Imperial Valley press., 1911-11-08
MILLION BALES PREDICTED
As CALIFORNIA; OUTPUT
Bruce White, Who Invented Gotten
Picker, Talks of ssbiIities of New
Industry for This State.

IN the 'D6liSl lIdt OUNlOAA W AL Sca'.'
day be king in California, several I'M
mense development projects are being
undertaken in the sounern part OF
the state by Los Angeles capitalists.
No such cotton crop has been seen in
the world as was produced this year
in the Imperial Valley. The condl-
tions Of soil and climate have been
found ideal. The only problem tha,
remained for the development of this
industry was that of labor for the tre-
mendous task of picking the crop,
Bruce Clark White, the man who has
solved TINS problem, visited Los An
geles last week after Witnessing the
operation of a cotton picking machine
at FL Centre and announced that next
years crop will be harvested by the
use of an automobile engine. He be
lieves that California within 4 few
years will produce million bales OF
cotton. This would mean a new
source OF revenue of more lnan 500
600 600. Mr.. White, who has studied
the production of cotton for years in
perfecting the complicated machine
winch picks it, says that no such crop
was ever dreamed of as has been pro
duced in Southern California.
There are hundreds of thousands o.;
acres along the Colorado river suit
able for its production The Blythe
and Palo Verde lands. the Colorado
river Indian reservation which is 10 be
opened by the government and othel
districts which can be irrigated fron
the Colorado river, are especial,
adapted to cotton raising. A greatly
increased acreage probably will be
planted in Imperial Valley next year.
1T is probable" said Mr.. White
that we snail have 10 have a branc.
factory near Los Angeles 10 assemble
cur parts and care for repairs and
other incidentals necessary to th,
operation of the machine in this coul"
try. The cotton picking machine ha~
reached a stage now where We belieN,
the manufacture can be safely under
taken. All that is needed is TO adar
he machine to the various condition
of growth found between the ol
;outh, Texas and Southern California
Il was simply amazed at what !
found in the Imperial Valley. On
cotton picking machine was not Dc
signed for such a crop as that; for II
duced. Beginning in the Georgia cot
.on fields. where they have the litti
humble bee cotton, | came west I
Texas. where We sometimes find il
four or five feet tall. and fairly heaV.
in the bottom, but here i'll lmperi"
ALLEY it grows in a perfect jungle
md it was surprising that the machin
could handle il at all
The growing of cotton should br
come a great industry in the south
vest. The production, find, is q
least double that of the ayerag
cached in any other part of thi
country. The picking of cotton /
machine eliminates the labor prob
.em and cheapens the cost Of produc
ion. II costs about $l2 an acre l;
produce the cotton crop. BY hant
)icking il has always cost another s..
)er bale for harvesting. With the ma
chine We cover an acre of ground i
lbout fifty minutes, and wnere We can
take TWO bales 10 the acre it means
aving of me difference between 81.
nd The cost of running a machine fc
n hour.
After all it is hardly worth viii
y tU.llJdit lIC tOSi VI IliilG anu iLIIt
chine picked cotton in California. Il
5 very doubtful if hand picking cOu.
ever work out satisfactorily here. II.
negro of the south has depended upo.
mis- occupation for years, but EC'
could not have built up a large ncgIt
population, largely idle outside OF III,
picking season. to handle such GRO
The cotton picking machine ha
been under process OF development
for twenty years. Mr. Campbell start
eu il ana | took it up where he left OF
The most recent Improvement. whicl
has made it a practical field machine
is the .eaf separator After perfec
ing the picking apparatus TO the poiL
where il would gather as large per
centage of the crop as the hand pick
ers, We found that it was necessary /,
emove the leaves. When they becan,
entangled in the fiber OF the cottc.
hey were apt TO stain it, tnus lowering
he value OF the crop. 1t was the Onl.
respect in which machine picked cot
on differed from hand picked. | Wa.
allied 10 Texas last year TO solve thi-
problem, and this year we have til
eaf separator working. Mr.. Price. tn,
president of the company. is now look
ng for 4 location for the manufactu
ne plant OF these machines. II will b.
: very large concern, similar 10 thos
If the harvester works, and will prob
ibly be in the east, with ii Californi
rancn in Los Angeles"
Mr.. White is one Of the ablest in
'entors Of he age. The cotton pick
ng machine is regarded by mcchan
cs as one of he marvels of inventio.
\ single machine contains 10000 part.
md in its complicated construction
an only be compared TO the linotyp4
is in the first place an autom0bN,
with the driving power applied to q.
'ur wheels. II straddles the row o
cotton, gathering the bolls of cOttc,
ma punching them in picking cyl
nder. The fingers which gather til,
cotton reyolve very rapidly on separ
tie axes al the same time movine
backward at exactly the same rate o
need at which the machine is coin,