40,000 bales or more each. In the newly invaded region, however, 

 between the latitude of Dallas and the Red River, the insect, though 

 scatteringl}'' present, has not multiplied to such an extent as to cause 

 much damage. 



AMOUNT OF DAMAGE. 



Various estimates of the loss occasioned to the cotton planters dur- 

 ing the past year have been made. They range from 235,000 to 

 600,000 bales, representing from 8 to 25 millions of dollars. In the 

 nature of the case, such estimates must be made upon data difficult to 

 obtain, and in the collection of wdiich man}' errors must inevitably 

 occur. As is well known, there is a general tendency to exaggerate 

 agricultural losses, as well as to attribute to a single factor damage 

 that is the result of a combination of many influences. Before the 

 advent of the boll weevil into Texas, unfavorable weather at planting 

 time, summer drought, and heavy fall rains, a"s well as the attack of 

 many other noxious insects, caused very light crops to be produced. 

 Now, however, the tendency is to attribute all of the shortage to the 

 weevil. Nevertheless, not only on account of the very serious work 

 of the insect, but also on account of the rather unfortunate previous 

 condition of the cotton-producing industry, the boll weevil is among 

 the most formidable menaces to an agricultural industry that ever 

 arose in this country or elsewhere. It seems well within the bounds 

 of conservatism to state that during 1.902 the insect caused Texas a 

 loss of at least 10 millions of dollars. 



In spite of the generally serious outlook, it must be stated that 

 fears of the damage the weevil may do are often, especially in a 

 newly invaded district, very much exaggerated. It is by no means 

 necessary to abandon cotton. The Division of Entomology has demon- 

 strated the past season that the crop can be grown profitably in spite 

 of the boll weevil. Moreover, the experience of many counties in 

 south Texas shows how a locality can, in a short time, adapt itself to 

 the new system of cotton raising made necessary by the weevil. The 

 experience of Victoria County illustrates this point well. The fol- 

 lowing table shows the production of cotton since the advent of the 

 boll weevil. No accurate statistics of acreage are available, but it is 

 the uniform testimony of the most reliable planters that the acreage 

 has not been increased very materially. 



Cotton production in Victoria County, Tex., and in the United States, in equivalents of 



500-pound bales. 



Year. 



1894 

 1895 

 1896 

 1897 



Year. 



1898 

 1899 

 190J 

 1901 



Crop of 

 Victoria 

 County. 



Bales. 



7,006 



5,547 



ll,9.iC 



9,060 



Crop of 

 United 

 States. 



Millions 



of bales. 



12.1 



9.9 



IX. 1 



9.6 



