THE TROPICAL AGEICULTURIST. [Sept, 1, 1908. 
COTTONSEED OIL. 
Not long sinoe we drew atteutioa to what m%y be 
regarded as one of the big industrial problems of the 
day in India, viz., the question aa to the possibility 
of establishing a cottonseed oil indiwtry in this 
country. We had learned from the last armnal repart 
o£ the Chamber of Commsroe at C-iwapore how the 
question, in spice of loaf< aooepted coaelmions to the 
contrary— chiefly ou the ground tho-t the .Indian seed 
was too poor in oil— seemed likely to be anwerei^ even- 
tually in the afarmative. Reference has already been 
made in these columns to the results of actual experi- 
ments by makers of cottonseed oil machinery in 
America, on a working scale, not mere laboratory in- 
vestigations, which seemed to demonstrate that Indian 
seed contained sufacient oil to make the extraction 
profitable. Farther, tha.t the same machinery and the 
same process used in the Uoited States would be 
adaptable in this country— thus disposing of another 
fallacv, for hitherto it had been held that special 
machinery would be required to manipulate Indian 
cottonseed. It was understood to bo the intention of 
Government that if these experiments in America 
proved successful, it would bear the expense of im- 
porting and ereotidga small experimental plant, while 
the Oawnpore Chamber had uniertakea to find a firm 
or concern prepared to work the oil mill in connection 
with its cotton ginnin? factory. 
Accordingly, when the Committee of the Chamber, 
in June and July last year, forwarded to the Director 
of Land Records and Agriculture, United Provinces, 
copies of the communications received from certain 
cottonseed oil machinery makers in America regarding 
the experiments made by them on Indian cottonseed, 
together with samples of the products of the same 
seed, it was recommended that on the strength ot 
these favourable reports, a small experimental oil- 
extracting plant be indented for by Gavernmant. 
Nothing more was heard about the matter till April 
last, when a communication (datad 12th April 19 J3) 
was received, through the Department from the 
Inspector-General of Agriculture, in India, to whom 
the oorrespoadence and samples had apparently been 
forwarded, in which it was intimated that it was not 
considered advisable to import into India now at 
Gover&ment expense, any machinery for extrac- 
tion of cottonseed oil as a trial, as the adaptability 
o! English or American machinery for Indian cotton- 
seed is not yet established. 
Further, that arrangements hid baen made to send 
small consignments of eaoh priacipal variety of cotton 
seed from the more important cotton growing districts 
to America for trial in American mills. And that 
these trials would be supervised by an Officer of the 
Dnited States Department of Agriculture. 
The Committee of the Chamber, in their reply, 
demur from the conclusion arrived at, viz., that " the 
adaptability of English or American machinery for 
Indian cotton seed is not yet established." They 
point to the reports received from America, already 
referred to, on the one ton sample lot representing 
average quality cottonseed grown ia the CJiuted 
Provinces, as affording reasonable grounds for behef 
in the possibilitv of a cottonseed oil industry being 
establisbed in India on a paying basis ; and the follow- 
ing extracts from the said reports are adduced in 
support of their contention : — 
The samples of cottonseed have been received, but 
it is smaller than the seed raised in this country. 
However the same process used here will bs used in 
maldng oil from the sample." 
" Our opinion is that the seed is very rich in oil, 
equal to if not better than, the American seed." 
We find that the sample seat us is if anything 
slightly richer in oil than that produced in America, 
and the same process will ba necessxry and sufficient 
to produce oil in your ooantry." 
" We think from the results that 'we have obtained 
here that we could handle Indian cottonseed and 
get the very best results from it. . . . We are 
very well satisfied that the Indian cottonseed would 
practically yield as much oil as the American 
seed." 
The Committee of the Chamber go on to say that 
the opinions expressed above may be safely accepted 
as a sufficient warrant to proceed with the investiga- 
tion, the next step in which would be the importation 
of the requisite oil extracting plant to work in con- 
nection With a cotton ginning and pressing concern; 
Further that in their opinion it would be sheer waste 
of time to send additional san.ples of Indian cotton- 
seed to America for further testing purposes. Look- 
ing to the vast importance of the whole question to 
Indi >, both from an agricultural and industrial point 
of view, the opinion is stated that it would be regret- 
ably false economy to hesitate about carrying out 
the scheme of investigation as originally proposed. 
The following particulars of exports of Indian cotto» 
seed are then quoted as demonstrating the remarkable 
growth of the over sea demand for the commodity, and 
as may be assumed, the increasing value attached to 
ib by the countries that chiefly import it ; — 
Cwts, Rg. 
1897- 1898 ... 28,367 76,307 
1898- 1899 ... 37,115 87.092 
1899- 1900 ... 43.485 97,165 
1900- 1901 ... 221,901 554.991 
1901- 1902 ... 2,036,055 4,638,153 
1902- 1903 ... 3,975,180 10,114,030 
Finally, the hope was expressed that in the light of 
the foregoing representation the Inspector- General 
of Agriculture in India might be induced to reconsi- 
der his decision. 
We certainly agree with the contentions of th« 
Chamber. It is easier to our mind to place reliance 
on the bona fides of the American makers of machinery 
who have favourably reported on cotton seed, than to 
find satisfaction in the idea of any settlement of the 
question by a further series of experiments conducted 
under the supervision of an Officer of the United States 
Department of Agriculture. The cost of importing a 
small experimental plant is a mere bagatelle, consi- 
dering the vast impsrtance of the investigation, which, 
owing to an apathy on the part of the Agricultural 
Department that seems inexplicable, has been delayed 
too long already. About 10 years ago, Dr. J. A. 
Voelcker, Consulting Chemist to the Royal Agricul- 
tural Society of England, was deputed to visit India 
to report on the possibilities of improvements of 
Indian agriculture, and his recommendations ia 
regard to oilseeds were both forcible aud explicit, yet 
they would appear to have been simply ignored. 
Referring to his report, we find how clearly this ex- 
pert demonstrated the great economic loss to the 
country by the export of this valuable commodity. 
Dr. Watt had called his attention to the fact that 
reckoning from the cotton produced and after deduct- 
ing what seed is used for home consumption and for 
sowing again, there ought to be fully 600,000 tons of 
cotton seed available for export. 
At the time ot Dr. Voelcker's visit very little cotton 
seed was being sent out ot the country, but as last year's 
exports had mounted up to nearly 200,000 tons, his 
obaervations in regard to the export ot oil seeds 
generally may appropriately be quoted in the present 
counection- 
" Now it is clear that as these seeds are for the 
greater part exported, their export must imply the 
removal of a very considerable amount of the con- 
stituents of the soil. Were they (with the exception 
of castor-oil seed) to be consumed by cattle after 
expression of the oil, the manurial constituents 
would be returned to the soil from which they were 
drawn, and the balance of fertility might ba main- 
