The evening times., 1900-09-18
COTTON PRICES GOING UP
Mills in South Carolina Running
on Half Time.
Operators in That Section of the
Country Threatened With Ruin.
Eastern Manufacturers Rich and
Able to Stand the Pressure-The
Trouble i'm China Cuts Off Trade.

NEW YORK, Sept. 1S.-Conditions that
have compelled twenty of the largest cot
ton mills in the Piedmont district of South
Carolina to run on half time are interesting
to mill owners in the North, for to a seri-
Gus degree. it is said, they are felt here.
Already the manufacturers in this part of
the country have come to the point, they
say, where, unless the cost of raw cotton
is reduced. they must either add to the
price of the goods or stop their mills
Mills have ordered their agents TO go
slowly in selling goods at present prices.
Printing cloths have advanced from one
eighth to l cent yard, and the Fall River
syndicate is now quoting them at 8 cents a
yard. All other kinds of cotton goods are
soon expected to rise in price Mills will
no longer make contracts for future deliv-
cry, because they do not have any idea
what that future is likely to be Buyers
did not desire to buy spot goods a few
weeks ago. but now they are anxious to
secure them but cannot do So for they are
withheld from the sale
The senior member of one of the largest
firms of cotton mill owners in the United
States spoke of the cotton situation in the
East yesterday at his office in Duane
Street. He said:
Cotton manufacturing in the South is
different from what it is here There they
turn out heavy goods mostly, and the
largest share of the product goes 10 Chi
ma Some time ago we about decided to
let them have that part of the business,
w
manufacturing OF a finer grade of cloth
The price cotton cloth is selling at now is
based on the cost of raw cotton when it
was cents a pound. OF course. if mills
continued TO sell at that rate and cotton
should stay where it is now-from 101@
cents to Il cents-theTe would be nothing
for them but ruin. They are not rich.
like some Of our Eastern mills. and can
not store up a great amount OF goods.
Then. the war in China has limited the
demand for their goods. and they have
nothing to do but shut down or greatly
reduce their output
Our company and companies like ours
viii not stop manufacturing cloth. We
are rich. One of our mills. for instance,
has a surplus of $4,000 600 and capital
of S3, ,G00. GEO Such concerns can lay up
times of 1893 We kept on running. But
if present conditions continue all of US
viii have to make a change We are sell
ing our goods on basis of Scent cotton
for We have & little old cotton to draw on.
That means that we are selling spring
hosiery at rates lower than it could pos
sibly be bought for If we were on the
basis of the present cost of cotton.
To-day print cloths went up from 275
cents TO cents bid but 31s cents was
asked That amounts to an addition of
three-eighths of a cent. which. if added
to the price of cotton cloth at Az cents.
would bring it UP to 3-S cents.
4 predicted a high price for cotton
some time ago. Personally I believe this
is going to continue. II Is not that the
crop is short the world is consuming
more than ever. Ten million bales VIII
no longer supply the demand. For the
last three years the world has used H.
500 coo bales"
Another manufacturer said that the
high price of cotton was affecting the
North, though not so seriously as the
South He admitted that few mill own
ers had much cotton on hand, and said
that If present conditions should keep
control of the situation manufacturers
would have to raise the price of their
product or shut down their mills.