The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-03-25
COTTON BUYER COMPLAINS OF
 POOR STAPLE
Englishman Reports Car Shortage in Europe and Lack of Boats As We'll.
 Predicts High Wages

Arthur M. Hughes of Hughes. Aud land, cotton merchants. Is in Birming- ham conferring with the E. H. Ba- shinsky & Company and others rela- tive to the cotton situation. Mir. Hughes company is one of the
 largest of the English cotton firms and Mir. Bashinsky makes all of the ship nients from the states east of the Mis- slssippi river to them.
 Mir. Hughes has been in Birmingham several days. He expects to leave Saturday for New York where he will visit for week or two before sail- ing for England.
 ''The greatest need in the cotton in- dustry at present." MT. Hughes stated yesterday. lis improved staple. There las been a big change in this respect since the beginning of the World war. The grades are all right. but the sta rle has deteriorated.
 ~The Manchester spinners have all ways shown a preference for the cot ton grown in Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi, but on account of the de- terioration In the staple in the last few years they have been forced to get their supplies from other states.
 ''The English spinners are well stocked and will not be in the market for any considerable quantity of cot ton for two or three months" Mir, Hughes said: "the mills are running on full time but because of the poor staple and labor conditions they are not turning out quantity products as In the days before the war"
 HIGHER WAGES Speaking of the labor situation in England MT. Hughes said: "The num- Der of working hours in the mills of England have been reduced from 54 to AS hours week, and when I left home three months ago it was gen. orally believed that wages would be increased on April 1, some believing that the increase might be as much as 100 per cent. The contract under which the employees are now working expires March 31, and the new con- tract Is certain to call for a big wage Increase. whether 1t Is as much as 100 per cent or not.
 England. like the United States. Is suffering from a car shortage. Raw materials and finished products are riled up in warehouses, awaiting ship ment. There is also a shortage of ships.
 CAR SHORTAGE
 "The ship I came over in Is of 25,- coo tons capacity" said MT. Hughes, but 1t brought only 800 tons of | freight. This was not because there was no freight ready for shipment, but because the railroads could not deliver | 1t at the port. The warehouses are chock full of raw materials and of manufactured products. but thess cannot be moved because of the lack of rail equipment. Our foreign trade is suffering because there are not enough ships in which to export Eng fish goods.
 Business Is good in England. and weherever I have been in the United States I have found the same condi- ton. From my observation and from reports l have seen and heard I be- lieve we have long period of in. dustrial and commercial activity ahead of us."
 This Is Mir. Hughes first visit to America and he expressed himself as enlightened by what he has seen here. He spoke enthusiastically of Birming- ham and her possibilities.
 He stated that he has been busy ever since coming to this country, but now that his business Is about finished he expects to see some of the sights he has heard about, such as Niagara Falls, the national capitol at Wash. ington and some of the mountain scenery. two or three weeks.