THE PRINCIPAL SPECIE'S OF COTTON ' 37 



is a distinctly Oriental species comprising the chief vari- 

 eties of cotton grown throughout India. It is also met 

 with in Ceylon and the Malay Archipelago. 



The plants are rather small, shrubby, and much- 

 branched, the branches being rather slender. The leaves 

 are small and possess from three to five obtuse lobes. 

 The flowers range in color from bright yellow to purple. 

 Indian cotton is less productive than American short- 

 staple cotton and the lint is of an inferior grade. 



,42. Bengal cotton (Gossypium arboreum). — This is 

 another important cotton of the Orient, .especially of 

 India. Ordinarily the plants grow to be much larger 'than 

 any of the other important species described. The lint 

 is short and of a very inferior grade. 



