The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-10-14

Copyright, 1928. Carpenters World
 Travels)

Copyright, 1928, Carpenters World
 TravelsD
 LODE, Poland. Oct. 13.-Imagine a drearysplain extending on and on in every direction. Plant in It's midst a dreary city as big as Cincinnati or Pittsburg. Let the city have one thousand smokestacks rising high over the houses, and let it's buildings run for three miles along two mar row streets paved with cobbles. Put short cross-streets here and there and you have the somber outlines of Lodz, the great textile center of Po- land.
 A closer view shows mighty fac tories surrounding each smokestack. masses of brick and glass that seem to wall in the gloom, making the view more dreary than ever. Now walk through the main street and make notes of the people. They fit their surroundings. The town Is composed of factory workers and it seems to be Poverty's Kitchen. A large part of the inhabitants are lower class Israelites who go about with unshaven faces. a long lock hanging down On each side of the cheek from their round, visorless caps. These Jews wear black coats which are buttoned tight to the throat and fall almost to the feet; the long gabardines which have been their Costume from time immemorial
 Stop moment and watch the traf- fic as 1t moves through the streets It is continuous and the stream goes on and on. There are quaint covered wagons, driven by ragged peasant in from the country, droshkies without number, and ungainly carts hauling huge bales of cotton and cloth. The horses have high wooden bows over their necks, and every aspect is Rus sian. There are also carts pulled by men, harnessed to the front, and shoved along by women walking be- hind. There are men and women carrying on their backs great loads which are sometimes held on by a strap around the forehead. The au- tomobile and motor truck are con- splcuous by their absence. Man power and horsepower do most of the work. There is but little loaf ing and every one seems on the go
 The Manchester Of Poland,
 Lodz has been called the Polish Manchester. after the great cotton weaving center of England Before the war it had 400 mills, and it's pop ulation was about 60O,0O0. The mills had more than 100000 workmen, and the cottons and woolens which they manufactured were shipped all over Russia, and to the lands of the Bal kans. Lodz was created by Russia When Boston was a baby it had no existence, and it sprung into being only at the command of the Czar, It was sometime after Napoleon was oVerthrown that Alexander I started the factories by offering grants of forests and lands to the German weavers if they would come here and work at their looms. They came by the thousands, and high protec- tive tariffs aided in establishing the industry. The story of Lodz is prac- tically the same as that of Lyons in France. Lyons had no silk industry to speak of until Francis I sent out word to the weavers of Europe that if they would settle in France he would give them free lodgings, let them live without taxes, and wear swords, which was then a privilege given only to the nobles. This I brought in many skilled workmen from Venice. They first made the | brocaded velvets famous in Italy, and then began to weave the light. | beautiful silks for which, since then, France has been noted. The French invented new designs and Lyons | soon led the world in such manufac- lures. When the war broke, Poland was making woolens and cottons to the amount of s200.000,000 per year. She annually consumed 100000 bales of raw cotton. About two thirds of this
 came from the United States and the rest from India, Egypt and Tur- kestan. Lodz then had 36,00O looms The business was managed by Ger mans and Jews, and the factories were famous for their good work and
 their modern machinery Aided by the tariff, they competed success
 fully with the other great textile centers.
 During the World war this indus try was destroyed by the German in- vaders, who used the same tactics here as in northern France They captured Lodz in 1914 and went through factory after factory. footing
 each of its brass and copper. They
 shipped the best of the machines off to Germany and the others were malicioasly destroyed. They sent away all the raw materials and man. utactured goods, and the result was
 the plants were practically ruined and Lodz left as bare as a bone. That was the condition three, years ago. Since then every factory has been re-eQuipped and made a going concern. A new industry has been organized, with modern machinery and some of the mills are now work ing three shifts day. More than l2o,ooo men and women are employed in the factories and the goods made are sold not only in Poland but in
 Rumania, Bulgaria and other lands
 of the Baltic. The Poles are snug sling their textiles into Russia and
 are exporting them to South Amer ica. They import wool from Argen- tina and send back cloth made of the wool to Bueros Aires. I am told that Poland has now almost as many fac tories working as before the war. al- though the output is less on account of the eight-hour day which has been established.
 In A Big Woolen MilI.
 During my stay here I have gone through some of the larger mills The
 first I visited was that of the Ben nich Brothers which makes cloth for overcoatings. ladies' dress goods, travelling rugs, and mems clothing of various kinds. It Is devoted to woolens and 1t has been noted for generations for It's fine goods.
 I went through the mill with Charles Bennich, one of the owners, and was shown every department and its operation. Before the war 1t em- ployed 42,000 workmen. It has now only 300. but its efficiency has been increased by the new machinery. I went through rooms filled with the latest of the new models of looms of all kinds, and was told that some had doubted the efficiency of the old. In one place a single employe was managing 12 machines and, in another, one man controlled 24. The machines came from Germany and they are nearly all automatic.
 l was impressed with the clean ness and sanitary conditions of this factory. Windows are everywhere,