The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1910-12-23

| - S->~A~
atten ton to cotton also. If We exam
| inc the records of cotton production
! in South Carolina We find the same
| progressive tendency toward larger
yields per acre that has characterized
corn poduction.
The average yield of cotton per acre
in South Carolina for the ten years
from 1876 to 1885 was 152 pounds of
| lint For the last ten years it was 1874
! pounds. This average is still far below
the ultimate possibility of South Caro-
lima cotton soils. 1t would not content
the Lexington county school girls, and
there is a. great gap between it and
| the record made by Hon, E. D. Thomp-
son, of York county, who in 1897, OBJ
tanned a yield of 1922 pounds of lint
cotton from a>single acre. Not less
than a bale per acre ought to be the
immediate goal of every South Caro-
lima cotton grower.
The same system of improving the
! quality of the product and increasing
the average production per acre by
scientific cultural methods and careful
seed selection which has done so much
on for the development of improved va
in South Carolina is being applied TO
| cotton with equal success. I feel safe
| in saying that in no other cotton State
is more intelligent work being carried
on for the development of improved va
| rieties than in South Carolina. The
| intelligent farmers Of this State who,
with the help of patriotic citizens and
! in co-operation with your State depart
ment of agriculture and the represen-
| tatives of the United States agricul-
tural department are developing va
rieties of long-staple upland cotton, OF
service of inestimab1e ralue to the en-
tire South. It has recently been my
high productiveness, are performing a
privilege, in company with Hon. E. j.
Watson, your commissioner of agri-
culture, and Mr.. Ira W. Villains,
agent in charge of the farm demon
stration work of the United States ag-
ricultural department in South Caro-
lima, to examine some fine samples of
varieties of long-staple cotton develop
ed in this State. This work of devel-
opment has been carried on only for a
few years. BY careful seed selection
the varieties are being improved each
year and I believe that, as the supply
of seed increases so as to.be sufficient
to supply the cotton growers of the
State, these improved varieties will
command a premium in the markets
of the world and add millions Of dol
lars to the annual value Of the South
Carolina crop.
The improvement and increase of
! the yield of cotton is believe, of no
less importance than the similar work
which is being carried On with respect
to corn and other agricultural pro-
ducts, for cotton is our greatest agTi-
cultural and industrial asset. Our
Southern States have almost a mono
poly in its production. If they are to
maintain this monopoly and are not
to force the cotton users of the world
to stimulate production in India, Afri-
ca, and other regions where cotton
can be grown, they must increase their
production as the demand of the world
increases. I am a. firm believer in
the diversifcation of. Southern agri-
| culture and the growing of more live
stock, but I believe that this should be
done as supplementary to larger
production Of cotton. Experiments
carried on in England, through a long
series of years, and IN our own coun-
try, for shorter periods, nave demon
started conclusively that soil produc-
tivity can be greatly increased by
scientific crop rotation and the intelli-
gent use of fertilizers. Thus, diversf-
fed farming, with a system Of. crop
rotation in which cotton occupies a
J prominent place, can be made aux
iliary to increase cotton production.
The Importance Of maintaining and in
creasing the production of cotton in
our territory has been so strongly i'm
pressed upon the management of the
Southern Railway company that, in
pursuance of our policy of helpfulness
in connection with Southern develop
nlent, We have organized a cotton cul-
ture department, the purpose of which
is to cooperate with the State agri-
cultural organizations and the agents
of the United States department of ag-
riculture in advising the farmers along