The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1904-01-20
COTTON IS KING
IN SOUTHWEST
Wall Street Hears of0kIahoma
Prosperity.
HIGH PRICE OF COTTON
That Has Added Wealth to the
Territories.

Guthrie. o. T., Jan 19.-The New York
Evening Post contains the following or
the southwestern cotton belt, under a
Guthrie date line:
The southwest is one broad grin" is
the way the representative of a Wall
street banking firm making a trip
through this section and Texas expressed
! it. The condition is marvellously pros
porous throughout northern Texas and in
the territory, said he, lowing to the
| high price of cotton. Except in the south
ern portion OF Texas, where the boil Wee
vii has shortened the crop, there is money
| everywhere. One bank in Dallas has five
million dollars on deposit, and the small
est towns are thriving
THE LUCKY COTTON PLANTERS.
| The season. which had some discourag
| ing features in the early months, has
changed wonderfully as The price of cot
ton scared. At every station the cotton
is piled deep. Farmers are spending
| their new money in improvements and
adding to their stock and buildings, thus
giving an indirect effect on the business
Of the towns.
In Oklahoma The towns are filed every
Saturday with teams driven in by farm
ers making their purchases, and num-
bers of new firms have been started.
Some people intimate that the merchants
are going ahead pretty rapidly and that
there will come financial depression if
the crops fail for a single season. This.
however, is the experience of every new
country, and the southwest boom has
hardly, except in the price of real estate,
reached anything like danger point. The
report OF the banks last week shows
the largest deposits in the territory
history
OIL WELLS IN THE SOUTHWEST.
The oil activity in the territory and in
southern Kansas is having it's effect on
business interests. The oil wells at Bar
tlesville, J. T.. have increased in volume,
and more speculators come in each week.
The Standard Oil company will construct
a pipe line from its wells in the. Bartles-
Vile field to Muskogee, where it will
build refinery This is necessitated be-
cause the secretary of the interior has
refused to allow it to construct pipe
line out of the territory to its refineries
in Kansas, and the fact that repeated |
efforts to get water to use in refining |
have failed The companys experts have
found that the Grand river is the only |
available source of water supply. This /
movement means The local development /
of the territory oil fields to a greater |
extent than before, and will tend TO con-
fine the investments TO that section.
Gas piping plans which have been made /
for the northern part of the Kansas /
field for several years without results |
are now in prospect for this city. There
are gas wells within sixty miles of here.
Work will commence in the spring. An
Indiana firm will back the project, but
the promotion will be managed by an
Kan, man. This city of /
80, ,0e0 people will make a profitable Gus
toner for the output of many wells, rs
ing it both in residences and in the man
plants that are growing in
number. Plans are also being made for
piping TO Topeka and franchise has
been granted for that purpose. The de
velopment of the oil and gas field is
becoming OF really formidable proper
tons. and the number of new wells put
down this winter will be greater than in
the whole of 1909.
INVESTMENT CAPITAL. COMING IN.
Seekers for investments are thick in
The newer portions of the southwest. In
The new parts of Oklahoma agents for
investment companies and for banks
irive through the country calling on the
farmers and asking them to exchange
for money Interest rates are
! to 10 per cent and the appraisals are
ow. usually $500 TO $500 being the Gus
omary loan on a quarter section Hun
-. 4, -
ng loans and paying off the government.
md II is furnishing The most lucrative
Investment business in the southwest at ,
his time. BY the time the claims are
proved up there will be few OF them
lot mortgaged but with good crops con-
inuing they will be free Of incumbrance
n a short time. Investors are not going
ar into the western counties. but are
ooking TO the middle portions of the ter
itoTy for the greater part OF their loans. /.
I'LL ENTERPRISES UNDER WAY. !
Cotton mill construction is coming as
result OF The impetus given 10 the ,
rowing of that staple In the southwest.
mill is in prospect for Independence.
Kan. and for oklahoma City. the larg
st city in the territory. To the latter
lace South Carolina capitalists have :
lade a proposition 10 put in mill cost
ig $4,000 one-half OF which amount is
D be furnished by the city Ii is prom
,ed TO build loooo-spindie mill, en-
loving LOO operatives and producing
7ra 90 yards os cotton fabric annually. c
he logic of the position Of Oklahoma
ity for the enterprise Is The constantly
Increasing demand from Asia for Amer
an cotton goods.
The opening Of the Panama canal viii
How the shipment OF goods 70 the far :
sst much cheaper from this section than =
-onl New England The building OF the
rient railway 20 the west coast or Nsx-
o viii also give a short haul 10 the Pa \
&c. Il Is estimated that raw cotton
IN be bought one cent pound cheaper
Oklahoma City than II New England. q
-hich Is great consideration The :.
,owing Importance OF the southwest az
manufacturing point should not be over
oked. and every visitor Is impressed
ith its possibilities The people seem
, BE- eager for the beginning % r-zanu-
etur,ng era ard are asking capital 20
,ule While boad-vcting for bonuses =
ot easily accomplished there ss plenty
local capital ready for investment 20
'sist the rotstson Of rev enterprise. Of
i;s nature.
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