SECTION III : G. MEXICANUM 241 



following are the forms of Upland cotton most generally grown : 

 New Orleans, Ozier Silk, Peterkin, Texas, Dickson and Duncan's 

 Mammoth Prolific. 



Weevil-Resisting Adaptations, In the Kew Herbarium there is Bractlets. 

 a specimen of G, vitifolium (Plate No, 45, f. 3 a) which was grown 

 in 1864 at Saharanpur, India, that manifests protecting bractlets 

 surrounding the glands within and alternating with the bracteoles, 

 one (not a pair) to each gland. That contrivance was first fully 

 expounded by Mr. 0. F. Cook (I. c.) in the report of his explorations 

 and studies in Guatemala. He describes the plant as a low spreading 

 annual bush, known to the people of Guatemala as the Jcekchi cotton. Kekchi 

 It would seem probable that Eohr was describing a cotton very 

 similar to the kekchi when he furnished particulars of what he calls 

 the ' spreading ' or ' procumbent cotton of Guiana.' His attention 

 was drawn to that particular plant in 1799, and it was recommended 

 to him as being ' storm proof.' It yielded, he tells us, but one crop 

 a year, namely from November to March. He makes no mention 

 anywhere of the boll-weevil, and accordingly had no occasion to 

 discover weevil-resistent stocks. I much regret not having seen 

 an authentic specimen of the kekchi cotton, and am, therefore, only 

 speculating as to its specific position when I follow Cook in placing 

 it under the series of Upland cottons. 



I am fully satisfied, however, that the future is likely to reveal 

 several distinct forms, met with in Central and South America, all 

 at present confused with either G. vitifolium or G. mexicanum, some 

 at least of which might pqpularly be called examples of Uplands. 

 Among these obscure plants (? species) no doubt the kekchi cotton 

 may find its proper place. Cook says that 'the presence of the The 

 weevil-eating kelep has enabled the Indians of eastern Guatemala to 

 maintain, since very ancient times, field culture of cotton in the 

 presence of the weevils, with the result that there has been developed 

 a dwarf, annual, short-season variety with numerous features which, 

 in the absence of sufficient numbers of keleps, afford material 

 assistance in protecting the crop against the ravages of the weevil ' 

 (I*, p. 7). 



I accordingly think that Cook may be mistaken in regarding 

 kekchi as a form of G. hirstitum, Linn., though by hybridisation 

 certain of its peculiarities might easily enough have passed into 

 special forms of the modern Upland cottons which, as we know them, 

 are mostly hybrids of Or. hirsutum x mexicanum. It will be seen 



B 



