105 — 
“ From the above report yon will see that quality generally is good — 
but I regret the seed got mixed — probably through mistakes in 
transport or if in single bags some broke and seed became mixed. 
“ The outturn in ginning I consider good and the seed I notice 
deteriorates but very little as you can see — though with that of 
Stanton Bey’s I examined with you last year, the deterioration was, 
if I remember right, something like 10 °/ 0 in one year. The seed from 
the non irrigated Sudan (I suppose near Khartoum) though from good 
Afifi seed, almost becomes unfit for sowing and the quality of this 
cotton had a very poor outturn of about 73 °/ 0 . 
“ Rain crops cannot be depended on, because if no rain for some 
time the quality will be totally spoilt. 
“ I fail to find any trace of sand in the samples — though the common 
Sudan non-irrigated cotton was very dirty and sandy.” 
The following extracts from a letter written to me by Ibrahim 
Effendi Fahmy, originally a student of the Cairo Agricultural College 
and at the time of writing Government agriculturist at Khartoum and 
on leave in Cairo, will be found interesting. 
“ There are three seasons in the Sudan, which are different from 
those in Egypt. The seasons are : — 1st the winter which extends 
from the 1st November to the end of February, in this season wheat, 
beans, barley onions, Indian corn and millets are planted : 2nd, the 
summer which extends from 1st March to the 15th June, in this season, 
practically speaking, nothing is planted except a small quantity of 
millets, and in the middle of the season from the 1st May to the 
15th June all agricultural work is stopped owing to the great heat 
and deficiency of water: and 3rd, the flood season or “Demera” from 
the 1 5 J une to the end of October ; in this season the rains fall, the 
Nile rises and the heat is decreased, two crops of millets can be taken 
and cotton, sesame and earthnuts are sown. 
“ Manures are the same as in Egypt. 
“ Cotton sown in March, April and May needs so much water through 
the summer that its cost is prohibitive. In the really hot weather it 
must be irrigated every three days. High winds and rain hurt the first 
open pods, and the pickings are on the 20th August, 20th September 
and 15th October. After 22 waterings a good field will give 4 \ cwt. 
per acre. 
“ Cotton sown in June and July has an even, regular growth. The 
rains and moisture in the air encourage the growth of the plant. 
