198 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



June 27, 1908. 



SEA ISLAND COTTON MARKET. 



In their lep'irt, dated May 30 last, on the sales of 

 cotton fioni the Sea Islands, Messrs. Henvy W, Frost 

 & Co., of Charleston, write : — 



The .sak'S for the jiast week cdiisisted of 100 bales of 

 ' fully fine ' quality, at ;:iOc., and two planters' ciniis at '■i'2c. 

 to 3.0C.. making ]5G bales in all. The buying was for 

 England and France. 



The unsold .stock consi.sts of about 100 bales of odd 

 bags, cla.ssing' fine ' to ' fully fine,' and 100 bides 'fully tine,' 

 which are held for ."lOc. The lialiince are planters' crops, 

 held at .3'2c. and upwards. Although the factors are anxious 

 to .sell they continue to hold tlrndy for the above price.*. 



On June fi, Mcssis. Frost report : — 



The .sales this week consisted of 70 bales odd bag.s, 

 clas.sing from ' stained ' to ' fine,' at various prices, the buy- 

 ing being for England ; otherwise the market is ijniet and 

 unchanged. 



The m;irkct report of Jlay oO contains the follow- 

 ing note in relation to crop prospects for the coming 

 season : — 



The weather has been generally favourable in all three 

 States — Carolina, (ieorgia, and Florida, and the crop has 

 made fair progres.s. 



ST. VINCENT COTTON CROP. 



The St. Vincent Thnes reports that tin' iiai-vest- 

 inef of the cotton cro[) of the island was compleled early 

 in June. During the season tiie Cential Cotton Faetoiy 

 has ginned 774 l)ales. ].,ast year tlu' output of the 

 factory was 700 bales. Tlie total cotton crop of the 

 island (Sea Island and !\Iaric (Jalante) is estimated to 

 be of the value of £30,7.s7. 



For the .season 1907 S, the an_'a planted with Sea Is) mil 

 cotton was 3,200 acses, or rather ninre than twice the acre 

 age (1,53.")) planted in li)(>G-7. The yield of lint olitained 

 per acre in the past .sea.son,howe\er, was but 13.") lb ,as compared 

 with 17-") 111. per acre obtained in 190(i 7. .Mr. \V. N. Saniis, 

 the Agricultnial Suiierintmdent of St. \'incent, considers 

 tliat this reduced yield is due to .several co-operating cau.ses, 

 cliief among them being ; the e.xceiitionally wet weathei- 

 experienced in Decendier, the iilanting of poor or shallow 

 lind.s, failure to a|iply sulticient maniu'e to lands already 

 cropped for two or three .season.s, planting too early or too 

 late in the sca.son, insufficient labour to pick tlie crop, and 

 attacks of the black scale insect and leaf-blister mite. 



Sea Island cotton cultivation was taken u|i on a fairly 

 large scale in some of the Grenadine islands, notably at 

 Bequia, Musti(|ue and Baliiceaux. The returns were very 



satisfactory. In other islets such as Union, Canounn, and 

 ilayreau, the jMarie Galaute variety is still grown. In the 

 Grenadines generally, wherever there is a good dejjth of soil. 

 Sea Island cotton can be grown to advantage. 



The selection and disinfection of seed, both for export 

 and for local use, was undertaken by tlie Imperial Department 

 of Agrieulttire in readiness for the ])lanting season. Well- 

 grown seed was charged at cost price only. A total amoiint 

 of 17,13111). of seed v.'as treated in this way. 



Cotton plant selection ex[)eriments were continued during 

 the season on three estates viz. Argyle, Concord and Jlont- 

 rose. The seed from the selected plants of the previous year 

 having been sow'h in nurseries, the work was much easier. 

 On each estate the seed-cotton prodnceil was very even in 

 character, of good (juality, and true to the ty[ie originally 

 selected. 



WEST INDIAN COTTON. 



Slessrs. Wolstenholnie & Holland, of Liverpool, 

 write as follows, under date June it, with reference to 

 the s.ales of We.«t Indian. Sea Island cotton on the 

 Liverpool market : — 



.V tail- linsiness has been done in West Indian Sea Island 

 cotton, since our la.st report,, and aliout 700 to 800 bales 

 have beei\ sold at.steady jirices. 



.\ very large iiro])ortion of the .sales consist of stained cot- 

 ton, at i'ul. to 9(/. pi'r Uj., the remainder being chieHy St. Kitts, 

 r.arba<los, .Vntiuna, Moiitserrat. and St. Croix, at price.s 

 i'ani;ing front lt(/. to \bd., with a few extra lots at \')},d. to 

 Id-/. 



Holders of Carolina cotton are otl'ering from .\merica 

 at easier prices without finding buyers. 



COTTON LEGISLATION IN ST. CROIX. 



Ill order to pieveiit, as l.ir as possible, the sjiread 

 of scale insects, U-af-blister mile. :in(! other pests of the 

 cotton plant an Ordinance ha.s lately been jiassed in 

 St. Croi.x which makes it compulsor}' for growers to 

 pidl up and l)urn their cotton jil.ants as soon as the 

 second picking of the crop lias taketi ])lacc. 



The Colonial Council of St. Croix will each year appoint 

 a commission of five cotton growers, who.se iluty it will be 

 to sujiervisc the carrying out of the Ordinance. 



In the ca.sc of growers who may neglect to clear their 

 cotton fields as prescribed, the Commission will fix a time 

 within which the clearing must be done by the cultivator, 

 and it the latter still refuses to carry out the law, the work 

 will be done under the su[iervision of the Commission, the 

 cost of the operation being charged to the cotton grower. 



