REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE. 35 



branches of the trade. The demand for these grades by buyers in 

 Europe, as well as by the domestic trade, indicates a wholesome con- 

 fidence in the value of inspection certificates issued by licensees of 

 this department. 



UNIVERSAL, STANDARDS FOR AMERICAN COTTON. 



An outstanding accomplishment of the year has been the estab- 

 lishment of universal standards for American cotton. With the 

 passage of the United States cotton standards act on March 4, 1923, 

 requiring the use of the official cotton standards of the United 

 States in interstate and foreign commerce, the desirability of an 

 international agreement on standards became increasingly evident. 

 Accordingly, a conference was called at Washington on June 11, 

 1923, at which representatives from the leading cotton exchanges 

 of Europe met representatives of the American cotton trade and 

 officials of the Department of Agriculture, and reached an agree- 

 ment that the official cotton standards of the United States for grade 

 and color with some slight modifications should be adopted as uni- 

 versal standards for American cotton. 



It was agreed that in so far as commerce in American cotton is 

 concerned the entire world will use identical names to represent 

 standard qualities. Contracts covering the agreements and rules 

 under which the foreign trade in American cotton is to be conducted 

 have been signed by the Liverpool Cotton Association, Manchester 

 Cotton Association, the Havre Cotton Association, Bremen Cot- 

 ton Association, Barcelona Cotton Association, and Rotterdam Cotton 

 Association. By this agreement the international cotton business will 

 be greatly simplified and the cause for disputes and reclamations 

 largely eliminated, as the same standard will be applied to the cotton 

 throughout its entire course from the time it leaves the farmer until 

 it reaches the spinner in any part of the world. The path between 

 the farmer and the consumer will be shortened, with the result that 

 the producer will receive a larger share of the proceeds from the 

 sale of his cotton to the European spinner. 



GRAIN-CLEANING DEMONSTRATIONS. 



One of the most serious problems in connection with the grading 

 of wheat has been the question of dockage. Records for the past 

 18 years show that wheat arriving at terminal markets has been 



