148 ANNUAL REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



DIVISION OF COTTON MARKETING. 



Wm. R. Meadows, In Charge. 



Classification of Cotton, F. W. Kniglit ; Preparation and Distribution of Official 

 Cotton Standards, H. C. Slade ; Future and Spot Market Investigations and 

 Cotton Price Quotations, A. M. Agelasto ; Cotton Testing, William G. Blair ; 

 Investigation and Demonstration of Cotton Standards, George Butterworth ; 

 Cotton Marketing Demonstrations. G. S. Meloy ; Research in Cotton Market- 

 ing, A. B. Cox ; and Cotton Handling Investigations, R. L. Nixon. 



COTTON STANDARDS ACT MADE EFFECTIVE. 



The feature of the year's activities of the Division of Cotton 

 Marketing was the enactment by Congress on March 4, 1923, of the 

 United States cotton standards act, to become effective August 1, 

 1923. The chief provision of this act is the requirement of the use, 

 in respect to classification as well as to quotations of prices, of the 

 official cotton standards of the United States and their official desig- 

 nations, in interstate and foreign commerce involving any cotton 

 for which standards may be in effect. The use of samples or private 

 types, in good faith and not in evasion or substitution for the official 

 standards, is permitted. 



The act provides also for the licensing of cotton classers by the 

 Secretary of Agriculture, for the classification of cotton by officers 

 of the Department of Agriculture, and for the establishment and 

 promulgation, in conjunction with the authorization contained in 

 the United States cotton futures act, of official cotton standards of 

 the United States. Under the terms of this act the standards estab- 

 lished under the cotton futures act become effective for the pur- 

 poses of this act. 



Regulations were prepared and hearings were held at which the 

 trade had opportunity to submit suggestions regarding the regula- 

 tions. These were promulgated on July 21, 1923. 



UNIVERSAL STANDARDS ADOPTED FOR AMERICAN COTTON. 



The principal cotton exchanges of Europe have entered into an 

 agreement with this department to make the Federal standards the 

 universal standards for American cotton, as the culmination of nego- 

 tiations covering a number of years. With the passage of the United 

 States cotton standards act on March 4, 1923, 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 offi- 

 cials of the Department of Agriculture and reached the agreement 

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

 color of American cotton, with some slight modifications, should be 

 adopted as the universal standards. 



Arrangements were completed by Lloyd S. Tenny, assistant chief 

 of bureau, and Arthur W. Palmer of this division, who visited the 

 cotton exchanges of Europe this summer for the purpose. Through 

 their efforts, agreements for the adoption of the official standards 

 for grade and color were signed by the Liverpool Cotton Associa- 

 tion (Ltd.), Manchester Cotton Association (Ltd.), Syndicat du 

 Commerce des Cotons du Havre, Bremer BaumwoUborse, Centro 



