COTTON PRODUCTION 339 



On an average 1500 pounds of seed cotton make a 500-pound bale and 

 1000 pounds of seed. When the seed passes through an oil -mill, it pro- 

 duces about 150 pounds crude oil, 337 pounds meal, 500 pounds hulls and 

 13 pounds linters. 



Storing. — After the cotton is ginned, the bales may be marketed at 

 once, or stored on the farm or in a public warehouse. The bales of cotton 

 are often left lying about the ginhouse or homes, exposed to the weather. 

 As a result of the weather, their covering becomes badly damaged and the 

 lint tinged with a bluish color, and the buyer "docks" them to cover the 

 damage. 



Bales of cotton should be stored under a shed on timber to prevent 

 their touching the damp ground and absorbing moisture. In many markets 

 are large public warehouses where cotton can be weighed, stored and 

 insured at a small cost per bale. 



Before selling a bale, a sample of lint is drawn from each covered side 

 and placed together as a sample of the bale. The buyer judges its grade 

 and makes a bid. The price is based on the grade and the demand for that 

 grade of cotton in the markets. Most farmers do not know the grade of 

 their cotton, as it takes expert knowledge to classify cotton correctly. 

 They accept the highest price bid on the cotton as the top of the market 

 for that grade. Where a large number of bales are offered in the market, 

 often an expert grader is employed to classify the cotton, which method 

 usually gives satisfaction to seller and buyer. 



When a foreign or domestic mill wishes a quantity of a given grade, an 

 order is placed with an agent, and this agent goes to the warehouses or 

 dealers and buys the grades desired. If the bales have to be shipped far, 

 they are sent to the compress, where the size is greatly reduced by a 

 powerful press and thereby the cost of transportation is reduced. 



Grades of Cotton. — The grades of cotton depend mainly on (1) color 

 of fiber, (2) amount of trash, and (3) quality of ginning. A high grade 

 requires that the fiber be white, with a slightly creamy tinge, strong and 

 free from trash or dirt. When the cotton shows a yellowish or bluish tinge, 

 the fiber usually is not strong; immaturity or exposure to the weather are 

 the usual causes for this condition. To get a high grade, the farmer should 

 pick the cotton from only the fully opened and matured bolls, and pick 

 it free from trash and dirt. 



There are seven primary grades in the commercial classification of lint 

 cotton. They are named in the order of value: (1) "fair," (2) "middling 

 fair," (3) "good middling," (4) "middling," (5) "low middling," (6) 

 "good ordinary," (7) "ordinary." The half grades, which lie between the 

 primary grades are named by prefixing the word "strict" to the name of 

 the next lower grade, as "strict good middling," which is a half grade better 

 than "good middling." The telegraphic dispatches from the cotton 

 exchanges quote prices on "middling," and the prices of better and lower 

 grades are calculated on the basis of "middling." 



