THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



January 2, 1904. 



is the careful roinoval of any iiiipuiitios. Tliis opera- 

 tion is naturally very much simplified if the cotton is 

 carefully picked in the first instance. 



Now comes the sunning. The cotton is spread 

 out and dried on arbours or platforms so that it may 

 become as dry as possible. After that the cotton is 

 assorted. This is a point to which special attention 

 should be given. Planters must realize that a small 

 quantity of indifferent cotton in a sample will cause 

 the whole to be classed as indifferent ; so that, possibly, 

 a large quantity of really excellent cotton is sold at the 

 price of poor cotton. If, however, the cotton is properly 

 graded the higher quality cotton will fetch possibly a 

 penny or two-pence more per pound. The small quantity 

 of poor cotton will naturally be sold at a lower price. 

 As is always the case \\ith unassorted produce, its mixed 

 character lowers the price of the better grade, while it 

 cannot p<jssibly raise the price of the poorer grades. 



The next operation is 'whipping,' the object of 

 which is to knock out all broken seeds, specks and 

 motes. The cotton is thrown backwards and forwards 

 (not rolled) on a large sieve, made of mesh wire netting 

 strained over a frame, 3 feet long by 2 feet wide and 

 inches deep, through which the impurities fall. This 

 last process should leave the cotton white and loose, 

 ready for ginning. 



Provided that these directions with regard to the 

 picking and grading of seed-cotton are carefully carried 

 out, there will hardly be any need for further picking, 

 during the ginning process. 



In tlie United States an extra charge of !?3'00 for 

 every 1,200 ft. of seed-cotton is made for picking, 

 assorting and whipping at the ginning factory. It is 

 more convenient and economical for this to be done by 

 the planter before it is sent to the factory. 



There is another point to which cotton growers 

 .should pay attention. V>'hen once cotton has been 

 picked and dried it should not be exposed to the 

 weather. No harm can come from storing seed-cotton 

 provided it is properly dried beforehand. It is 

 advisable for the small growers to store their cotton in 

 bags or barrels until there is a sufficient quantity to be 

 sent to be ginned. 



Since the high prices that are paid for Sea Island 

 cotton are due to care in grading and to the removal 

 of all impurities, the importance of jiaying attention 

 to these points is obvious. In a recent letter to the 

 Inqierial Commissioner of Agriculture, the Secretary 

 of the British Cotton Growing Association writes: 



' I particularly wish ^-ou to impress upon the growers 

 that every care should be exercised in picking and 

 grading cotton; and also that it should be shipped in 

 as large quantities as possible as it is very difficult to 

 sell small lots. The qualities required in Sea Island 

 cotton are length of staple, fineness, silkiness and 

 clcanlines.s, and it must be carefully ginned and 

 baled.' 



SUGAR INDUSTRY. 



Raising Seedling Canes at Antigua. 



The following brief account of the efforts that 

 have been made at Antigua to raise seedling canes is 

 taken from the Report an Sinjar-cane Experiments 

 in tlie Lcf'icunl Island><, lOO.J-J: — 



Considerable difficulty has hitherto been experienced in 

 raising seedling sugar-canes in Antigua ; for several years all 

 results ended in failure, either no seeds gernunated, or the 

 very few which did germinate died at an early stage o£ 

 growth. 



In 1901, three seedlings were raised in the nurserj', and 

 produced well-developed plants for reaping in 190.'?. 



During the arrowing period in 190^', Mr. Sxnd.s, the 

 Curator of the Botanic Station at Antigua, made several 

 eft'orts to obtain seedlings. 



Arrows of ]), 9.5 were selected, and in these pieces of 

 arrows of White Transparent, Sealy Seedling and D. 9.5 

 canes were tied in order to provide iiollen. Some of these 

 arrows so treated were enclosed in muslin bags, but the bags 

 were destroyed by the rain and the wind. The remaining 

 arrows were not so enclosed, these escaped injury and were 

 collected for seed. Under the circumstances one cannot be 

 sure that the stigmas were fertilized by pollen from the 

 arrows thus brought near them. 



Other ripe arrows of various kinds were collected 

 without anj- attempt to pollinate them with any specifie 

 pollen. 



The arrows were sown at intervals from January 1903, 

 and on this occasion a plentiful croj) of seedling cane.s 

 resulted. Amongst those germinating most freely were seeds 

 in arrows of 1). Gl, Red Ribbon, Naga B. and D. 102. 



The seedlings were planted out in a field at Skerrett's on 

 May 5, 1903, as follows:— 

 183 seedlings from arrows from cane D. 61. 

 56 „ „ „ „ ,, Niiga B. 



42 ,, „ ,, „ ,, Wliite Transparent. 



21 „ „ „ „ „ D. 116. 



77 ,, ,, ,, ,, ,, Red Ribbon. 



112 „ „ „ „ „ D. 102. 



21 „ „ „ „ „ Sealy Seedling. 



35 ,, ,, ,, „ ,, Sealy Seedling x D. 9-5. 



^lost of these are now growing freely ; those which have 

 satisfactory field characters will be suljmitted to chemical 

 examination in the usual way. Should there result any 

 canes of good promise, they will ultimately he tested by 

 being submitted to experimental cultivation. 



