6 



AMERICAN COTTON, WOOL, AND TOBACCO. 



The agricultural products, mentioned in the heading of this article, have been 

 greatly affected by the rebellion. The first and third, before this war, were the 

 chief of our exports. The second, heretofore, never attained to that magnitude 

 which its utility deserved, but the rebellion has placed it in a position to as- 

 sume its just rank in our agricultural productions. As an article of export, in 

 its raw state, it cannot be expected to rank with cotton or tobacco, but exported 

 as cloth and other manufacture, it will ultimately hold a no less important place 

 than cotton. 



It it proposed in this article to examine, first, the extent and nature of the 

 ojjposition which these products will m(;et from the present efforts of other na- 

 tions to supply the world, on account of the disturbing influences of the rebel- 

 lion ; and, second, to point out the causes which will destroy this opposition as 

 soon as peace and industry once more resume their place in the United States. 



1. The extent and nature of the foreign productions of cotton, ivool , and to- 

 bacco. — The extent of the increase of foreign cotton can be seen only through its 

 imports into Great Britain — the chief consumer of cotton in the world. The fol- 

 lowing table exhibits these imports during the first nine months of 1863 and 

 1864, and the countries from whence imported : 



From— 1863. 1BG4. 



United States pounds 4,627,728 13,086,416 



Bahamas and Bermuda do 16.945,2(;4 28,397,488 



Mexico do 8,996,960 ] 9,132,624 



Brazil do 19,014,912 28,640,976 



Turkey do 7,280,224 16,878,960 



Egypt do 72,195,200 99,050,496 



British East Indies do 242,497,024 300,175,680 



China do 23,392,992 63,989, 184 



Other countries do 16,157,792 26,841,808 



Total do 411,108,096 596,199,632 



This exhibits an increase of 45 per cent. The imports from the second and 

 tliird countries are chiefly of the cotton of the United States, and the nations 

 tliat have most increased their production are Brazil, Egypt, British East In- 

 dies, and China. 



The above table shows the imports into Great Britain for nine months only. 

 To approximate to the annual production of the cotton of these nations, let us 

 add one fourth more for the remaining three months, which would raise the im- 

 ports to Great Britain to 745,249,540 pounds. Let us add to this onefourth 

 more for imports of other nations, and the entire cotton crop of the world, an- 

 tagonistical to American cotton, would be about 931,561,925 pounds. From 

 this, however, should be deducted about 90,000,000 of pounds, which is probably 

 the amount of cotton of the growth of the United States in the above table and 

 estimates. This would leave about 841,561,925 pounds of foreign cotton versus 

 American cotton. 



According to the census returns of 1860 the cotton crop of the United States 

 was then 2,079,230,800 pounds, or 1,237,668,875 pounds greater than the ex- 

 ports of all the cotton countries in 1864. The reader will see in these figures 

 bow very little of the usual cotton crop of the United States is yet supplied by 

 other countries. 



The nature of this opposition may be regarded in three aspects : the quality 

 of this foreign cotton, the skill of the labor producing it, and the ability of that 



