New-York tribune., 1915-03-14

length buyers will be withdrawn from
the district or they will scale down the
prices on all grades TO meet the lower
prices which must be expected for such
short staple.
Many interior buyers, as well a
practically all the larger cotton firms,
have declined to handle this cotton at
any price. They state that its lint is
far inferior TO that commonly grown
in their territory and is not acceptable
TO their regular customers. Compe-
tent spinners have stated that this
variety as ordinarily grown produces
so short a fibre as to render 1t wholly
unsuitable for the class OF work which
now consumes the great bulk OF the
cotton of the Western belt.
Before this agitation became general
a high grade sample of this cotton was
submitted by the department to two
prominent members of the New Or
leans Cotton Exchange, who, on the
first attempt to pull the staple, stated
that the fibre was so short that II
would be rejected as "perished staple
by their classification committee and
would not be tenderable on New Or
| leans cotton contracts. Two members
OF the New York Cotton Exchange to
whom samples were submitted made
practically the same remarks.
Various cotton exchanges In the
Southwestern States have taken official
action 10 prevent the delivery of this
cotton on contracts made between their
members. As grown in Texas, it is
lacking in stormproof quality, as the
cotton drops from the bolls very easily
and the Individual seeds often fall
| apart.
Repeated complaints are received
/ from English spinners Of the number
( of "miXy" bales of American cotton.
/ This condition arises largely through
. the introduction of short staple into
/ long staple cotton territory, or of long
/ staple into communities growing short
staple cotton. Any serious mixing OF
varieties which have fibres of different
/ lengths results in serious losses in
waste whenever the cotton Is spun
upon machinery adjusted for the long
/ er varieties. Spinners will be quick to
/ discover any serious sdmiXture oi
/ shorter and inferior cotton, and the
/ growers will suffer if such varieties
/ become popular in their territory.
/ In view Of these facts the department
warns the farmers of Oklahoma, Texas
/ and Arkansas that the introduction OF
"half-and-half" or any other variety
/ of cotton producing fibre of less than
seven-eighths of an inch in average
| length will be likely to seriously dam
! age the reputation. of their local mar
/ kets, and may result in few years in
/ basing the price in such markets on
| this inferior cotton. These same dis
tricts are now receiving slight pre-
MUM over the regular quotations for
/ short staple. It will be matter OF
+ particular re;ret o see the results of
the campaign which has been carried
on by the department in these states in
behalf of pure, big-boll varieties (Tri-
umph and Lone STAR jeopardized by
the promiscuous introduction of cotton
Of greatly inferior staple. Such pol
icy must result in very serious losses
to all the growers in the communities
where the poorer types become com
mon.
! As the seed is the primary factor in
determining length of staple. and there
are early maturing prolific varieties
with staple of at least an inch in
length. every cotton farmer should Sc
cure and plant such seed.