4 BULLETIN 121, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
The Durango is a variety developed by the Department of Agri- 
culture from a selection made from cotton which came originally 
from the State of Durango in Mexico. The staple of the bale tested 
was 1 1% inches and the grade good middling. 
The bale of Columbia from Easley, S. C, was from a selected 
strain of that variety carefully bred by Mr. Carpenter. It stapled 
1 T 3 6 inches and graded strict good middling. The season had been 
adverse in this locality, and this cotton was not as long as is fre- 
quently produced by the same strain under more favorable conditions. 
The bale of Lewis cotton was obtained from the originator of 
this variety, who is unable to give a detailed account of its origin 
bej^ond the fact that it was developed from a single plant which 
is believed to have been originally of Delta stock. The entire pro- 
duction of this variety has up to the present time been consumed by 
local mills. The bale tested stapled a full 1 T 5 F inch and graded good 
middling. 
The Webber variety has been developed by Mr. D. R. Coker, of 
Hartsville, S. C. The original plant was selected from the Colum- 
bia variety and was pointed out to Mr. Coker by Dr. H. J. Webber, 
then of the Bureau of Plant Industry, as closely approximating his 
ideal of what a Columbia cotton plant should be. By systematic 
selection Mr. Coker has decidedly improved the length of the staple 
and has named his strain " Webber " in honor of the originator of 
the Columbia variety. 
It is fair to state that other strains of Columbia in the hands of 
skillful breeders have shown similar improvement over the original 
type. The two bales of Webber tested were grown under high 
fertilization and intensive cultivation by an excellent farmer and 
represent what may be expected of this variety under favorable 
cultural conditions. The} 7 graded middling and each stapled lj% 
inches. 
After the bale of Durango cotton was purchased it was brought to 
the attention of the department that the grower had not been taking 
measures to maintain the purity or standard of the variety, but had 
grown it for a number of years in fields adjacent to short-staple 
varieties. This may account in some measure for die large per- 
centage of short fiber found. It was. however, then too late in the 
season to secure a bale of better parentage. 
SOIL TYPES REPRESENTED. 
The Durango grew on Texas river-bottom land heretofore given 
over entirely to the production of short staples. The Lewis and 
Columbia were grown in the Piedmont section of North Carolina 
and South Carolina at elevations of 800 feet or more, while the 
Webber was produced in the level, Pee Dee River section of the 
