The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-04-10
HOW TO GET FACTORIES.
THE CITIZENS INDUSTRIAL COM
MITTEE DISCUSSES THE SUBJECT

Savannah'S Advantages Being Sent
Out 20 Manufacturers.
The citizens Industrial committee met
| at the city exchange yesterday after
noon. The members present were Mayor
/ Myers. chairman: Capt. W. W. William
son. Col William Garrard. Col J. H. Es-
[ till. Col. J. L. Whatley. Mr.. N. J. Sol
/ onions. Alderman G. 4. Hudson, Mr.. y.
| b. Lester. Mr.. p. A. Stovan, Mr.. Jacob
[ Paulsen. and Mr.. W. ". Chisholm. and
| the secretary. AIr. J. J. Doolan.
The only business before the meeting
was the receiving Of reports. Mr.. Sol
onions, chairman Of the committee on
roads, drainage and agriculture. reported
that a petition with the requisite num-
Der OF names had been presented to the
ordinary. requesting him to call an cleo
ton upon the fence question. An extract
from the law bearing on the subject was
presented with the petition. The ordinary
pronounced the statement Of the law cor
rect and stated that the election would
be ordered according TO law, a notice in
due legal form to this effect appearing in
yesterdays Morning News. The thing TO
be done now. Mr.. Solomons said. is for
every member of the committee and all
others interested TO set to work to arouse
interest In the question.
Mr. Lester, chairman of the committee
on location, said that a number of sites
had been offered to the committee. 4
few landowners had refused outright to
make any offer of sites, but the majority
of those approached had been very will
ing to make such offers. Mr.. Lester
said that he now has offers of ten to
fifteen good sites for manufacturing pur-
poses. The chief trouble, he said, is that
property owners are willing to make
these offers for an indefinite length of
time, as they might have opportunities
TO dispose of their properties before their
offers Of site were accepted, and they
would not like 10 have such offers stand
ing in the way OF any deal they might
make. However. Mr.. Lester said, the
efforts of the committee have met with
such success as to show that there VIII
be no difficulty in securing free sites for
such manufacturing industries as desire
to locate here.
difficulty in getting factory cites. The
chief thing to be done Is to interest out
side people. This he had found very diff
cult to do. Savannah is very poorly
advertised town." he said, 'and the best
way in which the appropriation of the
city to the committee can be spent is in
articles in the Manufacturer Record and
other publications, which VIII bring Sa-
vannah before the people of the country
generally. A committee should be APP
pointed to prepare such articles and they
should begin with the local papers first"
Col. Whatley said he had a letter from
his agent in the north, who Is engaged in
securing subscriptions for cotton fac
tory here, saying that the prospects are
very fair for getting $4,000 for a mill at
Savannah. Col. Whatley commented on
the fact that in his efforts to secure cot
ton factory he had found that Savannah
was hardly known among the manufac-
turing people of the north. He alluded
n he "a of fhe aorln nd anfr-
featuring committee, which recently made
a tour of the SOUTH to visit Savannah as
an instance Of this. Col. Estill took issue
with Col Whatley on this. There were
good reasons, he said, why the manufac-
turing committee did not visit Savannah
1t was evident that the committees itin-
erary had been mapped out beforehand
ana that 1t only desired to visit points
where manufacturing industries were al
ready established. The committee did not
VISIT any seaport cities and consequently
savannah had no reason to feel sighted.
savannah Is well established, pros
porous commercial city" said Col. Estill
1t IL as well known as any city of its
size in the country. Ii is looked upon as
a commercial and not a manufacturing
city Our population is a commercial one,
not acquainted with manufactures to
any large extent / contend that our peo-
pie are more enterprising than they are
given credit for. Show them that there is
money in any thing and they are ready
to go into 1t at once. The numerous
prosperous home enterprises prove this.
we nave not gone INTO manufactures be-
cause, heretofore, money could be more
prohtably invested in commercial enter
prises."
A discussion of some length followed
between Col. Garrard, Col. Whatley, Col.
Estill and Mr. Chisholm as to the relative
| profits In various lines of business and the
! classes OF manufacturing industries which
could be most readily attracted to Sa-
yannah and would prove most profitable
/ here.
| Col. Garrard said that while a great
! deal of money has been made i'm CONNER
/ cial lines in Savannah this did not prove
! that manufacturing industries would not
/ prove even more profitable He instanced
! the success of the mills at Columbus As
chairman of the law committee Col. Gar
rard said that he would undertake a cor
/ respondence with the cities and towns of
the state with a view to bringing about
concerted action for constitutional
! amendment to allow municipalities TO
make distinctions in taxing personal and
real property and to grant exemptions to
! new manufacturing industries. There
/ could be no objection to such an amend
ment from the country counties, he said
as the change would in no way affect
them.
Col. Whatley said that Fail
ton more fer coal than 1t could
be had for at Savannah, while Savannah
| has the cotton at her doors. 1t only re-
| quires good management to make sue
cess Of manufacturing here" said Col
| Whatley. Establish one good manufac-
| turing institution on a solid financial ba-
sis es an example and the question is
! solved"
Capt. Williamson, chairman of the COM
mittee on statistics, said the comm3ttee
had sent out LILO pamphlets to manufac-
turers of yarn, and would now begin .he
work of sending them to manufacturers
in other lines. copy of the letter pre-
pared by the committee, to be printed in
the Manufacturers Record of Baltimore
showing the advantages of Savannah for
manufacturing industries, was read and
approved.
Mr.. Chisholm said he had recently re-
turned from a trip through Southwest
Georgia. He found the people there pros
porous, energetic and pushing, and man
ifssting the same interest in obtaining new
Industries that is being shown in other
parts of the south. The cigar manufac-
tories of Thomasville, he said, are doing
well and the managers told him there Were
no reasons why such factories would not
pay in Savannah. In fact, they thought
the situation at Savannah more advanta-
geous. If a part Of the capital were sup
piled at Savannah a cigar factory could
easily be secured here, he said
There was some further general talk
upon the fence matter and other ques-
lions.
PAY FOR A RIGHT-OF-WAY.