The age-herald., 1900-01-27
M'LAURlN ON
 FUTURE OF SOUTH
Told of the Great Industrial De- l velopment. <
TRADE WITH THE ORIENT
Oyer An Hundred Guests of the Asiatic Association at Annual Dinner Lis
 ten to the southern sena-
 tors Address

r New York, January 2s.--0 One ghundred and two members and guests Of Che Asiatic as- socaatidr sat down to sfe secord annual dinner of the organization sat Delmonicos tonight Among those who sat at the tables arranged for the guests of honor were Senator lhcLaurin of South Carolina; the Japanese minasJer; Charles Denby ex- minister to China; Cornelius N. Bliss, John Barrett minister to siam; Minister Wu. Sof China, and Brayton Ives.
 J The Eng 4Sn and Ame14can colors at the head of the table were the only decorations. Letters of regret. were read from President Mckinley, Secretary of State John Hay, Secretary of the Treasury Gage, Senators Beverdge and Aldrlch, and Morris K. Jes- sup president of the chamber ot commerce.
 Minister Wu Ting Fang was in his bril- liant Oriental costume of silk, embroidered with heavy gold braid, and decorated With Chinese chsnna cIters. The minister from Japan wore full dress after the American model
 Senator McI.aurln spoke at length of the industrial growth of the south and its stimu "a tion by trade with the Orient. He said in part:
 | "IJnder favorable conditions there is no limit to the industrial possibilities anu progress of the south. The mills are ~ ~oouno 10 come to the cotton and the near future will find in every little town a ginnery, oil mill and yarn factory run by the same power and combined under one manage mept, An experienced mill man m my own country showed me an estimate for such plant and figured the profit at 33 per cent per annlrm.
 s':s-ss Progress in Industries
 "In| iron. steel and other industries re- inarkable progress has been made. It was confidently predicted by the New England manufacturers twenty years ago that the south would never become manufactur- ing center. The labor problem, the chlet predicted obstacle, has been satisfactorily solved; its cheapness and adaptalbdlity have been determined.
 ..Ishe soutn cannot stand still and con sistently oppose commercial expansion. To do so means to go backward toward the rulnous conditions of centuries ago. The unexpected and unintentfonal acqnsa- ton of the Philippines is to marx an epocn in the history of this country. The world conflict in the east at this time is really the outgrowth of commercial competition. It is a question of markets and market places.
 "The south is particularly interested in our Aslatic markets. From the orient comes a constantly increasing demand for raw and manufactured cotton. The outlet, therefore for our supplies and products seems almost limitless. In China today the most popular cotton products come from southern mills. Southern smanufac- turers have not yet reached more ethan [ one-thirtieth of the population of China. It is of inestimable value to the south that the trade should be developed ,~held and protected. With millions of capital invested in southern factories, dependent as they are upon the markets of the orient the representative from the south who opposes expansion is blind to the true Interests of his section and welded to a mere senti- mont.
 ''In striving for commercial expansion and commercial supremacy, l would not favor the incorporation into our body polite of any semi-barbarous races. totally unable to appreciate our system of government; but I do flavor the policy of expansion. I will vote for the retention of those islands in some constitutional way, to control new markets and new commercial advant- ages.'