The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1905-05-30

WHICH mus !lts luuuceWeut3lnft the con.
yenient raw material and In the; album.
dance of water power, is making a
home market for the other products
Of the farm. The indications. are that
the cotton rade.willfput the Southern
States on such an Industrial basis
that farming will be more widely dl.
yersifled in the Cotton States than any
place else in the entire country. 4 1t Is
an unique situation where the farmer
not only proyidessthe garden and farm
products for the mill and factory op.
,eratives, but also furnishes the raw
material to run the mills and keep
the community employed.
The growth Of the cotton milling
business In the South has been us.
tonishing. North and South Carolina
follow Massachusetts now as the lead.
Ing cotton manufacturing States Of the
country. In 1891 South Carolina man.
nfactnred about 20 per cent. of the
cotton raised in the State. Ten
years later nearly three.fourths of all
the cotton raised In the State. South
Carolina is now operating close to
three million spindles in. the cotton
trade, and is steadily building new
mills. In 1893 North Carolina con
sumed SO per cent of the cotton raised
In the State. n1903 the proportions
used in the nils of the State was
over 30 per cent, or nearly the en-.
tire crop. In 1893 two million spin
dies were operated in the South. Ten
years later that number had risen TO
seven million. In twenty years the
mills Of the North have increased
their output of cotton goods by 60 per
cent. Europe has increased its cot.
ton product nearly 100 per cent. in
the same time, and the mills of the
South have increased their product
in the same period by over 500. per
cent. In twenty years the worlds
consumption Of cotton has in.
creased by about seven million bales
Over onc.third OF that increase has
been at the mills Of the South.
All the Southern States but Florida
|are making substantial progress ir
the manufacture Of cotton goods, ant
most OF them are doing itright. The
mills are modern in their equipment
land are run on the lines Of economy
They are models OF their kind It is
apparent that the cotton mill is only
getting started In the South, for witt
the opening of the markets Of the
world, and particularly OF the Orient
Ito American goods, there is no telling
what demands Will be made on Amer
lean cotton manufacturers. There are
few civilized people who get along
without cotton goods. Cotton is uset
for clothing more than anything else
), 1t is the principal material in til,
most thiclily populated sections Of thu
globe. The field for American
products is therefore limited only b.
the confines of the earth. That is tn
limit of opportunity for the Souther,
mill man. And his limit is the limi
, of the cotton planter. 1t is no wor
der the field hand sings at his worl
, If cotton is not king, 1t is one of tn
!. royal family, playing double role /
, the industry of the world, for beside
being a leading article OF agriculture
production, 1t Is also the raw materis
for one of the foremost lines of maj
ufacture and one of the principal a
ticles of export. No other country
!, the world has so nearly monopol
: of any big thing as the South has
the cotton business. .f9
B1oN H. BUTLER.
. Southern Pines, N. C.
i I'M TIE ere-n1- ,n,.1o