276 TRANSACTIONS OF THE 



ing the cotton free to be plucked without the fingers of the picker being 

 forced against the rind. Where the atmosphere is dry, as it is in all the 

 Pacific States and Territories, with the exception of those portions 

 exposed to sea fogs, the bolls of the cotton plant will be irregular in 

 shape, and the fibre consequently uneven in texture. Nor can the bolls 

 readily open, beause the glue which holds the joints of the rind together 

 becomes only partially dissolved ; hence it ma}' be observed, on exami- 

 nation, that the sharp points of the rind project amid the expanding 

 fibre, so that it will be difficult to pick it out, because of its entanglement 

 in the pieces of the rind, as well as from the pain inflicted upon the 

 fingers of those eniraijed in ijatherino; it. 



Cotton may be grown with a fair amount of success in the southern 

 part of Calitbrnia. where the climate is warmer and of a more even 

 temperature than in the middle and northern portions; but even there 

 it cannot be made to compete with the Atlantic and Gulf cotton grow- 

 ing States, either in the quality of the staple produced, or in the price at 

 which it may be profitably grown. 



Even in the Atlantic and Gulf States there are climatic reasons why 

 certain localities produce a better grade of cotton than others. The 

 character of the soil on which the plants are grown has less to do with 

 the character of the product than atmosphei-ic influences. Take the 

 sea island for illustration. It nowhere compares in fertility with the 

 delta of the Mississippi. Yet the sea islands produce the most valuable 

 cotton ^"own on the globe, while in the delta of the Mississippi the 

 staple is scarcely up to a fair average of American cottons. The sea 

 islands possess more full}' every r-equisite of climate for the perfection 

 of cotton growing than any other locality in America. They have an 

 evenness of temperature, with warmth and moisture nowhere else found 

 in the same degree. Elforts have been made te grow the sea island 

 sta])le in various portions of the globe, without success, except it may 

 be in a limited locality near the mouth of the Nile. Nor can 'this 

 unequalled, long, silky textile be produced anywhere else than on the 

 American sea islands until natural laws can be changed. 



As a further illustration of the atmospheric influences which affect the 

 cotton plant, it ma}' be remarked that the most precarious cotton region 

 in the cotton States is that lying along the banks of the Mississippi 

 Eiver. The waters of this great afliuent remain cold, from taking their 

 rise in snowy latitudes, until they reach the Gulf of Mexico, continuing 

 in this condition until well into summer. Hence there is a low temijera- 

 ture given the atmosphere near its banks during the night. This often 

 keeps the cotton plant in a backward state in the spring, predisposing 

 it to the attacks of the army worm and other enemies. 



Eegarding the present high price of cotton fibre as temporary, rather 

 than to be permanent, the cultivation of this textile does not promise to 

 be either extensive or remuneriitive in the Pacific States and Territories; 

 and however desirable it may be to have sufficient produced in those 

 localities for the consumption of the resident population, climatic rea- 

 sons will be found an insuperable obstacle to even a partial success in 

 this industry. 



FLAX AND HEMP IN THE PACIFIC STATES. 



If the meteorological condition in tliis re<i:ion is unfavorable for the cul- 

 tivation of cotton, it might be supposed that there should exist a conge- 

 niality for flax and hemp, because either of these textiles will thrive 



