COTTON 353 



varieties produce the highest valued staples, and naturally 

 in many instances they have been the first tested in new 

 centres of production. 



The experiences of Nyasaland with Egyptian cotton 

 have been most disappointing, and it has now been proved 

 for all time that it is impossible to cultivate Egyptian 

 cotton with any degree of success at elevations over 

 1,000 ft.; and further, on account of the general infection 

 of bacterial blight throughout the heavier soils of the 

 Shire valley, the only place where Egyptian cotton can 

 be profitably grown is on limited areas of light soil in the 

 Lower Shire and Ruo Districts; and for these reasons 

 Egyptian cotton gives little indication of ever becoming 

 an extensive cultivation in Nyasaland. 



Of the two remaining types, viz., long staple Upland 

 and short staple Upland, the former has given such good 

 results that experiments with the latter have been dis- 

 carded; and in the progeny of the American long staple 

 variety " Floradora," originally imported some ten years 

 ago, and now thoroughly acclimatized, we have an 

 excellent type of cotton known as Nyasaland Upland, 

 and when grown from carefully selected seed produces 

 fibre which, in years of small Egyptian crops, can be 

 used for mixing with Abassi; and, in years of plentiful 

 Egyptian cotton is easily absorbed by the fine spinners 

 and velvet manufacturers at a remunerative premium of 

 2d. to 2-Jd. on Middling American, or in round figures 

 8d. to Qd. per Ib. (is. to is. 2jd. per Ib. was paid for 

 choice consignments when Egyptian cotton was scarce in 

 1909-10). 



In 1909 the brokers reported that they considered 

 Nyasaland Upland to be the finest cotton ever grown 

 from Upland seed and imported into Liverpool from 

 America or anywhere else, and, immediately on receiving 

 this report, the writer induced Sir Alfred Sharpe (then 

 Governor) to issue a Proclamation stopping the importa- 

 tion of seed from America, and since 1910 no Upland seed 

 other than that imported by the Director of Agriculture 

 for experiment has been allowed entry to the Protectorate, 

 and we have now a uniform type of cotton and no further 

 complaints regarding mixed staples. 



