310 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



October 6, 1906. 



WEST INDIAN COTTON. 



Messrs. Wolstenholine & Holland, of Liverpool, 

 have forwarded the following report on business in 

 West Indian cotton from August 2S to September 11 : — 



Since our last report, about 300 bales of West Indian 

 Sea Island cotton have been sold at steady prices. 



Being late pickings, they were mostly inferior in qualit}', 

 and include St. Kitt's, lit/, to 12irf.: Nevis, lOrf. to 13rf.; 

 Antigua, 14rf. to \bd.: Montserrat, lihd.; Carriacou, lOd. to 

 14irf.; and stained cotton from various islands at od. to Sd. 

 per lb. 



American crop accounts continue poor, and we expect, 

 that, whatever the quantity may be, the quality will be poor, 

 and this should help the West Indies, if the lint is clean and 

 bright. 



COTTON 



THE WEST INDIES. 



COTTON PROSPECTS IN ST. VINCENT. 



Mr. W. N. Sands, Agricultural Superintendent in 

 St. Vincent, has forwarded, in continuation of the note 

 published in the Agricultural News, Vol. V, p. 278, 

 the following brief report, dated October 1, on the 

 prospects of cotton planting in that island : — 



As far as I can judge, the present season's cultivations 

 are far in advance of any previous ones, that is, at the .«ame 

 time of the year, notwithstanding that a much larger acreage 

 has been put in. My preliminary estimate for this season 

 was 1,400 acres. I am now pleased to inform you that this 

 has been exceeded by nearly 200 acres, and 1 .should not be 

 .surprised if the returns I am now collecting show a total 

 acreage of over 1,600. 



The most backward cultivations are to be seen in the 

 Carib Country, where over 100 acres are growing poorly. 

 The lands in this district have a large amount of volcanic 

 ash, besides which the season has not been a good one in this 

 part of the island. 



The usual diseases are to be seen in most cultivations, 

 hut no serious damage has been observed. 



The cotton worm has been found in several places. So 

 far, the natural enemies have been able to keep it in check. 

 The insect chiefly responsible for its destruction here is the 

 .Jack Spaniard (Polistes sp. This is the first time the 

 cotton worm has been noticed in the island. Of course all 

 planters have been advised to keep a sharp look-out, and 

 to have Paris green and lime ready in case of emergency. 



Picking will commence in two or three weeks' time on 

 several estates, provided fair weather obtains, and all 

 indications at the present time point to a good crop. 



It will probably be necessary to commence ginning early 

 next month. 



The following is an extract from an article entitled 

 'The Story of the British Cotton-growing Association' 

 contributed by Mr. John C. Atkins, Secretary of the 

 Association, to the Mitgazine of Commerce : — 



Formerly these islands grew a considerable amount of 

 cotton. This was displaced b\' sugar, and the industry 

 gradually died out, except in one or two islands, wbere 

 a quality somewhat similar to American was produced in 

 small quantities. Due largely to the efforts of the Association, 

 loyally backed up by Sir Daniel Morris, Inqierial Commis- 

 sioner of Agriculture, and bis assistmts, the attention of the 

 planters has once again been directed towards cotton, and it 

 has now been proved that the finest quality of Sea Island 

 cotton can be grown in almost every island. Last year 2,000 

 bales were shipped to this country, and it is expected that by 

 the end of the present season the shipments will reach 5,000 

 bales. The larger portion of this cotton is of very fine quality, 

 and is selling at \od. to ISrf. per lb. It is not too much to 

 say that the best quality of West Indian Sea Island cotton is 

 now given the preference over that grown in the Florida Sea 

 Islands. If the Association had done nothing else, the 

 success in the West Indies has quite justified its existence 

 and the whole of the money which has been spent. It is 

 estimated that the present crop will be worth at least 

 £100,000, mostly grown on derelict sugar plantations. The 

 Association has made large grants of money and supplied 

 machinery for ginning and baling. The industrv is now 

 placed on a commercial basis and negotiations have just been 

 concluded for the transfer of a large part of the Association's 

 machinery to an association of planters. Great credit is due 

 to Sir Daniel Morris, the Hon. F. Watts, Mr. Bovell, and 

 others, for the great interest they have taken in this question, 

 and much of the success is due to their efforts. 



GRENADA. 



editorial in the 



COTTON GROWING IN 



The following appeared in an 

 Grenada Federalist, of August 80 : — 



Mr. Anstead, the Agricultural Superintendent, has been 

 going about lecturing on the cultivation of Sea Island cotton. 

 We hope his tour around the island will not be unproductive 

 of good. Experiments in Carriacou by Mr. Whitfield Smith 

 show that Sea Island cotton — even of the badly cleaned 

 sjiecimen rejiorted upon — is worth very much more than the 

 Marie Galante, and that its cultivation would, therefore, be 

 more profitable.. At Is. 2c/. i)er fi). for the cleaned lint, the 

 return per acre will be about £11 13s. Ad., while the seeds 

 would certainly bring something more. Mr. Anstead 

 estimates the cultivation and other expenses at £5 per acre 

 leaving a net return of presumably £6. 



