登陆注册
5184500000098

第98章 Manufactures and Miscreants(1)

WHERE the river,in the Vicksburg region,used to be corkscrewed,it is now comparatively straight--made so by cut-off;a former distance of seventy miles is reduced to thirty-five.It is a change which threw Vicksburg's neighbor,Delta,Louisiana,out into the country and ended its career as a river town.

Its whole river-frontage is now occupied by a vast sand-bar,thickly covered with young trees--a growth which will magnify itself into a dense forest by-and-bye,and completely hide the exiled town.

In due time we passed Grand Gulf and Rodney,of war fame,and reached Natchez,the last of the beautiful hill-cities--for Baton Rouge,yet to come,is not on a hill,but only on high ground.Famous Natchez-under-the-hill has not changed notably in twenty years;in outward aspect--judging by the deions of the ancient procession of foreign tourists--it has not changed in sixty;for it is still small,straggling,and shabby.

It had a desperate reputation,morally,in the old keel-boating and early steamboating times--plenty of drinking,carousing,fisticuffing,and killing there,among the riff-raff of the river,in those days.

But Natchez-on-top-of-the-hill is attractive;has always been attractive.

Even Mrs.Trollope (1827)had to confess its charms:

'At one or two points the wearisome level line is relieved by bluffs,as they call the short intervals of high ground.

The town of Natchez is beautifully situated on one of those high spots.

The contrast that its bright green hill forms with the dismal line of black forest that stretches on every side,the abundant growth of the pawpaw,palmetto and orange,the copious variety of sweet-scented flowers that flourish there,all make it appear like an oasis in the desert.

Natchez is the furthest point to the north at which oranges ripen in the open air,or endure the winter without shelter.

With the exception of this sweet spot,I thought all the little towns and villages we passed wretched-looking in the extreme.'

Natchez,like her near and far river neighbors,has railways now,and is adding to them--pushing them hither and thither into all rich outlying regions that are naturally tributary to her.

And like Vicksburg and New Orleans,she has her ice-factory:she makes thirty tons of ice a day.In Vicksburg and Natchez,in my time,ice was jewelry;none but the rich could wear it.

But anybody and everybody can have it now.I visited one of the ice-factories in New Orleans,to see what the polar regions might look like when lugged into the edge of the tropics.

But there was nothing striking in the aspect of the place.

It was merely a spacious house,with some innocent steam machinery in one end of it and some big porcelain pipes running here and there.

No,not porcelain--they merely seemed to be;they were iron,but the ammonia which was being breathed through them had coated them to the thickness of your hand with solid milk-white ice.

It ought to have melted;for one did not require winter clothing in that atmosphere:but it did not melt;the inside of the pipe was too cold.

Sunk into the floor were numberless tin boxes,a foot square and two feet long,and open at the top end.These were full of clear water;and around each box,salt and other proper stuff was packed;also,the ammonia gases were applied to the water in some way which will always remain a secret to me,because I was not able to understand the process.

While the water in the boxes gradually froze,men gave it a stir or two with a stick occasionally--to liberate the air-bubbles,I think.

Other men were continually lifting out boxes whose contents had become hard frozen.They gave the box a single dip into a vat of boiling water,to melt the block of ice free from its tin coffin,then they shot the block out upon a platform car,and it was ready for market.

These big blocks were hard,solid,and crystal-clear.In certain of them,big bouquets of fresh and brilliant tropical flowers had been frozen-in;in others,beautiful silken-clad French dolls,and other pretty objects.

These blocks were to be set on end in a platter,in the center of dinner-tables,to cool the tropical air;and also to be ornamental,for the flowers and things imprisoned in them could be seen as through plate glass.I was told that this factory could retail its ice,by wagon,throughout New Orleans,in the humblest dwelling-house quantities,at six or seven dollars a ton,and make a sufficient profit.

This being the case,there is business for ice-factories in the North;for we get ice on no such terms there,if one take less than three hundred and fifty pounds at a delivery.

The Rosalie Yarn Mill,of Natchez,has a capacity of 6,000spindles and 160looms,and employs 100hands.The Natchez Cotton Mills Company began operations four years ago in a two-story building of 50x 190feet,with 4,000spindles and 128looms;capital $105,000,all subscribed in the town.

Two years later,the same stockholders increased their capital to $225,000;added a third story to the mill,increased its length to 317feet;added machinery to increase the capacity to 10,300spindles and 304looms.

The company now employ 250operatives,many of whom are citizens of Natchez.

同类推荐
  • 贞白遗稿

    贞白遗稿

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 阿弥陀经通赞疏

    阿弥陀经通赞疏

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 蕉轩续录

    蕉轩续录

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • The Innocents Abroad

    The Innocents Abroad

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 北征事迹

    北征事迹

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
热门推荐
  • 旗袍旗袍

    旗袍旗袍

    1931年,民国第一杀手、“斧头帮”帮主王九洲不满国民党的抗日态度,决定刺杀蒋介石。不巧情报泄露,在生死关头,王九洲被爱国青年梅月堇、岱春风、孟惜之所救。梅月堇崇拜英雄,王九洲爱慕美女,两人暗生情愫。梅月堇出身官宦家庭,父亲是蒋介石身边的红人梅默庵,在父亲的反对声中,她毅然选择了跟随王九洲。但她始终无法摆脱跟父亲血肉相连的亲情,如同她无法割舍对王九洲的恋情一样。暗恋、嫉妒、色诱、纵欲、恩爱情仇,她究竟何去何从?岱春风和孟惜之加入了王九洲的劳工会馆,三人结拜为兄弟,一起杀汉奸,也一起爱上了梅月堇。
  • 日知录之馀

    日知录之馀

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 战斗狂欢

    战斗狂欢

    百年大局今朝变,系统在手天下有。在你人生的若干年月里你是否想过去战斗一次!是否
  • 小子,我是你妈

    小子,我是你妈

    倒霉了二十二年,终于幸运了一回.人生多了二十年的青春?乐啊......还能更加变得美美的.喜啊......可是二十年后呢?不能象现在一样潦倒了.要培养个全才的儿子来养我.IQ要达到250.恩,这个可以.可是这个男孩子好丑啊......将来老婆都成了问题了.算了,再为他收留一个小美女.将来好个他俩配对对.可是...可是...怎麽越来越不对了呢?是他和她,不是他和我啦......不要,我这麽美.......虽然他很有钱啦......8888推荐好友的同类作品.大家可以去看看.不予:<这个奶爸有点酷>http://m.wkkk.net?info/m.wkkk.net紫树叶子:<包养老婆>伊图草希:《『禁』爱》野人乙:<我的天王老公>海源蒙儿:<爱我,请将我禁锢>殷紫[狼爱上羊]冰冰七月:<暴君,邪妃>99999999999999999999999QQ群:54410779(空)24646525(快满)51567756(满)88888888888888888888888欢迎大家来踩新坑<爱奴>带点伤感,带点搞笑.谢谢.
  • 冷眼窥天

    冷眼窥天

    终无奈,舍自在。乱世浮沉壮志凌云正少年磐石铸心不敬天与地一念在胸刀枪入库藐神明媚惑一世情无悔风残怜,席卷着柔情似水。寒风飘落叶、天边月,问一声缘字是何解?!玉簪断、青丝绕,有没有一个人难抹灭。孤独不变的是不曾忘记你的脸
  • Flying Machines

    Flying Machines

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 优势的力量:告别劳碌命甩掉平庸

    优势的力量:告别劳碌命甩掉平庸

    优势,是于竞争中胜出的力量,是取得成功的前提,是出类拔萃的资本。因此,人们四处寻找优势,竭力追求优势。殊不知,优势一直就在身边。本书从发现优势,发展优势,发挥优势三个方面引导你发现自身优势,克服制约优势发挥的各种因素,并且将优势应用于职场、工作和生活中,进而取得成功。走进本书,你将学会如何充分地挖掘自身优势,如何有效地运用自身优势并由此走向成功。
  • 李世民管理日志

    李世民管理日志

    唐太宗李世民作为魏徵、王硅、房玄龄、杜如晦等一班名臣贤士的“老板”,是如何知人善用、运用团队力量共同奠定“贞观之治”的盛世之基?面对百废……
  • 今天开始做召唤师

    今天开始做召唤师

    (完结)实验体D穿越为苏家废物,什么丑女,什么废材,全部给我洗干净眼睛重新看!废材丑女一夕翻身,势要惊艳天下!没娘爱,没爹疼,不要紧,自有神王爱护,魔君暗助,各路神兽争相当小弟,翻手为云覆手为雨,成就风云第一人。不料却遇上了世间最尊贵无耻腹黑的的他……新书《异能少女重生:帝少夺吻99次》,废柴重生,被高冷男神宠溺,打脸各路奇葩的甜宠故事
  • 阳光充足(中国好小说)

    阳光充足(中国好小说)

    本书主要讲述的主人公陈二毛由于要遵从父母的意见去娶有病的殷菊花,但是他却深深爱着殷菊花的妹妹殷雪花。小说大量描写男女双方人物的心理活动,情深意切。最后,终于在大婚的前一天晚上,两人走到了一起。