Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1904-06-14
THE soUTH's OPPORTUNITY.
With Sufficient Labor 1t can Supply
the World With Cotton.


1.-THE opportunity Of century has
come to the south" Is a remark Of the
Baltimore Manufacturers Record OF
June 2.
This opportunity lies in the depend
ence Of the chief manufacturing ma
tions Of the earth upon the cotton fields
of the Southern States Of the Amerf-
can Union.
While it is possible that other sources
Of cotton supply may be found in some
other country, such as Africa or South
America, it will be long time. before
those countries can be sufficiently set
tied and civilized to furnish a reliable
stock to the world of this Indispensable
staple. But in the meantime the cotton
fields are here in our south. The in
dustry of production is already organ
lied, and heretofore it has been possi-
BILE to give the world all the cotton 1t
wanted. This can still be done. but
no exertion should be spared to insure
that result.
The first thing to be done is to Sc
cure a sufficient supply Of labor. We
have lands equal to the production or
twenty million bales. These lands are
OF the best quality, and to large extent
they are covered with virgin forests
and have never been touched by a
plough. immigration Is wanted. The
negroes are serviceable to large ex-
tent, but they are yearly becoming less
so. No negro who can read and write
will labor in the fields. nor indeed at
any occupation that makes steady de-
mand on his muscular powers. There
is great desire throughout the Union
to educate the southern negroes, ana
this fact gives warning Of the time
when negro labor can no longer be re-
lied on for the cotton fields.
What is needed, then, Is immigla-
ton, the influx Of white men from 9TH
er states and from Europe. For long
time immigration into the south was
impossible. AS the Record, quoted
above, we'll says, in times past the n
nancial forces of the east and OF Eu-
rope were united in the ownership OF
the railroad systems which, by the aid
Of land grants, had been built through
the west, and it was the com5ihed
power Of these influences which turrei
into the west the stream Of immigra-
ton from Europe as we'll as from 9TH
er sections of this country. The hum
dreds of millions Of acres of land own
ed by these roads and those Interested
in their construction were without
value, and the railroads would have
been practically without value unless
this land could be settled up. Hence
the east and south were flooded with
literature telling of the great ad-
vantages of the west, and there was
scarcely a village in all Europe IN
which pamphlets printed in foreign
languages. painting a picture of the
west as a land of illimitable possibili-
ties, were not in constant circulation.
Now conditions are changed. The
west has received it's largest deVel 'p-
ment, and the current of population and
enterprise has started southward. This
section is prosperous, and the flood OF
immigration must be turned this way.
It will be to the interest of railroads to
make special terms to bring it, and of
steamers from abroad to land their
human freight at southern ports in
stead of northern. All this will corns
in time, but it must be helped and has
tened. This is the south's opportunity
and it must be improved to the full
New Orleans Picayune.