The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1901-02-23
SOUTHERN NOTES.

w
auirer thoughtfully remarks, don let US
forget the probable amount OF cfedle tilat
is due to Southern cotton mills LOT Tue
present high price of cotton IL IS tlu
that Southern mills want to ouE COTTON
as cheaply as possible lhey are no iioi ,'
likely to advance the price voluntarily
than are the Northern or foreign mills.
Rut suppose there were no Southern
mills. how much easier would 1t be IoT
the Northern or foreign manufacturers
to fix the price at lower figures? Inc
competition that is furnished by the
Southern mills is of almost lnestlmaple
value to the cotton producers OF the
SOUTH, And the Charlotte Observer OBJ
serves that this is good argument" and
that it is not well to hamper the mills
with too much legislation in such condi-
lions.
A Mobile exchange tells us that it has
long been recognized by many people that
Mobile possesses every advantage Tor
shipbuildinS plant, and it is gratifying
to know that Eastern capitalists are real
iZing the fact. All the materials needed
for ocean-goinS vessels can be secured
in Alabama, the steel and iron from the
Birmingham district; also, the coal for
steaming purposes, and the timber from
the vast forests Of Alabama. The parts
can be assembled and the vessel
launched at Mobile. There is already
some talk Of establishing a s., 000000 plant
here and the probabilities are that this
talk will result in something much more
substantial.
The profits of the rice planters of
Louisiana and Texas are the subject of
some rosy statements in the Southern
newspapers. A few years ago it was
discovered that extensive bodies OF what
was supposed to be worthless land were
peculiarly adapted to rice growing, and
there are now thousands of these plan
1ations whose yield is large and certain
One man who bought 500 acres at ten
cents an acre Il few years ago. sold his
1900 rice crop for upward of $4,000. A
syndicate which bought up a lot of the
land distributed p per cent. in dividends
to its members, and has property
which could be put on the market now
at $i5 to $40 an acre, and Which was
practically worthless and unstable ten
years age. Lands in Texas now bring
SIG to $40 acre, while those in LOUISE
ana. where the industry is older, are
quoted at $40 and $50. and it is predicted
they will go to 500 very soon.
Y pamphlet issued by Bradstrcet's
Under the title of "a Record, Not a Pros
pectus,' places .lc South in a very cred
table commercial position. 1t contains
the following parag graph:
Probably no one section of the country
was SO favored as regards trade condi
tons as the South, and here it will be
Noted that the gain in number in business
was the largest of any section, the per
centage of increase Deng 8, while the in
crease in failures in that section was s.
per cent, a striking example of the COZ:
stancy of such statistics when nearly Ill
conditions We're favora bic. Less eXpan-
sion was naturally shown in other sec
lions. In the Middle States, for instance
the gain in number-in business was only
- Fer cent, while the number Of fail
ures increased 13 per cent. In the IVES
tern States the number in business in
creased 1.9 per cent, while the failures
increased 80 per cent In the Northwest
the business community expanded to the
extent of "a per cent. in number. while
the less favorable business conditions
were shown by an increase OF 12.4 per
cent. in failures