The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1905-03-11
HUM OF INDUSTRY
Remarkable Activity in
the South.
In Coal and Iron and Cotton Mill IN
terests. Trend of immigration.
Railroad Development
in Dixie.


Baltimore, March 10.-The general
trend of business development today
is more pronounced in favor Of the
South than ever before Celebrating
that fact, the Manufacturers Record
in it's issue this week, says:
"In every direction there are signs
Of advancement Starting with the
mineral regions of Virginia and West
Virginia, where there is remarkable
activity in coal and iron interests, on
down through Kentucky and Tennes-
see to Alabama, where coal and iron
activity is greater than ever before,
with plans under way for Develop
ments which will make the South e
leader i'm metallurgical progress, to
New Orleans and Galveston, where the
export grain trade of the country !s
now centering, there is in every dlrec-
ton Improvement and advancement.
Cotton mill interests are getting in
better shape; water power develop
ments are under way at many points,
especially in the Carolinas, including
the immense undertaking at Yadkin
Falls by Pittsburg capitalists: here
and there immigration is sufficiently
marked as to be commanding much
attention. Five or six years ago, when
the great boom of that period swept
over the GOuAlIys the 6oOuiil DdQ
scarcely begun to emerge from the de-
pressing effect of years of low-priced
cotton and the agricultural poverty
which that condition had brought
about. It's iron interests were not in
a position to get the benefit, except
to a limited extent, of the prosperity
in iron and steel, and so the great
wave of activity had almost passed
away before higher price cotton and
yl1f
iron and coal and railroad develop
ments had put the South in position
to reap the same rich harvest that
other sections gathered. But now the
conditions are different. The big
profits on two or three years cotton
crops sold at high prices brought such
financial strength to the farmers as to
enable them to hold this crop back
from the market TO the despair of the
bears, and the iron interests, develop
ed by new and modern Improvements
and by the building of new furnaces
and steel works, are in shape to enjoy
the present prosperity in thTt trade
and to justify further developments on
a very large scale. Thus the South
enters this period of Industrial activ-
ity in a far better shape than before,
and in the next five years we shall
see more real wealth created there
in the last ten years. We shall now
do in five years much more than we
have done in the past ten. That is
the assured progress ahead of the
South
Strikingly Indicative of Southern
conditions is the fact that since the
first Of the year announcements have
been made by number of promi-
nent railroads working either wholly
ar. no astlx in af To-
penditures to be made principally for
motive power and rolling stock, but
partly for rails. The Pennsylvania
railroad leads with $4,000, 900 for
purchases. including 500 or GOO en-
gines, and more than 5000 freight
cars; expenditures by the Baltimore
and Ohio railroad will approximate
$14000.O00 for $50 locomotives, TO-
900 freight cars and $4,000 tons of
rails. The Southern railway the
Santa Fe and the Southern Pacific
will pay out approximately $4,000, 600
each for cars and locomotives. The
Southern, for instance, has given or
ders for seventy-fve engines and
5000 freight cars, the Santa Fe for
seventy-five engines and $500 freight
cars, beside some passenger coaches,
and the Southern Pacific for 100 en-
gines and 1000 freight cars, beside
passenger coaches. 1t has also let
heavy rail contracts. The Alabama
Great Southern, the Chesapeake and
Ohio, the Kansas City, Mexico and
Orient, the Missouri Pacific and the
Western Maryland are to spend
81 10000 each for cars or engines
or for both. The Frisco system will
disburse about $1,500,000 and the
Norfolk and Western $4,000, 600 for
like purposes. Smaller orders are
reported by the Central of Georgia,
the Chattanooga Southern, the Gin
cinnati, New Orleans and Texas Pa
cific, the Mobile, Jackson and Kan
sas City, the st. Louis Southwestern
and the Virginia Southwestern, but
some of these will probably be in
creased before the year is much older.
Moreover, all the rail purchases in
the South are not here covered for
some of the companies have not yet
announced their contracts for the
current year, while others gave their
orders in 1904 for delivery in 1905.
Those here noted are new contracts.
The reason for these liberal disburse-
ments in the purchase of equipment
is made apparent by the monthly
statements of the railroad companies,
all of which here mentioned are show
ing steady and rapid growth of their
business. The outlook for this year
indicates that the drain upon the
equipment resources of the roads will
be larger than ever, yet they will
apparently be able to accept and
handle all business offering, mas
much as they have taken time by the
forelOck by early placing their or