The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1900-09-02
CorroN-sEED.


In the Forum, for September
Mr.. Edwin l.. johnson makes 4
plea for the better treatment, Al
the hands of congress, of cotton
seed, -classing il as one of oul
most important cereals. Com
pared with wheat, he adduces fig
ures to show that its food colnpo-
nents, per hundred pounds, exceed
in value those of the former i'm
portant cereal by thirty-nine
ents,-the value, for the seed,
being 81. SO.
Accustomed, as we are, to meas
ure cotton seed by tons and wheat
by bushels, it never occurs to us
to institute a comparison between
the value of the two rops,-but
Mr.. johnson states that, measured
by bushels, the seed crop of the
South is five-sevenths as great as
the wheat crop of the entire United
States.
In point of yield, per acre, the
figures of the Department of Agri-
culture, for 1S97-9S, which, says
the writer, were the latest obtain
able, show the average for wheat
to have been 13.43 bushels, and
1919 for cOtton-seed.
Mr.. johnson makes the claim
that recent Investigations have
demonstrated that, if fully put to
its present known uses, the value
of cotton-seed would be fifty per
cent. that of cotton itself. He
states, further, that cotton-seed
possesses a known potential value,
DOW annually lost, of 5000, 000,-
10000, an amount equal to four
cents a pound on the entire Amer
lean cotton crop. If these figures
are even approximately correct,
like a development of
the possibilities of cotton-seed, In
addition to existing actual values,
would make it one OF the most
and valuable of the
worlds crops.
1t seems that the best cotton
oil is one of the purest known
oils, and enters largely into the
of artificial butter,-I
md 1t is OF the tax of two cents
DER pound, imposed by the gov
on this butter, that Mr..
Johnson complains. This tax, the
'Grout Bill" proposes to increase
O ten cents,-which would posi-
,ly be prohibitlve of its further
and hence would be
blow to Southern cotton-seed
Industries. Mr.. johnson also COM
'lalns that the Department of
agriculture does not give cotton
eed the scientific study, with a
lew to further increasing the uses
nd applications of its products,
,hich its Importance merits, -
Inch he charges as q serious dis
against it.
When such study is given it as
devoted to petroleum or iron or
lgar beets, new properties or new
SEES or new products may be dis
overed which may make the cot
,n-seed crop a more valuable one :
ian the cotton crop. The United
tates Department of Agricul- ]
ire was begged in vain to make
lch an investigation this year. q
IS Importance fully justifes it, 9
i'd 1t is no more than both France G
I'D Germany have done for the
eet.' .
When we reflect that within the I
emory of living middle-aged 9
EN- cotton-seed were regarded as
ut little better than a nuisance,
Q may readily believe that the i
lildren of such men may live to .
70 the possibilities claimed by Mr.. !
Dhnson realized. 1t is at least a
after worthy the efforts of all =
0erested, to see that Southern !
have the government !
,vote such attention to investi- L
alton as is proper, -as well as to .
q that cotton-seed products are =
1t Disseminated against.
. =
HE SUNDAY MORNING TIMES. b
II