COTTON IN EGYPT AND THE SUDAN. 109 



The many Banks and credit institutions which have in the course 

 of the last few years become established in Egypt work mostly with 

 resources placed at their disposal by their European head 

 offices ; the native population has not yet become accus- 

 tomed, partly due to the Mohammedan prohibition of lending money 

 at interest, to place its superfluous capital entirely with the banks,, 

 and therefore the development of Egypt and of its great trade is> 

 very much dependent upon European credit. Competition between 1 

 the individual institutions is very keen, and the fact that the effects 

 of the financial crisis of 1907 have not yet been overcome is seen by 

 the great failures of 1911 and 1912, one of which was the old Bank of 

 Egypt. 



The usual minimum rate of interest of these commercial banks is 

 6 per cent., the legal rate of interest in Egypt is 9 per cent, per 

 annum. 



The shipments of cotton from Egypt commence in September 

 with about 2 to 4 per cent, of the total exports, increase then rapidly 

 up to December, during which about 20 per cent, have to be ex- 

 ported, maintain a good percentage up to March, when they decrease 

 gradually to the time of the beginning of the new crop. The official 

 Egyptian cotton year is from the beginning of September to the 

 end of August ; some statistics are made up according to this period, 

 others follow the calendar year, which fact should be remembered 

 when making comparisons. 



The large and only lightly-pressed cotton bales, which have been 

 pressed in the ginning factories, and bought from the brokers, are 

 opened before shipment, the cotton is exposed to the air, defective 

 parts are sorted out, and the cotton, after having been sprayed with 

 water, is loosely wrapped in this condition into sacking for 24 hours, 

 in order to allow the water to thoroughly penetrate before the bales 

 are pressed with the giant compresses, which in place of the large 

 bales weighing from 8 to 12 kantars, and occupying a space of 40 to 

 50 cubic feet, turn out small bales of a weight of 7 to 8 kantars, and 

 of 20 cubic feet measurement. 



Damp in Cotton. Watering of cotton at the time of pressing 

 seems to be carried out in good faith by the exporters of Alexandria,, 

 but has, naturally, given rise to protests on the part of the spinners. 

 The demand made in the year 1911 by a spinning firm of Saxony, 

 that Egyptian cotton should not contain more than 8J per cent, of 

 damp of its weight, was, however, unanimously rejected by the 

 members of the Alexandria General Produce Association, and it was 

 decided by them to impose a penalty of ^"500 for each single case 

 if any exporter should sell cotton with a clause referring to damp 

 or dryness. 



It is generally assumed in the trade that cotton, normally, 

 whether from North or South America, East or West India, Egypt, 

 or elsewhere from Africa, contains 8^ per cent, moisture, i.e., that 

 100 parts dry-weight have 8n per cent, of moisture, or that 7'834 parts 

 moisture come on each 92' 166 dry-weight. As a matter of fact, the 

 natural moisture of cotton certainly varies according to the atmos- 

 pheric conditions. But on the ground of the approximately correct and 



