COTTON 



515 



The cotton indiiMtry of Canada has recently 

 gained in importance. The consumption in 1887 

 was about 80,000 bales of 400 Hi., agaiimt about 

 40,000 hales in 1881, and only about 15,000 bales in 

 1877. There are about 300,000 spindles at work. 

 The consumption of cotton in Mexico in 1887 was 

 about 130,000 hales of 400 lit., and tin-re were about 

 600,000 spindles at work. The native consumption 

 if lintzil jiml other parts of South America is 

 estimated at about 100,000 bales of 400 lb., but it 

 probably exceeds this figure. 



ASM. One hundred years ago Lancashire com- 

 plained that her then new industry was being 

 injured ly the competition of goods Imported from 

 India ; fifty years later Indian manufacturers com- 



Elained of the injurious influence of imports from 

 ngland ; and now Lancashire is once more in fear 

 of the competition of India ; not on account of im- 

 ports into England (these, so far, being only 

 slight), but on account of the extensive shipments 

 of Indian-spun yarn and Indian-made goods to 

 China, Japan, and other markets in the East. 

 This competition is only of recent growth, and has 

 arisen from the extensive erection of cotton-mills 

 in Bombay and elsewhere, on the Lancashire plan. 

 In 1861 there were only 338,000 spindles at work in 

 all India, and as late as 1874 the number was only 



503,000; but there are now 2,420,000 at work. 

 The movement* for the past eleven yean*, a* shown 

 in the figures for 1877, 1882, and 1887, compare as 

 follows : 



1877. 



Cotton Bpun, lb 88,600,000 



Yani exported, lb 8,71*0,000 



Goods exported, yard*. .15,544,000 

 Weight of exports, lb. ..11,906,000 



1682. 

 154,400.000 

 H 00.000 

 29,900,000 

 39,211.000 



1887. 



JM NUN 



91,M>4,000 



Bt,406,000 



102,466,000 



In arriving at the total weight of yarn and goods 

 exported, it is assumed that 5 yards of goods are 

 equal to 1 lb. of yarn. 



The cotton crop of China, as already stated, is 

 about 1,300,000 bales of 400 lb. The whole is con- 

 sumed at home, along with about 100,000 hales 

 imported from India. Japan produces about 

 100,000 bales, of which only trifling quantities are 

 exported. Japan is imitating Bombay, and there 

 are now about 200,000 spindles at work. Of these, 

 120,000 were put up in 1888. 



Recapitulation. The following statement shows 

 the relative importance of the cotton industries of 

 Great Britain, continental Europe, the United 

 States, and India, as exhibited in the quantity of 

 cotton consumed in each of the various seasons 

 named since that of 1860-61, in 1000's of bales of 

 400 lb. : 



The figures for 1862-63 are inserted as showing the 

 effect of the American war. As respects the 

 general movement, Great Britain held her own 

 between 1860-61 and 1870-71 ; but since then her 

 competitors have made relatively and positively 

 much greater progress, but so far without encroach- 

 ing upon our export trade. The diminished con- 

 sumption in Great Britain in 1886-87 as compared 

 with 1882-83 was due partly to ' short-time ' in the 

 summer, and partly to the circumstance that the 

 American crop was less wasty than that of 1882-83. 

 The increased production on the Continent is 

 almost entirely consumed at home, and is due 

 partly to the improved economical condition of the 

 people, and partly to the circumstance that cotton 

 goods are overtaking linens and woollens. The 

 increased production in the United States is also 

 mostly consumed at home. Lancashire's only 

 formidable competitor in the outside markets of the 

 world is India, but even in this respect nothing 

 serious has yet taken place. The increase in the 

 Indian mills has, so far, been chiefly at the expense 

 of the old native hand industry, which is rapidly 

 disappearing. 

 A recapitulation of spindles compares as follows : 



1881. 1877. 18S7. 



Great Britain 80,300,000 89,500,000 43,000,000 



Continent 10,000,000 19,600,000 28,750,000 



United States 6,000,000 10,000,000 l:t,600,000 



India 838,000 1,280,000 2,400,000 



Total 45,638,000 70,330,000 82,650,000 



Cotton-seed Oil. Pulp is now made from cotton 

 stalks, and converted into the finest writing-paper, 

 an enormous saving of waste being thus eflected. 

 Cotton seed is remarkably rich in oil, now used 

 for a variety of purposes. The crop of cotton seed 

 in the United States amounts to about 3,500,000 

 tons. The bulk of this is returned to the ground. 

 In 1887 about 500,000 tons were crushed at the 



oil-mills of the United States producing 175,000 

 tons of cake, 75,000 tons of oil, and 6250 tons of 

 linters (the short fibres left on the seed after 

 ginning) ; the remaining 243,750 tons being waste. 

 The total cotton-oil product is estimated at from 

 15,000,000 to 17,000,000 gallons, most of which is 

 consumed in the manufacture of lard, which it 

 is said to equal for culinary purposes. Cotton- 

 seed cake or meal is especially rich in nutritious 

 matter for farm-stock, causing cattle to fatten 

 rapidly, and producing very rich milk (though 

 the butter is not improved). Boiled cotton seed 

 with hay or straw is admirable feeding. The 

 seed is worth in America about 4, 10s. per ton ; 

 the oil, Is. 3d. per gallon ; the cake, 3, 10s. per 

 ton ; and the linters, 2d. per lb. About 300,000 

 tons of Egyptian cotton seed are crushed in Great 

 Britain per annum. 



The Cotton Famine. The American civil war 

 broke out in 1861, and in 1862 our import of cotton 

 fell to 524 million lb., against 1257 million in 

 1861, and 1391 million in 1860. Increased supplies 

 from India and other sources brought the arrivals 

 up to 669 million in 1863, 893 million in 1864, and 

 978 million in 1865. The war closed in 1865, trade 

 with America was resumed, and the imports in 

 1866 rose to 1377 million lb., and the cotton 

 industry shortly afterwards resumed its former 

 dimensions. At the crisis of the famine the mills 

 were not working more than half-time, and in 

 December 1862, 247,000 cotton operatives and 

 others connected with the trade were out of 

 employment, and 165,000 others only partially 

 employed. In the same month, 234,000 persons, or 

 24 per cent, of the total population of the districts 

 affected, were in receipt or charitable relief. In 

 1863 the average number of persons out of work 

 was 189,000, and that of those onlv partially em- 

 ployed, 129,000 ; in 1864 the figures were 134,000 



