Omaha daily bee., 1902-08-03
Copyright, 1902, by Frank G. Carpenter

@~B
T0ANCHESTER, England, July "a
I'M Especial Correspondence of The
1921 Bee.)-I have spent the greater
NSY&zYk part of today in one of the larg-
- est cotton mills of Manchester.
This city is the center of the cotton spin
ming OF the world and the place where mere
than half of all the raw cotton we sell is
handled. The product is brought to Liver
pool or up the ship canal to Manchester
and from there distributed over this little
cotton district of west England. The dis
trict is only seventy-six miles long and
from ten to forty miles wide, but 1t Is so
spotted with mills that it might be called
enc vast cotton factory. Not only in Man
chester, but in the hundreds Of villages
and towns nearby the spinning, dyeing and
weaving goes on. The very air is filled with
the smoke and the streams are so discolored
by the dyes that they seem to flow ink.
In the town of Oldham there is a point
where you can count 500 factory chimneys
without moving. Blackburn, where Har-
greaves set up the first spinning jenny, still
makes cotton, calico and muslin, and at
Bolton, where Crompton invented the spin
ming mule, there are enormous cotton mills
and bleaching and dye works. The first
cotton mill was put up at Rochedale in 1895
and now there are $1,000 looms and 1,75O. 900
spindles at work there.
Long Noted for Manufacturing.
This region was noted for its wooden
manufacturers before cotton making by ma
chinery began and 1t got it's start through
its natives being the inventors Of the foun-
dalton tools for cotton weaving and spin
ming. The business grew more, however,
through the advantages of the climate.
The mill men here tell me that there Is no
place in the world where the conditions are
so favorable to the making Of cotton cloth.
The air has just the right amount Of
moisture, the water is excellent for dyeing
and the colors are fast. AS a result the
cotton industry has steadily grown and 1t is
today bigger than ever. The increase of
the trade of 1900 over that of 1899 amounted
to more than $50, 900, 900 In value and new
mills are still being built.
1t is in the cotton trade that John Bull
has the advantage Of Uncle Sam. How long
he will hold it remains to be seen. but so
far his grip has not loosened. He is now
producing about $500, OOO. 900 worth of cotton
manufactures yearly, and more than two
thirds of this product is exported. AS far
as the worlds trade In cotton manufactures
is concerned we are not In 1t, although we
grow nine-tenths Of the worlds cotton and
are now putting up our factories right in
the cotton nelds. England Is thousands o.
miles from any place where cotton Is grown,
but it supplies its own cotton goods and has
Sc per cent of the worlds exports. while WI
Rave only about 5 per cent. Great Britain
pays us $3.50, 900. 900 and upward for our raw
materials, but it sells its product for al
least three times the amount 1t pays us. 81
that II really makes about twice as mucf
out Of that part of our crop as we do.
In the Cotton Exchanges.
The most Of our cotton now comes to Liv'
erpoo,, although the shipments via the Man
chester canal are increasing and IL is a
Liverpool where the bulk OF the American
product is sold. The sales are In the cot
ton exchange, where every day there ar
hundreds of buyers and sellers. The cottol
Is taken from the ships to the warehouse
OF the various brokers, each Of whom has
sample room with exhibits OF the grades @
cotton on hand. The samples are rolled u
in sheets Of brown paper about a yard wide
so that they look for all the world like roll
Of cotton batting. Each roll contains sew
eral pounds Of cotton taken from the vari
Gus bales. labeled according to the grades {
the market.
The cotton is bought and sold by sam
pies. the spinners sending their orders I
the brokers. / saw scores Of boys NOV
ing shout the streets of Liverpool wit