The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1900-06-20
PROGRESS OF A CENTURY.
Some of the Marvels We Have Wrought in
a Hundred Years.
Ladies' Homo Journal.

America when this century opened.
France had Ave times as many people;
Germany, and even Austria, had four
times Americas populatin; Italy had
three times as many, and SO had Great
Britain. Even Spain had double our
number Of people, and little Portugal
was almost our rival in numbers.
We have more people now than any
European nation except Russia, which
alone leads us. We have as many
people as live in all Great Britain and
France combined. We have one-half
more people than Germany. We have,
practically, 75,0OO,O00 people in the
United States. and 10000, 900 more in
our new possessions.
There were only Eve large cities in
America in 1900. Philadelphia, with
$4,000, was the largest, the seat Of
government, and the centre Of wealth
and culture. New York was next,
with $4,000. Baltimore was third,
with 100000; Boston fourth, with 25,-
60: and Charleston, South Carolina,
fifth with $4,000 people.
Chicago was unheard of in 1900.
The century was three years old be-
fore the government even built fort
where Chicago now stands, and it was
not until thirty years that city was
thought of and incorporated.
There was no western city. The
mighty, modern cities Of St. Paul,
Minneapolis, Omaha, Denver and Kan
sas City were unheard Of. There was
small trading-post at St. Louis.
That was all. The Pacific coast had
two or three missions under Spanish
control. All the restsof the west was
given over to Indiana aud wild beasts.
In what are Illinois, Indiana, Mich
igan and Wisconsin now there lived
5000 people in 1600,aspread over that
whole territory. The"Far West" was
then Kentucky, Ohio and Western
New York. Beyond the Alleghanies
was practically a wilderness. Now
$4,000, 900 people live within the area
that belonged to our nation in 1900.
The United States is larger now
than all Europe in point Of area. It
has {, 3,6O0,00O square four
teenth of the land surface Of the en-
tire globe. In 1900 we had just $685.
900 square miles.
We are the richest nation on the
globe. Today orr wealth is estimated
at over 800, 600, 900, 1000; in 1900 it
was $4,000, 600, 900. A mar wcrsh
$4,000 was then considered abnor-
mally rich; to-day we have several
hundred men who are worth So, ,00n, 900
or more.
Uncle Sam spends each year, on his
government. $3.50 ss55550, 0Go, ,GG0, not inolud-
ing the extra outlay occasioned by our
late war and the new accession Of ter.
ritory. In 1900 he spent s12, 800, 900.
In four years he now spends more than
the entire wealth Of the nation in
1900.
It is amazing how people lived in
1900, judged from modern standpoints.
Half Of them. dwelt in log huts.
Window glass was. aluxury even in
the coast towns. Some people nsed
oil paper; others had simple openings
in the walls, which in winter were
closed with plank split from logs. The
iron stove was q positive luxury; the
furnace vas unheard Of. Great fire.
places supplied heat, but could not,
keep these huts comfortable in winter.
There was no kerosene nor gas.
Both were unheard Of. The tallow
dip was the standard light, and on the
frontiers even tallow was scarce. There
the torch Of thes forest was used.
Lamps then were in the homes Of the
very rich, fed with whale or vegetable
oils; but they were few, and the fame
hardly brighter than the candles. For
fifty years into the century these
lights were used, for it was not until
1858 that petroleum was discovered,
and, even in 1861, kerosene was very
expensive, costing sixty cents gallon.
There was no such thing as
match. The flint and steel Of the old
family musket was the means Of kind
ling Are; or a live coal was brought
from neighbours, sometimes many
miles distant. When the friction
match came, in 1927, people were
afraid Of il and would not have it in
the house. Today we in America
alone use over 125, 900, 600, 600 matches
each year. 4.
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