16 BULLETIN 1111, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
Mexico, is even more hardy and resistant to extremes of dry weather 
or short-season conditions. The wide range of adaptation is im- 
portant as showing that production may be standardized on the basis 
of a few important, commercial types with locally selected strains. 
On the other hand, it has not proved practicable to transfer the 
Egyptian cotton from Arizona to the eastern cotton belt, or even to 
Texas, or to extablish the Mississippi Valley " Peeler " or " Delta " 
varieties of long-staple Upland cotton in the Southwestern States. 
The Egyptian cotton finds favorable conditions in the irrigated 
valleys of Arizona and California, while in Texas and farther east 
it is much more susceptible than Upland cotton to the black-arm 
disease. On the other hand, the Upland cottons when planted in the 
southwestern vallej^s suffer worse than the Egyptian type from the 
blasting and shedding of buds and young bolls. Moreover, the 
short-staple Upland varieties from the Southeastern States are more 
affected by extreme conditions in Texas, Arizona, and California 
than are the Texas big-boll varieties. As a result of repeated com- 
parisons in many localities for more than a decade, greater resistance 
to drought or other unfavorable conditions may be claimed for the 
Upland varieties that have come from Mexico and Central America, 
which seem likely to displace the eastern short-staple varieties. 
In view of the wide availability of better varieties* no agricultural 
reasons can be alleged for continuing to produce in the United States 
cotton of less than an inch staple, nor do there appear to be any in- 
dustrial or general economic reasons for holding to the short and 
inferior fiber that still forms a large proportion of the American cot- 
ton crop. Not only resources and labor of production are wasted 
in being applied to inferior varieties and mongrel seed stocks, but 
enormous industrial and economic wastes are involved in the manu- 
facture and use of weaker and less durable fabrics. 
A widely different policy needs to be established in relation to cot- 
ton varieties to give production the best footing. Any variety that 
is to be used properly and effectively must be kept by itself instead of 
being mixed and mongrelized by crossing with other kinds, since it 
is out of the question that high-quality production should be based 
on the use of several varieties together in the same communities. 
Frequent change of varieties is also inconsistent with the true inter- 
ests of the producers. Full market recognition of the superior qual- 
ity of any local product is not to be expected until time has elapsed, 
to allow the article to become appreciated and a reputation estab- 
lished. Obviously, it is impossible for any cotton-growing commu- 
nity or district to gain such recognition if varieties are changed fre- 
quently. As far as possible, the practical interest of each community 
should remain focused on a single variety and changes made only 
