The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1893-10-03
SOME FAors ABOUT COTTON.
America Is the Ho ne of the Fleece,
Stapie-The South Furnishes the
Worlds supply.

America Is The Hone of the Flcec,
Stapfe-The South Furnishes the
Worlds supply.
The cultivation OF cotton Is by nc
means o new thing. The plant Is I'm.
digencus to America, but about 1890
years before Columbus or America
were dreamed Of cotton was cultivated
in India and China. In India it's Guilt
walton was very limited and was simply
TO supply the needs OF the natives, and
this condition prevailed until afterSthe
English took possession of that coun-
try. After English occupation its Guilt
walton was much extended, for the
English hoped to render, themselves
entirely independent of America n
the production of this important
article. The staple OF the India cotton
is inferior. however, and though great
effort were made to improve it the in
dustry languished, or at least did not
show any material advancement until
the great civil var In America oc-
Cured. Then Ii became a matter of
necessity to find cotton elsewhere than
in America, and the India CIVILIZATIONS
received a great impetus. From 1861
to 1867 the Indic cotton interest was
pushed forward SO rapidly that during
the latter year the surplus of the India
lcrop exported to GreatBritain amount
ed to 100000 bales. But peace had
been declared then and there was more
and better cotton to be found in America
80 the India cotton was allowed to fall
back again, until last year the total
foreign exports of all India amounted
to only 1929, 900 bales.
Next toIndia, outside of America, as
a cotton-producing country comes
Egypt, and it's cultivation there dates
back to the earliest historical times.
The Egyptian cotton is tho best in the
world, except the far.famed sea island
cotton. Its staple is long and silk-like
and is much sought after by manufac-
turers of fine goods. Unfortunately,
while the quality is SO good, the
quantity is small, though last season
Egypt exported the equivalent of very
nearly 10000 0 American bales.
But America is the natural homo of
the cotton plant and it's cultivation
here is SO cheap aud it grows SO easily
that serious competition from the out
side world must be veryremote. There
are many varieties of cotton that are
indigenous here, but only two have
sufficient merit or Importance to de-
serve mention, and only ono is produc-
ed in such quantities as to supply the
demand of the consumptive world.
One variety from Honduras, trans
planted in Barbados and from there
carried to the English colonies, has be-
come famous the world over as sea
island cotton. Another, probably from
Mexico, was first grown in Louisiana
and spread from there Over the South
ern States, until now these States
furnish the world with it's main supply
of cotton.
Year after year the production in
the United States has increased rapid
ly until last year, season 1922, the
greatest crop the world has ever known
-~9,035,3 1873 bales-was produced, of
which IS per cen was exported, and
Notwithstanding the fact that the price
OF cotton was the lowest ever known
the value of the exports was 1925, 000,-
600. OF that monster crop Texas pro-
duced 2,400, 600 bale-, or almost exactly
the same number Of bales produced by
the entire cotton belt of the United
States in the season 1S6S-'69. To pro-
duce such a crop 20, 100000 acres we're
planted, more than 5000, 600 animals
were required to till the soil, and from
first to last over 0 1000, 600 men, women
and children were engaged in cultivat-
ing and gathering it.
After the 5000, 900 bales of cotton
We're ginned there we're 4 800, 900 tons
of seed left, which sold for $31, 500, 900,
and had the prices for cotton seed been
as high then as they have been the
past season the seed alone would have
sold for $l0S, DOC, 000.