The Bolivar County Democrat. (Rosedale, Miss.) 1887-1969, 1902-06-14
THE COTTON PICKING MACHINE.
Wonderful Invention Which Promises Rsvolutonze the
Cotton Picking Industry.

during the season at the requests of visi-
tors and under their supervision ; in
fact the visitors really had charge of
the machine much of the time, and for
this reason it was impossible to do con-
tinuous work; besides this, there were
experiments being made that led to I'M
provements in the machine 1t is appar-
emily complicated, but i'll reality is very
simple in its mechanism, and as there are
no strains on the machine anywhere,
cannot see why it should not last. The
only breakage that occurred while at
work here was caused by careless driv-
ing across the rows. One of the spindles
was broken off, but new one was put
OH in less than five minutes, and cost
only about 21a cents. With all these
drawbacks the machine picked cotton on
about forty acres of land, and I am GER
tain that it was not in operation more
than one-ffth of the time. It requires
four mules to pull the machine, and they
are worked abreast, and the cotton
knocked out is i'll part done by the mules.
The care of operation Of the machine re-
quires two hands, driver and man to
take off and put on sacks. We used a.
negro boy, whom we paid as wages
his board and 60 cents day, as driver
most of the time. There is no reason
why the machine cannot be handled sue
cessfully on the plantations with plan
tation labor when they once get the
hang Of It. The ridges on which the
cotton is grown should be left as low as
possible and the crop free of tie-vines
and grass, the rows as long as possible,
and room left at the end to turn freely.
The machine does not gather the hulls,
but leaves about as much leaf and trash
in the cotton as the ordinary hired hand
will leave.
II am satisfied that the machine, in
any ordinary season, can be made to
pick the cotton OH $50 acres of land, and
if the work is pressed, 200 acres. 1t will
pick as we'll moonlight nights as it will
in daylight, if required. 1t will do the
best work when all the cotton is open on
the stalks, but it will pay to use it when
there is one-third of the cotton open. 1t
will pick the cotton better from the bolls
when the dew is on; the teeth on the
spindle will seem to take hold better
In selling the cotton, no complaint was
made by the buyers of it being of any
lower grade than cotton picked by hand.
but earlier in the season the experts Sc
lected the hand picked cotton as being
little better grade. l have bale Of this
cotton left, which will be worked up now
in few days i'll the textile department
of the A. &. NJ. College of Mississippi to
test the amount of trash and loose
weight tlerefrom, for the benefit of the
planting interests.
1.-The possibilities of this machine are
very great, but it's usefulness for while
will depend upon the ability of its OWL
ers to get it OIL the market and the man
ner in which it is done. have been an
active planter on the Delta lands of
Mississippi for more than forty years,
and am willing to assert that with an
average crop we lose yearly from 20 to
25 per cent of the cotton made on our
lands from inability to keep up with it
when it opens. From the day it opens it
commences to waste, and when it has
stood hanging out of the bolls from one
to five months, exposed to rain, sleet
and SHOWS of winter, the loss is frequent.
ly so to rs per cent in weight and 10 to
80 per cent i'll grade. To planters of the
Delta a successful cotton picker will
multiply many times all values as they
now stand"
Dead II In Hia NewsraO0r