Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 19.djvu/164

TENNESSEE. the latter year 50,107 persons engaged as wage-earners in the industry. The recent growth is noteworthy in that textile manufacturing, the most prominent industry in a number of other Southern States, is not here important. The basis of the State's manufactures is its wealth of grain, timber, and minerals, together with its water power and advantages for river and railroad transportation. Flouring and grist mill products (whose value increased 74.8 per cent. between 1890 and 1900) and timber products each rank by far the first among the manufacturing interests. The abundance of coal and iron ore has given rise to a flourishing iron and steel industry, and to the manufacture of foundry and machine-shop products. The manufacture of cottonseed oil and cake is of greater importance than that of cotton textiles. The value of leather products in 1900 was more than twice that in 1890. There was a very large increase in the manufacture of tobacco products. The following table shows the relative importance of the leading branches for 1890 and 1900:

The State has the advantage of water transportation afforded by the Mississippi and Tennessee rivers. A number of trunk line railroads cross the State, most of them centring in the State's chief port, Memphis. Among the railroads are the Nashville, Chattanooga and Saint Louis, the Louisville and Nashville, the Illinois Central, and the Southern. The mileage increased from 1253 in 1860 to 1843 in 1880, 2767 in 1890, and 3184 miles in 1900.

The first bank in the State was the Nashville Bank, established in 1807, with a capital of $200,000. In 1811 the Bank of the State

of Tennessee followed, with the State as one of the stockholders. A second Bank of the State of Tennessee was in existence from 1820 to 1832. The State funds were transferred to the new Union Bank of Tennessee, with a capital of $3,000,000, of which $500,000 were subscribed by the State. The tendency to intrust the banking business to the State was still alive, and in 1838 the third venture was made by the organization of the Bank of Tennessee, with a capital of $5,000,000, all of which was to be supplied by the State, partly from funds on hand and partly by sale of bonds. It started with an actual capital of only $2,073,355, which was all the State could get together. The following twenty years were comparatively profitable for the banking business of the State, but the panic of 1857 forced many concerns into liquidation, and before they recovered from it the great political conflict came, almost destroying the banking institutions. In 1866, by order of the Legislature, the Bank of Tennessee was formally placed in liquidation, when its assets of $12,478,483 were found to consist mainly of Confederate bonds, certificates, treasury bonds, etc. In 1883 the State finally assumed the liability for the bank notes, and they were redeemed for special certificates of indebtedness. The depositors of the bank, including the State school fund, never realized anything. In 1869 there were 13 national banks and one State bank. The State banking system regained its ground after 1890. The present free banking law is lax. There is no system of bank examinations and no governmental control, and the liability of stockholders is strictly limited. The Constitution