UTILIZATION OF PIMA COTTON. V 
Table 4. — Tests of three varieties of cotton by the Bureau of Markets, United 
States Department of Agriculture, reported May 2, 1918. 
No. of yarn. 
Variety of cotton. 
Size. 
Strength. 
Stretch. 
Twist. 
80/3 
1 
1 
Sakellaridis 
80.33 
59.97 
79.54 
58.57 
78.75 
59.60 
Ounce. 
20.80 
17.45 
19.45 
17.20 
18.85 
15.48 
Per cent. 
5.80 
5.85 
7.55 
6.85 
5.83 
5.23 
20.80 
80/2 
.do 
22.20 
80/3 
Pima 
20.40 
80/2 
do 
22.05 
80/3 
Sea Island 
18.35 
80/2 
do 
20.45 
It is interesting to note that the Arizona yarns in strength value 
fall between the Sakellaridis and the Sea Island cottons. It will 
also be noted that the Arizona yarns show the greatest stretch. 
The writer visited a mill that is getting a break of 18 ounces on 
2/100 Pima yarn, tested under conditions similar to the above. 
(4) Owing to the amount of twist put into the single yarn in 
making thread and since the highest breaking strength is required 
in this branch of the trade, only very uniform cotton can be used. 
The attention of the growers is called to the fact that special methods 
of selecting and handling cotton for the thread trade must be worked 
out and followed systematically. 
(5) It is further stated that Pima yarn finer than Nos. 70 or 75 
single warps can not be woven into fabrics, as the yarn will not 
stand up under the wear and tension in weaving to which warp 
yarns are subjected; but the writer has seen Pima No. 100 single 
warps woven commercially. A sample of this is shown in Plate 
VII. 
(6) The statement that Pima yarns will not mercerize — that is, 
that they will not give as good luster as yarns made of Sakellaridis 
Egyptian cotton — was made by at least three mercerizers, but when 
asked as to the reason for this difference each gave a different inter- 
pretation. One claimed that the Pima cotton does not have the 
body and luster to start with that the Sakellaridis has. He also 
stated that the yarns made of Pima fiber seemed to absorb the 
chemicals to a greater degree than the Sakellaridis. The second mer- 
cerizer stated his belief that the fibers of Pima are much coarser 
and more wiry than Sakellaridis, which has a fine, silky, glossy 
fiber, a characteristic essential in mercerized yarns of high quality. 
He further stated that he had conducted only a small test, admitting 
that the yarns used in his test were not given twist suitable for 
mercerized yarns. The third mercerizer claimed that the fault was 
due to the chemical structure of the fiber. When the question was 
pressed upon him, he stated that these yarns could not be mercerized, 
and that it was useless to make further research for the proper chemi- 
cal solution and method for mercerizing. 
There is no objection to the quality of the mercerization as given 
to the fabrics made of Pima cotton. The main issue is that yarns 
in skeins will not mercerize. While on this investigation the writer 
inspected mercerized Pima yarns which did not have the desired 
luster, while yarns from other plants had an excellent luster, equal- 
ing that given by high-grade Sakellaridis cotton. Through the 
courtesy of manufacturers and mercerizers five comparative mer- 
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