The herald., 1895-03-07
HOME INDUSTRY


CENTER Interests of more immediate
profit have absorbed the attention of the
| people. Our enterprise has heretofore
been mainly devoted to the gathering of a
| population content to live on the returns
obtainable from the products of the soil
Whether we shall ever embark in manu-
featuring enterprise is problematical.
1t is certainly not the present trend OF
our industrial effort.
| Los Angeles is, however, admirably sit
uated for the establi shment of manufac-
| turing plants. The resources of Southern
California tributary to this city are practi-
cally unlimited and inexhaustible. The
only difficulty heretofore has been the
| expense of the fuel necessary to carry on
this class of business. The development
of the oil wells in this vicinity may obvi-
ate this difficulty in a measure and the
completion of the Salt Lake railroad will
open up country rich in carboniferous
deposits.
1t might be well, however, to consider
the possibilities of the future, especially
as call has been issued for convention
of California manufacturers to be held
shortly in San Francisco, the result of
which may prove of inestimable value to
every section possessed OF the dormant
resources necessary to lay the basis of
manufacturing industry. The prime OBJ
lect of this convention will be to consider
the conditions that have caused our man.
ufacturlng interests 10 languish, and to
devise some plan whereby they may be
revived. 1t is announced in the Call tina
the statistics of California show an
alarming decrease in the amount of wages
expended by the manufacturers of this
state during the past five years, while the
population has shown material increase.
Eastern manufacturers are virtually sap
ping the life blood of our home industries,
which will be almost totally swept out of
existence unless steps are taken to check
the evil. 1t is believed that much can be
gained by concert of action. The object
will be to educate the masses to the needs
of fostering home industries; secure nee
essary legislation in behalf of these indus
tries, and to take an active interest in
general business affairs"
The Stockton Mail, published in city
where considerable effort has been made
in this direction, and where success has
been achieved under the many adverse
circumstances attending enterprises of
this character on the Pacific Coast, heart
lily commends the movement, claiming
that if managed in a proper manner it
will stimulate manufacturing, provide
work for many people who are now idle,
and bring about general business re-
vival.
Discussing the proposition the Mail
characterizes the present conditions as
absurd and ruinous, and proves the as
sertion by the fact that we ship raw ma
terials to the East and buy them back at
greatly enhanced prices as manufactured
goods, when we could by proceeding in
business-lke and energetic manner
make what we now import. To illustrate
our improvidence in this regard it may be
stated that we import from the East $780,
900 cases of shoes, while we export 5000
900 pounds of leather to Eastern manufac-
turing centers. We ship millions of
pounds of wool to the East and it comes
back to US in the shape OF clothing cloth,
ETC., while we permit our home enter
prises to languish. We import all the iron
that is used here, yet we have mountains
of it in the state. 1t is very we'll to talk
about educating the masses to the need
of fostering home industries but there
appears to be much greater need of infus-
ing the capitalists of the state with lber-
atty, foresight and energy. Local pride
is very good thing, but the masses who
are poor can hardly be justly expected to
patronize home industries unless they
furnish them with shoes, clothes and |
other necessities at prices as low of those
of Eastern make. These are the questions
that the California manufacturers must i
deal with and upon the intelligent solu-
ton of which depends their welfare. And |
it may be eminently profitable to Los An
geles if they will take sufficient interest |
in the matter to investigate her own re-
sources and figure how they may be uti-
LIED.