198 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS 



June 24, 1911. 



WEST INDIAN COTTON. 



Messrs. Wolstenholine and Hollaud, of Liverpool, 

 write as follows, under date Jnne 2, with reference 

 to the sales of West Indian Sea Island cotton : — 



Since our last report, the bulk of the West Indian Sea 

 Island cotton in stock has been sold, chieHy on the basis of 

 15rf. to I5},d. for medium to good qualities from the major- 

 ity of the Islands, the chief exception being St. Vincent, 

 which was sold at \8d. 



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

 Sea Island cotton in the Southern States, for the week 

 ending May 27, is generally as follows:— 



There was a good demand again this week, especially for 

 the odd bags classing Fine and Fully Fine, more or less off 

 in preparation, taking nearly the entire stock at some advance 

 over the prices ruling last week. There were also sales of 

 about 400 lb. Planter's crop lots classing Fully Fine and E.vtra 

 Fine. 



The odd bags, off in class, sold at 24c. to 25c , and the 

 crop lots at 28c. to 30c. 



As the crop has been very largely disposed of, the Fac- 

 tors are firmer in their views for the limited unsold stock. 



Cotton in the Virgin Islands.— With local 

 assistance, the Agricultural Instructor in the Virgin 

 Islands has held a series of very successful meetings 

 in the more central districts, and in a few of the smaller 

 islands, and has also, by means of informal conver.sations with 

 interested cotton growers, found an opportunity of imparting 

 .useful information relating to the uiatler. The effect of the 

 work has been to bring about a more intelligent and extensive 

 effort in the islands, in regard to cotton cultivation. The 

 meetings have been particularly useful, as they have formed 

 a means of giving practical advice, and of answering numerous 

 questions, having relation to individual difficulties that have 

 arisen in the past. 



As is well known, the efforts of this kind have made 

 cotton-growing the chief industry of the Virgin Islands, 

 and is having its inlluence, further, in giving the cotton 

 growers the desire to attain a useful knowledge of the [iroper 

 methods to adopt, in order that they may l)ring about an 

 improvement in the yields from their plots, and in the staple 

 cf the product. 



COTTON-GROWING WITHIN THHl EMPIRE. 



This subject is given attention in a paper which appears 

 in the deoijrinphical Jonviial, for February 1911, entitled 

 Geographical Aspects of the Problem of Empire Cotton- 

 Growing, by .T. Howard Pieed. After drawing attention to 

 the importance of the suppij" of cotton to Lancashire, the 

 author reviews the conditions that obtained not many years 

 ago, when the cotton crops of the world were quite sufficient 

 for the demand. At this time, as now, the cotton fields of 

 the United States supplied about 80 per cent, of the raw 

 cotton required in Great Uritain.the rest being obtained from 

 other parts of the world where cotton was grown. Even as 

 recently as 1882-3, United States cotton was produced in 

 a quantity less than 7 million hales, but this, with cotton 

 from the other sources, was sufficient to supply the general 

 demand, and to leave a surplus of about 2.50,000 bales, so 

 that, at this time, the price of cotton remained fairly constant. 

 By 1892, the production in the United States had reached more 

 than 9 million bale.s, and steadily increased to \Z'^ million in 

 1908-9, although it was reduced to not much more than 

 lOi million bales in 1909-10. This increase, however, has 

 not prevented the present condition of shortage, which seems 

 to be gradually becoming more serious. The reason for this 

 shortage must be looked for in the great growth of cotton 

 manufacture in certain countries other than Great Britain. 

 This matter is illustrated by the fact that, whereas Great 

 Britain, Europe and the T'nited States used, respectively, 

 3,181,000 bales, 3,640,000 bales, and 2,431,000 bales in 

 1891-2, the similar quantities use<l in 1909-10 were 3,0-53,545 

 bales, 6,186,930 bales, and 4,707,000 bales. The fall in 

 consumption during 1909-10 was doubtless caused by the 

 increased price of cotton, on account of the smaller crop, by 

 slackness of trade, and more particularly by short-time work- 

 ing on the part of manufacturers. 



In relation to the sup|ilying of this shortage, it is not 

 likely that the United States can take a large part; this 

 is also the case with the other well established cotton 

 fields of the world. As far as the latter are concerned, 

 Indian cotton is mostly used in that country, and in .Japan 

 and Germany; it is of little use to maiuifaclurers in Great 

 Britain. The cotton from Brazil, Peru, .Me.xieo, Asiatic 

 Russia, China, .Japan and Corea is almost entirely used ia 

 local manufaciuro, and several of these countries have to 

 import cotton, because the local supplies are insufficient for 

 their own needs. In the consideration of the increase of area 

 in cotton growing, it must be remembered that Egypt, though 

 producing largely, has almost reached the limit to which it 

 can grow the plant, on account of the small additional area 

 that may be made available, even with irrigation. It is pointed 

 out in the article that it is the realization of these facte 



