Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-10-20
Complaint of the Manufacturers of
the East.
MILLS MONTHS BEHIND THEIR ORDERS
Increase in the Expectation of Boots
and Shoes.
IRON AND STEEL ACTIVITY

The manufacturers, in the opinion of the
chief Of the bureau of statistics, are about
the busiest people in the United States at
the present time. Mr.. Austin, the chief of
the bureau has just returned from a visit
to the manufacturing centers of New Eng
land and the middle states, and if their
condition is an example of that of the man
ufaC turers of the country generally, it
presumably is, there can be no occasion for
| complaint that mills and men are lacking
employment. Mr.. Austin visited the cotton,
wooden, worsted, silk, fiber, carpet, print
goods, rubber. boot and Shoe hat pottery
and watch and clock manufacture estab
lishments, and in no case did he find a lack
of orders for the manufac turers or of en-
ployment for men and women desiring en-
ployment.
On the contrary, the great cotton, wooden,
silk and other textile mills are running on
full time AMI over time, while the manu-
faCturers of rubber goods, boots and shoes,
clothing and pottery reported their orders
far in excess of their capacity to fill with
prOmptneSS.
Hard to Get Enough Hands.
Our chief difficulty said the manager
of great mandatory of rubber clothing,
SIS to get a sufficient number of employees
and sufficient machinery to meet our orders.
The crude rubber we can get, through the
importations of that are increasing rapidly
and the price advancing because of the in
creased dema I'D; but the costly machinery
and the skilled labor which are to do the
work are not so easily had. We maintain
constantly a school for the instruction of
young men and women in the lines of work
required in our factory, and yet with the
constant reduction of our force by the de-
mands upon it from other mills Of this
character We are short of hands and unable
to keep up with our ORDERS.
Similar statements were made by the
managers of other manufacturing estab-
lishments. The cotton mills, wooden mills
and silk manufacturing establishments
were running at their full capacity, and in
some cases over hours. while the great
boot and shoe manufacturing establish
ments were reported weeks behind with
their orders, which come from all parts of
the United States and of the world
During the last eight months between
s.. ZOO, 900 and 100000 worth of boots and
shoes, the product of American factories,
have been SeLt out of the country. the total
for the eight months being double that or
the corresponding months of 1898. OF this
large expectation of this single product of
our factories the exports to the united
kingdom alone were SIT, 1874. against $685.
1T5 in the corresponding months of last
year; to the West Indies. s467, 519, against
S16T, 420 in the corresponding months of
last year; to British Australasia. 1892. 439,
against sos, 1913 in the corresponding
months of last year: to Mexico, $206, $50,
of last year; to Africa, 1914 6O5 against
$54,653 in the corresponding months of last
year, while shipments were also made to
Asia, Oceanica. Central and South Amer
lea, as well to the great industrial and
manufacturing countries of France, Ger
many and the united kingdom.
DIR. Wilson's Testimony.
An illustration of the activity of the man
ufacturers in other lines is found in a
statement made by DR.. Wilson, the head
of the Philadelphia commercial museums,
and also the director of the export expo
st:ou. Our chief difficulty in the prelim-
mary work of the exposition said he,
was in the fact that the manufacturers
of the country We're so busy that many of
them could not find time and the neces
sary force of employees with which to pre-
pare exhibits satisfactory to themselves,
while in many other cases our requests for
exhibits were met with the statement that
since they are now months behind with
their orders. the display of their products
would merely add to their temporary en-
barrassment by bringing them still great
er excess of orders over their capacity for
production. In the great iron and steel
manufacturing industries we found that
many of the establishments had from six
to eighteen months orders ahead, and that
they were working to their fullest capacity
and unable to increase their product with
out increase in machinery, which, of
course, cannot be made in moment"
Iron and SteI Activity.
In the iron and steel industry the fig
ures of our exports show that the extreme
activity of manufacturers extends not alone
70 the home market. but to that supplied
by other parts of the world. The exporta-
lions of manufactures of iron and steel in
the eight months ending with August 1899.
amount to SOS, 0DS,011, against So, 925 0S2 in
the corresponding months of 1898. $40, 49,
920 in the corresponding months of 1897,
and 500, 957 900 in the corresponding months
of 1896.
still further evidence which our for
eign commerce figures show of the activ-
ity of our manufacturers is found in the
rapid increase in the importation of ma
terials used by manufacturers. The mpor-
tations Of fibers for in the manufac-
turing industries in the eight months end
ing with August. 1899, amounted to S14-
81, 75S, against $11 $50 146 in the correspond
ing months of 1898 and 1851 $40 in the
corresponding months of 1897; hides and
skins, $32 6O6,S2O, against $27. las, 0S4 in the
corresponding months of 1898, and 500, 637-
2S6 in the corresponding months of 1897: In
dia rubber, So, S60,31s, against SIT AS 4O4
in the eight months of 1898, and $13 100 $40
in the corresponding months of 1897, and
raw silk for use in manufacturing S23-
452,903. against s16,639,211 in the CORES
ponding months of 1898, and sl34161 1856 in