The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-03-31
PURSES REVIEW OF THE PORT.
HIS ANNUAL ADDRESS TO THE
BOARD OF TRADE.


tiOn Pointed Out-The Financial
situatiOn-A Plea for Peace in the
Present Crisis-Quarantine and
HarbOr improvements Touched
Upon.
The Board of Trade held its annual
submitted his report-a review
not only of the year in the Board
of Trade, but of the commercial interests
of Savannah. After summarizing stats
tically the naval stores situation, he said:
I'm view of the fact that the exhaustion
of naval stores producing areas are nearly
complete, when abandoned and the saw
mill follows the distillery, it is unfortunate
that no means are at hand to regulate
prices in accordance with this established
fact; but 1t seems to be one of those sing
ular cases in which supply for the future
has little bearing, though, in a COMPARE
lively brief period North and South Car
DINA have yielded supremacy to Georgia
in supplying demand, as Georgia must, in
turn, yield to Florida, Alabama and
Louisiana, never to resume her place in
the reasonable expectation of a recurring
crop comparable to that being drawn
from her forests now, where they escape
the AK and the saw"
Another large crop of cotton has depress-
ed the price of that staple, which, con-
stituting the principal money crop of
the South has been keenly felt in values
of all kinds.
In the grain growing sections of the
country the failure of foreign crops has
affored market for wheat, corn, meats,
ETC., at the highest prices that have ruled
in years. and brought a phenomenal pros
pertty to the producers of these products
sharply contrasting with the result to the
South in low prices realized from cot
ton.
Experience repeating itself in this mat
ter, in the opinion of the Board of Trade
emphasizes the necessity for the South
to diversity its crops and raise every
thing generous soil will permit for sus-
tenance of man and beast first, and a
cotton crop afterwards Selling cotton at
cents to buy wheat at 81 or corn at
% cents per bushel can have but one end
ing from business standpoint, the bank
ruptcy of the section attempting it.
While the South, President Purse said.
may not be a strictly grain and meat pro
ducing section as now worked, yet, to the
extent OF her own consumption she can
De made he own granary and meat house.
Tor this purpose at less cost than hazard
ing the sale of a single production in the
fluctuations of markets to supplv her
needs OF this character from other sec
tons. Ihere can be no doubt this view
OF the situation is impressing itself more
each year upon our agriculturists. and that
dlVerslf1ed farming is taking rapid strides
toward making the farm self-sustaining.
with surplus in a variety of crops for
sale, the one crop idea having lost, to a
large extent, though not sufficiently vet.
ITS dominating influence In Southern ag-
riculture.
SaVannah's receipts from present cot
ton crop point now to 100000 bales. or
ABOUT AZ per cent. increase over those of
last year and 50 per cent over two years
ago.
In reference to the financial situation,
president Purse said:
The country seems surfeited with q
plethora of money. Hoarded in banks. itA
greatest function is lost to owner and the
general public; its active employment in
conservative enterprise and ventures is
absolutely necessary to secure a general
return, in appreciable degree of that
prosperity from which the country has
Deen drifting away since 1880. when the
announcement that Barring Bros. had fail
ed Tell like blight upon the business in
terests OF the whole world. Possibly the
present years low price of cotton has
MADE the conditions more acute in the
South, for the West has been made happy
by hlgh-priced grain, and the pockets of
the North and East are being filed nv
the reimposition of high protective duties.
and in these favored sections it is said
bank vaults are inadequate to care for
the wealth that has flowed in upon them
yet no great enterprise North East or
West have possessed the allurements re-
quisite to draw these vaulted millions into
active employment. just now, rumors Of
war may further delay their employment.
but no one, observant of passing events.
can doubt that the time is near at hand
when these millions are to find active use
and that the South will afford one of the
most tempting fields for their employment
in the development of her vast capabilities
for economical manufacturing in all lines.
and in placing her mining interests upon a
moro solid basis. This would mean for the
South the most permanent prosperity she
has ever enjoyed in her history and for
which she will be solely indebted to her
superior advantages for the profitable en-
ployment of capital in utilizing her varied
and wonderful resources heretofore but
grudgingly recognized"
On the subject of Tybee as a coaing sta
ton, President Purse said:
1T was prominently in the minds OF
those who undertook the improvement of
Tybee Island and linking 1t, by rail- with
the mainland, that in time, with the inn
provement of the river and harbor the
island would afford valuable location for
a coaling station. Efforts heretofore made
to accomplish this end have been frusara-
ted by the cost of laying down coal on the
island from the mines. Under present
conditions, this matter of inland charges
is secondary to the necessity, from ma
val standpoint. of having a coallng depot
so admirably located and the government
should promptly act The delivery of the
large quantities of coal required for our
war ships at South Atlantic and Gulf sta
tions has already embarrassed the gov
eminent, for want of adequate tonnage
from Northern and Eastern points to the
South. Should the government establish
naval coaling station on Tybee Island,
concessions by the railroads. so as to lay
coal down at Tybee to enable successful
Competition with Virginia ports which
they can grant now, would at once make
Tybee the equal in importance to any otn-
er cOaling station on the Atlantic poa 81