2 BULLETIN 366, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
Textile School, Xew Bedford, Mass., on two separate lots of cotton. 
a portion of each lot having been fumigated with hydrocyanic-acid 
gas under the supervision of the Federal Horticultural Board. In 
each lot the fumigated cotton was compared with nonfumigated 
cotton of the same lot. 
The principal points taken into consideration during the spinning 
tests to determine whether the fibers were injured by the fumigation 
were (1) the percentage of waste, (2) the spinning qualities, (3) the 
tensile strength of the yarn. During the laboratory tests the follow- 
ing points were considered: (l) The bleaching properties of both 
the cotton and yarn, (5) the dyeing properties of the cotton and 
yarn, and (6) the mercerizing properties of the yarn. 
In addition to the manufacturing tests, made by the Department 
of Agriculture, a number of manufacturing firms that regularly use 
foreign-grown cotton conducted tests in order to ascertain whether 
the fumigation of cotton with Irydrocyanic-acid gas proved detri- 
mental to their product. These tests were conducted in cooperation 
with officials of the Department of Agriculture. 
Several manufacturing companies also sent yarns to Washington 
which were tested in the yarn testing laboratory of the Department 
of Agriculture for tensile strength. Two of these firms sent com- 
plete reports which included the comparative waste percentages of 
fumigated and nonfumigated cotton as found by them. 
STOCK OF COTTON. 
In the tests conducted by the Department of Agriculture the first 
lot consisted of two 50-pound samples, one taken from a fumigated 
bale and one from a nonfumigated bale. Both bales were of Sakel- 
laridis Egyptian cotton 1J inch in length of staple. The fumigated 
bale was fumigated with hydrocyanic-acid gas on at least five dif- 
ferent occasions in a vacuum of 27 inches. The amount of sodium 
cyanide employed varied from 3 to 10 ounces per 100 cubic feet 
of chamber space with exposures ranging from thirty minutes to one 
hour. The volume of gas which penetrated this bale was fully ten 
times as much as that ordinarily used in accordance with the regu- 
lations prescribed by the Federal Horticultural Board. All other 
fumigated cotton referred to in this publication was exposed to 
hydrocyanic-acid gas in the presence of a 20-inch vacuum with 3 
ounces of sodium c}^anide per 100 cubic feet of chamber space with 
an exposure of one-half hour. The second lot consisted of 50-pound 
samples from each of six bales of Sakellaridis Egj^ptian cotton of 
1J inches in length of staple. 
Three of the bales were fumigated and three bales were non- 
fumigated. In the selection of the fumigated and nonfumigated 
cotton a careful comparison was made of grade and staple in order 
to secure equal values. 
