COTTOX CULTURE. 159 



about two-thirds of all the cotton brought into England, 

 was from the United States. At present, or rather at the 

 outbreak of the late Civil War, England was dependent 

 on America for seven-eighths of her cotton supply. From 

 1806 to 1830, the crop of the United States did not vary 

 greatly from a million of bales annually. From 1830 to 

 1840 there was a steady increase, though not without fluc- 

 tuations produced by unfavorable seasons, until, in the lat- 

 ter year (1840,) for the first time, the crop went a little 

 over two millions. 



Between 1840 and 1850 the annual crop ranged between 

 two and three millions, except on three years, when it fell 

 back to about a million and three-quarters. The crop of 

 1852 was the first in America that ever went over three 

 millions. From that time to the crash of the cotton in- 

 terest, produced by the war ten years after, the crop 

 ranged between three and three and a half millions, ex- 

 cept on three years, as in the former decade, .when, on ac- 

 count of an unfavorable season or the worm, it fell below 

 two millions. The cotton interest was never so thriving 

 as immediately before the war. By the law of increase 

 which we have observed in the foregoing statistics, the 

 crop of 1862 should have been four millions of bales, and 

 by the same law should, in four or five years from now, 

 (1867) be approximating, at least, to five millions of bales. 

 A similar increase may be noted in the average price of 

 cotton per pound as in the amount produced; but the 

 fluctuations here have been much greater. The highest 

 price realized for any crop previous to the war was for 

 that of 1820, the highest grades of which sold on an aver- 

 age for about thirty-four cents per pound. It fell away in 

 1830 and 1832 to nine cents as an average price, and then 

 continued to rise until 1836, the crop of which year sold 

 for nearly seventeen cents per pound ; after which there 

 was a general though fluctuating decline, the lowest price 

 being realized for the crops of 1843, 1845, and 1849, 



