COTTON. 191 



HARVESTING is commenced when the bolls have begun to 

 expand and the cotton is protruded, and this is continued 

 from time to time as the bolls successively ripen and burst 

 their capsules. It is done entirely by hand, the picker pass- 

 ing between two rows and gleaning from each. The cotton 

 is placed in a bag capable of containing 15 or 20 Ibs. which 

 is hung upon his shoulders or strapped upon his breast. 

 These are emptied into large baskets which are taken, when 

 filled, to the gin-house. We quote again from Dr. Philips : 

 *' Having all things ready for picking cotton, I commence as 

 usual early, as soon as the hands can gather even 20 Ibs. 

 each. This is advisable, not only in saving a portion of that 

 from being destroyed, if rains should fall, which often do at 

 this season (about the middle of August,) but for another rea- 

 son ; passing through the cotton has a tendency to open out 

 to sun and air the limbs that have interlocked across the 

 rows, and hastens the early opening. On low grounds, espe- 

 cially, much loss is incurred in some seasons from the want 

 of the sun to cause an expansion of the fibre within the boll, 

 so as to cause it to open. The boll is composed of five di- 

 visions, in each of which there is a parcel of cotton wool 

 surrounding each seed, there being several in each lock of 

 cotton. When green, these fibres lie close to the seed, and 

 as it ripens, the fibres become elastic, the boll becoming 

 hard and brownish. The Sea Island has only three divisions, 

 as also the Egyptian, which is only the Sea Island of the best 

 variety, with black seed, smooth, and a yellowish tuft of fibres 

 on the small end ; they are both from Pernambuco. Some 

 of the cotton we plant has only four divisions, but I think five 

 generally. There is a peculiar art in gathering the cotton 

 from the boll, which, like handling stock, can only be acquired 

 by practice ; many gather equally fast with either hand. The 

 left hand seizes the stem near the open boll, or the boll be- 

 tween the t\vo middle fingers, the palm of the hand up ; the 

 fingers of the right hand are inserted tolerably low down in 

 the boll, a finger on each lock of cotton ; then, as the fin- 

 gers grasp it, there is a slight twisting motion, and a quick 

 pull, which, if done well, will extract the contents, the boll 

 being open, and the bottom of the locks not gummy to adhere. 



There is a vast difference in hands not the quickest making 

 the best pickers a steady, clocklike motion, with some 

 quickness, is necessary to gather fast. A neighbor of mine, 

 when a young man, some ten years since, gathered 400 Ibs.,, 

 which was at that time the best I had known ; this has beea 



