competing in the open markets of other nations. Then,
indeed, would cotton be King. William C. Rives of
Virginia thought that by developing the resources of
the South and introducing an industrial population,
the equilibrium between the two sections might be
restored and sectional relations be placed upon a sat-
isfactory basis. ¹¹⁰ In an able speech before the Agri-
cultural Society of Virginia in October, 1859, Alex-
ander H. H. Stuart, a prosperous citizen of the Old
Dominion and a leading conservative, pointed out that
the low prices of raw products showed that there was
not the proper relation between production and con-
sumption. "The most effective remedy that I can
suggest", he said, "is, to diversify the occupations of
our people, to withdraw a large number of them from
agriculture, and to divert their labor to other pursuits;
to build up home manufactures; to stimulate the devel-
opment of our mineral resources; to encourage domes-
tic commerce, and all mechanic arts, and thereby create
a demand for the products of our farms at home." ¹¹¹

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