USA > Indiana > Perry County > Cannelton > Cannelton, Perry County, Ind., at the intersection of the eastern margin of the Illinois coal basin, by the Ohio River : its natural advantages as a site for manufacturing > Part 4
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This coal has some of the peculiarities of the Flintshire, a variety of the Seotch, and one of the Newcastle, but is superior to either.
As this coal-field passes the head waters of the Sandy and Kentucky rivers it takes nearly the characteristics of the pure cannel. On the
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banks of the rivers where this coal is mined, its price, aside from the rent, is from 2 to 33 cents per bushel, and depends on the quantity mined.
It is much to be regretted that our States interested in this field have not had it fully surveyed and described.
There is a coal-field in the valley of the Osage river of surprising depth and richness. This has but recently been discovered, and but lit- tle is known of it.
The great Illinois coal-field completes the list. This is nearly of an elliptical form; underlies nearly the whole of Illinois, the southwestern portion of Indiana. and the counties in Kentucky opposite for 70 or 80 miles. It crosses the Mississippi, and then extends 15 or 20 miles on its western bank, about the mouth of Rock river; its edges on the Ohio are at Cannelton on the east, and near the mouths of the Saline and Tradewater rivers, on the west. Its area is not much, if any, inferior to that of all the coal-fields of England. I believe, and think I can show, that on this is to be the great manufacturing district of the world .*
In the opinion of geologists, the whole field is what is termed a "ba- sin," and, on the Ohio, is lowest about Henderson. Probably there are only three strata that are worth working. The lower, in geological position, is seen at Cannelton and Trade Water; the upper at Bon Harbor; each of these, at different points, is from 3 to 10 feet in thickness.
On the eastern side the dip is westwardly about fifty feet in a mile; on the western side the dip is eastwardly, but how rapid is not known. Near the Mississippi river the lower strata is said to be very sulphuri- ous
The positions where it has been worked, and where the coal appears to be of an excellent quality and convenient thickness, are at Cannel- ton, and on the Wabash and White rivers, in Indiana; about 100 miles up the Green river, at Bon Harbor, and on the Trade Water river, in Kentucky; and on the Saline and Big Muddy rivers, the Illinois river, and the mines of Messrs. Belknap, Ruffner, & Co., six miles west of St. Louis, in Illinois.
ON THE NATURAL ADVANTAGES FOR MANUFACTURING ON THE OHIO RIVER.
The natural elements of a manufacturing district are these:
1. Power-cheap, ample, and certain.
2. Cheap living.
3. Facilities of transporting man and matter.
4. Proximity to the materials to be manufactured.
5. Nearness of the market to be supplied.
6. An healthy position and a climate so equable and temperate that man may sustain continuous labor, even in partial confinement.
*Since the first publication of this article, the "Statistics of Coal." by R. C. Taylor, Esq .. has issued from the press. The facts collated in that valua- ble work show, beyond all peradventure, the vast comparative advantages of Cannelton as the site of a manufacturing city.
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7. A good site for buildings and near suitable building materials. Let us examine these in their order.
1. POWER .- There is now scarcely any handicraft work, from the simplest to the most complicated, which is not materially aided by ma- chinery. Hands seem to be merely required to set that machinery in motion and to direct its movements. So wonderful are the inventions of this century, that we dare not state the ratio of decrease of human labor in any branch of manufactures. A few years since we supposed that the cotton spindles and looms were perfect, or nearly so; yet. within four or five years, a few simple improvements have been made that have reduced the number of hands in a cotton mill more than one half; and it is now said that much of the cotton machinery in England and New England is scarcely worth having.
The effect of these improvements is to make cheap power more im- portant than cheap labor.
It cannot be necessary to adduce many reasons why manufacturing should be carried on where the power is found; water power of course is stationary; and, where steam is the motive power, it is generally far cheaper to move the raw material than the coal. For example: 1,000 tons of coal are required in the manufacture of 600 tons of cotton, and from 3 to 5 tons of coal for one ton of iron. Certainly there are ex- ceptions to the rule: it is cheaper to transport coal from Nova Scotia and Pennsylvania to New England than to pay the aggregate freight on the cotton, dry goods, and provisions to and from the bleak coasts of Sidney and Pictou, or the barren hills around Frostburg and Pottsville. Perhaps this exception will be but temporary.
The chief manufacturing towns of England are in the vicinity of coal- fields .* Even the woolen mills of Sussex and Essex have yielded in competition with those of the coal districts.
*The canses of the growth of modern cities are the concentration, or assem- blage in certain localities, of the materials. or the most useful materials, which afford labor for the hand of industry, and from the products of which the grow- ing wants of mankind are supplied
To sustain this position we submit the following concise statements show ing the canses of the growth and progress of the several cities and towns respec- tively mentioned.
Birmingham. England .- This city, in 1801 had a population of 73.670; in 1831 of 146,986; in 1839 an estimated population of 190,000, and at the pre- sent time of probably not less than 250,000. Its opulence. celebrity. and mag- nitnde, are ascribable to the iron, stone, and coal, with which the district abounds.
Bolton, England .- The rapid growth and prosperity of this town dates from 1770-'80. Its population in 1773 was 5,604; in 180] 18.583; in 1811 25,551; in 1821 32.973: in 1831 43.397. It is a seat of cotton manufacture and the birth-place of Arkwright. Its growth is attributed to its command of coal, be- ing sitnated in a coal district.
Bradford. England .- Township consists of 1680 acres; population in 1801 3,393; in 1821 13.064; in 1931 no less than 23,233. and since that period has ncreased still more rapidly. Its growth is owing to its man factures which are facilitated by its unlimited command of coul, and its abundance of iron.
Burnley, England .- Population in 1801 3,305; in 1821 6,378; in 1841 54,192.
3 *
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When the two are to be combined, the tendency of the bulky is to draw the heavy article to it; and the more valuable the material the bet- ter it will bear transportation.
The copper and tin ores of Cornwall are taken to the Welsh coal
A manufacturing town. Cause of growth: abundance and cheapness of coal found in the vicinity, with a good supply of free-stone, slate, &c. The town is built mostly of free-stone.
Bury, England .- A large manufacturing town, consisting of 4,360 aeres. Population in 1821 13,480; in 1841 77,496. In the parish of the same name and which include this town are extensive quarries of building stone, and nine wrought coal mines.
Carlisle, England .- A manufacturing town; supplied with coal from places varying from 12 to 20 miles distant. Populationin 1801 10,221; in 1821 15,486; in 1841 36,084.
Charleroy .- An important manufacturing town in Belgium, situated in the centre of the great coal basin of Charleroy. In 1836 it had 72 mines in active operation, producing 900,000 tons of coal per annum. Iron abounds and also quarries of marble and slate. Its furnaces give employment to 3,000 men, and during the winter season 4,000 men are employed in making nails. Its coal, iron, and stone have made it what it is.
Derby, England .- A manufacturing town with both water-power and coal. Population in 1841 35,015; in 1811 it was only 13,043.
Durham, Engtand .- In 1821 this city had a population of 10,282; in 1831 only 10,520. About this time extensive colleries were opened, and population immediately increased, so that in 1840 the number of its inhabitants was put down at 40,000. Previous to this it was one of the dullest cities in the king- dom; stone, lime, coal, and iron abound.
Huddersfield, England .- The township consists of 3,950 acres, and had a population in 1801 of 7,268; in 1831 of 19,035. The population of the parish in 1840 was estimated at 40,000. It is one of the principal seats of the woolen manufacture, and stands in the midst of a rich coal field. There is also an am- ple supply of water power.
Johnston, Scotland .- The rise of this town has been more rapid than any other town in Scotland. The ground on which it stands began, for the first time, to be fend, or let, on building leases in 1781, when it contained only ten persons. Its population in 1840 is set down at 7,000. Its growth is owing to the introduction of manufactures, it being situated on a fine water power. It has several founderies and machine shops, and near the town are four collie- ries.
Leeds, England .- A celebrated manufacturing town, and the great centre of the woolen cloth trade. Population of the town in 1831 71,602. Its eminence is owing, partly, to its advantageons situation in a fertile country, intersected with rivers, and partly to its possessing inexhaustible beds of coal.
Leigh, England .- A manufacturing town, with a population, in 1841 of 22,229. In 1834, according to Mr. Baines, upwards of 8,000 persons were employed in spinning and weaving cotton and silk, both by hand and power looms. Its industry and growth is promoted by its abundance of coal and lme.
Lowell, Massachusetts .- Population in 1820 200; at the present time 35,000. Cause of growth, its great water power.
Lawrence, Massachusetts .- Present population 7,500. Four or five years ago it was but a school district. Its water wheels have graded streets, and lined these with splendid edifices on alluvial land so poor that it would not average a crop of 15 bushels of corn to the acre without artificial enrichment.
Manchester, New Hampshire .- In 1835 was a small hamlet; in 1840 a few mills had increased its population to about 3,000; it is said to contain now about 17,000 souls. Although it is in a hilly and barren country, and receives its ma-
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fields to be smelted; so also have been the copper ores of Cuba and Lake Superior. The coal at Pittsburg has drawn to it the lead of Illi- nois, and the iron of the Juniata, of Ohio, and Kentucky, and even of Tennessee and Missouri.
The same rules are applicable to the next element-cheap living.
The coal of England attracted our cotton; but, although South Wales was nearer than Lancaster, Manchester became the seat of cotton man-
terials and sends its products over about 60 miles of railroad it is still growing with rapidity because it has the motive power of the Merimac.
Manchester, England .- The great center of the cotton manufacture in Great Britain, and the principal manufacturing town in the world. Manchester and Salford are separated by the small river Irwell, and form one town. covering 3,000 acres. The population of the town and suburbs, including Salford, in 1801, was 95,313; in 1831 239.388; and in 1841 was estimated at 360,000. Manufacturing has made Manchester. The steam engine, with other improved machines for working up cotton, have made its manufactures, and the coal from the inexhaustible coal field, on the edge of which the city is situated, has fed the engine. Hence the modern growth of Manchester is ascribable to its coal.
Merthyr- Tydril, S. Wales .- Population 27.460 in 1831; in 1841 34,977. It is remarkable for its iron works, and is wholly indebted for its prosperity to its rich mines of coal, iron-ore, and lime-stone. Towards the middle of the last century it was an insignificant village, and in 1755 the lands and mines for se- veral miles around the village, the seat of the great works now erected, were let for 99 years for £200 a year.
Newcastle-Upon-Tyne -Population in 1831 53,613; in 1841 estimated at 65,000. It owes its importance, if not its existence, to its convenient situation as a place of shipment for the coal wrought in its neighborhood.
Pittsburg, Pennsylvania .- The population of Pittsburg for each decennary period from 1800 was 1,565: 4,768; 7,248; 12,542; 21,115. With its depen- dences it has a present population of about 100.000. And although it has lost the greater part of its transportation and commercial business, it is now grow- ing more rapidly than ever. The copper ore of Lake Superior; the lead of Illinois; the wheat of Michigan; the cotton of Tennessee; and even the iron and sand of Missouri are transported to and combined by the power that lies in the Pittsburg coal.
Oldham, England .- A large manufacturing town, chiefly cotton. Popula- tion in 1841 42,595. In 1760 it comprised only abont 60 thatched tenements. In 1839 it had 200 mannfactories, set in motion by a steam power equal to 2,942 horses, and employing 15,391 hands. It has an abundant and immediate supply of excellent coal.
Rochester, New York .- Population in 1820 1,502; in 1830 9,269; in 1840 20,191. It owes its great advantages and rapid growth to its vast water power, created by the falls in the Gennessee river.
Sheffield, England .- Noted for its hardware, cutlery, &c. Population of the parish in 1801 45.755; in 1331 91.692; and in 1841 110,801. Its manufactures are extensive and known the world over. Coal and iron have made the city.
Wolverhampton, England .- This town, or rather the district, including the town, comprises 16,630 acres. Its population in 1831 was 67,514. In 1841 the population of the town alone was 36.189. Wolverhampton, and the pla- ces in its vicinity, owe their rapid rise to the mines of coal and iron-stone.
Other illustrations, such as Pottsville, Cumberland, Wheeling, Pomeroy, &c., &c., might be adduced, but those already given are believed to be suffi- cient to indicate the tendency of men at the present time, to cluster around and to build their homes in such localities as afford them the great staples and materials upon which they may bestow their labor, and for which they may re- ceive the largest rates of compensation .- Cannelton Economist.
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ufactures, because, besides being in a coal district, it was the centre of a rich agricultural country. The same causes placed Sheffield, Birming- ham, and Leeds where they are, instead of on the Tyne, or the Wear. The Staffordshire potteries are over the beds of coal and clay.
While colonies, we were (as Canada is now) compelled, by direct or indirect legislation, to wear English goods; and for half a century after the revolution had emancipated us from this quasi necessity, the English artisan was (practically) confined within prison limits; he was not per- mitted to emigrate, and he could not send plans, models, or machinery abroad.
Slater, the father of the cotton manufacture in America, could not (so closely was he watched at the custom-house) even smuggle over a single drawing or pattern. He had, however, acquired a full knowledge of the Arkwright principle of spinning, and, from recollection and with his own hands, made three cards and seventy-two spindles, and put them in motion in the building of a clothier, by the water wheel of an old fulling mill.
Let him who doubts the practicability of manufacturing here look at this humble beginning and take courage. This pioneer, with very slen. der means and with few friends, surmounted every difficulty, amassed a fortune, and lived to see New England a manufacturing rival of Eng- land.
Although we have coal at home and at from one-half to one-sixth of its cost in Lancaster or Massachusetts, the most of our cotton and no small part of our hemp and wool is sent from three to six thousand miles to be manufactured; and then our flour and corn and pork are sent in the same direction to make up the deficiency of food among the manufacturers.
It is not very strange that this state of facts has existed, but it will be passing strange if it continue to exist much lorger. It will not even require another year of famine abroad to show clearly and practically that it is far cheaper to transport the spinner, the weaver, and the ma- chinist to our coal, corn, and corton, than to pay one freight on the corn and two on the cotton.
The third, fourth, and fifth elements of a manufacturing district are facilities for moving man and matter, and proximity to the raw ma- terial and to the market. These are resolved into cost of transporta- tion.
General impressions on this point are very erroneous; and, as the re- sult of my statistics may far exceed the belief of those who have not investigated the subject, I give the facts for the full examination of all who feel an interest in them.
In these articles I refer specially to the cost of manufacturing and vending cotton goods because this branch of manufacturing is of more importance and better understood than any other.
Some years since a pamphlet was published in England, by Mr. Gra- ham, on "The Impolicy of the Tax on Cotton Wool." In this is an affidavit of Mr. Gemmell, of Glasgow, who states, "that, although he was for several years in the habit of supplying Chili with cotton do.
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mestics, he has latterly been obliged to abandon the trade in consequence of being unable to compete with the manufacturers of the United States."
Chili is a market equi-distant from the two competitors for her trade. What gave New England such an advantage over cheap labor, cheap coal, and cheap capital of England? The difference in the cost of transportation on the raw material.
In 1839-'40, Montgomery* gives this estimate of the cost of impor- tation of cotton to the British manufacturer, the first cost of the cotton being 14 cents per pound.
Charges on shipment. 4 per cent. 123
Freight and insurance
Importer's profit.
5
Inland carriage.
13
Duty 43 66
Total average 27%
While the average cost to the New England manufacturer is stated at 11 per cent.
The estimate of the actual charges of manufacturing in the two coun- tries gives an average of six mills per yard against us; yet, taking both charges into the estimate, the net advantage was three per cent. in our favor; and besides this, our goods were the best.
Since 1840, the British Government has been obliged to take off the duty, but it could not lessen the cost of labor, of power, or of capital. The wages of the operative then were barely enough to support life; the cost of coal must increase as the seams nearest the surface are exhaust- ed, and it is doubtful whether the capital then invested in the cotton mill was paying any interest.
The changes that have since occurred on this side of the water have all been in our favor; that is, so far as the cost of manufacturing is con- cerned. More experience has given us greater skill; we have more sys- tem and more economy; new facilities of intercommunication have brought our producers and manufacturers of cotton nearer to each other and lessened the cost of their mutnal exchanges; but, more than all, the cost of labor, in which England had so much the advantage, has been lessened over one half; that is, less than one half is now required. Be- sides, of late years, the supply of cotton has been so near the demand that the price has fallen from 14 cents per pound to an average of 9 or 8 cents; as the cost is reduced our relative advantage is increased.
*Mr. James Montgomery. the author of several standard works on the manu facture of cotton in Europe and America On a subsequent page will be given his opinion of the relative advantages of England. New England, and the Southern and Western sections of the Mississippi valley, for the manu- facture of this great staple.
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From these facts we have this corollary: that, as the cost of labor, power, and material is reduced, the cost of transportation rises in im- portance.
If England cannot profitably compete with us in the Chili market certainly she cannot compete with us here; for the width of the Atlan- tic gives us a protection, directly or indirectly, of at least 15 per cent. ad valorem.
In point of fact, just as fast as the American manufacturer is able to supply the home demand in any article, the English manufacturer is driven from our market, unless, to raise money or to break down a rival, he is prepared to sell at less than cost. It is to be hoped that the wages of labor in this country will never be so low that we can compete with China in embroidered shawls or ivory trinkets: or with France and Ger- many in tapestry or laces made by hand. In such fabrics the cost of transportation bears but a slight proportion to the cost of labor.
It is clear then that England cannot sell coarse, heavy, and cheap goods in this valley in competition with our own manufacturer. Let us see if New England can.
In 1821, as I am told, the first mill for spinning cotton yarn on an extensive scale was established on the Ohio. Now, who sees in our stores a hank of English or Eastern cotton yarn? The same cause that has produced this result-that is, the cost of transportation-must, in a few years, build up all the mills we need to supply us with "domes- tics."
To see what the precise inducements are to start such a mill here, I give the following details of the cost of transporting cotton from its point of production to us and to the New England mill, and of the goods from the mill to us. It is clear that the difference in the first and the amount of the last give the sum of our advantages in this item, at least to the extent of our home market.
I base my estimates on a mill of 10,000 spindles for convenience, and because that is near the most economical size. It will be borne in mind that the calculation includes the cost of machinery for preparing the cotton and weaving the goods.
At almost any point on the Ohio river the cost of building is less than in Massachusetts. We have stone, lime, clay, and generally lumber on or near the spot. There the lumber and lime is brought from Maine; but few positions furnish good clay for brick; and granite is not as easily worked as our lime or sandstone. The moment there is a demand for it, machinery can be made here 20 per cent. cheaper than at the East. The cost now would be nearly this:
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1433137
The factory building of brick or square stone ruble. $30,000
House for superintendent. 3,000 Twelve boarding houses for 225 operatives. 10,000 Warehouse and store. 2,500 Engine, gearing, and pipes for heating mill, put up 8,000
Machinery, at $12 per spindle. 120,000
Here a working capital, sufficiently large to lay in a stock
of cotton for five months, is .$46,500
Capital stock $220,000
This estimate is based on the supposition that the mill is located in a town where there are houses, tools, and workshops for laborers and me- chanics, and where the machinery can be built.
At a new place, from ten to twenty per cent. may be added to meet extra cost of transportation, &c. In this case, however, the apprecia- tion of land near the mill, and which can be secured by the mill own- ers, will far more than meet these extra costs.
It may also be good economy to put up the best buildings, and thus offer greater attractions to operatives. The trimmest built and rigged ship will always command the best sailors.
The longer the materiel and its product are in transitu, or, in other words, the further the manufactory is from the raw material and the mar- ket, the larger must be the working capital; and the interest on the dif- ference is fairly a part of the cost of transportation. And besides, as England and New England are obliged to enter the cotton market once a year, and at the same time, and at the very time when our other great staples are ready for shipment, prices and freights are then generally at their highest rates; sometimes, as we have seen, sufficient means of trans- portation cannot be had at all; to guard against this contingency, as well as the fluctuations of price, many mills keep a heavy surplus stock. - We can command the market at all times; we are always ready to con- tract, and can select our own time to receive the cotton. We are here, also, at the point of consumption, we cannot for years supply the home demand, and our goods will be taken as fast as they are made.
With these facts in view, it is very safe to say that the New England mill requires a working capital of $100,000 more than ours; but, to be altogether within the mark, put it at $50,000; the interest on this is the first item of saving or advantage to be carried out-say per annum $3,000. As we can turn over our capital more than once a year, and its earnings at each time will exceed six per cent., we might, with pro- priety, make the item much larger.
At Lowell there are forty-five mills, containing 253,456 spindles, and with a capital of $11,490,000, or over $450,000 for every 10,000 spindles. If $50.000 is deducted for capital required to purchase the power, $50,000 more to cover the difference in communicating the pow- er and the additional cost of buildings, the working capital would seem to be $130,000 over that required here by my estimate. But I am not
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