FINER CROPS 317 



which are plainly visible on the new leaves when the seed 

 germinates. 



Seeds as they come from the gin may be divided into three 

 parts as follows: short lint or linter, 10 per cent; hulls 40 per 

 cent; and kernel or embryo 50 per cent. The kernel contains 

 40 per cent, of oil, leaving when the oil is entirely removed, 



NE 



Cotton seed. I. Transverse section. II. Longitudinal section. S testa; NE perisperm 



and endosperm; C cotyledons; R radicle 



(After Winton) 



60 per cent, of meat or 30 per cent, of the whole seed as it comes 

 from the gin. 



408. Lint. A cotton fiber consists of one elongated cell, 

 which when ripened has been flattened into a much twisted 

 ribbon-like filament which has been likened to a collapsed and 

 twisted piece of rubber hose. Because of the twist, cotton is dis- 

 tinguished from other textile fibers. The number of twists are 

 said to vary from 300 to 500 per inch. The number and uni- 

 formity of the twists dependent on the ripeness of the fibers 

 affect materially the spinning qualities and hence the commer- 

 cial value of the fiber. In every lot of lint, three classes of 

 fibers are recognized: ripe, half ripe, and unripe. 



The longest fibers occur at the top of the seed; the shortest 

 at the base. The lint of cotton may vary, depending on the type, 

 from one-half inch to two and a half inches in length. As 



