The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-03-20
south,. Remarkable Earning Capacity

The Tradesman, Chattanooga.
 It has been so attractive to note and chronicle the great strides the South is making in manufacturing and in- dustrial development, that these have In some degree overshadowed its other sources of productive wealth, and which really constitute the basis of It's per mansnt progress and prosperity.
 The South was formerly an agricul- tural and commercial section, and from these sources acquired great wealth and high degree of civilization in consequence, SC that It would be a place these in their proper sphere of usefulness and value In all estimates that might be made of the resources or the South.
 It has become a rule to measure values by the earning power of the investments on which they are based, and considered by this standard the farm property of The South is the most lowing statement of it's values and earnings will clearly demonstrate:
 According to the census of 1900 there were s55 7sl,559 acres in farms in the only i2l,sS1,T97 acres improved, or S4 per cent. of the whole.
 The value of the entire acreage, im- proved and unimproved, including buildings and all improvements, was placed at $S,05S, 133.i29, and yet the fraction of the whole that was i'm proved produced last year $1,500, DOC, ,000, which showed an earning capacity Of nearly 50 per cent on the total acre age. including ths 66 per cent that was idle or unimpfoVed.
 This is the clearest demonstration that can be given of the value of in- vestments in Southern farm property. Even with all that has been or that can be said regarding farm labor in the South, no other portion of this con- tinent can show such earning capacity fRN Ear NA AG
 It is further remarked that these lands only carry an average valuation on both improved and unim proved If about $6.50 an acre. Instances can be given where industrious tenants have cleared enough on one years crop to make a substantial payment on a farm of their own. and pay for that farm outright on the proceeds of the second
 But by adding the value of farming implements and live stock to the value of the farms, the earnings last year still show 20 per cent. returns on the total investment.
 This is only a fractional part, how ever. of those sources from which the income of the South is derived. and on which an estimate of it's earning ca pacity cs be justly given. The profits on banking, merchandise tran sections, dividends from stocks and bonds, re- ceipts from transportation lines, water, gas and electric syste m and other pure Iy commercial sources were no less than S2,000, 100000 while re ;eipts from miscellaneous sources. such as sales of lumber, timber land, live stock, min erals. etc, were fully S1.O00, ,000.
 To the atove we can add the returns from manufactured products of $1,500,- CO0,000, which gives the following grand summary:
 Receipts from agricultural
 sources. =. :. .. .. l.5O9, oOO, 900
 sources. =. -. 2.OOO. 900, O,OOO Receipts from miTcellane-
 ous sources. .. .. .... 1000. OOO, 900 Receipts from manufGc-
 turing products ... 1,500,000,00c
 Grand total. .. ....... $6,O0O ,O00, ,0oO
 Now this is nearly per cent, on the wealth of the entire nation, which is S11O. 000, ,000, 900. The South possesses of this the sum of $30, ,000. 900 ,00o. from which it will be seen that the actual earnings of the South last year was 20 per cent on it's total worth.
 These are not extravagant estimates. but in the main are official figures and are under rather than over the real earnings of the South last year. Some of the estimates are based on census figures of six years ago, when 1t is known that this period has been the most prosperous that the South has evec experienced. These figures tell their own story and need no embellish- ment at our hands