The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-05-30
BARRETT ON COTTON
VIEWS OF OUR MINISTER TO AR-
 GENTTNA.
In Bulletin Issued by Department of Commerce and Labor he Discusses
 Future of the Staple.

Washington. May 29.--Special. l- There Is one diplomatic servant of the United States who is from a Northern importance to this country of the cot ton trade. This is John Barrett, unit- sd States Minister to Argentina; MT: Argentine Republic from a station in the Orient. While in the Far East he made special study of commerce in fotS1n goods in Ghins and particularly ay goods in that wonderful and much con tended for region that ntsd when ne ,n cane tPs stock stock of several cotton mills of the
 Since he went to south America MT: interest in the staple. He has. been locking into the possibilities of cot ton culture in Argentina and has just and Labor the following communica- ton on the subject which the Depart ms1t uses as a bulletin: u..s.
 Tn view of the increasing interest being taken throughout the United States and Europe in the future raw cotton supply of the world, have en- Sf the possibiiities of cotton cultivation aIi responsible data obtainabie and dis cussing the subject with those eompe- tent to pass an opinion, I am fully con- vinced that there Is section of Ar genuine and Paraguay as large as the combined area of Louisiana, Mississippi, equally we'll suited in climate and soil for raising the best qualities of cotton. In Paraguay and the northern Argen. country that is regarded by experts as together with good transportation ia vast extent is drained by the great river system of the Uruguay and Par ana and is traversed by railroads ai- ready in operation or about to be con
 Cotton cultivation has never been attempted on a large scale in this part Of South America, first: because there @ reason in trying to compete with the United States. Egypt. and other cotton producing sections of the world. and, secondly, because the population has been too small or occupied entirely with other lines of agriculture, like cattle and sheep raising, sugar growing. and
 There are at present in Argentina several of the best European experts on cotton growing, who have been trav- who have begun numerous experiments in cotton growing. These men previ- ously visited the cotton growing sec india % and hs are sr therefore ss competent e % to have informed me that they fully be- lieve that in the course of a few years cotton producing countries of the world. One of the confidential agents of the Argentine Department of Agri- gating the matter. tells me that while all present reports published must nat nrally be conservative, 9 result will De shipping man of this city writes me that the time is not far distant when ships will be loading cotton at Bnenos Ayres. Rosario. and other ports on the do at New Orleans, Mobile and Calves ton.
 hearsay alone. On the contrary, 1 have personally visited and travelled through many of the provinces suited to cotton growing and made my own edly seen in the Southern States at home. do not think, therefore, in the light of all the inforpation I have been able to obtain. that l am far from the the area, the soil, the climate, and the transportation facilities to make it a cotton growing country and so become States in the cotton markets of the world. There will, however, be cer- tain advantage to the United States in providing the necessary machinery mills for making cotton seed oil
 Tn conclusion, I would recommend that the cotton merchants and manu- keep in mind the possibilities of this new field, and that the cotton growers I of the Southern States should devote their energy, more than ever before 1 cotton growing. and so be able to meet | this future competition, while the ma chinery' manufacturers should watch l the market which is sure to develop | here in their line