24 



FARMERS' R E G I S 1^ E R . 



[No. 1. 



came, and passed needles, pins, &c., into them and 

 throuiili them. A great many of these trials have 

 not cleared up some douhtlid points. Some slalks 

 ol'cotton we find more disposed to rot tlimi others; 

 on siirh stalks, I am disposed to tl\ink violence done 

 to the boles will make them rot, liir on such stalks 

 I found so many ofihe holes that I had |)erlbrated, 

 or oiherv/ise injured, rotted, that a doubt was left 

 whether these injuries had not caused ihem to rot ; 

 but as many other boles on these stalks wliirh were 

 not injured were also rolled, ami a i'ew which were 

 injured not rotted, ihis fioiut remains doubtful. But 

 on stalks that are healihy, on which there are no 

 rotted boles, I am positive no injuries of this kind 

 will produce rot. I have passed needles through 

 them and left threads passing clear throufi'b them, 

 perforated them with needles and pins, and bruised 

 them in various ways ; numerous trials convinces 

 me, that external injuries have no efiijct in pro- 

 ducing rot, if the stalk is sound and healthy. Mr. 

 Davis, who had no rot in his co;!on last yenr, tried 

 these experiments with similar results. Whoever 

 will try e.\periments will, I ihiiik, satisly himself 

 that insects do not cause cotton to rot. The best 

 ho[)e of (jetting rid of so great an evil, is to search 

 out the true cause or causes, and bv avoi(lin<r them, 

 prevent or diminish its violence. It is, I believe, as 

 much a disease of the plant, as the yellow fever is 

 of the liuman tiimily ; ii has its proximate, its pre- 

 disposing, and ils exciting causes. We must as- 

 certain all the causes we can, and if we cannot pre- 

 vent them all, and cure the disease by preventing 

 some of them, we may diminish the effect of oth- 

 ers, and in part, cure it. 



The i)roximate cause of the rot, is not very ma- 

 terial ; it is altogether the ell'ect of other causes : by 

 preventing them, we will prevent the proximate 

 cause also. But it mast depend upon a want of 

 proportion between action and power — Hunter 

 would say from an increase of action, and dimi- 

 nution of' power. It is a gangrene or mornfic.ation 

 of the bole. During the long wet spells, when the 

 plant is in a rapid growth, or in dry weather after a 

 shower, when the plant takes a (juick growth, we 

 have most rot, for then the action is too great for 

 the power. Let us notice the sinularity between a 

 mortification and the rot, and we will find the re- 

 semblance so great, that ii Hunter's system of mor- 

 tification, all of which I believe, is correct, this is 

 the real or proximate cause of rot. When a limb 

 mortifies, if it is amputated, the mortification will 

 attack the stump ; so if a cotton bole is rottintr, if 

 we cut out all the rotted part, the bole will rot in 

 another place. But when the mortification stops, 

 then the limb may be amputated wnth safety ; so 

 it is with the rot. We freriuently find the bole rot 

 to some extent, and sto|) rotting; then cut out all 

 the rotted part, and it will still open and make 

 some cotton. No matter how rapid mortification 

 may be proirressing, so soon as the lirnb is ampu- 

 tated, mortification ceases in the amputated |)art: 

 so with the rot — cut a rotting bole so as to take off 

 all that IS rottinij, and it ceases to rot so soon as it 

 is removed from the rest of the bole. A mortifica- 

 tion ceases so soon as the person dies. No matter 

 how rapid or how many boles may be rottin<i, pluck 

 off one bole, and the rot ceases in that bole ; or pull 

 up or cut off the stalk, and the rot ceases in all the 

 boles on it . The rot is a complete gangrene or mor- 

 tification of the cotton boles. 



When a cotton bole begins to rot, it shows a 



spot which looks bruised or watery; sometimes it 

 progresses with a dry rot ; at other times much 

 foaai and water runs from the part. We would 

 be induced to suppose, from a slight examination, 

 that the injury was external ; but cut into many 

 boles and examine carefully, and we will always 

 find the disease begins in the bole, and passes out; 

 cut open many apparently sound boles, and we 

 will olien find the disease passintr out, alihough it 

 has not shown itself on the outside. The cure of 

 the rot is certain — cut off the bole, cut off" or pull 

 up the stalk, and the rot ceases immediately ; but 

 as the remedy is little Oetier than the disease, we 

 must look for the predisposinrr and exciiing causes, 

 and by preventing them, put a sto|) to the operation 

 of the proximate cause. 



Of the predisposing cause. The proximate cause, 

 observe, only exists with the disease, or is the dis- 

 eiise itself; it occurs when there is a predis[iosi!ion 

 acted upon by exciiing causes; all exciting causes 

 would be harmless, were there not an already 

 formed predisposition; there must be a preilispos- 

 ing cause, acted upon by one or more exciting 

 causes, to produce the proximate cause, or the 

 disease: the [iredisposiufj cause is, therelbre, the 

 root of the whole. Well! what is it that has con- 

 tinued so loii<r to do so much injury to cotton plan- 

 ters, and as vet eludes rosearcli, and defies all re- 

 medies? — We must find it out b'^lJire any good can 

 be done. It is, I believe, a diseasc'd or mnrbid con- 

 dition of the seed, jiroduced from the cotton as well 

 as the seed being thrown togiMher in large quanti- 

 ties, the bulk being so large that the seed becomes 

 heated or diseased, not so much as to prevent ve- 

 getation but to produce an unhealthy plant. Every 

 experienced cotton planter who will reflect on this 

 subject, can bring up many facts to prove tiiis to 

 be the correct theory, nevertheless some facts will 

 be given that have come under my own observa- 

 tion. A number of years a<j:o, a gen'leman ;;assed 

 by Mrs. Nunnally's plantation, and stopped ibr a 

 drink of water ; he said in some disiani couniiy 

 (I do not know where) that he had seen a field of 

 such beautiful cotton lliat he got down and picked 

 a lock of it; he save it io them ; it hud six secils in 

 it ; ihey were carefully saved and [)lanted tiom year 

 to year, and it was wholly wilhout rot; it was beau- 

 tiful cotton, and so much resembled the Peiit Gulf 

 cotton that I must think it was the same cotton. I 

 got a load of it and planted it; the first year it rolled 

 none ; next year much worse than my other cotlori. 

 For this reason, the first year as it did not ro', [ 

 made a large quantity ; it was thrown in a heap Liy 

 itself, irinned up, and the seed thrown in a larire 

 bulk by themselv(>s ; they heated, and when plant- 

 ed, the seed produced rot, worse than any cotton I 

 had. Mrs. Nunnally coniinued Io |ilantfhem with- 

 out any rot. She had a larire scafibid, and careful- 

 ly sunned the cotton as well as the seed ; but year 

 belbre last, they planted the whole crop of I hem : 

 the bulk of col ton and seed was so large, that 

 usual care could not be tuken of" them, and they 

 produced ihe worst rolled cniiun in the neighbor- 

 Iiood. 



Some years ago I went to Mr. John Puryear's 

 plantalion ; his cotton was rotting very bad. all but 

 about an acre of Mexican coiton — this had no rot. 

 This was the first Mexican cotton planted in this 

 country ; I crol some of ihe seed and planted them; 

 this cotton had no rot; we planted this cotton, an(i 

 it still had no rot ; 1 thuuirht 1 had got clear of the 



