The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-05-31
BIRMINGHAM'S HOSPITALITY POURS
 FORTH WELCOME TO NEW RAILROADS
CONFINED FROM PAGE 5)

tCoNTINUED FROM PAGE 5) -----~----~~---------~-- section. with it's abundant stores of coal, ore and limestone in such close proxim ity as is found in Alabama, bids far within the next quarter of century to dominate the basic-steel industry of the world
 "When MT Hewitt made this prophecy the basic-steel industry was a factor of small importance as compared with the Bessemer, but it's rapid growth is realized when it is considered that in 1906, in the United States. out of a total produc- ton of over 23,000,O0O tons of steel ingots and castings 10,970.0O0 tons, or 47.2 per cent were open hearth, or basic steel. And not only in the United States, put throughout the world tn basic steel in- dustry is growing rapidly.
 Tn the South Cotton is King, and his influence is extended to many lands, making the world pay tribute to his reign. About 80 per cent of the worlds cotton is raised in the South. If you compare the value of raw cotton exported rom the South with the worlds production of gold for the six years ended in 1906, you will find that Europe could have gather ed all the gold produced during that neriod and shipped it to the South, and it would still have fallen short of $2O0,- 0c0,000 in paying it's debt to the South for raw cotton. In that period alone the South's raw cotton brought back in gold and credits over S2,0O000O 900, not includ- ing the value of manufactures of cotton or it's products.
 'In our own country it was long a question if the South could successfully compete with New England in the manu- facture of cotton goods. This question has been settled forever The capital in- vested in cotton mills in the South in the past 10 years has increased from S92- o00.o0O to s25O 100000, and in the year 1906 the number of bales of American cotton used in manufactures in Southern mills exceeded the number of bales used in Northern mills. indicating that in the future the South will dominate New England in the manufacture of cotton goods from American cotton.
 Diversified Resources.
 "Time is too short to dwell at length upon the diversified resources and indus tries of the great South, but to illustrate it's great importance in the estimation of the worlds greatest financial powers we may point to the fact that a few years ago the house of Rothschild sent their experts to every civilized country on the globe to determine the particular sec tions where the natural resources and the
 
 opment were the greatest and the re ports finally made pointed out that the country lying east of the Mississippi river and south of the Ohio in the United States was. all things considered. the richest and most promising section in the world
 What position does Birmingham oc- cupy with respect to the great South, its resources growth and development of it's a cfo is missible. it is to the South what the heart is to the human system It is it's very center. Its commerce is and will be Its life blood, and many of us here to- night will live to see the day when the tonnage and commerce of the Birming- ham district will far surpass that of the famous Pittsburg district, although the latter equals nearly 100000 900 tons per Ennum.
 "fhe future of Birmingham is laid upon a foundation of wealth in mineral resources, the extent, position and pos abilities of which occur nowhere else in the world in the same degree and man. ner.
 "consider for moment what the Pitts burg district has been able to accom- plish with inferior resources and greater difficulties that multiply as years ad- vance
 ''The basc-steel industry will in the near future dominate the steel industry of the world, and that is only another way of stating the fact that Birmingham must and will be the center of the steel industry of not only this country but of he world. To undertake to even prophecy what that would mean, expressed com mercially, is beyond the range of pos sibi1ity
 Industry In Its Infancy.
 "It must be remembered that the steel Industry. in the Birmingham district is in Its infancy, and it has been in existence for only a decade. and even the iron in . .dustry until within the past few years was feeble and lacking in capital and de- velopmept. and yet the latter has grown from 397000 tons of pig iron, produced In 1880, to 3,467 900 tons in 1906, or nearly 10 times in output in 26 years.
 "At your very doors you have abundant stores of ores, coal and limestone. all within a few miles of each other. Con trast this situation with northern steel plants. some of which must transport ore 1000 miles, and their coke 400 or 800 miles, and your advantages are plain
 'The elements of boundless success are in your very grasp, and it only depends upon you to utilize them to their ut most.
 We are here tonight to commemorate te an event which has a great influence oil your future growth and prosperity. name ly the opening of new lines of transpor- tation to enable you to reach the mar kets of the world In 10 years hence one of your greatest problems will be to pro- vide adequate transportation facilities to handle the products of your industries, and if you plan liberally and wisely you will avoid the difficulties that have beset other industrial centers and especially your great competitor, the Pittsburg dis trict or let us put it Pittsburg's suc- cessful rival the Birmingham district, for we are safe in assuming that in 10