BAH I A— SAO FRANCISCO RIVER 109 



Barrero Grande, or Volta Grande, as it is sometimes called. 



We inspected a saw-gin sold by Schill's of Manchester. It had 

 worked for four years without attention to the saws. The gin was 

 driven by the old-fashioned arrangement, known as " bolandeiro." The 

 bales were pressed by a hand-press. The cotton varied from 15mm. 

 to 32 mm. ; it was all mixed up. 



" Inteiro " cotton was not good and the cultivator said that it 

 was easily attacked by insects. In this district the " annual " kind 

 (covered and naked seed) seemed to do better but, strange to say, 

 only two miles away from here the contrary obtained. 



Bom Jesus de Lapa : 748km. from Joazeiro, 621km. from Pirapora. 



We met a rather intelligent cultivator in this place who was able 

 to supply us with a little more information than we were able to obtain 

 in other parts along the Sao Francisco. 



As everywhere, cotton is planted with the first rains which, in 

 this district, take place in October ; it is ready for picking from May 

 but continues to give lint until September. Preference is given to 

 the " herbaceous " kinds which remain here in the ground for at least 

 two years. Undoubtedly it would be better if they were planted 

 every year and the field burnt off after the first crop, because it is in 

 the second year that the cotton worm does great damage. The 

 cultivators allege that, if in the second year the cotton worm does 

 not appear in great numbers, the yield is much higher than in the 

 first year. Information supplied to us shows that the yield per acre 

 works out to 2201b. lint in a field where Indian corn is grown as well. 

 One cotton merchant, who is also farming, maintained that if only 

 cotton were grown icithout Indian corn, the yield should be 50 per cent, 

 higher. This question of growing cotton as a mixed crop with Indian 

 corn has certain advantages for a small man, as it ensures that either 

 one or the other of the crops will turn out satisfactory, but un- 

 doubtedly the height of the Indian corn must be a disadvantage to the 

 development of the cotton plant as it prevents the circulation of light 

 and air. 



Maranhao cotton is said to be more liable to attacks of insect 

 pests. " Inteiro " cotton is well liked here. It is grown especially 

 on the islands of the river and one plant is said to yield as much as 

 8 kilos seed cotton. " Inteiro " cotton is not killed by the floods. 



Generally speaking, the more distant future of cotton in this 

 district is good, but at present there is a shortage of hands. This 

 place is the outlet of the Bella Flores and the Caitete zones. 



The " annual " plants have taken on the arboreal character. 



There was a ginning factory with 25 saws, driven by a steam 

 engine. We saw some cotton in the store, already ginned, that had 

 come on mule back a distance of 40 leguas (each legua=6-5km.) from 

 Monte Alto— Riacho de Sant Anna ; it was of an inferior kind. 



The people here believe that when an eclipse takes place during 

 the maturing of the cotton, the crop must be a poor one. The same 

 superstitious belief was expressed to us in several other parts of Brazil, 

 thousands of miles away. 



