Birmingham state herald. (Birmingham, Ala.) 1895-1897, 1896-03-05
OUR SOCIAL WORLD

(All items of social interest will be gladly
noted in these columns If sent to Mrs.
George c. Ball Nineteenth street, between
| Tenth and Eleventh avenues, South High
lands. Telephone 9SS.)
On the business streets of Eufaula new
banks and stores have been erected, old
buildings have been improved and there
is an air of enterprise and thrift that in
dicates the pluck and energy of the pee
pie. Barbour county is the Third Grand
Division, in political parlance, and the
people are determined to be worthy of
the classification. To one familiar with
Eufaula in the past, who enjoys its mel
low sweetness which has come with time,
the most impressive feature of the pres
emit is the splendid cotton mills the whirr
ing machinery and .threbb.ng engines
of which teach the highest and best les
sons to other parts of Alabama. Eufaula
has had other manufactures, but ii Is
still far from a manufacturing town. 1t
is the center of a rich agricultural dis
trict, yet some of its progressive men
have demonstrated that his section of
the country is the natural home of the
cotton mill. And just here let me say
that the methods now used in the best
in vogue in old plantation days, with the
substitution of machinery for hand labor.
While other towns were discussing the
benefits to be derived from erecting and
operating cotton mills, Eufaula deter
mined to build one with as small a waste
of words as possible, so on the LIST of Jan
uary, 1889. the Eufaula Cotton mills be-
gan running, having been equipped with
the latest and most improved machinery
IT. Is large brick building, erected for
the purpose, and at first had a capacity
of 5000 spindles. 100 elooms and capital
stock of $3.50
The president then was and now is
Capt. John. w. ,Tullis. one of Eufaula's
most prominent and successful citizens
a large cotton buyer and a man of social
position and large wealth. He was one
of the bravest of Confederate soldiers,
and lost limb on the field of battle.
Captain Tullis began life afresh after the
war with no capital but his character,
intellect and pluck, and he has won the
fight. So now in the prime of mature
manhood he is enjoying the fruit of his
labor. Mr. Noah w. Roberts is secretary
and treasurer of the Eufaula Cotton
mills and has been of great value in
managing this magnificent enterprise.
Mr.. Roberts is also a Eufaula man, a
member of prominent family and
man of business ability of a high order.
Mr.. G. F. Marsh is superintendent, and
has given great satisfaction by his excel
lent management of the company 5 in
terests. From the first the Eufaula Cot
ton mills prospered. There was con-
stantly increasing demand for the goods
manufactured, and in 1893. just the
financial panic began, the directors de-
cided to enlarge the plant to meet the
increasing demands of the markets. So
the plans were made, the contracts let,
when 10! like tornado the panic swept
over the country, destroying public con-
fdence and private credit. carrying away
the foundations of the strongest business
houses of the world, and bringing disas-
ter and ruin upon the whole land But
the affairs of the Eufaula Cotton mills
were in the hands of men who had fought
and won on other fields, and they deter
mined not to yield to defeat. The fac
tory was enlarged. the machinery added
to, the capital stock increased from $685.
900 to $3.50 900, and not one day was lost
in operating the mills. There are now 320
looms, 10000 spindies and the present
plant represents a cost of $4,000 of Ala
bama money! The surplus undivideds
profits are $4,000 The mills make an ex-s
cellent grade of sheeting and shirting,
about 10, 900 yards weekly, besides very
superior kind of toweling.
The books of the company show large
orders for goods from the northern part
of New York state, West Virginia, Phla-
delphia Louisville, St. Louis, Cincinnati
Minneapolis, San Francisco and New Or
leans in addition to those from the adj
jacent cities and towns. The mills have
two mammoth engines, two dynamos,
and they make their own electric lights
Nearly all of the capital stock is owned
right in Eufaula, and none is ever sold
except in settling up an estate. The mills
employ men, women and children, paying
them satisfactory wages, according to la
Dor accomplished. In these mills women
are as well paid as men If they accom-
plish as much One of the best weavers
Is woman, who runs eight looms. The
children employed are chiefly those of the
men and women also working in the
mills and all of them are happy con-
tented-looking specimens of young hu-
manity. There is a wee little boy, not
yet years old, who is an expert in max
ing cords for the spindles and he is as
happy as king and very proud of his
capacity to earn As cents per day. All
the operatives are southerners, though
the overSeerS are generally northern
men. In the picker room is the touch of
nature, the suggestion of color, that is
necessary to all southern pictures, for
there the great machines are supplied
with cotton by genuine old-fashioned
darkies, covered with the white lint as
completely as If they were in an old-time
gin house on a plantation. All other OPP
eratives are white, as | said. These mills
do not run at night, but the pay roll is
$50, 900 per annum, and 5000 bales of cotton
are consumed annually, and purchased
right on the streets of Eufaula. Divi-
dends have been regularly paid, generally
10 per cent, and never less than per
cent. The stockholders have received in
dividends more than 30 per cent of their
stock, and even during the panic the
payment of dividends never ceased. The
stockholders will soon begin to build
this year-another mill Is large and COM
plete as the one in operation, which, when
finished will make a plant of 100000
capital, about 1900 spindles and 700
looms, all under one management. The
books of subscription are now open.
Near the mills the operatives live in COM
Portable cottages, and there are two
churches, built for their use, in the neigh
borhood, besides a fiourishing public
school,
The Chewalla Cotton mills is another
exceedingly successful enterprise, with
Mr.. ]. p. Foy as president Mr.. E. b.
Young as vice-president and Mr.. c.. p.