68 COTTON IN THE MA.DBAS PRESIDENCY. [CH. III. 



the heavy rains of the south-west monsoon, when 

 those of the north-east were quite sufficient. By- 

 sowing in July and August the plant escaped the 

 heavy rains of the south-west monsoon, and partook 

 of the lighter rains of the north-east. Whereas by 

 sowing earlier, the south-west monsoon brought the 

 plants into full bearing just at the setting in of the 

 north-east monsoon, which injured all the pods just 

 as they were ready to burst. On the whole, Dr. Wight 

 was not at this period very favourably disposed to- 

 wards localities enjoying the benefits of both mon- 

 soons. He anticipated more certain advantages from 

 lands near the coast, which were subject to one mon- 

 soon only, and which therefore did not perplex the 

 grower by compelling him to adjust his operations, so 

 as to avail himself of a double series of insufficient 

 rains in the place of one ample monsoon. 



105 Large experiment in early sowing throughout the 

 Cotton Districts in the Madras Presidency.— The ex- 

 Returns periment of sowing the seed of American 

 from the Cotton in the early spring rains had been 

 several Col- g0 strongly urged by the Manchester Asso- 



lectors, Pari. ... b J, - & , , J . , , 



"Return ciation, and had been so strongly approved 

 (1857), pp. b y the Court of Directors, that notwith- 

 standing the experience of former trials, 

 Dr. Wight did not hesitate to try the experiment on 

 the largest possible scale. Accordingly, American seed 

 was distributed to the Collectors at all the Cotton- 

 growing districts throughout the Madras Presidency, 

 and again distributed by them to Native cultivators 

 in the different talooks. The results induced Dr. 

 Dr Wi ht's Wight to regard this experiment as the 

 letter, 26th most instructive that had ever been made ; 



Pari! r©?" an ^ one wn i cn kd to a f ar better know- 

 turn (1857), ledge of the principles of the culture of the 

 p ' m American Cotton plant in India than had 



then been attained. 



106 First result: India not too hot, but too cold. — The 

 experiment of sowing in May was tried over a wide 

 extent of country, and seemed to establish the follow- 

 ing important facts. In the first place, it was seen 



