The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1903-08-19

for the correlation OF agriculture and
manufacturing. He showed conclusive
IL that the country which manufactures
ITS raw products is far and away bet
ter of than the one which sells It's
raw material to outside manufacturers
to be bought back as finished products.
He urged technical education, show
ing its advantages, importance and
necessity If We are so manufacture our
own raw products, cotton, etc. He
said IN substance: Tracing the early
history of our country we find that
Puritan and Cavalier alike had to
make his own Cloth for home use. In
1910 Virginia, North Carolina, South
Carolina and Georgia spun more cloth
shan all New England. But the South
being naturally she home Of agricul-
ture, manufacturing went North and
they became wealthy. But in recent
years the South has begun to awaken
and today South Carolina stands next
to Massachusetts, in manufacture OF
cotton.
To the question, are we getting too
many mills-are we OVERRIDING the
mill businesss Z give the following
comparison: England, not producing
a pound Of eot5on, has 46,000,00 cot
ton spindIes and 5000, 900 yyoollen
spindles, with her A6, 00o,000 Snhabi-
tants. The South, producing four
ffths Of the worlds supply, with her
l2,OOO, eco to ls,000, 600 Inhabitants,
has only 5000, 900 spindles.
Gurtailing the production is no cure
for low prices, for other fields will
furnish supply If necessary. The true
remedy is to make as much as ever
before, or more, to make it for less
cost and instead of sending to others
our raw material, manufacture this
raw material and sell the finished
products. Tine Soujh's principal raw
material is cotton, and we hare per-
sistently sold it in the raw state. Take
a pound Of cotton in the raw state,
worth cents, manufacture that and
it is WORTH 40 cents at least. Ii the
Massachusetts, mills do that, 3 cents
goes for freight both ways, and the
other so cents of the 40 cents, for
which we buy. back our pound Of cot
tom, goes to the people Of Massachu-
setts-the anill owners, the operatives,
etc. So ne have been growing i've
pounds Of COTTON for one pound OF
cloth, and get we have expected, not
only to make living, but to get rich.
By selling to home mills you not only
get better peaces, but the profits are
left among ycu, and you share in them
in various ways, as viii be seen by
following illustration:
I know in this State a one-time
small, sleepy town of a few hundred
people, with Indifferent homes, slug
gish business, valueless property.
After the location of a cotton mill
some benefits TO the town itself are a
thriving bank and thriving mer-
chants, new railway station, new or
renovated homes. etc. For the 1,400
bales used by this mill better prices
are paid than tae farmers formerly
received; for the New York broker,
who. formerly had no competition,
must now, in order to meet foreign
contracts, compete with the nail,
which has to ELL its orders for finished
goods. The value of these !, 400 bales
as raw material is sa3, 900; as finished
product made by this mill it is $780,
600. This gross income goes partly
into dividends to stockholders, all
resident in the town or county; one
half to operatives, spending their
money at home, the rest goes into pur-
chase of cotton or supplies. The tax
able property is increased by $l75, coo
they have better roads, better schools,
esc.-in fact the general influence OF
cotton mills in a community is to
bald up the commercial interests Of
that community.
The longer we insist upon selling
our raw materials-not only cotton, but
other products-and buying them back
as finished goods, the poorer we get
and the richer the manufacturer gets.
In manufacturing communities, not
only does cotton sell for one-haf q
cent to two cents more than New York
markets, but mill operatives, being
consumers and not producers, our
farmers find ready and reliable market
for all kinds of truck-meats, fruit.
vegetables, wocd, etc., etc., ty which
the cash annual income can be in
creased 25 to so per cent. So it is the
duty of producing communities to fos-
ter industries that utilize raw ma
terial, and I venture to say that farm
ers are benefited by subscribing to
mill stock, even though they should
never ges dividends, since they get
better and greater markets for raw
material and produce of all kinds.
What we need then is a diversity of
interests and diversity of industry,
eorrelating agriculture and manufac-
turing.
Clemson College, Aug. 11.-Six
hnndrad or more farmers were here