The Lexington dispatch. [volume] (Lexington, South Carolina) 1870-1917, 1894-06-20
COOPERATIVE COTTON MILLS.
A Gentle R7mInder to the People of south
Carolina.

Carolina.
In the current issue Of the Baltimore
Manufacturers Record Mr.. D. A. Tom
kins, of Charlotte, one If The most sue
cessful cotton manufacturers in that
section has an interesting article on
cooperation in building cotton mills.
Mr.Tomkins shows how companies can
be organized and the money raised by
weekly payments for building cotton
mills in such way as to make the Or
ganiZation of such companies feasible
in hundreds of towns where il would
be impossible to secure large subScIip-
tiolS. In the South we have few saw
ings banks, compared with those IN the
North, and we need enterprises that
will encourage the habit Of saving and
investing a portion of the weekly earn
ings Of the average citizen. Building
and loan associations supply this want
to some extent, but we need CO opera.
tive companies to push industrial en-
terprises with the capital that can
easily be furnished in small weekly ln-
stallments from thousands Of our pee
pie.
The SUCCESS OF this plan in Charlotte
speaks for itself. Mills have been built
near Charlotte by subscriptions paya-
bic weekly in small sums for one, two,
four and eight years, but the faVorite
plan is that of paying so cents per
week on share for four years. At
this rate 1000 shares would make a
capital Of 100000. a sum sufficient to
build cotton mill Of about 5000
spindles, with looms enough to weave
their product. Mr.. Tompkins gives
the fOlloW wing estimate for such a mill:
Employees, men and boys. 80
Employees, women and girls. ........ 30
Pay roll per week, about. $3.50
Bales cotton consumed per week. ..2O
In North Carolina the products of
the different mills vary greatly. At
Charlotte one mill makes warp yarns,
another skein yarns doubled and twist,
ed, another makes both Warps and
skeins, another white cloth, another
ginghams, another cOunterpanes and
towels, another stockings and knit
goods. Those mills which make colored
goods must have dye works.
II the subscriptions to the stock OF
al enstallment mill are made payable
at the rate Of so cents per week per
share, and the capital subscribed was
100000, then IN The first year the
amount paid in to the compary's treas
ury would oe about S25,O00. With
this money the buildings could be built
and paid for, leaving surplus in the
treasury. The buildings would be
main building, engine room, boiler
room and houses or cottages for the
hands to live in. In some special cases
where the factory was to be built IN a
city, these houses might not be built
as the hands could find board or houses
to rent near by the factory n the city
Generally speaking, however, it is best
to put factory one to four miles away
from city, and let the company build
and own the houses the employees live
in.
In Charlotte no house rent is charged
the factories furnishing houses free OF
rent. In some other places rent is
charged at the rate of 81 per room.
Considering that subscriptions were
being paid regularly, and that the
buildings were all completed and paid
for at the end of about one year, and
that the company's income was about
$1,000 per month from regular Install
ment payments On subscriptions, then
under these conditions about $4,000
spindles and appeartaining machinery
could be bought for good cash pay
| ment, and the remainder payable
$1,000 to $1,000 per month. In about
sixteen to eighteen months from the
time the first payments were made the
| mill could be started up on about one-
third to one.half its capacity; then the
remainder of the machinery could be
added and started up from time to
time as the money continued to come
il by installments.
No dividends should be paid until
the stock is paid in full and the Off
GERS should receive very small salaries
The mills near Charlotte, built on this
plan, have been very successful, and
some of them during the dull season
have run night and day to fill orders
for their goods. The cooperative plan
if fairly tried would soon make the
South the cotton manufacturing center
of the world.