The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1914-06-19


achieved success in his efforts to train
negro women as factory operatives.
at is safe statement that there
are thousands of negroes in this city
that are available for factory operat-
ives-negro men, women and chill
dren. 1t would be boon for them
and benefit to the city to have them
utilized in industries of one sort and
another. If they were all utilized we
should have many more factories than
we have and there would be many
thousands of dollars more in circula-
ton weekly than at present
1.-THE impression has prevailed that
negroes are unfit for factory operat-
ives This impression is based large
ly on the fact that several factories
built in other parts of the south to be
| operated with negro operatives fail
ed. The failure was due to the diff
Guilty in getting negroes to comply
with mill regulations-to be on hand
at a fixed hour for beginning work,
and to work continuously for six days
in the week.
"Mr. Tilton has overcome this diff
ficulty. 1t took time and patience to
do it, but he has very little trouble
now in getting his negro operatives
to be on hand in. the morning or to
remain on their jobs every working
day. He has demonstrated that this
raw negro labor can be fashioned into
efficient factory labor. What he has
done and is doing can be done by 9th
er factory managers. In fact, those
who follow him can accomplish what
he has accomplished much easier than
he accomplished it, since the hun
dreds that he has trained are exam
pies which, with little effort, thou
sands of others can be induced to fol-
low.
"Mr. Tilton has been charging his
plant steadily, and he is preparing to
still further enlarge it. 1t seems rea-
sonab1e to say that in the course of a
few more years he will haveone of
the largest cotton manufacturing
plants in the state. And he will de-
serve his success because he has de-
veloped an idea that occurred to him
a number of years ago, and which he
has acted on with persistence, pa
thence and intelligence
"He has now two hundred women
in his knitting mill, and when the adj
dition to the plant is completed he
will employ four hundred. If it were
not for this plant the most of these
four hundred women would be earn
ing practically nothing. And all of
the thousands of dollars which they
earn weekly goes almost at once into
circulation. 1t is easy to see that
their earnings are a considerable
item in the city's retail business.
"The other day we had something
to say about the proposition that is
pending to establish a silk mill here.
We have no doubt that such a mill
could get thousand operatives-orl
at least Thousand or two thousand
women and children that in a short
time could be trained into operatives
now that it is easy to show by exam
pie what is required of them-and in
a little while other Industrial con-
Germs, discovering what can be done
with negro labor, would be seeking
sites for plants here. And that por-
ton of the large negro population
here that is now idle and In a meas
ure thriftless would become regular
wage earners. The industries of the
city would steadily increase in num-
Der and every kind of business would
feel the benefit of the additional
amount of money that would be put
into circulation"