The Sun.
London, England, 1861-10-30 00:00:00

7HE PERENNIAL COTTON THE OF
PERU.

(From the London American of this day.)
It may appear anomalous to many that while we
profess to be an unswerving advocate of American
interests we should say anything to deprecate the
products of the United States. Let it be remem-
bered, however, that although oar columns are
almost exclusively devoted to such affairs as arra
directly or relatively important to the people of thJe
United States, we are decidedly opposed to all mono..
polies, no matter of what origin. The cultivation r,f
the cotton plant may be considered an Amerirß,u
monopoly, inso much as the manufacturers of that
article have depended almost entirely upon the
Southern States. The few hundred thousand bales,
more or less, contributed by India—the littla more
than specimens received from Jam aica,San Domingo,
Africa, Southern and Central America can, by
no
means bo considered in the light of competition.
For all the effect that the cotton of these countries
has had upon the market, thus far the rebel States
may still consider themselves without a rival. lied
their greed of gain, and lust for powerand dominion
been commensurate with a moderate knowledge
of the world outside, they might still have con-
tinued for an almost indefinite period in undis_

4urbed possession of this rich field of industry-.
Now their downfall is certain. Necessity
will accomplish what principle has too long neg..
lected---Lancashire will depend no longer upon
South Carolina, nor Lyons upon Louisiana, nor
Lowell upon Alabama. The capacities of British
India will be carefully consulted, the rich soil of
Honduras will be anxiously questioned ; San
Domingo will be inquired after, and Jamaica will
respond to her fullest extent. These are fields
whose possibilities for cotton growing are not by
any means novel. The first two, properly looked
after, might supply the world ; the others with
several portions of Africa and Australia will
doubtless become valuable auxiliaries.
Our purpose at this time is not to extol any one
of them, but to call attention to a species of cotton
which is just now exciting a good deal of attention
in the United States—a cottoii tree which may be
grown in any climate where Indian corn will
ma-
ture. It is known botanically as the Gossypiune
Arboreunz, is a perennial, and was brought from
Peru by Mr. Kendall, a native of Maryland. Mr.
Kendall found it growing wild in the cold,
rough mountainous districts, as well as in the sultry
lowlands of that country, and, upon his return to
the United States, he transported a number of the
plants. The experiment inaugurated by him has pro-
duced the most satisfactory results. His cotton
trees thrive as well on his farm in Maryland as
do the annual plants in Georgia and Mississippi.
A few evenings ago Mr. Kendall delivered a lec-
ture before a scientific audience in New York,
upon his Peruvian cotton tree. He gives an in-
teresting account of his valuable discovery :
" Several years ago, while an employ 6 in the Patent
Office," says Mr. Kendall, "I received and accepted a tempt..
ing offer from a Chilian gentleman of wealth, Senor Also-
gara, to conduct certain matters on his estates. One holiday
morning not very long after my arrival at my temporary
South American home, I set out on horseback along the
course of a modest little river called the Chipura, and
forming the boundary between semi-civilisation and the
territory of the Ypurian savages. Resolved to explore as
much of my patron's domain as the brief Nay day would
allow, I pushed briskly forward over the already frozen
ground, covered fetlock deep with newly fallen snow, fol-
lowing the windings of the stream, whose ledgy banks of
dark rock generally thrust back, as it were, by alluvial bot-
toms from one to nree hundred yards distant, indicating
that the Chipura had one day been a river of ten times its
present volume. After a ride of some two hours, in
doubling an abrupt turn where the rocks approached
very near the water, I came suddenly into full view
of an object some 200 yards distant, which presented the
most magnificent spectacle I had ever seen—a perfect cone
or pyramid of pure, brilliant snow, elevated at its base per-
haps seven feet from the ground, upon a shaft of whitish
b-onze ; the whole structure cut clear and sharp against the
dark wall of rock in the back ground. I had in northern
countries, after a calm fall of snow, seen many a white
pyramid, having an internal structure of pine or spruce,
but knowing that in the present instance the snow had
fallen during a violent gale, and observing that none of the
pines about me bore any traces cf it upon their branches,
I rode forward in semi-bewilderment to investigate tho
phenomenon.

" It resolved itself, as I drew near, in a most perfect speci-
men of the Gossypierm Ardoreum, the perennial cotton tree.
Its foliate had long been shed, but the pods remained,
having fully burst, and turned out their spotless samples in
almost perfect roses, covering the entire structure with a
dense mass of spotless, glossy cotton. I had often seen
and examined indifferent specimens of the perennial cotton
shrub, but I had never seen anything even approaching in
perfection that solitary tree.
" The remainder of that, and many a saint day there-
after, was devoted to intimate companionship with, and
diligent study of the habits, peculiarities, and general
economy of the beautiful solitai) e of the Chipura,
"In its native condition, and in the higher
southern latitudes, the average size and altitude of
the Gossypium Arbereum equal the medium peach
tree of North America--say eight inches in diameter
at two feet from the ground, and in height twenty
feet ; in its general structure more nearly resembling
the white rnulberry than any other tree with which I ant
familiar. The leavlk are abundant, distinctly denticulated,
and of a glossy, silvery green. Flowers profuse, very
double, varigated, and in size about a third smaller than
the perfected hollyhock, the tree when in full bloom pre-
senting one of the most beautiful effects imaginable. The
bolls at maturity are twice the size of those borne by the
herbaceous plant, and wherever it approached the colder
regions, I found the fiber finer and the length of the staple
increased.
" The perennial cotton tree is propagated from seed, or
snore readily from cuttings simply thrust into the ground,
and possesses this peculiar advantage in any country over
the herbaceous plant. It may be planted oat as an apple,
peach, or pear orchard, and the field cropped with any of
the cereals, until the tree, having reached its maximum
standard, should entirely occupy the land. It bears cutting
as kindly as any known tree, and in field culture may always
be kept so pruned that its produce shall be within reach of
the hand."

Mr. Kendall reperts that he has seen one tree
capable
,of producing not less than one hundred
pounds, and in relation to its adaptability to
Northern latitudes, says :

" Two-thirds of the present free States of the Union
possess the requisite of soil—several of them in an
eminent degree ; and there is no well-founded
reason why they should not afford an unlimited
supply of cotton, equalling in quality the best south-
ern staple, and at a clear profit to the producer of fifty per
cent. above the average proceeds from the usual farm crops ;
and that, too, without materially lessening the breadth of
land now devotQd to grass and grain, or seriously inter-
fering with the routine of farm economy as at present con-
ducted."

This discovery is likely to be of immens3
advantage to the world at the present time. If
only a fair percentage of all that is claimed for

it proves true it will not only do much to
make cotton more abundant, but cheaper. It
is stated that two thousand pounds may be pro-
duced on an acre of land, while five hundred
pounds from the herbaceous plant is considred
a large yield. The fibre even when produced—as
it generally is in Peru without care or culture—is
declared to be superior to that of the best upland
staple of the rebel States.