New-York tribune., 1907-09-09
COTTON INDUSTRIES.
wONDERFUL PROSPERITY
Neso England Not Yielding Il
Southern Com petition.

Fall River Mass. Sept (SpeciaD.-The annual
,eetjngs of cotton manufacturing corporations u
>, beId in this city next month ntn disclose nSuLe
Iii show the industry 70 be in the most pros
.-o,s condition il has ever been in since ID gre"
- ne Of great importance in this country HI III
- - ;,aa-ion following the Civil War the earn
- n 3 spindle in some mills exceedeo 'hose ti
car be shown for the last year. but IN 'hoSe ue
= yas not a., industry Of national extent, nor u
q include profits from the production OF the Hie0
= ,el as the coarsest yarns The stage mas oeei
ssa5 when the cry Of the cotton 1nilIs Ior 'iIe
go, fields is a menace 10 New England VI III"
,.:ss1e States and this point has been reacIeu
l,bo,,t in any degree imperilling the future oi u"
Su.h as cotton manufacturing centre
In the last FIVE years The productive caE'sci's u %
1-g5er5's great centre has been increased IN ro1i
.-z fror7, a apneea to 50G0Ooo0 sPindles. "fliie
.h.s co,,ntrv's productive capacity SHOWS an aIi III N
crease in the same time from ZSo.V" 'o ~-'.' ~ -:
.;-zTes While the expansion CT the lhcusllE "
- ,ir,e taken does not equal that noted IN Eng
,.,5 the growth in the immediate future PROMISES
= - ;arqe and is already proceeding al a pac0
1--,,a5 only by the capacity Of cotton flach,iie
.none The features OF greatest Importance a. So -
zica-5ng the virility OF the Industry as II ~
Glands consequent on the wonderful prosperi's =, -
s,ersl lines are found in the widespread rehe"
:. "a established plants the obliteration OF cum
ta-sor7e debts and the great advances maze ID te @
,srie+v of the output. In this city Which -
,be great centre Of the industry. a WORKING aeI
.erf hss been arrived at between labor ana cap
- boss5 on sound business principles and far IN
sz-snce Of anything hitherto accomplished III 'ii7
economic line in textiles
More fully 10 appreciate to-days sitcatloli' =,
-aference 10 the conditions Of 1924 VIII De I4eil'
six months strike Of operatives vas 'heIl oI -
-, -,,i11e everywhere were suffering from the
reaction following the Sully speculation III C,
material Many mills not inVoIEed IN N4
,rourles then on were forced 70 shut down On q
count Of dull trade. and. althalsh ProouCl-'n lzs
-es,r5cred greatly. the market demands lor 80, $50
-. ,,,;ronressed Governor Douglas was cdil1u
., &C : mediator in the local diflcuIues anu -
lov5nr the action then agreed upon attempts W.,
begun TO arrive al business OASIS i'i
wages here. , ,-,ry
5e- n-o,i6es for the fixing Of a wage scheuUie
every six months. based on the margin
the market values OF New YORK spo'
TWO standard widths and counts Oh P'i = :.
-,ass ,slues 10 be based on quotations reported Al
,reu- York sud the margin 10 be hgureo ps q
r.se,ta+i,e of the Cotton Manufacturers Assn
,ss-;o7 and q representative Of the IeAule -,
for the unions centring here Inc Iii61 go So
r-eoedipg six months will determine 'lie ..a
81 succeeding six months. SO that manulac'ui e
= -.,ivee NAV he able 10 make definite plahS
<o- the future This agreement Is attraclitis -
attention here and abroad and the E'eiI I, .-,r
<act71rers and operatives are alreaoy a' -
- ,-inz about E similar elimination OF ei1ie'
wage discussions 49,. --,-lfns
- ,rts Man will be effective in doT1liTatlns -.
v,spe market IN the cotton mills OF New :, 71Io-
hut :. IS already clear that II has gwen an ~ -
tz,s+ries greater stability. and Will cerlalliy s
erecttve indirectly in forcing the carry
eIgb 7vaze standards when markets are "o f NJ = =
-,rs-5 To. only in Massachusetts rnllis' ou' IL
Southern mills as well
GROWTH OF sPINDLEAGb
The settlement Of these wage trouhes hc T. -,
been the factor which has reT1viaeo New ils- 80
,.o- industries BY any means but II seems oes
- - ha ~ .r,nor4snt factor in attracting fur
-bs, Investment by those who are conVlnceo VI -
-,osssbIIitv of the Northern and southern iiiu -,
growing in harmony. The spindlease IN 'le So -,
today IN round numbers. is lNon"" aho n .ile
80 ano OF the 100000 Southern spindles
about az, oo have their financial representation IN
Boston and many large investors IN Southein ~ ~
critics live in New England They are as ~,
anufoued as any one judge Of the future Iiei''S
Of investments n both sections and II IS tle IN
sersus Of opinion at the present time li'at Nv ~
England has nothing to fear and the SoU'h h09
every inducernent for further expansion
Tbs real factor which has given life 20 mills that
ten wears ago were doomed, according 10 popular
belief has been the phenomenal trade IN COTTON
Goods and the phenomenal rise in prices accom-
Tsnv-rz II The profits that have accrued nave
justified large expenditures for the renewal OF o'u
ulants and large expenditures for new ones me
Industry IN the South has continued TO grow, oUt
ste New England industry has not stood still and
the curious feature TO the economist Is that the
growth in New England has been greatest IN
Massachusetts, where the most advanced legisla-
tive restrictions have been enacted and enforced
Some figures will make this clearer AT the end
OF 1872 Georgia had l5s9s15 spindles, ana this was
increased TO l,7ll.eOs in 1897 Alabama increased
her spndleage 30 per cent in the same tme-froEn
SIS ssq 10 e13s72 South Carolina Increased from
2E2sess TO s5sI.o .oss and North Carolina from 1f6z-
81 70 2645o6s. In the same period Massachusetts
spindles were increased from s59S340 TO s.2D57a3,
Rhode Island about 10000. Maine 35 oo0 Connect
cut 5000 and New Hampshire about @.e'e- At the
present time Fail River has 3.390oo0 and New Bed
ford 2zneao spindles. these figures being used TO
show only the relative Importance Of the states
and sections.
In addition 10 the expansion in productive ca
pacity as Indicated by the increase in spindleage
unit the investment value has grown materially.
The published prices Of Fall River stocks in Fail
River IN 1919 and to-day show this phase of the
situation and they do not indicate the advance
made in other centres IN this particular, because
the market for FAN River shares is more restricted
than that for the other New England mills and
most Of the Southern mills The following table
illustrates the advance IN prices of shares Goar
value s1eO since 1-s:
Mills 1903 1907.
ssrsnlo-e Manufacturing Co-apany.- ses 90 SIs5 90
sts1oro NILS ~ se ~
Poeasse5 Manufscturine Company 100 $50 90
osboTn -.---...---.--.----- 75 90 1l2 so
Laurel Lake Mills L " 66 I36 ~ ~
Border CITY Misunderstanding Company. es l5S 20
Weetar1oe Mills 90 ~ iVoo W
These mills do not owe anything their plants
and their quick assets substantially in excess
OF their debts for current purposes In the period
1-A lie mill