The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-07-09
MORE PUBLIC SPIRIT NEEDED.

MORE PUBLIC SPIRIT NEEDED.
! II seems to us that our business men
| and property owners are lacking in public
/ spirit. They are all anxious for the city
/ 10 grow, and it is growing, but it would
/ grow very much faster if there were
! means by which a greater population
1 could earn living We cannot reasona-
/ bly, expect people to seek homes here IN
| less they are assured that they can earn
a support
Whose duty IS Ito lead the way in es-
tabhshing Industries and new businesses2
Is # not the duty Of real estate owners
and others who have prospered here?
There is a great quantity of money in
the banks-deposited there-seekng invest
ment. Why Is it that the leading men
Of the city are not bestirring themselves
TO ind ways for the investment of this
money that would contribute to the up
building Of the city?
There are hundreds OF young girls and
young men who are anxious for employ
ment. Many of them are willing to accept
almost any wages so long as the employ
ment is respectable and contains some
promise of advancement 1t is said that
manufacturing will not pay here. Who is
there who is in a position to make that
statement and support it? There are a
great many small factories in operation
here ana they are prosperous. II is true
that several of the manufacturing enter
prises which were started here were I'M
successful, and why? Was It not because
they were badly managed? Had they been
put into competent hands the chances are
that they would have proved 10 be pay
ing investments. The city is blamed for
these failures when, as a matter of fact,
the promoters of them were to blame
promoters who were persuaded to con
slider the welfare of friends rather than
the interests of the enterprises
There is plenty of labor here, and 1t
can be had at about as low wages as SINH
lar labor can be obtained elsewhere. And
there are advantages here for manufac-
turing which are to be found at very
few other places in the South. Even if
little higher wages should have to be
paid here these advantages would more
than offset that one disadvantage.
If our city Is to grow we must be up
and doing. We shall accomplish nothing
by inviting outsiders to come here and
invest their capital We must invest our
own capital. We must help ourselves. In
stead of putting our money in bank or
investing it in the bonds and shares or
outside corporations we must invest in
home enterprises.
Macon is to have another cotton mill,
and a great flour mill. Atlanta is figuring
upon number of important industrial
undertakings, and even Valdosta, with
scarcely any effort, raised $4,000 for a
cotton mill last week
We have been talking about a sugar
refinery here for several weeks. and It
seems almost impossible to get our men
of means to take an interest in it. we
are not prepared to affirm that an indus
try of that kind would be profitable. be-
cause We haven't the data on which to
base an opinion. but those who claim to
have given the subject very careful
thought say that 1t would be very prof.
table. Obviously the thing to do Is to
have the matter thoroughly investigated
IF the Information obtained sustains the
claim made as to the proftableness Of
the enterprise, then our business men and
property owners should lose no time in
having sugar refinery established here
1t will cost nothing to get the informa-
ton. land it shows a lack of public spirit
not to undertake to get it.
We have a splendid city which has mag
nificent advantages. What we need es-
pecially is a little more public spirit.