The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-11-19
OUR GREAT SILK INDUSTRY.
W. MAKE ETGHTr-FTTE PER CENT.
or IHE GOODS USED HERE.

one Of the most Interesting features Of the
Industrial development In tho United States
durng tie last generation has been the growth
OF the manufacture OF silk goods Forty
years ago this country imported ~ rer
cent. OF all the silk goods used In the
country To-day. with vast addition
TO the demand due to growth OF popula-
tion AMI wealth. tho country IL importing
only - per cent o. the silk goods II consumes
and has become the greatest manufacturer o!
sHk goods In the world. In addition, this
country has wrcsted from Europe and Asia th'
supremacy which they once possessed In this
industry. within tho recollection Of men OF
only middle age. the people OF tho United
States were almost wholly dependent upon
Europe for every article Of wear OF which elk
was tho principal component part. To-day
thi. country supplies It's entire market with
everything in silk goods except the finest prod
ucts OF the hand looms OF Lyons. CruhcId and
Zurich Tho prospect Ia that within few
years iinpurtations from these centres will he
too small to be- considered from commercial
point Of view except ms among the curlositics
OF trade statistics.
The day Of Europe In the American silk mar
ket IL over and tho only competition which IL
ia believed Americans still have to fear IL TINT
Of the Orient. where I'm China and Jnnnn the
omen door Iolcy ~ leading TO the Introduction
OF modern machinery aud methods which.
added to chrap labor may yet make them
dangerous rivals IN this aud other industrial
fields while tho silk manufacturing industry
In America has hal many ups and downs. 80
far as It's profitable condition is concerned, lts
growth since 1880 has been on tho whole
constant representing. decade by decade. Just
about the natural increase In the countrys
consumrtion Of such goods and keeping the
oh. hoo.
varied little from constant quantities. Within
the last few years the business has taken
nrmer grin and now shows a strong tendency
to wine out the importation figures altogether.
The trend Of progress hy cur silk mauuiac-
turers IL shown in the following figures In
1850 we made only l3 per cent ~ the silk
goods consumed IN the country. In 1870
we had advanced to % per cent in lSSl >. To ~
per cent IN 1890. to % per cent and In 1888.
10 50 per cent. This year II IL believed mat
the tables will be completely turned about AMI
that only the II per cent. which We made our.
selves in 1850. will be sent To u from all the
rest Of the world While we have thus boon
superceiirg Europe in supplying ourselves
with silks and satins. vr,vc;s and all the other
luxurious and useful products of silk. our Inn
pnr,ations Of the raw product Of the silk worm
have a. steadily increased until to-day we arc
usiug fully one-third OF tho entire worlds
product o, marketable silk In this regard
our hagnning' were most modest. ~ lately
as 1873 we i'm ported only l.lOl.6Sl pounds Of
raw silk and ). I3I pounds % spun silk. worth
altogether about Si.525.OOO. while Tor tho
year ending June |. 1879. the imports OF raw
aud spun silk werc 6.297 bnles. containing
more than lO.5op.oOO pounds and valued at
SS2 ~. 40 The growth Of the imporations
NJ raw elk has been constant on the whole.
IA. s..l.f
ths yearly returns evidences OF the industrial
AMI financial troubles which the country
has been through in that time. In 1877 and
ISIS the mportnrions o! raw silk were some
thing ike 10000 pounds less than in 1915
The value OF tha silk in 1877 was about
Sl.jDu,UpO lass than in 1876 or 1873. Again. In
lS'l the importation fell on from 5,9i3,3jO
rounds In 1890 to 4.NlT.iSS pounds ind In
l~,I 1t dToprod TO 1885. SO. after having been
up ~ the 100000 mark for both 1929 In
lSlG i Jumpcl To- S.pUoG2l pounds. and FELL
rgatn In 1907 % ',5l3Gl2 pounds e. average
". IN lo;IS /; reached lu.blJ.l62 pounds.
rr.ccs. too. have had considerable 20 DO with
these fluctuations. having varied from sl.s7
pound for raw Canton silk 10 about 81
The raw six comes from France. Italy.
Austria, Spain. China. japan. India AMI the
Leydn'. Excluding the amount used at homo
In China aaI Japan. ~ which there is a. recorl
ohtaiuablc. the worlds production o. raw silk
last year wa, 3i.OiS2Ti pounds. an this year
II IA estimated that L will reach nea. } 3bOJl,-
900 rouuds U! this China produces both the
largest amount N any one country and the lest
quality. IL all the other countries the worms
In the cocoons are killed by roasting before
the silk II wouut of. and this reduces the
lustre o' tho t.ameut. but in China the
flament Is recied OF while the worms are siill
IiVa 10 Ia
the quality Of the six in another way. The
reeling Is don" at the homes of the silk raisors
and Is o. very uneven quality. Most OF this
sik has to be re-rec'ei before II can be
marketed. China sends into the markets
about III, 100000 pounds Of raw silk. japan
comes next with 7.25O,OO pounds and Italy a
close third with 0.2J0.UOU pounds France
produces about 100000 pounds. Austria
$40. 900. Spain l75 600. India bjO.O 900 uGd the
Levant 2.3oO,OOO pounds.
The firm establishment Of silk manufnc-
were admitted into the English markets free
ofduty, 4 great silk industry had grown up
In EnGlan,d previous to that ,da,e and We Drew
quantities. from, England and France. With
French goods admitted free the English silk
Of their own, markets md many OF, OF, them hem
them, thsi, macRInGry and Ganif They
place in which TO settle. and here they built
up their industry. Patterson was already the
home Of the Pioneer SIX, Companys mills.
started In lS4p I John Rye. and this was the
first enterprise 81 the kind begun IN America
which was sstined to live. In 1860 Ilamil 4
Booth built u second silk mill ia Paterson,
and these two, with few others. we're the
nucleus around which the influx OF English
men gathered,
There had been no lack OF attempts to estab-
lish the silk Industry In this country in all
branches. from the growing Of the silk worms
TO the making OF finished goods. These at
tsmUts had been encouraged by the Crown and
State from tn" time OF the earlier settlements
and had resulted ia great industrial craHrs at
times, but In nothing more permanent except
the establishment OF a number OF factories
where sewing silk md trimmings were made
Many of tbs 81 survive and were doing business
when the English wcayers came over In 1880.
, In 1919 a silk trimming factory was estab-
lished in Phlnde phia 4 ribbon factory was
stnrtrl Ia Baltimore IN 1929. In 1874 drsss
trimmings were made in Boston. Sewing silk
was made at Florence Mass. and at Dedham.
Mass. in 1899. and these industries had spread
until In 1850 New York had forty-iour little
establishments OF ons kind or another which
employed ll59 hands and produced 81 l64,-
2Of worth OF goods, Pennsylvania at that time
had thrty-nve factories emf oying | .55U hands
and turning out 81. 7I7 S45 worth Of goods
Connecticut had TWENTY-FIVE factories EN- pny-
ing 1,l37 hands and producing 81 ,3Ui 400
OF goods: Massachusetts, 10 with 7sI hands
an product Of 81 POI $3.50: New JERSEY 81
.,N. 4, M huf Ia gtuNNI 10,