Birmingham state herald., 1897-06-03
THE COMPETING SOUTH.

The Duluth (Minn.) News contains the following interesting editorial on how
 the north and west are viewing the south as a competitor of New England in the manufacture of cotton goods:
 Three or four years ago the min opera tors of New England were seriously dis turbed by the report fth9t the mill owners, some of them, at least. contemplated re-
 moving theit industries to the south, in
 self defense. against the aggreSsions of that section. Interviews with a number
 of the mill magnates disclosed the fact that while they did not conta mplaye a removal, they agreed that the time was
 nos far off when the cotton mills of the north would have to confine their pro- duct to the finer grades of goods There are signs that this departure is already at hand.
 c. w. Dernett, agent of a large cotton mill at North Adams, MaSS has su bmit- ted a report on cotton manufacturing in the south. In it he states that a modern brick mill can be built in an average Io- caion'at least 20 per cent. cheaper in the south than in the north. Water power is abundant, ard in many places is cheap. In '.the neighborhood of Anniston and Jacksonville, Ala, coal is obtained at $1 50 a ton, and at this price the steam pow;r | cos $ only one-half as much as at the average New England mill. With regard l to Ia bor, equally large. differences in fa-
 
 | 25 per cent. to 50 p5r cent. The total | manufacturing cost of ginghams at cer- | tain mills was about 10-17ths of ;he cost 1 of similar work in the north. Raw cot | ton is hauled directly to the mills in very many cases, without going to the 1 compress: and in Arkansas its delivery | is guaranteed at 1A to 1h cents less per
 pound than at the mills in New Engla nd. | Taxes arc, as a rule very low, and in | some instances premiums are offered l hu fn mil hofb hyy ltp f;o,, | of land and remission of taxes for a se- l ries of years. The rate of interest on | borrowed capital is about ? per cent. 1 higher on the average in the south the n
 in New England. Taking suppositi- l GUS case as an illustration of the finan- cal effect of these different economic ele- | ments, it is shown that in a modern mill, l having 10000 spindles and a stock capi- I talization of $120,G00. running on print 1 cloth. the saving will amount to over l S1S,000 per annum in the operation of the | southern mill and after deducting a lib-
 eral allowance for s1virg in interest in | the northern mill and cost of transporta- 1 tion fer the same output balance of
 about $15,o0O still appears in favor of | the product from the southern mill. The conclusion drawn from these 1 statements is that the competition of the southern mills in cheap grades of pro
 duct will compel the northern mills to l abandon such goods and confine them | selves eXcfuSlNely 70 the manu1acture Of l the finer grades. In fact this process of 1 evolution is now going on. The New 1 England gingham mills have been com
 pelled to charg ge. and it has been found l that such mills have actually been able 1 to buy in the open market print cloths 1 mada in the south at q lower price. than I they could manufacture them in the l north The change will nc doubt compel | some of the -oId mills to permanently i close, while others will introduce, new ] methods and machinery.