250 COTTON 
by his rival with his bullish reports given in the 
hope that prices may advance to his profit. 
It is to the Government we must look for esti- 
mates of such a character that they may be de- 
pended upon for accuracy and reliability. Besides, 
the Government is impartial and aims to protect 
both producer and consumer, since both contribute 
to its machinery, and for them it partially exists. 
WHY THE GOVERNMENT GATHERS STATISTICS 
To the Department of Agriculture is intrusted 
this work; to no other Department of the Govern- 
ment could it be more safely and wisely left; by no 
other Department can the condition of the growing 
crop be so accurately and completely ascertained. 
The purpose of the Government’s cotton reports 
is to ascertain the actual facts as to the acreage, 
growing condition, and the prospective yield of the 
crop. Its general aims may be enumerated as fol- 
lows: 
1. To give information to producers, consumers 
and dealers as to actual yields; also to report as 
to the actual conditions of promise. 
2. To enable market centers to better balance 
supply against demand in defining what prices are 
warranted by natural conditions. 
3. To insure whatever stability of prices a chang- 
ing state of natural conditions allows. 
4. To be so certainly authentic and comprehen- 
sive and definite for entire crop areas that interested 
parties cannot well credit nor warp the figures with 
their own estimates, and thus bring about unstable 
markets. 
5. To enable producers to know the facts as to 
the promise of prices for the crop, that false re- 
