48 HINDI COTTON IN EGYPT. 



some dead and dying. On examination of the roots Mr. Fletcher 

 found the fibro-vascular bundles stuffed with fungous mycelium as 

 in the wilt disease of cotton in the United States. Samples of roots 

 of cotton plants affected in the same way were also sent by Mr. 

 Fletcher some years ago to Mr. W. A. Orton, of the Bureau of Plant 

 Industry, but no definite identification of the disease could be made. 

 It has been supposed that the Egyptian cotton is resistant to the 

 wilt disease, but that this resistance is not absolute seemed to be 

 shown very clearly in one of Mr. Fletcher's experiments already 

 noted. In a type of cotton practically resistant to such a disease a 

 large amount of unrecognized damage might be done. Mr. Orton 

 states that in the United States the wilt disease is responsible for 

 much damage outside of the most seriously infested areas where the 

 plants are killed. 



PROSPECTS OF EGYPTIAN COTTON IN THE UNITED STATES. 



Though it is to be expected that the Hindi contamination and 

 other causes of decline of the cotton crop in Egyj^t will eventually 

 be recognized and removed, there is no reason to expect any sudden 

 or complete change in the present conditions. The yield and quality 

 may be expected to fluctuate somewhat with the seasons, but such 

 differences are likely to be less serious in Egypt than in almost any 

 other country. 



The Hindi cotton might be eliminated eventually if a better sys- 

 tem of selection were applied or ncAv and uniform strains could be 

 developed and substituted for the present diverse stocks. More ex- 

 tensive fertilizing might counteract the diminishing fertility of the 

 soil. Drainage works are being extended and improved methods 

 of controlling insect pests are being applied. More hardy varieties 

 may also be developed, analogous to the wilt -resistant varieties of 

 Upland cotton bred by Mr. Orton in the United States. 



But all of these measures are likely to require considerable periods 

 of time, quite as long, indeed, as would be needed for the elimination 

 of the Hindi, and this will give our newly established cotton-grow- 

 ing communities of the Southwest a fair opportunity to market their 

 first crops, if they decide to undertake the production of Egyptian 

 cotton on a commercial scale, instead of the short-staple Upland 

 cotton they are now planting. One of the difficulties in establishing 

 such an industry is that it needs to begin on a sufficiently large scale 

 to provide the necessary ginning and baling facilities. Manufac- 

 turers are not willing to buy small quantities of cotton from a new 

 region. 



, No assurance can be given, of course, that the present high prices 

 of Egyptian cotton will be maintained for even a few years. The 

 farmer Avill have to judge for himself whether the normal relations 

 ^"^ 210 



