The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-11-22
LISTEN ID ADDRESS ON COTTON BY HEFL|N Waterways Session at Mont
 gomery Tuesday Very
 Busy One TRIBUTE PAID TO
 LAMENTED MORGAN Keynote Sounded Yesterday Was That Justifiable Expenditures to Obtain Waterways Appro- priations Should Carry

Montgomery, November 21.-(Special.)- Waterway delegates who are in Montgom- cry in attendance upon the sessions of the Mississippi to the Atlantic Inland Waterways asociation, spent most of to- 6ay in frolic. The morning session was a busy one, but in the afternoon the dele gates had solid afternoon of enjoyment In going the automobile rounds in this county. The roads of Montgomery are hence the delegates had a rare opportuni- ty to observe the construction.
 The keynote which was sounded before the association during it's second day. s session was that justifiable expenditures to obtain waterways appropriations should and ought to carry. It was represented to the delegates that the board of army review required first of all that the pro- posed appropriation should be justified be- fore it would be recommended.
 Congressman J. T. Heflin of Alabama was the chief speaker of the day, taking for his topic the exhaustive subject of cotton" Charles Jewett Swift of Colum- bus, Ga., was another of the days speak CTS, in the course of whose remarks a growing tribute was paid to the late Sena- tor Morgan of Selma.
 Lieut. Col. Lansing H. Beach of the United States Corps of Engineers made one of the addresses, which was attentive ly listened to and vigorously applauded. Congressman Hefiins address follows: The southern people are just beginning to realize and appreciate the value and importance of the cotton crop, and we have the power if we would but use 1t to dictate the price of cotton to the world. The high cost of livng, the increased cost of agricultural implements and of fertilizers and the increased cost of live stock and, in fact, everything that enters into the cost of production of cotton makes it necessary for the farmer to re- ceiye 141h and 15 cents for this cotton
 crop.
 If you leave out of consideration the
 cost of production, any fair minded man
 will agree that in view of the average
 price that obtained on all manufactured
 demanding even more than b cents per pound for this cotton crop.
 Cotton goods commonly used have in- creased in price as high to the consumer
 as s5 and up to Ill per cent in 10 years. Mr. Franklin w. Hobbs, president of the national association of cotton manu- lecturers of the United States, in a speech to that body at Manchester, Vt., Septem-
 Der 27, 1911. made several significant and startling statements. He said that the New England and 1od 6r1I1 for the last six months, and he placed
 the blame principally on what he calls the
 high price of cotton.
 The New England manufacturer, as well
 as all other manufacturers in America,
 paid 141a and 15 cents per pound for the
 last two cotton crops, and durics nine
 tenths of that period the cotton goods
 trade was excellent, and I am curious to
 know why the price of raw cotton did not
 figure materially during that time.
 The 1910 cotton crop was short and the
 mills did not have the cotton to spin is
 why they did not run full time.
 In the Bank and Trust company circu-
 lar for 1911 published in Boston by Tur-
 ner Tucker & Co.,, the story of the pros
 perity of New England cotton mills is
 told. For instance, the Massachusetts
 cotton mill at Lowell, with a capital stock
 of $1,S0O,000, had in February a surplus
 of $1 1858, GOO, and the circular says during
 the last F years the mills of this coun-
 try have been practically rebuilt. The
 funds being derived from the excess earn
 ings over and above the dividends, and at
 the same time the surplus was greatly in-
 creased. It is said that the New England
 cotton spinner receives for the finished product of every bale of cotton that he manufactures from S35O to $S50.
 If this is true, and think the figures
 are conservative at an average of $350 per bale, the New England spinner would re-
 ceive for 2.2O0,000 bales $770, OO0000, and this is $1S5 GOO more than the southern farm CT will receive at the present price for crop of 13,0O0,0OO bales of cotton. The New England spinner is not con- tent with his tremendous profit, and he Is