The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1904-05-29

a,
rs M. dc Watyille In 1855 says that 'tne
four southorn,ost states make great
desl n cotton Their poor are almost
entirely clothed In II winter anu SUN
ner." There arc no Trustworthy s'a,,s
tics showing the consumption on co..o'.
in Tho Southcin states CURING Wv NJ
haif OF the last century, but 1t is dhlte
certain that practically all of the slave
nopuIatlon. as well na the poorer classes
s AZ whitts continued TO use cotton as me
chief textile. iionesptin. AZ the ontprsmN
q, the war between the States, an lns
cotton plantations In the. states ~, ~
ilieir spIntiles and cards and looms. = he
same was true OF the homes Of the poorer
peppie Of those days. but Just how n,uoh
nntton was consumed IN this way Is nov
known and cannot be accurately approx
mated. . 80
In 1890 the production Of cotton IN me
United States was estimated et 3e,V
pounds. OF this amount 17.oOo,ooV po '',..
were exported. The quantity h1a1'uiaa
tired In the whole country eScceaueoo
5000 900 pounds. say 35,555 bales '.1p
pounds each. only about 800 OF Wniech
were consumed In regular es'ap,s la.
lnenta," quoting from Ghllatin repo. Il
on manufactures In 1910. AZ the ~
lar establishments alluded to were located
IN Nav England. about 7Ss7,ooo pounds
must have been consumed In domestic
manufactures in the Southern states.
Farm Manufacturing.
y In regard 10 household manufactures IN
.bo United states in 1910 Gallatin says
that by far the greater part of the cot.
ton fax and woollen goods was manu-
featured IN private families mostly for
THAR own Use, and partly for sale me
articles made we're principally coarse
cloth. flannel. cotton stuffs, and stripes
of every description, linen and mixtures
OF wood with. hax and cotton. 1t was
estimated that. about two-thirds or the
clothing. including hosiery. house and
table linen. worn and used by the people
of the United States outside OF the cities
was the product of family ma'iuiactureS'
n In the lower counties Of Virginia. through
out North Carolina and in the upper
counties of South Caroline and Georgia,
almost the whole summer clothing oil all
classes wns Of household manufacture,
and the slaves were entirely clothed IN
that manner AS All illustration OF me
common use Of homespun at that nerloo
1t is stated that of 500 persons attend
ing a military review In North Caroliha.
less than 40 wore anything but home
sp,In Statistics also show that IN lSlV
The manufactured products of Virginia
The Caroll1ns and Georgia exceeded III
value those. of New England, Georgia
with a white population OF 14o,ilA peo-
pie manufactured more yards Of various
stuffs In 1910 than did Rhode Island with
all its manufacturing establishments. IN
Virginia the cotton goods of household
manufacture amounted to 3.0o7.255 yards:
In North Carolina to 7,S76.15i Offended
goods; In Mississippi to 342472; South
Carolina to 3,0Ss,1SS: in Georgia to
g,sss534; in Tennessee to 1,7so,5li and in
Louisiana to 133,1So. III addition to this
1272.3o2 yards of mixed cotton goods
were manufactured In Virginia. and loS,-
627 yards in South Carolina.
The embargo laid upon foreign COM
merce during the jefferson and Madison
administrations greatly stimulated the
cotton manufactures of the North and
South. Tho South Carolina Homespun
Association was organized at Charles
ton in 1905. with a capital Of $4,000, and
It's declared object was to promote the
manufacture Of cotton domestic fabrics.
1t is recorded four thousand people Mt
tended the laying of the cornerstone Of !
"the first edifice on n large scale in that |
part Of the Union. devoted to domestic |
manufacture.
Two years later the Union Manutac-
turing Company, Of Maryland, with /
capital OF 81 100000. erected two cotton
mills, run by water power, on the Patap-
SEQ river, 10 miles from Baltimore and
adjoining the mills owned by the ELI
cots. In 1871 the Washington Manu-
turing Company, with 100000 capital.
built a water power mill miles from
Baltimore, at Jones' Falls. The same
year a cotton mill was built on Upton
Creek, in Wilkes county, Georgia.
South Opposed Factories.
But manufacturing was not encouraged
by Southern men as q rule Mr.. Jctfcr-
son, early in his career, declared that the
people would be more vrtuots and hap
pier than II they lived in manufacturing
towns. The tariff laws in force at that
period intensified tho opposition to manu-
features. John Randolph. of Roanoke, in
a speech in the House Of Representatives.
IN April, 1924, declared that If there was
no other obstacle TIE climate was against
1t. and that If We we're to build up man
ufactures on the English system, we
should have yellow fever. not from
August merely, but from June to jan
uary and from January to June"
When the foundation of a cotton mill
was laid near Moores Mill Georgia, not
far from Athens. the editor Of local
paper wrote;
"A sense Of safety and independence
combined. doubtless, with ali cxpecta-
ton OF profit have urged gentlemen to
an undertaking against which their poll
tical principles are.at war. And we are
authorized to state that these sentiments
have by no means Undergone change;
that their project is certainly not Ito give
countenance TO system which they have
always denounced. but it is to be regard
ed as measure unquestionably defen-
sive."
Later on the project for manufac-
turing company with Joint stock. incor
porated and privileged by the State OF
Maryland was very much opposed; the
doctrine that it was better to buy OF
Europe and India was widely spread.
During the twenty years from 1900 to
1920, inclusive, there had been incorpor-
s;ed under existing State laws in the
Southern States 10 cotton mills. Eleven
of these were in Maryland. three & which
manufactured cotton yarns. ono cotton
twist, seven piece goods, cotton checks,
etc, Three mills in Virginia, one IN North
Carolina and three in South Carolina
spun cotton yarn. One mill in Georgia
made cotton cloths, and in Tennessee
= : - .-.--- ---.