2 BULLETIN 146, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



averaging about 400 pounds each, which is next to the largest yield 

 on record; that the average price per pound for Georgias and Floridas 

 was 20.41 cents * and for South Carolinas 23.73 cents; that consump- 

 tion was unprecedented at 123,145 bales, 2 and that the season ended 

 with a small stock, 5,533 bales, 3 carried over. 



The crop of 1912-13 was only 73,777 bales, averaging about 382 

 pounds each, of which only about 68,080 3 reached the chief interior 

 markets and seaports. The average price of Georgias and Floridas 

 was 19.50 cents and for South Carolinas 25 cents. Consumption was 

 only 58,019 bales, 2 and the stock at the end of the season stood at the 

 highest figure on record, 15,639 bales. 3 



It will be noted that the crop of 1912-13 was, roughly, three-fifths 

 of that of the preceding year, that prices were lower, and that exports 

 decreased fully 20 per cent from those of the previous year. Attention 

 is called especially to the fact that the American takings of Sea Island 

 for 1911-12 were 102,846 bales, 3 against 41,899 3 for 1912-13, a de- 

 crease of nearly 60 per cent within a year. When calculated on the 

 percentage of the entire Sea Island crop purchased by American mills, 

 the takings show 83.79 per cent for 1911-12 against 56.79 per cent 



during 1912-13. 



EGYPTIAN COMPETITION. 



A glance at Table IV, which shows the imports of Egyptians into 

 the United States, will demonstrate that no great increase has been 

 made in the importation of that cotton by domestic mills. While the 

 year 1912-13 exhibits an increase of about 6,400 bales over the year 

 before, imports are 1,548 bales less than in 1910-11. In other words, 

 the importations of Egyptian cotton into the United States were 

 practically uniform during the past three years. 



As Egyptian bales usually weigh about 750 pounds each, while Sea 

 Island bales average only 382, it is necessary to reduce both kinds 

 of bales to a common unit of weight for the purposes of comparison 

 and addition. Accordingly, the usual 500-pound bale has been 

 adopted. Table V is presented in this connection and shows the 

 actual consumption of the various commercial varieties of cotton in 

 the United States for the years 1911, 1912, and 1913. It is difficult 

 to reconcile this table with the tables showing spinners'' takings, and 

 no attempt is here made to do so, but the figures of Table V are 

 accepted as true and accurate, as they were issued by the Census 

 Bureau after careful investigation. From this table it may easily be 

 determined that the total consumption of Sea Island and Egyptian for 

 1912-13 was 243,118 equivalent 500-pound bales, against 256,293 for 

 the year 1911-12, thus showing a decrease of 13,175 bales in the con- 

 sumption of extra-long staple in the United States during 1912-13. 



1 All figures, unless otherwise specified, are from Census Bureau. 



2 Obtained by adding American consumption and exports; Gordon's figures. 



3 Gordon's figures obtained from Table I of appendix. 



