New-York tribune., 1910-11-26
REVOLUTION IN COTTON
A Machine That Does the Work
OF Thousands of Neuroes.

4
arthur ". Page tells of "A Revolution in
cotton Growing" describing "a machine
labor ~ " 8 '-'-e
Inc mechanical cotton picker. the i'm
poSSioie machine that will discriminate be-
:" &C" iipe and unripe cotton bols finger
ofei 'le delicate plant, set the lint and
ieaFe tiie rest unharmed-this coptrjvance
q almost human intelligence has at last
peeh Niaoe' says Nh. Page. Angus Camp
'e4'' =. Nhlcago. pattern maker, is the
"1'ii "Ho mas come TO the aid OF the South
o-4o "a ti'-Alons OF clothing users all over
't4e ""'io' 1he ga asolene engine is the mo-
i've power OF this almost human machine
that Alr. Page describes. 1t WAS the de-
Neiopnert OF this type OF power that. after
Olsneaftenlng experiences with various ap-
paratus dating from 1889 finally put the
eouc!1 o. success on Mr.. Campbeus inven-
uon last year Speaking OF cotton and
cotton prices. AIr. Page says:
IN 1eSc- ~ the lowest price paid for
cotton OF mlodling graae was 5-16
| S $elSs d Ro~i-o' at which price many a
LaIh1ef PloCghed it under because il
hardly pald TO pick il and haul il
% the gin. Between ls09-'0l ana l90f-'O5,
the lowest price was 6.S5 cents a pound, ana
oGrlng The next i've years cents has been
me lowest II the three tlye-year periods
t9p prices nave ranged from l0j4 cents IN
cents in lS19-10. During these fifteen years
there was an increase in the crop, but not
al increase commensurate with the de-
| nand- The average crop for the five years
silulng August 81, 1890, was 9,56500O bales.
I5a ne aiNS!Tage a S!3 crop for the next i've ye-rs
was u,Vs4.V Gales, and for the five years
snGlns August 81, 1910, il was ATS 60
To grow forty acres OF cotton in the
black belt (referTing 10 the soil, not the
populauon-aS the same term does in Mis-
slSsippl and Louisianal, Will require the
/ ofFg 4 RI
days levelliag, six days planting, twenty
tour DAYS ploughing, and thirty days
choppIng-total Sixty-nine days.
ITO pick. twenty bales. il the pckers
average Ao pounds day, Will take 100
Gays. There are six months in which 10
gre only sixty-nine days work. and only
from .. sixty TO ninety days in which TO do
\ man could put 500 or 1000 acres in cot
Ton ana secure plenty of labor TO get it
planted. ploughed and chopped. but very
fe" can get that much cotton picked.
Turning 10 the results to be expected
from Mr.. Campbell's machine, Mr.. Page
writes:
tween 200 and 80 pounds of seed cotton
2 0ayr although fast picherS often get as
much as 400 or 800 pounds The machine
good field il would pick 5000 or 10000
pounds, ana IN poorer 1eld between 1000
ana 9,VV pounds Ii viii enable the same
70 pick ir-and to have a little time 10
spare as well. man could go over
picking time would be the least busy
time ot the year. The farmers viii no
longer need to haul negro cotton pickers
TO the fields on Monday morning, and back
to the town on Friday night There viii
be no more tents shaeks. and coolhns
outfits to provide. The cooks viii stay
in the kitchens. the children in schooI,
and labor can follow its customary chan
lels The death knell Of the annual
upheayal in the South has been
The machine itself is about as inspiring
q sight as the sin was n Nhitney's day
Il is d small gasolene traction engine,
with two picking attachments swung I'M
Ger II, and q pair of canvas bags hung
but behind. II travels through the field
cotton plant between the wheels. where
II Is picked over by almost countless re-
Eolving steel fingers which catch the lint
but leave the plant Untnjured, SO that the
later bollS may mature. To leave the
unrlpe bolls has been the great difficulty
in making a mechanical cotton picker. Cot
ton cannot be gathered all at once like
The machine will save the cotton farm
cotton more Cheaply than the hand pick
ers 90, and II Will not have to be begged
to % SO, Let US take. for example, a
TO the acre. The machine can cover at
least eight acres day. - Its expenses
would be approximately:
Fer gasoIene and ..................... 20
r or BOY --.'..---.---..--.--.--- 20
Total day y-------.---.-- --............S .S6 90
at that rate II would cost s75 to go
over the farm once with the machine
and $50 TO pick the one hundred acres
over twice, which it would do IN twenty
five days. To pick the fifty bales from
cost between $500 and $780, and it would
take twelve hands more than twenty
five DAYS TO Cornplete the task.