Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1911-09-12
BRITISH sP|NNERs THINK
COTTON WILL Be HIGH
Could Make Money at 13
Cents, Harvie Jordan Says
in Letter

According to Harvie Jordan. in a let
ter TO The Journal from Manchester.
England. the British spInnsrs not only
think that American cotton win not
fan in price. but say the mills can make
money on. II at Is cents
Mr.. Jordan's letter follows:
MANCHESTER ENGLAND. Sept g
Editor Atlanta Journal
For two weeks 1 have been here. In
the heart OF the largest cotton spinning
center in the world. smokestacks are al
most as thick as tan trees in an Amer
lean forest Cotton Is as much the
subject of thought and conversation here
as Il is the cotton states Of America
The two thoughts uppermost In the
/. mEnds OF cotton merchants and spin
ners at this time. are. what win be the
size OF the American crop this year and
What price viii the southern cotton
planters demand for the staple7 The
general concensus Of opinion among the
English spinners is that the cotton
growers OF America are sufficiently
strong enough with the temporary back
Ing OF the banks. TO fix and enforce any
reasonable price for their staple The
E chairman OF the Manchester board OF
trade in recent address stated that
II the present maturing American cotton
crop could be purchased at an average
price OF I'D Oh cents) that the greas
spinning industry at Great Britain would
20 forward upon a most satisfactory div
fdend earning basis. According TO this
statement there is certainly no reason
why the price Of cotton should be SO
-uersistently hammered down by bear
: ish~ specuIafors, and IL presents the
strongest reasons why the farming and
banking interests OF the south should
present a united front in maintaining
the price Of cotton above Il cents per
pound, even though large crop De pro-
dnced- Good prices cannot be maintain,
"a II the crop fs rushed 70 market and
forced into the hands OF speculative buy
rs. Market slowly and check the over
low Of cotton at the ports. Scientific
s marketing IS as essential and impera-
ffvn To the cotton grower as Is scien-
sffse cultivation Of the crop Good prices
are a. essentialto the prosperity OF the
south as TO the individual cotton grow
er,
A contested POPULATION
The county OF Lancashire. in which Is
located the large and important cotton
centers OF Manchester, Liverpool ono
Z Oldham. covers an cara OF about n1ty
miles square. Within this small area
= nearly one-half Of the active cotton
zDindles OF the world This section also
a'ooooO0 people. whose activities are large
IL devoted 10 the handling spinning
and manufacture OF cotton To get some
faea Of the tremendous congestion OF
population within this area. I would
can attention 10 the fact that the state
Of Rhode Island. the most oensely
populated state in the American union
according 10 its area, has only 10000
residents. The entire area Of England
and wales, including rivers and lakes
asw ell as land and mountains, Is
about 31O00.uo0 acres. We have there
fore. planted in cotton in the southern
states this year, according 70 the gov
eminent report. 100000 acres more than
the entire area OF England and Wales
Yet within these two small countries
there Is q population OF forty-odd mil
lion people. nearly half the number or
population in the United States
The American cotto ncrop smore vi
tai 10 the prosperity. happiness and
industrial lie OF the people Of England
than IL Is 10 the people OF sthe southern
state. The south could beb self-sus-
tanning without cotton. but this country
would suffer untold miseries IL there
should be q failure OF a single Ameri-
can cotton crop The British spinners.
however. are most valuable to the
American cotton growers. because they
provide at all times a healthy and &C
tive demand for a large proportion OF
the crop which must be exported each
year In order to find a consuming mar
act The southern cotton growers should
therefore feel q deep interest in the
present as well as the future success
OF the British spinners OF American cot
ton.
BRITISH COTTON MILLS.
Arfer personal Investigations I find
that the cotton manufacturers OF the
Lancashire district have been earning
fairly good dividends during the past
two years OF high-priced raw cotton,
but that the spinning mills have expe-
rfenced a period Of unsatisfactory de-
preston. The failure OF the spinning
industry 10 make money has not been
due so much TO high prices for raw cot
ton as TO surplus OF spinning mills
During the boom in the cotton mill In
dustry a few years ago 1t led to a
greater expansion in the building and
equipment OF new spinning mills than
IL did in the weaving industry: hence
the intense competition among the spin
ming mills to sell their yarns has re-
suited in cutting prices to losing fg-
ures From 800 to 1906 there were more
new spindles put In here than there
are in all the cotton mills OF the south
ern states combined today. Many OF
these new mills are now idle and many
others running on short time Com
petition. therefore, in the spinning In
dustry has been the prime factor in
depression and win continue TO be so
until production and consumption of
yarns have been placed on q more sat
isfactory basis.
rFmfw ,~r.rrNsssuw ernou MT owfuf In na
American cotton milling industry. The
present depression in many OF our do
nestle mills Is due. In my opinion, to
causes OF an entirely different nature