The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-01-25
FAv0RS SMALL INDUSTRIES.
VIII. GEORGE j. BALDWIN BELIEVES
THEY ARE THE THING NOW.


Company Tells What Tampa,
Fla, Has Done in the Last Few
Years In an Industrial Way-A
suggestion 10 Savannah Grows
out of Tampa's Experience-The
Investment of Money by Home
People the Only Way to Bring Man
ufncturing Here.
Mr.. George ]. Baldwin, president of the
Edison Electric Illuminating Company. has
given a good deal of study to the Industrial
possibilities of Savannah. AS president of
the Edison Company he is in position TO
know something of the opportunities for
manufacturing here. Mr.. Baldwin is a be-
lever in small factories in the hands of
capable and experienced men who know
their business. The success of the indus
trial movement which has taken hold of
the people, he believes, depends on this
class of industries.
I have recently returned from Tampa"
said Mr.. Baldwin yesterday, where
We bought the street car and
electric lighting plant last sum-
mer on account of the remarka BILE
recent increase in the population and i'm
portance of the city. Any one who saw
it only a short time ago and plodded
through it's sandy streets would not know
Il to-day, while walking down the same
streets paved with vitrified brick. 1t is
following close on Savannah in it's sew
erage improvements and year hence will
have relatively as good a system and as
well paved streets.
The growth of Tampa said Mr.. Bald
win, has been perhaps more remarkable
than any Southern city outside of the
iron manufacturing region. in 1880 it was
a little fishing village of 200 people, and
not a railroad within 80 miles; while to-
day it has a population of 26, 600, three
railroads, with four daily trains to New
York, besides regular steamship service
to ports on the Gulf, in Cuba and Central
and south America. 1t is reaching out for
business. 1t has 1873 cigar factories and
pays out in wages 100000 per annum,
and is continually increasing this business
in which $100000 coo is now invested.
The city is by no means entirely de-
pendent on this industry said Mr.. Bald
win. The volume of general business
per capita, as well as in the total volume,
is increasing in other lines and it has just
captured three good naval stores com
panies, who will this year receive 81, 900, 900
worth of naval stores, according to the
statement of a well-known Savannah naval
stores man. Its jobbing trade i'm gro
ceries, hardware, etc, is rapidly increas-
ing, while the recent cold snaps in Flor
ida have shown that our oranges in flu
ture cannot be grown north of Tampa,
so that orange growing will be concen-
trated in that neighborhood, 1t shipped
100000 pounds of fresh fish and nearly
100000 tons of phosphate rock last year,
while its imports from South America and
Cuba amounted to 1880 900 and its ex-
ports 90 those ports alone were $5600O0 in
cleared from the port during the year.
1t is well for Savannah to realize that
il has a hustling young neighbor and must
do something TO keep ahead of her Dur
ing 1899 the United States government col
lected over 100000 in Tampa from inter
nal revenue, customs and the Postoffice,
and has recognized the Importance of the
port by appropriating 100000 for the har-
Dor improvements and 27-foot channel to
the sea, while, besides buying a site and
appropriating $250,000 for public building,
it is building al the harbor entrance, on
Egmont Key, modern fort of the same
general character as Fort Screven, at Ty-
bee
The Tampa city fathers. have not been
idle, either, said Mr.. Baldwin. With only
$4,000 of bonded debt and a moderate
tax rate, they have recently spent $300,000
in sewers and street paving, and have
funds in sight to pave and sewer every
street in the city in the next three years,
with no increase m either the debt or the
tax rate. The city government is pro-
gressive. the people are good, live men,
and they are all pulling together for their
town. The results will surely follow. The
three banks have to-day 5000, 900 on de-
post. and their owners have just eStab-
lshed two new banks in tributary terri
tory. Each of the banks has a good, live
man at the head of it. who makes the
auly 1T p1irNa
The Tampa people are great al
vertisers," said Mr. Baldwin, land
during the past three years have had
several gatherings of national Importance,
such as that on Harbor and Coast De
tense, the South and West Commercial
Congress. and the National Fisheries
Convention all of which brought promi-
nent men from all over this country as
we'll as from abroad They have lot of
small. but good hotels, and with the big
Tampa Bay Hotel, can handle these
crowds TO great advantage. They propose
TO I'LL them all during the first week in
April by having a street carnival, Tor
which they have secured some exceed
lngly low transportation rates. They Will
make a success of it too, as they have put
one Of their most active and best bust
ness men at the head of it, Col. j. b. An
derson, who not content with running one
oank in Tampa, also manages another al
Palmetto, is president of the Board of
Trade, on the Board of Public Works, is
financial agent of the city, inspector gen
era Of the state militia. member of the
Governors staff and lot of other things
can't remember. He is not the only man
q this sort there. but l mention him
merely to show that they have good, live
men whom they put at the head of their
public affairs.
When we bought our electric plant in
tampa" said Mr. Baldwin, 1--WE realized
all Of those things. and also that it is the
gateway to the Spanish-American coun-
tr-es south of US, with whom our trade
IS daily growing. nor did We forget the
Iaa that the Nicaraguan canal is a prac-
uell certainty, after the recent action OF
congress. / am glad to talk about Tampa
gust at this time, as its growth proves be-
Hoad question both the value of concerted
a-ton of the people of a city, but also
SHOWS the necessity of our Savannah in
ue'ltlal movement SO that we may hold
tlr business we have and try to increase
Ut lu spite of the hardest sort of cOmpe-