The Prescott daily news., 1915-04-17
RESTRICTIONS ON
 COTTON IMPORTS
Suggestions Invited By The Depart ment of Agriculture On The Pro- posed Precautions Agains
 the Pink Boil Worm.

Washington, D. c. April 17.-A public conference on the restrictions which the Department of Agriculture proposes to place upon the admission ot foreign cotton lint will be held at the Department here at 10 o'clock on April 20. The purpose of these res trlctlons is to protect the country az ainst the possibility of the pink boil worm finding it's way into the cotton fields. A report was issued in Jan- uary of this year outlining the course of action that he Department proposed to ike, and now copies of the prospec tive regulations have been sent out to persons interested in the subjects with rquest for suggestions or criticisms.
 Under the proposed plan, permits for the admission of foreign cotton lint must be obtained for all imports. Boston, New York, San Francisco, and Seattle are at the present time desig~ hated as ports of entry for such cot ton, but it is possible that other ports may be added to this list from time to time. Application blanks for these permits are provided for in the regu lations and all applicants must state the locality where the cotton was grown, the year of growth, the port from which it is being shipped, and the person in the United States to whom it is consigned.
 For the remainder of this year no other material restrictions are placed upon the importation of cotton, but after January 1, 1916, the regulations provide that all cotton must be disin- fected under the supervision of an in spector of the Department of Agricul- ture before it can be moved from the port of entry. The reason for the de- lay in putting this requirement into practice is the necessity Of developing the necessary means for this work. In the case of imports from countries which maintain cotton inspection and are able to certify that the imports are free from injurious diseases and pests, disinfection will not be requir- ed.
 In addition to securing permit for entry of cotton, shippers must no- tify the Department of Agriculture of the arrival of all imports and of shipments of the cotton from the port of entry to the consignee. Further more, license must be obtained in order to enable the consignee to use the cotton. He must agree to ali ow the eDpartment to inspect his factory or mill, to store the imported cotton in insect-proof, screened warehouses, and to observe whatever other mea- sures may be prescribed by the Gov ernment to prevent the spread of in- lection. Moreover the holder of such license cannot make subsequent shipment of the cotton to any one eX- cept another license holder.
 These regulations are the result of a careful study of the danger of seeds containing the pink boil worm coming into the country with the lint. Many of the cotton mills in the South are so close cotton fields that the pest might easily find its way to them through some such medium as booker waste. Where the pink boil worm has established itself it has been found to be one of the most destructive of cotton pests and in consequence the Department is determined to take every possible precaution against it's entry into this country.