The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-12-29
.EMPOR|A'S GROWTH
DURING THE YEAR.
Many Public Improvements Com
pleted and New Industries Put
in Active Operation.
BANKS STRONGER THAN EVER
But For the Newspapers Emporia
Would Not Have Heard
OF Panic.
BANKS STRONGER THAN EVER

Especial From q STAFF Correspondent
EAIPORIA, VA, December 2S.-A lit
tie more than year ago I had the
pleasure OF visiting this vigorous and
strictly business town. In an account
wrote at that time for The Times
Dispatch of its business and its outlook
Tor the immediate future was accused
OF shooting from a rather long gun,
and there were those, even here in
the town, who thought I was not a
good prophet, or. to say the least OF 1T,
a rather optimistic one.
However. had talked with the live
business men OF the town. and l was
sure that had not overdrawn the
picture and knew what I was writing
about. Mr.. Howard w. Hall, the pres
ident Of the Business Mems Association
of Enporia, assures me that I did not
then oyershoot the mark. In other
words. Emporia has made good He
says: "We accomplished more in the
past year than we really anticipated
We spent $4,000 perfecting our water
works system. and now our works are
as good as those of any town of twice
our size in the State. We have. with
county and State help, erected a $4,000
school building; we have spent $4,000
TeIIlOuElllS anu toul COdilS
courthouse, and we have laid down
c,ao0 square yards of granolithic SIDE
walks. So much for public improve
ments."
New Industrial Enterprises.
TN the way of new enterprises we
have built and put in operation large
| barrel factory, and we are now build
| ing and will soon have in operation a
very large box factory.
These two establishments, the ex-
istence Of which are largely due to
The Times Dispatch's write-up of our
town of more than year ago. will
employ many hands, and both will be
large consumers of the splendid tim
a circle of ten miles and more around
US. More than twenty new residences
have gone up some of them being
handsome and costly.
"Our factories Of all kinds have
worked all the year on full time. and
no hands have been discharged be-
cause of a so-called money tightness
or from any other cause. On the con-
.Itrary, the forces have been enlarged.
Danks Paid tho Cash.
/. our banks were never in better
i shape. We have furnished our de-
.|positors and customers with all the
cash money they needed at all times,
land we have never yet limited q de-
! rositor in the amount Of his with
( drawals, and our banks have issued nc
4, script.
"Business has been good all the year
I and If we had not read about it in the
papers we would never have known
THAT there was such a thing as panic
Tor even money squeeze in the coun-
TRY. Emporia has not felt it,
i 1t may be added that the town has
1, increased in population during the
tIyear, and it's mercantile business, both
WHOLESALE and retail, has been pushed
Ito greater lengths than ever before
while the woodworking establishments
7 land other industries have increased
4 their trade territory and the volume
ot their business has grown at least
# % per cent.
The local real estate agents, WHO
4 deal very largely in farm property re,
I port q splendid years business. They
Hay especial stress upon their larst
i sales of farm lands. According toStheil
books and accounts of sales something
Hike 100000 acres of good farming land
i lin the country contiguous to Emporis
b have changed hands during the year
Many OF the purchasers We're new
comars from the West and. the col,
i Northwest. @
!, Truly, the wealth of Virginia is ii
Iher small towns. and there is not ONT
!, on the map of@which she should be
4 prouder than of this good town q
. Emporia.
! FRANK S. WooDsoN,
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