CHAPTER XXI 

 COTTON HARVESTING AND MARKETING 



PICKING, ginning (removing the lint from the seed), 

 baling, and compressing into very hard and compact bales 

 for long-distance transportation are the different processes 

 in the harvesting and marketing of cotton; and to these 

 is here added a brief discussion of grades, qualities, and 

 market classes. 



339. Picking. The picking of the crop is the most 

 expensive operation connected with cotton culture. The 

 price paid varies greatly, but is usually between 40 and 

 75 cents per one hundred pounds of seed cotton. This is 

 equivalent to about 1J- to 2J cents per pound of lint, or 

 $6 to $11 per bale. In localities where labor is scarce 

 or expensive, the cost of picking is sometimes even above 

 the highest figure just mentioned. 



Picking begins in August or early in September. The 

 greater part of the crop is picked in the months of Sep- 

 tember, October, and November. In some localities con- 

 siderable cotton is picked in December and a small amount 

 sometimes remains in the field until after Christmas. 



A fair day's work for an experienced picker is 150 to 

 200 pounds of seed cotton; but very skillful pickers, 

 under special incentives, and for a single day at a time, 

 have picked more than double these quantities. 



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