The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-06-19

Ter "Take the indigo crop. This was once profitable, and we had a monopoly or the worlds product. Then the Ger mans invented a patented coloring mat ter called synthetic indigo. It was made of chemicals. and could be sold more cheaply than our indigo. It was driving the Hindustan dye out of the markets when we discovered that by new methods of cultivation we could increase the yield SO that we could compete with the Ger mans, and out planters are now making money We had at one time competition from America. In your colony days you took to growing the plant and manufac- turing the dye, but you soon found that other crops paid better and the Indian production revived''
 What Is the extent of the indigo farms?'' I asked.
 They have fallen off considerably with in the last 20 years. We had more than | 100000 acres under cultivation 10 years ago, and 10 years before that about 9OO0 square miles. These areas have been gradually reduced, until they are now not more than one-half the extent of a decade ago. Many of our planters are now resuming the business, and we have perhaps farms to the extent of 200. 900 acres in Bengal alone"
 Making New Cottons
 Are you doing anything as to your cotton?'
 "Yes. We are Investigating the crop and studying our soils and climatic con- ditions in connection with it. We raise you know, short staple cotton, and our farmers find 1t more profitable in the long. run. We are trying to improve the staple by seed selection and by cross fertilization. It is difficult to persuade the farmers to make such experiments although they are ready to take up any thing that will pay. The cotton crop Is one of big money crops. The plant CTS can always get a ready sale for it. and they raise 1t to supply the money needs of the family just as your people raise wheat even though other things may yield better. At present we have something like 10000 square miles under cotton. The demand for the product increases and we have a large export of our raw material to Japan and Germany Much of that sent away belongs to our coarsest and shortest fbers. They are especially good for mixing with wool, and for that reason they bring better prices than cotton of a superior quality Our cotton industry received a great impetus at the time of the civil war in America. Your cotton was then shut out of the market and the price went SKY u1Su HIS IuTneu attention to Indias possibilities, and experiment farms were established for improving the crop. The men put in charge of them came from England, and as a rule they were little better than gar deners. When the war was over and you again monopolized the market these farms were taken over by the government and made experiment sta tions. Some of them are in existence today"
 India Versus the United States "Will you ever compete largely with us as to cotton?"
 We are always competing, but I doubt whether we shall ever be able to | seriously affect your cotton in the Eu- ropean markets. We profit when you have a short crop, and we come next to you among the great cotton producers of the world. Our acreage, however, is limited, and we do not grow as much per acre as you do. A fairly good yield here Is 400 pounds of seed cotton. We usually raise two or three million bales of 400 pounds each, and in some years we have raised almost five mil. lions"
 How do you grow cotton?" '"The planting Is done by sowing the seed broadcast or drilling 1t in. We have machines which will drop two rows at time. We first coat the and water. This covers the fuzz, and they pass through the tubes without clogging. Our cotton Is worked sev- eral times. The best of the farmers give the plants two weddings. The blossoms come forth along in October and the. lint Is ready for picking in January The picking season lasts un- til April"
 We are now raising some Egyptian cotton in the Sind, and are experi- menting there also with American seed Both Kinds do we'll but 1t Is a question fwheth CT the American does not do bet ter. The Sind has now about 100000