Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1907-09-17
RESOURCES OF THE SOUTH.
Cotton Will Always Be King In the
Piedmont,

Piedmont.
There Is no known area in the world
so extensive, with a physiography and
climatology so well adapted to the re-
quirements of manufacturing Of tex
tile fabrics, as that existing In our
southern states, especially that portion
pertaining to the Appalachian range of
hills and mountains, to be found in
the states of Virginia, North Carolina,
South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia
and Alabama, says Cotton, Of which
Henry G. Kittredge, a well-known au-
thority upon cotton and textiles, is
editor. We find in this section as
perfect conditions, taken as a whole,
as anything prevailing in other quar-
ters of the world for the economic
manufacture Of cotton goods.
The advantages of this part Of our
country for the manufacture Of cotton,
are now being realized more than ever
before. and the prediction Of astute
observers is that the principal seat OF
cotton manufacturing in the world Is
destined to be located here and carried
on with the highest degree of perfec-
ton. This mountainous section of the
south stands as a photographic unit,
differing in respect from anything to
be found elsewhere. Its rivers, topo-
graphy, and resources contribute In
remarkable degree in making 1t by ma
ture a region peculiarly suitable for
an enormous expansion Of manufac-
turing enterprises of all kinds, wheth-
er textile or otherwise. This noun
famous system, locally known as the
Blue Ridge, furnishes water powers
that are unsurpassed in their number
and distribution, as we'll as industrial
service and availability, by anything
OF the kind elsewhere existing.
Water Power In Plenty.
On the east side Of the mountainous
slope are rivers that flow down in Sc
ries Of cascades, having falls Of sew
eral hundred or thousand feet within
short distances, that are now being
turned to industrial account by engi-
neering skill in the erection Of dams
and the electrical transmission of
power. Many Of these streams may be
said as having no valleys in the hilly
districts, but simply gorges through
which the water tumbles until 1t
reaches the coastal plane. 1t Is be-
cause Of these gorges and the inacces-
sibility { the water falls that, In
times past. they have been left un-
touched and underestlmated for fur
nishing powers available for manufac-
turing. Within very recent years
these disadvantages have been turned
to advantages by engineering ingen-
uity that is now being rapidly employ
ed in converting these great natural
resources of the south into productive
energies.
The natural resources Of the south
are yet scarcely known, and but par
TALLY appreciated because they are
unknown. It has been declared that
there Is 100000 horsepower in the
water falls Of the south that can be
profitably utilized for manufacturing
purposes, and which can be made eff
fective for the industrial elevation and
stability Of southern enterprises, II
properly developed and the sources Of
efficiency properly protected. as in the
preservation of the great Appalachian
forests which now conserve the initial
reservoirs These forests and the
streams that flow from them are
among the most valuable assets to the
industry of the south, and which will
contribute perhaps more than any
thing else to southern supremacy In
manufactures. Only a fraction Of
these water powers are yet developed,
even in the state Of North Carolina,
where great engineering schemes are
now in progress for utilizing unused
water powers and distributing in in
dustrial channels.
In 1905, Of the nearly 100000 horse
power employed in the textile mills of
North Carolina, only about one-fourth
was derived from water, while within
a comparatively short time the pros
poets are that this state will have the
major portion Of its machinery moved
by power derived from water and
electrically transmitted to points of
usefulness. Notwithstanding there Is
10000 horsepower from water powers
employed in the Carolinas and Geor-
gia for turning nearly 100000 cotton
spindles in the manufacture Of over
70, 5000 dollars worth Of goods. and
furnishing employment to over 10000
people, there is enough undeveloped
water power to more than multiply
these figures ten times.
Not Dependent on These Forces.
The engineering efforts that are be-
ing made in North Carolina on the
Yadkin and Catawba rivers, on the
Savannah river at Calhoun Falls, on
the Tugalo river, on the Broad river In
Georgia at Anthony Falls, and on the
Chattahoochee river between Colum-
bus and West Point, and at other
points that could be mentioned, are
we'll known to those who have kept
themselves informed of the material
progress that is being made in manu-
featuring in the south.
1t would be difficult to find, II any
thing Of the kind exists, combination
OF available water powers, contribu-
ting to the industrial advancement
and stability Of single section OF a
country, equaling those on the Yad-
kin, Catawba, Broad, Saluda, Chattoo-
ga, Chattahoochee and Coosa, which
dispose of their waters in either the
Atlantic or the Gulf.
But the south is by no means wholly
dependent upon these streams and
water powers for becoming great
manufacturing center 1t Is blessed
with numerous other natural resources
that are available assets to the prog
ress of an enterprising people. The
great deposits of coal in the Appala-
.an-o 90 OIL