134 



COTTON IN EGYPT AND THE SUDAN. 



Stimulated by the signal success of their efforts in the promo- 

 tion of the cultivation of cotton in the Tokar district the Government 

 has worked out, in 1912, a programme which places the whole of 

 the cotton growing and cropping, everywhere in the Sudan, under 

 Government control. 



The " Sudan Cotton Ordinance of llth November, 1912," 

 published in the meantime, states amongst its chief points the follow- 

 ing : It rests with the Government to regulate the importation, dis- 

 tribution, and use of cotton seed, and to prohibit the planting of 

 undesirable varieties. After completion of the picking all cotton 

 sticks are to be pulled up ; they must never remain standing for 

 subsequent crops. All ginning factories must have Government 

 licences ; and work under the control of the State ; only healthy chil- 

 dren, over 9 years of age, may be employed therein. The various 

 varieties of cotton are to be strictly separated in the ginning factories 

 and ginned separately. The seed resulting from Sudan cotton shall 

 not be used for sowing purposes in the Sudan, but be exported. 

 Only clean picked cotton is allowed to enter the purchasing markets, 

 and the government has power to order its compulsory official classi- 

 fication and marking before giving permission for exportation. 



The British Cotton Growing Association has also recently taken 

 an increasing interest in the support of cotton growing in the Anglo- 

 Egyptian Sudan. The British Cotton Growing Association took 

 shares to the extent of ^9,000 in The Sudan Plantations Syndicate, 

 Ltd., after Sir William Mather had delivered his address in Man- 

 chester, and in the winter of 1911/12 it sent a special commission, 

 under the leadership of the chairman, Mr. J. Arthur Hutton, to the 

 Sudan. The reports of this commission spoke very favourably of 

 the extremely good qualities grown in the Sudan, and are very 

 hopeful as to the future possibilities. The following is a resume of 

 the various cotton growing districts of the Sudan, as given in the 

 report of the British Cotton Growing Association : 



(1) Tokar. Good prospects for the annual cultivation of 

 10,000 to 20,000 bales of good quality in the immediate future. 



(2) Khartoum and the north. Fair prospects for growing 5,000 

 bales, or more, of high-class Egyptian cotton in the near future, 



