12 BULLETIN 644, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
caution, since it is misleading if used except in connection with the 
lint index. 
(2) An increase in the percentage of lint may be due entirely to 
a reduction in the size of the seed without change in the quantity of 
fiber. 
(3) The lint index is a measure of the abundance of the fiber 
rather than a measure of the relation between the weight of the fiber 
and the weight of the seed, as is the percentage of lint. 
(4) The lint index determines the number of bolls yielding a 
pound of fiber. The number of seeds and of bolls required to produce 
1 pound of fiber is constant for all varieties of cotton that have the 
same lint index, regardless of the percentage of lint. 
(5) An increase in the lint index is correlated with an increase in 
the weight of the seeds and reduces the number of bolts required to 
produce a pound of fiber. 
(6) The lint index is an important factor in the cost of cotton pro- 
duction. An increase of a single gram in the weight of the fiber 
per hundred seeds, without change in the percentage of lint, mate- 
rially reduces the labor of picking cotton. The efficiency of the 
pickers also is thereby increased. 
(7) It is essential that a planter know the lint index of a variety. 
as well as the percentage of lint, in choosing a variety to be planted. 
(8) Simple methods for ascertaining the lint index, the lint per- 
centage, and the weight of seeds are described, and tables to simplify 
computation are given. 
(9) The importance is shown of using a standard specimen of 
100 grams of seed cotton in making determinations of lint percent- 
ages, lint indexes, and the weights of seeds. 
(10) A method is described by which a planter, without special 
apparatus, may estimate the lint index and the size of the seed of 
a variety of cotton by counting the number of seeds in 3-J ounces of 
seed cotton and referring to the tables in this bulletin. 
WASHINGTON ;<>v;.::\MEVI PRINTING OFFICE : 191-i 
