326 



THE AGRICULTUEAL NEWS. 



October 15, 1910. 



WEST INDIAN COTTON. 



Messrs. Wolstenholme and Holland, of Liverpool, 

 write as follows, under date September Sti, with refer- 

 ence to the sale of West Indian Sea Island cotton : — 



West Indian Sea Islands have been rather neglected 

 since our last report, as bu_yers are waiting to see the price 

 at which American Sea Island cotton is likely to rule before 

 buying freely. 



The .sales were at first contined to about 40 bales of 

 stained cotton at 9|rf. to \'2d. per lb. Later 150 bales were 

 sold; they comprised Jamaica, St. Croix, Anguilla, Virgin 

 Islands and Barbuda, at 18rf. to ISic?., and a few Barbados 

 at I9d. 



The report of Messrs. Henry W. Frost. & Co., on 

 Sea Island cotton in the Southern States, for the week 

 ending September 24, is as follows: — 



There have been no receipts of the new crop as yet, and 

 owing to the backwardness of the crop it may be a fortnight 

 before it commences to come to market. 



COTTON-GROWING IN EGYPT. 



Mr. Lawrence Balls, the Economic Botanist to the 

 Khedivial Agricultural Society, has just published an im- 

 portant statement with reference to the suspected conne.xion 

 between the repeated partial failures of the Egyptian cotton 

 crop and the cumulative water-logging of subsoil. The 

 present appearance of the Egyptian cotton crop is excellent. 

 The acreage is unusually large, and the plant promises well. 

 The Government has prolonged the period of restricted water- 

 supply to the cultivators, but it is feared that the level of 

 the water table and the condition of the subsoil are such as 

 may yet cause a rapid deterioration in the condition of the 

 plants. In Mr. Ball's opinion the collapse of the 1909 crop 

 was principally due to the accumulation of water in the 

 subsoil, raising the well-level or water table, and so leaving 

 insufficient soil for healthy root development. A geologist, 

 a mathematician, two chemists, an entomologist, an engineer, 

 several agriculturists, and a cotton expert are all contributing 

 their special researches in the elucidation of a problem in 

 economic botany which, in its elaborate simplicity and com- 

 mercial importance is, says Mr. Balls, almost unique. All 

 these investigations converge upon one object, namely, 

 a better understanding of the root .system of the cotton plant, 

 and of the effect produced on the crop by insufficient or 

 interrupted root development. Mr. Balls points out that 

 important changes in the soil brought about by water-logging 

 year after year must give rise to a residual effect. The 

 mischief done is cumulative and persistent, and 'the excessive 

 water-supply of 1909 may be expected to cause some injury 

 to the 1910 crop, even though the water-supply in 1910 be 



not excessive. In other words, land which has been water- 

 logged should be expected to go through a period of convalesc- 

 ence, and not to make an immediate recovery when the 

 water table is lowered.' It would seem from this that, not- 

 withstanding the ontinuing of the rotations a month beyond 

 their usual time this year, and the present favourable appear- 

 ance of the crop, the certainty of a bountiful crop is by no 

 means as yet ensured. (The Journal of the Rot/aJ Society of 

 Alts, September 2, 1910.) 



EAST AFRICAN COTTON. 



A special effort is about to be made near the banks of 

 the river .Juba, in East Africa, to grow cotton, and a conces- 

 sion has been made to a syndicate for this purpose. It is 

 claimed that the land in question will produce a large quan- 

 tity of cotton j.ier acre, equal in quality to Egyptian staples. 

 There are good transport facilities in the neighbourhood of 

 the selected area, and excellent means of irrigation can be 

 provided. The Juba is similar to the Nile in overflowing 

 its banks periodically, and leaving deposits of soil containing 

 good fertilizing properties. The scheme has not yet been 

 put into operation. (The Textile Mermry, September 3, 1910.) 



COTTON ■ EXPERIMENTS IN THE 



TRANSVAAL. 



The first crop of Transvaal cotton has been picked at the 

 Itusterberg Experimental Farm, and it is stated by Govern- 

 ment experts that the crop, as compared with a similar variety 

 grown in the United States, comes out well. The entire crop 

 was excellent, the initial picking yielding 260 lb. per acre. 

 Some of the bulls have been publicly exhibited, and described 

 as being exceptionally tine. The whole experiment shows 

 that cotton can be produced in the Transvaal equal to, if not 

 better than, American cotton, and, it is alleged, under plea- 

 santer climatic conditions than those which prevail in tlie 

 States. (The Journal of the Royal Society of Arts, August 

 26, 1910.) 



Cotton Exports from St. Vincent. — The amount 



of cotton exported from St. A'incent during the quarter ending 

 September .30, 1910, was 4 bales, of a weight of 1,440 2>., 

 and having an estimated value of £114. All this cotton was 

 Sea Island, and was sent to the United Kingdom. 



On the receipt of the returns from the other West Indian 

 colonies and British Guiana, the <letails of the total amount 

 of cotton exported during the quarter mentioned will be 

 published in the Agricultural Nexvs. 



