€8 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



Makch 6, 1909. 



WEST INDIAN COTTON. 



Messrs'. Wulstenhulme & Holland, of Liverpool, 

 vrite as follows, under date of Februaiy 15, with 

 reference to the scales of West Indian Sea Island 

 ■cotton : — 



A moderate business has been done in AVest Indian Sea 

 Island cotton since our last rejiort, and prices are steady. 



The sales include St. Kitt's and St. Croix at 13(7. to 

 irB'r? , Barbados at 13|y/., and St. Vincent at 1.5|<i. We are 

 inclined to the opinion that the pre.-isure of American Sea 

 Islands is less urgent, and although, owing to spinners' large 

 stocks, we do not expect any active markets for .simie time 

 to come, we aie inclined to thiidc that prices «-ill remain 

 steady. 



these cases the stalks of the plants are taken away to serve as 

 firewood, while the small branches are left .scattered aboutr 

 the field, and if affected with ivisect pests, serve as a ready 

 source of infection for the next crop. 



COTTON AT ST. VINCENT. 

 Mr. W. N Sands, Agricultural Siiporintendent of 

 •St. Vincent, has recently made a tour of the island, for 

 the pur[)OSe of inspecting the condition of cotton and 

 ■other cultivations. The tbUowing are the cliief points 

 in his report : — 



It is a[iparent that the heavy rainfall ex]ierienced in 

 December has dune a considerable amount of damage to the 

 late jilanted cotton. lUtt, apart from this cause, it is evident 

 that the yield for this season would have been, on the whole, 

 a fairly low one. This is due to the facts that a gooil deal 

 ■of impoverished land has been planted, and that the labour 

 suii])ly was, in many ca.ses, deficient. 



On one or two estates where the land had been well 

 worked and mamired, good returns of cotton have been 

 ■obtained. The December rains have stinuilated growth, too, 

 and the plants give promise of a good second picking. 



(Crushed cottou-.seed was api)lied as a manure for the 

 crop on one estate, and has proved satisfactory. On another 

 jihintation tl;e beneficial eliects of an extra weeding and 

 ■cultivation after the greater part of the first crop of lint had 

 been gathered, was apparent. 



Planters were already destroying old cotton plants on 

 some estates, with the object of checking the spread of insect 

 pests aflecting the crop. In most cases the ]jlants were being 

 disposed of by burning in the fields, as recommended by the 

 Department of Agriculture, and this is undoubtedly the most 

 thorough maimer of carrying out the work. In one or two 

 instances, however, the estate owners were using the old 

 <;otton stalks, etc., as a mulch for cacao plantations, being 

 unwilling to destroy the organic matter by burning. This is 

 a ])lan of very doubtful advantage if the plants are much 

 infested with scale insects, etc. 



A method which is certainly not to be recommended has 

 been observed on one or two estates at St. Vincent. In 



COTTON IN THE SEA ISLANDS. 



KejKiits li'oni Charlesron imlicate little or no 

 chanpe in the juices of American Sea Islatid cotton. 

 For the week ended February 6 last, Me.s.srs. Henry W. 

 Frost & Co. report sales of 4.50 bales at Charleston a;id 

 (337 bales at Sayannab. The ,'<ales at Charleston 

 included several j^lanters' crop lots of ' fill I \" tine' to 

 'extra fine' quality. The 'extra fine' cotton sold at 

 from 2Gc. to 30c , and the ' fully fine ' at from 230. to 24c. 

 On February 13 Messrs. Frost reported: — 

 Iteceipts for the past week have been mostly of planters' 

 cn)[i lots. The sales have been entirely of crop lots of 'fine ' 

 to 'extra fine ' quality at 2oc. per If), and upward.s. There 

 has been consideralile enquiry for crop lots of all grades, but 

 generally at prices below the views of factors who are show- 

 ing firmness in holding their stock for increased prices. 



SEA ISLAND AND EGYPTIAN COTTONS. 



A delegation of cotton growers frmn Florida lately 

 waited upon the United States Government to a,sk 

 that an import duty shall be placed on Egyptian cotton 

 brought into the country, as a protection to American 

 growers of Sea Island cotton, since it is asserted that 

 the native long s'tapic cotton is in danger of being 

 displaced in certain kinds of manufactures by the 

 Egyptian variety. The question is <Jiscassed at 

 considerable length in the Cotton Trade Joii-nial, 

 which, however, does not support the proposal, as 

 it is unable to see any evidence that there is any 

 competition between the two kinds of cotton, for which 

 it claims there are separate .and distinct uses. 



In the United Kingdom at any rate, where both 

 cottons have tree entry, each supplies a want which ciin- 

 not be met by the other variety, and it has never been 

 stated that the Egyptian cottons are being utilized for 

 purposes of manufacture in which Sea Island cotton 

 was formerly alone employed. In any c^ise, it may be 

 pointed out, the matter would n<it ajipear to concern 

 growers in the West Indies, since the typo of Sea 

 Island cotton with which the Egyptian lint is stated 

 to compete is the coarser cottons of Florida and Georgia, 

 and not the finer, longer staples of the Sea Islands ajid 

 the West Indies. 



