El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-01-29
G.
KING COTTON IN ASIA


, states. andl from Shanghai northward
there are rich plains which the experts
say are fitted for cotton growing. With
unscientific methods of cultivation the
country is now producing something
like 20 percent of the raw material il
uses and if properly farmed. the crop
could be enormously increased.
The native cotton is of short staple.
1t is brought here in boats upon the
YangtZe Kiang and its tributaries, and
also in seagoing junks from Ningpo and
the lands farther south. 1t is put up in
bags of enormous size, but so loosely
packed that one twice as large as a
feather bed weighs only 200 pounds. 1t
is loaded and unloaded by coolies who
carry it upon their heads from the ships
to the factory.
Other farmers ship their raw cotton in
bAsketwork bales the size of a hogs
head The bales are opened in the cot
ton yards and the lint is sometimes re-
baled in packages of 500 pounds for
export to the United States and Europe.
The nature of the native cotton makes
it especially good for underwear. and
some of it is sent 10 the United States
for that purpose.
A Nation In Cotton.
Our cotton factories should send their
agents here to study the market These
people dress in cotton instead of silk
and the most of the cloth used is spun
and reeleG by hand and woven at home
With the new civilization wages will
rise and the Chinese will wear more cot
ton than ever before. At present it is
safe TO say that there are at least four
hundred millions of them who dress in
such goods all the year round They
wear only one. or two thin garments in
the summer, but in winter they have
several suits well wadded TO keep them-
selves warm and in the northern prov
inces they put on suit after suit as the
weather grows colder. Indeed. some
fIeshy Chinese'in full winter dress have
trouble in getting through their own
doorways. But even at one suit of 90
yards 20 each person per year the
amount of cotton used is so great that
at least 5000, OOO, 900 yards are required.
This amount is beyond comprehension.
1t would carpet a pathway so feet
wide from the earth to the moon or COW
er one more than 20 miles wide from
New York to Chicago. Our total ship
ments of cotton goods to other coun-
tries is less than S33,0O0,0O0 a year,
and all we send to Asia sells for less
than s13.00000O. That which goes
to China would hardly patch the
knees of the Celestials, let alone make
their clothes.
If our cotton interests could handle
this market as the Standard Oil does
the exports from our southern states
might run into the hundreds of millions
year. The Standard Oil company has
Its own agents in all the provinces. and
1t Is pushing its business in every city
Twenty years ago the oil was shipped
here in tin cans 1t is now brought in
tank steamers which carry 10000 tons
at load. The vessels start from San
Francisco and land at half a dozen diff
ferent ports, where the oil is pumped
out into great storage tanks L found
such tanks at Hankow, 500 miles I'D the
angtze Kfang, and saw the steamers
unloaded by means of a pump The
tank there hold tens of thousands of
barrels. They have factories connected
with them, where the tin plate is made
into five gallon cans. These are filled
with Oil and are distributed by the
angtze and its tributaries. The stuff
Is economically handled being sold in
smaller and smaller packages as it gets
farther away from the ports. and in
some places almost by the spoonful
Inc standard Oil company has tanks at
lentSln and Hongkong. 1t does by far
the biggest oil business in China, al
though the Burmese, Russian and SUI
matra companies compete.
Within the past year one of these lat
Ter companies has opened up new. oil
territory about 200 miles north of Pek-
ing. The oil is carried in cans on wheel
oarrows over 100 miles to. canal and
thence floated down TO the capital. The
Wheelbarrow men go in caravans of so
oarrows each. They are paid something
IKE cents gold a day and other la i
Dor is proportionately cheap.
Our Tobacco Trust.
Another American institution which is |
ioing big business in China is the to- |
oacco trust. 1t has its agents in all Of |
he cities. and has established several |
zig factories There is one at Shang !
TAI which employs 1000 girls in making |
md packing cigarets. There is another