The age-herald., 1901-07-28

Around the steel business at Birmingham there have been established during the last few years a number of other plants for the manufacture of iron and steel and the opportunity is very favorable for the growth at this point of an extensive iron , and steel manufacturing industry. Two great advantages, namely, cheap fuel and raw material, are to be found here as In no other section.
 Lumber Manufacture.
 The industrial development of Alabama during the last few years has been helped to great extent through the ability to obtain material at first cost The manu- fracture of the various timbers of the State has progressed rapidly. In the yell low pine district immense mills have been active turning out all kinds of lumber, which has been shipped into every portion Of the Union and exported to foreign mar kets. These products have included, be- sides pine and hardwood lumber, slaves, hoops heading, handles, veneer material, boxes, fruit packages and naval stores Alabama still has large areas of virgin timber, and there are opportunities still open for lumber manufacturers.
 Cotton Manufacture.
 The growth of cotton manufacture in the South during the past five years has been one of the most wonderful develop ments of the country. In Alabama during these five years twenty-seven new mills have been erected, which now have an equipment of 29S,366 spindes and 6sOe looms A number of towns have built new mills; noticeable developments have been made at Anniston, where during the past year three new mills were built; at Hunts vile, which has built three, and at Mo- bile, which has built two. Most of them are of quite large capacity. New knitting mills have also been established in sev- eral places, and a new carpet mill the first of It's kind in the State Already splendid development has taken place in the manufacture of cottonseed, and this is of very recent growth. Alabama now has thirty-nine cottonseed oil mills, of which twenty-eight are tributary to the Southern Railway.
 Diversified Agriculture.
 No State in the Union has wider di- versity of agricultural products than Ala bafna. The great crops are cotton and corn of which last year the State pro- duced 950,000 bales of the former, and 29,- S55, ,942 bushels of the latter. Other crops are fruit, grass live stock. vegetables, to- baceo, rice, sugar cane, in fact, any crop suited to a temperate climate can be raised in Alabama. The soils of the dif- ferent portions of the State vary in com position, depth and fertility, and render the State as a whole as self-sustaining as any portion of the country.
 Vineyards.
 A very important grape industry has grown up around Fruithurst. In the vi- cinity of this town there are now more than 9000facres devoted to grape culture The quality of the product is unsurpassed, the grapes possess flavor and contain greater percentage of sugar than is us- ually the case. They are shipped to all Northern cities, well as many of the Southern States, and good prices are gem erally realized. The industry is said to be on the increase. Last winter favorable laws relative to the sale of the wine were secured, and it is now predicted that the vineyards of this portion of the State will increase in size and new ones be planted. The conditions for the raising of grapes, not only at Fruithurst, but in other DOT tions of Alabama are very favorable
 Peaches.
 There are as fine districts tributary to some of the lines of the Southern Railway system In Alabama for the raising of peaches as are known. The development of the industry, too, has been a growth