1815-49.] AMEEICAN PLANT IN INDIAN SEASONS. 69 



American Planter, had asserted that the climate of the 

 Camatie was much too dry ; and that we could not 

 expect to succeed in the culture of American Cotton, 

 excepting in such places as partook of the gee paras, 

 rains of both monsoons. This theory how- 127, iss. ' 

 ever was completely disproved, and the opposite one 

 established. The experiment already indicated was 

 tried in the Camatie at a season when the American 

 plant had to struggle against a four-months' uninter- 

 rupted drought, a very rare circumstance ; but even 

 Tinder such unusual conditions, the plant not only sur- 

 vived the unusual drought, but when th§ rain did fall, 

 it grew vigorously and produced a good crop. This 

 result is further confirmed by a comparison of the 

 monthly mean falls 'of rain in Florida and Madras 

 during the Cotton-growing seasons in both countries ; 

 from which it will be seen that the climate of the Car- 

 natic as compared with that of the Cotton-growing 

 country of Horida, is the more humid of the two. 



Two Methods of cultivating American Cotton in 110 

 India : adaptation of seasons, and artificial irrigation. 



• — Two methods suggested themselves for adapting the 

 American Cotton plant to the Indian seasons. 1st, 

 The arrangement of sowing seasons already indicated 

 in the localities under the influence of the north-east 

 ■monsoon, or under the influence of both monsoons ; 

 namely, that of employing the earlier weeks of the 

 regular autumnal period as the Cotton spring season, 

 the later weeks and part of winter as the Cotton sum- 

 mer season, and the conclusion of winter and part of 

 spring as the Cotton autumn. 2nd, The employment 

 of irrigation as in Egypt ; by which course the Indian 

 cultivator would be comparatively independent of the 

 seasons, as by sowing in .November he would secure 



