41 



1849 for government, and can irive you a correct quan- 

 tity . Nc\v Oilcans, 330 candies, which will cost, put 

 down to Liverpool, 3rVff pence per lb. ; native cotton GO 

 candies, cost, put down at Liverpool, about 3 pence per 

 lb. The cotton is superior in quality to the previous 



-50. 



" Since October last my partners purchased, on ac- 

 count of my firm here, a parcel of New Orleans cotton, 

 which is now on its way to this country ; and, by the 

 mail, arrived this evening. I have advice of a further 

 purchase on account, of an eminent Lancashire spinner. 

 The quality of this cotton is now well known, and appre- 

 ciated in Bombay, and its value is quoted in all the 

 prices current ; on the loth January, the quotations were 

 114 rupees, whilst the highest quotations for Surats 

 were 74 rupees. The return to the cultivator, upon an 

 acre of ground, is thus doubled ; for he gets 50 per cent, 

 more weight of cotton, and an increase of 50 per cent, in 

 value. I feel, therefore, most confident, that this will 

 give a stimulus to the native grower, and that we shall 

 see a rapid increase in the production, as well as 

 a great improvement in the quality." Signed, JOHN 



I give these few extracts from Mr. Royle's work, (in 

 which is to be found a collection of all that has tran- 

 spired on the cultivation of cotton in India ; printed 

 in London this year,) simply to show that the Ameri- 

 can cotton planter has some cause to apprehend a severe 

 competition, and to suggest the great danger there may 

 be in tampering with the natural order of things, be- 

 cause, should planters by any means advance the price of 

 cotton from present rates, they will giv- an impetus to 



