8; 



difficulties of soil and rainfall. Lengthy and careful experi- 

 ment under the supervision of experts is necessary to find the 

 type of cotton best suited to any given area. Experts do not 

 grow on every bush, and we often experience a difficulty in 

 finding enough for our needs. 



Then there are the difficulties connected with human 

 elements. In most, if not all of tropical Africa, I think cotton 

 cultivation must be voluntarily conducted by the black man, 

 and not in plantations controlled by whites. 



The native willing to grow it rather than other crops must 

 be found in the first place. In the second place this native 

 needs advice and supervision in order that he may learn how 

 best to fight the dangers of climatic conditions and the perils 

 of insect pests. 



The mysteries of cotton futures in the markets of the world 

 are unknown to him. What he does care about is to feel sure 

 of a price which does not fluctuate much and which pays him 

 satisfactorily. Just as we need to remember the native wants 

 a regular and a paying price, so he needs to be taught that the 

 spinner of cotton requires regularity in colour and staple. 



So, apart from transport, there are the questions of the 

 provision of experts, of the conduct of experiments, and of 

 producing the desired psychological effects on the mind of the 

 natives. These questions are partly material and partly moral. 

 For these purposes I think it will be agreed that a Government 

 Department and a partly philanthropic and partly commercial 

 body like the British Cotton Growing Association acting in 

 cordial co-operation form the best combination. 



Of course, they must work cordially together, or, as I am 

 sure Mr. Hutton will agree, the sparks would soon fly. I 

 found very cordial relations existing between the Colonial 

 Office and the British Cotton Growing Association when I 

 went to the Colonial Office in 1911, and I am happy to say 

 those cordial relations continue unabated to the present hour. 



I am very glad to be able to congratulate the British Cotton 

 Growing Association on the satisfactory figures they have put 

 before us to-day, and I need not say how much the Association 

 owes to the energy and enthusiasm displayed by Mr. Hutton 

 in the work. No doubt there must come before long modi- 

 fications in the co-partnership (if I may so call it) existing 

 between the Colonial Office and the British Cotton Growing 

 Association; but whatever may happen about our financial 

 relations, it will be necessary and desirable for both of us to 

 work together for many years to come in support of the exten- 

 sion of the growth of cotton in the Empire. Whether I happen 

 to be in the Government or out of it, that will certainly be 

 my view. 



