The daily morning journal and courier., 1905-10-09
GROWING IN AFRICA
PROSPECT ALONG VEST COAST
 ARE NOT FAVORABLE

AhE NOT EABOhADLE'
 Might Grow We'll in Some Sections, but Production Would Not Affect Ameri-
 can suppIy-In Many Years There
 Might be Produced Three Hundred
 and Fifty Thousand Bales, the Ex- treme Possibility for the Territory.
 The problem of British grown cotton has been prominently before the public for the past three years, and West Africa is credited with being the most likely country for its successful com mercial cultivation. The Royal Brit ish Cotton Growing Association i'll it's report places great faith in the pOssi- bilities of the different West African colonies, but so far the results have been very poor and discouraging. The object of this article, writes a West Africa correspondent of the London Times, is to give the public some idea of the prospects and possibilities of British West Africa, together with particulars of the progress of cotton growing up to the present date. The climate, soil, population, means of transport and rainfall vary so much in the different colonies that to give a true account of the conditions and pro spects each colony should be treated separately
 Lagos at present is the most inn portant colony from cotton growing does a. railroad and a large area of country outside the palm oil belt it should be the first colony to give de- fnate results. Cotton has always been grown by the Lagos Yoruba tribes, and in 1867 the exports con- sisted of 353 tons, while during the thirty-five years ended 1901 raw cotton to the value of a500,00O was exported from the colony.
 The population of Lagos and the Ilorin districts of Northern Nigeria may be taken not to exceed ,2,5oO,00O, and this number fully two-thirds re- side within the palm oil tree belt of country and are fully occupied with the existing products. The remain ing S00,OOO are dependent upon cattle. raising, guinea corn and local indus tries for their livelihood. Most of the cotton exported from Lagos has been grown outside the palm belt in the Iba- dan, Oyo, IIorin and Meko districts of the colony, and it may be taken as proved that cotton growing cannot com pete successfully with the palm oil in dustry in the. districts where the palm trees are plentiful, and for a perman- ent supply cotton buyers must depend upon the non-palm tree country.
 It is estimated that under the most favorable conditions-i. e., the crea- tion of central buying stations, good i transport facilities and high prices 1 the natives of Lagos colony may be able to produce 100000 bales of cotton annually, in addition to their present forest and farm exports of palm oil, l timber and cocoa, but, owing to the lack of transpo1t facilities, bad roads and the failure to date of experiments i to improve the quality of cotton grown, it will be many. wears before an out put of 10000 bales of cotton per annun1 IS ENSn apart lIOll IIiS question of cotton growing, Lagros colony is badly in need of good roads capable of carrying wheeled traffic and until the roads and bridges are built the districts most suitable fol cotton production will remain to a great extent untapped.
 Experimental farming has beer started by the Cotton Growing Associa tion upon a. large scale, and last veal 120 acres were cleared and planted with American seed, but the resulting crop was a failure; and as the cottor lpiant's enemy, guinea grass, is very prevalent in the colony it is doubt full whether large plantations run by Europeans upon American lines vii eyer be successful. Other expert
 ments with American cotton seed hay
 also not been very encouraging, ant
 the question whether American or ma
 tive cotton be most encouraged ap
 pears to have been settled in favor O lthe first named before sufficient infor
 rnation had been collected upon tn
 subject, and before it had proved 1t
 self adaptable to West African con
 ditions.
 The best native cotton from the Me
 ko district Is even now equal to Ameri E can cotton as grown in Lagos. Whethe 1t would not be better to improve tn native variety with or without the hel of American seed is question whic l will eventually have to be faced if tn cotton is to be grown. The Cotton Gro
 ing Association has established buyin l and ginning agencies at two station
 on the Lagos government railway, an , lis now erecting third ginnery upon it plantation. If the estimate of 40,OC
 bales is to be realized, agencies wi have to be opened up in parts of tn country away from the railway, where . owing to transport difficulties, it doubtful if cotton growing will prov
 8 commercial success.
 The colony of Southern Nigeria, ad - ljoining Lagos, and now for admins
 trative purposes, attached to the lat z ter, has so far given very unsatisfac | tory return for the money spent by tn . Cotton Growing Association. A plan tation upon the Sobo plains was maI
 ped out last year and several hundre y acres cleared and planted with Amer can seed. About G5000 is said to Ina g been spent upon the concern durin | the year, and the resulting productio of cotton Va1ued at less than G100,