Birmingham state herald., 1897-01-23
RESOURCES OF BIRMINGHAM. From an investment Standpoint
 By the Financier. [ FEW FACTS AND FIGURES Dealing With the Future of the Magic City Q the South-Resources of the
 Surroundings.

The New York Financler has just fss sued an illustrated edition devoted to Birmingham. In the preface 1t says:
 "The Financier" presents to its readers this week a carefully prepared review of the resources of Birmingham, Ala, and vicinity. We have always believed that the future of that great region demanded impartial elaboration, and in the follow ing pages the utmost endeavor has been made to set forth facts that can be yer flied without trouble.
 The marvellous possibilities of the south as a manufacturing section are beginning to attract renewed attention. The trend of capital is undoubtedly in the direction of an area the northern boundary or which is south of Mason and Dixon's line.
 There are the strongest reasons in the world for making the assertion that the south will at no distant day wrest the supremacy from long established north- ern centres as an iron and steel pro ducing section. Those who recall the early days of Birmingham will remember that northern iron manu- lecturers were wont to make light Of the claims that the new aspirant for tnls branch of trade was able to manufacture iron cheaper than the north could pro duce 1t, but this delusion has been dispeil- ed long since. Today southern iron IS a potent factor in the markets of the world, and it's increased consumption has been brought about, not alone from the 1act that 1t can be sold more cheaply, but De- cause intrinsically it is metal suited to the diversified uses to which 1t has been put.
 To furnish in detail reasons why the south should make material industrial advances would require more space than can we'll be spared here. But aside from the tangible evidence existing Tn the shape of new cotton mills, new iron ana steel industries and the certain ref1ec- tion of abundant prosperity displayed in the many municipal improvements now under way in nearly every town In the south, there are reasons equally Welgnty for the assertion that these are but the forerunners of a steady growth in all lines of human progress in that section. In the first place the south is under an era which could not have existed prior to the war. It invites development, and its corollary advantages in the way or climate and natural resources add to the weight of its invitation.
 It is not generally known that the larg- est percentage of native-born popula- tion today is found in the south. That fact has been overlooked in the mad rush which made the growth Of the west the wonder of the world.
 In the south capital will encounter none of the adverse features to which 1t has been subjected elsewhere. It hnds firmly established government a respect for law and order, and above these in ducements an ample opportunity for profit. The natural resources or the south are enormous, and the opportuni- ties for converting it's products into nn- ished materials are not equalled Tn any other portion of the country. The cl- mate Is so eQuable in character that liv- ing expenses are less than In the north, while at the same time the standard of living is actually raised. The natural inference Is, therefore, that well pald, contented labor will be the rule, and the disastrous strikes which have interrypt- ed the peaceful progress of our northern industrial centers will not be met with in constantly recurring periods. We have already seen that the south can successfully compete with the north in almost any branch of manufacturing, and that the advantages on it's side are so great that the removal of certain manufacturing establishments to this more favored spot is already assuming formidable proportions. There is an ev- idence of permanency about this more recent migration that has been lacking heretofore, and it augurs we'll for the fu- ture.
 With mountains literally composed of rich iron ore; with coal cropping out on every hillside in the mineral belt; with limestone and timber in abundance, the south can manufacture iron at a price which no other producing region can meet. s
 It may be asked why, with these ad- vantages, the south is not enjoying a greater degree of prosperity. It should be remembered that the growth of this region has as yet only commenced. Eighty per cent. of the iron made in the Birmingham region is now being shipped to other points for conversion into steel, and the higher grades of the manufactur- pd Droduct This will not continue fn- definitely. The loss on freight, which now has to be counted in estimating cost of production, offers sufficient profit to induce change of location, and the cen- ter of the steel production ultimately must be within the radius of tine cheap est market for the primary material out of which steel is made.
 < With cheap steel a factor, 1t is equally certain that industries dependent on this material as applied to higher uses will follow, and the next decade ought to bring about the erection of new factories, or the removal of older ones to the south. And 1t is not alone in iron and steel that this change will be felt. The south is being dotted with new cotton mills, forced by the same primary reason to desert the east and the exodus of industries, if such it may be called, is bound to con- tinue. Shrewd observers say that cotton manufacturers have not gone south far equal advantage locate nearer the fuel supply, since the railroads at those points run through rich cotton country, and afford better facilities for reaching northern and western markets
 The logic of this industrial revolution is not difficult of explanation. The only inference is that the larger manufactur- ing towns of the south offer tempting field for investment, both in property and manufactures