REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE. 43 



season. The portion of the crop which was not destroyed will be 

 rigidly controlled, the lint shipped abroad or fumigated, and the 

 seed promptly ground up at the mills. The old cotton plants over 

 a wide area will be pulled up and burned to prevent overwintering of 

 the insect in undeveloped or dead bolls. 



As a result of a conference held by the Department in Washington 

 in July and participated in by the Commissioner of Agriculture of 

 Texas and other experts from the State, a bill was prepared giving 

 the State authorities power to cooperate with this Department in the 

 establishment of cotton-free zones and local quarantines. This bill 

 was presented at the special session of the Texas Legislature and has 

 since been enacted into law. 



It is planned to establish a cotton- free zone in Texas, approxi- 

 mately 50 miles in breadth, along the Mexican border. It is pro- 

 posed not only to eliminate cotton culture in this area but also to 

 eradicate all volunteer cotton. Similar zones will be established to 

 include any infested areas in Texas or the other Southern States. 

 Furthermore, the cotton grown on the Mexican side will be kept 

 under observation, and the Department will cooperate with the Mexi- 

 can Government, local authorities, and plantation owners in stamping 

 out any outbreaks within 50 miles of the border. If the assistance of 

 the Mexican Government can be secured, a thorough survey will be 

 made of all Mexican cotton regions to ascertain the present distri- 

 bution of the insect. This survey ultimately would be the basis for 

 determining the possibility of exterminating the pest in Mexico. It 

 may appear that the most effective and economical method of pre- 

 venting the further invasion of the United States by the pink boll- 

 worm will be to undertake this task. It would involve large ex- 

 penditures, but the seriousness of the situation might amply justify 

 them. 



To make it possible to carry out these preliminary plans, an esti- 

 mate of $500,000 was submitted to the Congress on June 22, 1917. 

 On October 6 the sum of $250,000 was made available in the Urgent 

 Deficiency Act. 



The spirit revealed by the farmers and the results of their efforts 

 during the present year indicate that they recognize the responsibility 

 resting upon them in this emergency. I am confident that they will 

 patriotically continue to assume and to bear their full share of the 

 country's burden. The farmers of the Nation have always shown 

 their devotion to the cause of freedom and have not been slow to 



