The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-09-06
savannah,s Trade.

business year that closed on Aug. 81. The
increase of business was not remarkable,
but it was substantial and encouraging. It
was such an increase as makes our bust
ness men feel certain Of the future.
Our main dependence is of course our
commerce. and judging from what was ac-
complished last year our commerce will
grow steadily and will make the city
| each year more prosperous and populous.
Those who are inclined to grumble ana
say that the city is making no progress
refuse to see what remarkable changes
have taken place within the city's limits
during the last ten or fifteen years. The
appearance of the city is vastly different
from what it was then, and its size is
much greater. The sand has disappeared
from the main streets and asphalt has
taken its place. The commons south or
Anderson street, which were so bare a
few years ago, are now pretty wen cover
ed with houses, and it will not be very
long before the whole southern section
will be thckly built up There is conf
dence in the city's future, and that is why
there is a steady building Of homes. And
there is work for the owners of these
homes to do. If there were not the homes
would not be here.
That there is work for them to do by
which they can earn a living is shown
by the trade review which we publish to-
day. Look, for instance, at the bank
clearings for the year. Do not they show
that there was a large increase in bust
ness in comparison with the business of
the previous year? 1t is true that the re-
markedly large cotton receipts helped to
increase the business of the banks, but
they were not the sole, If in fact the
MAN,. cause of the increase. Savannahs
business men are extending their business
steadily. They are entering new territory
all the time, and the increase in the
volume of their business is helping the
banks TO make such a fine showing. And
then the naval stores people and lumber
dealers are so well satisfied with Savan-
nah's facilities for doing business that
they are utilizing these facilities to a
greater extent every year.
We had hoped to be able to state that
our cotton receipts for the last business
year were 100000 bales If the cotton
season had not been nearly a month late
we should have had considerably more
than that number. but notwithstanding
the late season and the extremely stormy
weather OF August. we received almost
100000, or, to be exact !, 1872, O67 bales The
handling of that amount of cotton is in
itself big advertisement for this port
And it is safe to predict that we shall
receive fully as much this year. If the cot
ton crop turns out to be approximately as
large as it was last year.
The large receipts last year were due
mainly to the efforts that were made to
bring cotton through this port. The sue
cess of those efforts shows what can be
done in the direction of increasing our
| commerce when our business men ana
transportation companies put forth their
best energies for the good of the port
We have believed for a long time that
there is a great deal of Western business
that could be done through this port If
persistent efforts were made to get it.
The transportation companies think it
would not be profitable, but they cannot
be certain that it would not until they
have made an experiment with 1t. It
might be the means of encouraging other
traffic that would be profitable.
In this connection it is gratifying to no
tice the efforts which are being made by
our wholesale grocers to establish trade
with Cuba and Porto Rico. They have
studied the situation carefully and are
satisfied that a paying trade could be
built up between this city and those ISL
ands. The obstacle in the way is the lack
of the means of transportation. A steam
ship line between Savannah and Cuba
and Porto Rico is needed. We stated a
day or two ago that the Louisville and
Nashville Railroad Intended to establish
a line of steamers between Pensacola
and those islands, and it is well under
stood that the Plant System will have a
feet of steamers running from Tampa TO
the principle Cuban and Porto Rican
ports. We suggested recently that the
Central should have a line of steamers
from this port in connection with its road
to our newly acquired possessions in the
West Indies.
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