lenged, but
there has been an appreciable growth in several other countries, and in
Germany and Japan, at least, the recent development has been little short
of phenomenal. New figures will probably show that in the future Japan
will be the chief competitor of England and the United States for a share
of the cotton trade of the world.

[Illustration: _Fall River, Massachusetts_]

The Home Market
Created An Industry

The chief factor in the growth of the American industry was probably not
the nearness of the source of supply, cheap fuel or labor, nor any of
these factors which operated in the case of England, such as climate,
geographical position, and shipping control, but more than anything else
the presence of a market close at hand which grew so rapidly, more
rapidly indeed than the industry could grow to meet it. Aided to some
extent by an import tariff, the manufacturers have weathered some short
periods of depression, but in the main the industry has grown in direct
ratio to the growth of the country.

[Illustration: _A typical Southern mill_]

New England As Home
Of American Spinning

The cotton mill, as we have seen, early chose New England as its
domicile. Mills are scattered more or less throughout the entire region,
but there are several localities which stand out beyond all others, and
almost deserve the title they have acquired as the centers of the
industry. Premier place for a long time was held by Fall River, and even
now the race between that city and New Bedford is strong, with the lead
slightly in favor of the former city.

Bristol County, Mass., in which these two centers, and Taunton, are
located, Providence, R. I., and Middlesex County, Mass., together
contained 10,086,686 spindles in 1917, or 29.5% of the country's total of
34,221,252.

The growth in this one locality is due probably to the advantages which
come with centralization, as well as to the natural advantages they
possessed. These latter, which include particularly water power and a
moist climate, are not as important now, With steam power and mechanical
humidifiers as they were a generation ago.

In the Middle Atlantic States, the number of plants and the spindlage
have remained about stationary over a long period of years, and are even
showing a tendency to decrease. Small weaving establishments which buy
their yarn are particularly numerous around Philadelphia, and there are
large cotton duck mills in and near Baltimo