New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1907-03-06

Coz The Problems of tho Cotton World By
.on Foe svo Pr. *, sSi. Doubleday Page & Co.
The Introductory and less practical chapters
= ,bis book are written in an unconventional
.,s even famboyant style. But the book was
,,,+,en in the cotton belt; il is pervaded with
=. atmosphere of the plantation and the gin
ming mill and, considering the enthusiasm Of the
authors for the cultivation of cotton and their
,nnreciation Of tie prosperous conditions in the
oorton states since 1902 or Whereabouts it is not
.rrprising that their pages should show a Fam
bovant tendency. This. indeed, is not only
be expected but pardoned and actually well
coined II heightens the interest OF a most in
teresting subject.
The cotton growing states have firm ground
for the optimism which so generally char
acterizes them and which equally characterizes
this book. Cotton is the only crop for which
nature has no substitute. and there is as the
writer's prove. other plant which is of
much Importance. II is the basis Of the worlds
dominant industry. AS yet the cotton industry
is greater than the iron and steel industry; for,
while the worlds output of iron and steel
reaches the tremendous total of 81. 7O0O00.000.
the worlds output of cotton goods reaches n
total Of So OO00O0.000. For 1868 the worlds
cotton supply was l7,7S2.O0O bales. and three
quarters Of this supply grown in the South
err States Twice the worlds output of gold in
l005 was required to pay the Southern planters
FOR the lint and seed which they took 10 market
IN that year And yet this Southern industry.
on a commercial as distinct from domestic
basis is of not much more than a centurys
standing. Cotton was first planted in Virginia
IN 1921. II was being raised in fair quantities
in North Carolina in 1864 and its cultivation
begun IN South Carolina in 1866. but it was not
until 1851 that the first consignment of cotton
shipped TO London, and IL was as late as
1856 before as much as two bales Of Southern
grown cotton shipped TO Liverpool. which.
with Manchester and the other Mersey ports.
took 2. Isl. 143 bales in 1906 and 1869 100 bales
in 1907. It is this business which. between 1856
and 1897 has made the port of Liverpool, and II
IS this business that win continue to give Liver
pool its emnence even If all the lines Of trans
atlantic mail and passenger steamers cease TO
use il their port. There was cotton manu-
featuring al Manchester, and at the Lancashire
towns in the vicinity Of Manchester. long before
any cotton was exported 20 England from the
South. The industry was we'll established ut
least early 1927. when Defoe made his
tour Of England. and even before the date At
which Aiessrs Burkett and Poe fix the first
shipment of cotton to Liverpool great fortunes,
such as those Of the Peels and the Horrockses.
had been made at such centres of the Lancashire
MISUNDERSTANDING INDUSTRY as Bury ana preston
Lancashire in those days drew the raw ma
terial for its mills from the East It still draws
some Of its supplies from India and Egypt but
since the closing decade Of the eighteenth cen
tury it has drawn increasingly on the cotton Of
the South; and for quite a century past pros
perity in Lancaster has usually meant prosper
fly for the South. To-day weather and other
conditions which affect the cotton plant arc
watched as nervously in Lancashire they are
IN any Of the Southern cotton growing states
whore all prosperity is based on the cotton crop
England has more colonial possessions than any
other nation. These possessions have grown
enormously since Lancashire first began 10 take
cotton from the Southern States Yet although
three well organized attempts have been made
20 free Lancashire with the teeming population
OF It's mill towns. from dependence on Southern
grown cotton-in 1851, 1926 and 1903 Ono
great or permanent relief has yet come to Ian
cashire which is to-day as dependent as ever on
the American cotton growing states Both the
imperial and the commercial spirit have been
aroused in these efforts to widen the area Of
cotton production in British territory but. while
even such ardent partisans of the Southern in
dustry as MessTs. BuTkett and Poe do not be-
heve that all these efforts win fail the results
50 far have been neagre. Since the second OF
these attempts was made-that Of lS62-'65. when
midas production Of cotton was forced ND TO
100000 bales-Canada, the most important Of
Britain's colonies. and certainly the colony in
which manufa curing has made the greatest
progress. has come into the American market
and now calls for between 10000 and 200
bales Of cotton each year.
Cotton from India is Of too short a fibre for
general service. Cotton grown. in Egypt. with
It's beautiful long fibre. is OF too fine a quality
10 meet the everyday demands in the market for
the output Of the worlds cotton mills What is
everywhere wanted 10 meet these demands is the
cotton that is grown in the Southern States. and
u Is because these varieties of cotton cannot be
economically produced elsewhere that the South
has much the monopoly Of cotton growing
The profitable production of cottor requires n
relatively high temperature, long growing sea
son moderate and well distributed rainfall
throughout the growing season little rain at ma
turing time. and great deal Of sunshine These
conditions are found in the cotton belt to a
greater degree than anywhere else in the world.
ana when they characterize any given season
maximum yield is produced. But let the grow
Ing season be short the rainfall excessive or
The amount Of sunshine small and the summer
cool and cloudy. and New England and I4anca-
shire are in trepidation well as the South. for
these adverse conditions mean that only small
crop has been produced.
The section Of the United States which so
much attention is fixed between April and De-
eemher lies n little below latitude 81 degrees; /
sor line drawn from Norfolk. Va, TO Cairo, /
M.-wlth the cooler mountain regions elimi- |
nated-marks the northern limit of profitable I
cotton culture This is the cotton belt, and TO I
this region England. Germany, France. Italy /
Spain. Russia. Belgium. Canada. Japan ana I
4eKioo-fo name them in the order OF the
amount Of their takings-as well as New Eng /
land. took for their annual supplies Of raw cot 4