doubt ill the minds of their conqnerors, whether 

 tlie European artitita could surpass or even equal 

 them ill that branch of industry. Among the 

 presents sent to Charles V. by Cortes, were Cot- 

 ton cloths of exquisite fabric, dyed in various 

 colors. Even as far north as the Mes-chacebe, 

 or Mississippi, the earlier explorers of that river 

 and its tributary streams, saw " Cotton growiug 

 wild in the codd and in great plenty."* These 

 fact.% and they might be almost indefinitely mul- 

 tiplied, are introduced to rebut the opinion, 

 founded on the negative testimony of Capt. 

 Cook, that the gossypium is not a native of die 

 Western Hemisphere. Tiiat celebrated voyager 

 found no Cotton between New-Zealand, 36° 

 South, and the Sandwich Islands, 20'^ North. In 

 addition to flax and the bark of the mulbeiTy 

 tree, in whicli Capt. Cook says the inhabitants 

 of those regions were habited, the natives nearly 

 iill over the continent certainly used, as articles of 

 dress, besides Cotton, feathers, the wool of rab- 

 bits, the niaguei, a fibrous plant, and silk grass. 

 The gossypium was cultivated by the Dutch 

 in Surinam in 173:5. The precise lime of its 

 existence, as a stajile commodity, in the West- 

 Indies is uncertain, though it probably occurred 

 early in the 17th century. The presumption is 

 against its having been the produce of Hispan- 

 iola as early as 15i)-2, as William Hawkins, the 

 Englishman, who carried to that Island a cargo 

 of negro slaves, the first ever brought to the 

 Western world, received in exchange for them 

 only, " pearls, hides, sugai' and ginger." From 

 a few of the tables of exports, to v»mich alone 

 on this head access has been had, it appears tliat, 

 in 17-26, Cotton was one of the staple crops of 

 Hispaniola.t and that, in 1753, Jamaica exported 

 '2000 bags, and, in 1768. to Great Britain and 

 Ireland, 2211 bags of 200 pounds weight, and 

 to North America 2.52t bags On an average of 

 eight years, from 1740 to 1748, among the ex- 

 l)orts of Barbadoes 600 bags of Cotton are in- 

 cluded. In 1787, the Islands of St. Domingo,^ 

 St. Chrislo|)lier, Grenada, Dominica, Antigua. 

 Montserral and Nevis, and the Virgin Islands, 

 were exporters of this commodity. Before 1B03, 

 in which year .lamaica did not grow one bag for 

 exportation, there were five varieties of gossy- 

 pium planted in the West-Indies, viz : the com- 

 mon .Tamaica, the brown-bearded, the nankeen, 

 the French or small seed, and the kidney or 

 Brazil Cotton.|| The interest on capital in the 

 raising of the lowest priced Cotton in the Brili.sh 

 West-India Islands in 178.5, '86 and '87, vi*as 14 

 per cent.,*" but in St. Domingo, where finer Cot. 

 ton was produced, applying the same calcu- 

 lations, it v/as 24 per cent.tt 



The materials for obtaining a correct know- 

 ledge of the ancient general history of Cotton 

 are so meagre that the short account ju.st con- 



* A dfiecription of the Enn;lish Province of Carolina, 

 by the Spaniard.'" called Florida, and by the French, 

 La Louisiana, by Dan. Coxo, pp. 81, 82. 



t Burke's Account of the European .Settlements in 

 America, p. 1."). 



i Edwai Js' West-Indies, vol i. p. So?. 



5 On an avcraifo of the years 1787, '88 and '80, the 

 exports off ;<)tiiui'froni the French part of St. Domingo, 

 were 6,6il8,8.')r< liis. 



II The tir!=f iiii|)ort of Cotton into England from the 

 BraziU, was in 1781. 



** Edwards' Wcst-Tiidics, vol. iii. p. 9.1. This large 

 interest was the result of the prices, viz: Is. ;M. ster- 

 ling per pound, and not rlio producaon, which ave- 

 raged only about 100 !l>s. per iicre. 



ft Ibid. The price of the Cott<,n wool of St, Do 

 minuo was 2s. pir lb. 

 (379) 



eluded embraces sub.st<uitially all that is known 

 on this interesting subject. 



Of the two kinds cultivated in the United 

 States, the green seed or short staple Cotton* is 

 derived from the Herbaceum or herbaceous 

 Cotton, and the Hirsutum or hairy American 

 Cotton : the long staple or black seed Cottont is 

 derived from the Arboreum or tree Cotton. The 

 former was certainly grown in Virginia, in a limit- 

 ed way, at least one hundred and thirty years be- 

 fore the Revolution. Several of the early Gov- 

 ernors of that Colony used diligent efforts to 

 secure the fabrication of certain articles, which, 

 it was believed, it could profitably raise ; and 

 the introduction and culture of new crops, 

 among which was Cotton ; but their designs 

 were thwarted, as well by the unjust and tyran- 

 nous conduct of the mother countiy. as by the 

 opposition of the tillers of the soil, who, in 

 a matter so important to themselves, had the 

 boldness to consult what they held to be their 

 true interests. Sir William Berkley, his De- 

 puty, Francis Morrison, and Sir Edmund An- 

 dros, were particularly prominent in not only 

 advising the people to diversify the products of 

 a the field, but to engage in the manufacture of 

 hemp, flax, salt and potash.| Resolved to make 

 a commercial profit of the plantations, Crom- 

 well, by his celebrated navigation act, prohibited 

 them from receiving or exporting any European 

 commodities, but what should becan'ied to them 

 by Englishmen or English built ship.s. They 

 were absolutely forbid corresponding with any 

 nation or colony not subject to the crown of 

 Enghmd. The restraints proving ineffectual, 

 another act in the reign of Charles II. was pass- 

 ed, by which the Colonies conld have no foreign 

 good.s, which were not first landed in England, 

 a,nd carried directly thence to the planta- 

 tions. As the effect of these edicts was to raise 

 the value of European goods, and depress that 

 of tobacco, several abortive attempts were made 

 by the Assembly of Virginia to prevent the plant- 

 ing of that crop for one year, and during that 

 time to invite the people to turn their thouirhts 

 to manufactures, and the cultivation of other 

 crops, Cotton included. ,Land being abundant, 

 and obtainable on easy terms, and the belief pre- 

 vailing that the mother country would soon re- 

 move all unnecessary restrictions on trade, and 

 promote in a more certain and permanent form 

 the culture of tobacco, they pertinaciou.sly re- 

 fused to divert their new capital into a new 

 channel, and saw no necessity for adopting the 

 last recommendation of the local govevmnent. 



* It should be CfiUed, says Dr. Ure, friuicosum, 

 shrubby, because its stem is woody iuid" not herba- 

 ceous. It is distinguished from the other .species of 

 gossypium by having the five lobes of its leaves 

 rounded imd terminated with a sharp point. Its cap- 

 suli! is three or five-ceiled ; each cell contains about 

 five seeds of an as'i color. The stems, wliich increase 

 in hardness and size with the heat of the climate, are 

 somewhat reddish neai- their lower part, velvety or 

 luiiry towards the top. and variegated with black 

 points. The branches are short ; the leaves gre<!n. 

 soft, pretty large, smd divided into five short lolies. 

 The axillaiy peduncles towards the extremity of the 

 bougbs end in a large beautiful yellow flower ; the 

 three leaflets of the ilore, or cup, are large, and deep- 

 ly-toothed on their edges. [ Ure, pp. (i\, 64. 



t Calyx cup-shapod, obtiieely five-toothed; inclosed 

 in a three-cleft exterior calyx; the lenfli'ts united at 

 their ba.«e, of a heart-shape and toothed: stiffinas 

 three to five ; capsule three to five-celled, and many 

 seeded; seeds bearing u downy wool. [ (7r<;, ;<. CO. 



1 History of Virdnia, by a native and iidiabitant of 

 the place ; published in 1722,— pp. r.O, SW, 92. 



