74 COTTON IN THE MADRAS PRESIDENCY. [CH. III. 



Pari. Return * n orc * er tnat some conclusive result should 

 (1847), p. 398. be arrived at respecting the merits of the 

 article. This necessitated large purchases 

 of Native seed, Cotton from the Ryots, for the purpose 

 of submitting it to the action of Dr. Wight's saw gins 

 Pari Return at Coimbatore. In 1846-47 nearly £1200 

 (]857), pp. or 12,000 rupees were expended ; in 1847-48 

 140-143. t]ie piirc h ages reached £2100, and in 

 1848-49 they amounted to nearly £2600. 

 121 Proposition for reducing the assessment of lands 

 under American Cotton cultivation.— In 1847, the 

 Letter of Manchester Association had recommended 

 Mr. Aspinaii that the whole of the 6000 bales should 

 Feb"i847? th cous i st of American Cotton. Accordingly 

 Pari.' Return Dr. Wight began to consider how to extend 

 (1847), p. 424. the cu i tivation of tlie foreign article. He 



at once made known to the local merchants who fre- 

 quented the gin-house, that he was in expectation of 

 orders for stopping the purchase of Native Cotton; 



and he again offered to supply American 



Etterfilth 8 see( * an( * to purchase the produce, but 

 June,'i847. without any apparent success. Accord- 

 ^im^m. m gty ne proposed that a remission of 25 

 per cent, should be made, for a term of 

 three or five years, on all lands under American Cotton 

 Mr Wrough- cultivation. Mr. Wroughton, the Collector 

 ton's letter, of Coimbatore, stated in reply, that in 1833, 

 i847. J parL Government had offered to remit one half 

 Return of the fixed assessment on the same pro- 

 (1857), p. 156. v - g0 . but that even that larger encourage- 

 ment had failed to produce any extension of the cul- 

 tivation, and therefore Government had deemed it 

 inexpedient to continue the indulgence. Mr. Wrough- 

 ton at the same time expressed an opinion that any 

 such interference with the long-standing survey settle- 

 ment of the district was a very dangerous and doubtful 

 experiment, and likely to be productive of much con- 

 fusion and irregularity ; and he suggested that if the 

 amount of the proposed remission of 25 per cent, 

 should be deemed necessary for the extension of the 

 American Cotton cultivation, the amount should be 



