lumber was worth SlO,0O0.0OO In 1850 and S2O,-
100000 In 1850. In iron founding II Increased
from q, 900 0OO worth " &,OOOOU worth. Man.
nGaetare OF ontton also dubbed The amount
A study OF these figures should convince
anyone that The South was wide awake III
that time. This II only small part of the
evidence available ~ cOnclusirsIy prove that
thereNss great energy and enterprise In the
Southern people before the War.
Only by such comparisons as these can the
loss OF the south by The war be estimated.
Contrast the South OF ls6O with ths South ol
1855. In one case we see u prosperous country
increasing In wealth, adding over $l,UO1,UOO,OU
70 the value OF It's farms In ten years spend
ing 900 In the extension OF railroads
$35 .000 on Increase OF agricultural ilnple
ments; and milhonSin banks and factories.
In the other case we zee the end OF q mos'
disastrous war, which had brought death tG
Thousands OF the Suits best eitlzens anu
spread desoiation and poverty over ita entirf
borders. Labor was demuralized, followed
by political misrule and dtbAuchery oil StRte
government by Negroes and unscrupulou'
whites.
The census OF 1870 showed decline In the
assessed value OF property in the South since
1880 OF @2OUO, ,OO0, 900 and reconstruction caused
another decrease OF $500 ,0O000J between 1871
aud 1850. This was not AL the loss TO the peO
pile OF the South by the war. In the agyre
gate, war debt aud personal losses included
II was q S. ,OOO 100000 loss.
1t IL hard 10 comprehend these figures. Thi,
sun L. as great az the capital Of all the Nation
al Banks In the United States and greater
than the capital In vested In manufactures.
From such blow as this, followed by still
further decline during reconstruction days
the South could not be expected 70 rally rap
Idly. The whole world was against II. and II
was not until 1880 that some of the Southern
States began TO revive.
With such conditions as these before US. we
must study the record Of progress made by
the South since 1880 and compare results viii
1850 that the next ten or twelve years would
dsyelope the agricultural. railroad and man
pActuring interests OF the South more rapid
ly ihap The country at large. would nave q beer e.