Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1885-01-31
Saturday, January 81, 1888.
THE OUTLOOK FOR COTTON.

|
Not long ago Mr.. Nimmo, the chief of one
of the bureaus of the Treasury department,
| wrote to Mr.. William L. Trenholm of Charles
| ton, South Carolina, one of the best informed
and most progressive men in the South for
| an opinion concerning the future of cotton
culture in this country Mr.. Trenholm's an
swer is interesting to all who are interested
in the prosperity of the country, with which
the cotton crop has much to do. The prob
lens considered by him are: Does continuous
culture in cotton tend to impair the cotton
producing capacities of soils? If so, can such
tendencies be obviated by particular methods
of culture, such as improved drainage, spe-
cial tillage and intelligent fertilization What
is the effect upon the capacity of the soil for
producing cotton of occasional rests from
all cultivation or rotation of cropss Is it
practicable to maintain the present volume
of cotton production in this country in
crease it without extending the existing cot
ton producing area?
Mr. Trenhol1h's s answers to these questions
are decidedly encouraging. He admits that
prior to 1860 the method of raising cotton
was in many ways calculated to produce ex-
haustion Of soil, and great bodies of land
were to be found that were classed as ''old
fields" and were abandoned as worthless. But
since 1860, or perhaps better 1870, cotton has
been cultivated in great many instances in
a much more scientific manner, and in con-
sequence of these improvements no deterio-
ration in product is noticeable. The new
methods thus employed consist in protecting
the surface of the soil from washing, in stim-
ulating the early growth of the cotton plant
80 as to abridge as much as possible the peri
cd during which the bare soil is exposed, in
protecting the fields from the inroads of cat
tie, in restoring to the land all of the sub
stance of the plant, except that which is
marketed lint and oil, and in supplying
it, when needed, with mould or such fertiliz-
ing material as the farm or the stables pro
vide. A rotation of crops is desirable, and
experience has shown that the best alternate
for cotton is peas in the spring, followed
by winter oats, ploughing the fruit and vines
of the former into the ground after the first
frost Still, land has been repeatedly used
for cotton that has not been permitted to
thus restore ITSELF with no appreciable dimi-
mutton in it's productive qualities.
Mr.. Trenholm asserts that the variations
in the annual cotton product indicate that
the general methods of culture are still far
removed from those which are recognized as
the best; that there are well cultivated farms
in South Carolina where the yield has not
varied more than per cent. in the last four
years, while the returns throughout the
country show variation in product per acre
amounting sometimes to more than 40 per
cent. He thinks that these wide fluctuations
in the average might be proven led by better
information and greater on the part of
the planters-an improvement which may be
looked for in no distant future. More than
this, it is his opinion that it will be found
practicable to raise much more cotton to the
acre than the average yield has thus far
shown.
From this it can be seen that the cotton
industry rests upon sure foundation. Cot
ton will perhaps never again have the i'm
portance in this country which it had when
it was called King, but it will continue to be
of vast Importance. It is therefore cheering
to know that its future has SUCH a bright
appearance.