Oxford eagle. (Oxford, Lafayette Co., Miss.) 1876-current, 1922-12-21
THE BOIL WEEVIL
A MENACE TO CIVILIZATION.

Cotton is in many respects the most
important single industry In the
world. when we consider it from Its
nroduction as a raw material to It's
manufacture and its WIDE ramlhcatlon
in world trade. 1t represents an
aggregate investment in lands, In
mills and cognate industries of S25,-
600. OOO, 900 or over. The South alone
has about 81, OOO, 100000 invested In
cotton mills, knitting mills and kim
dred interests, and many billions in
it's production.
The development of the cotton in
dustry during the first half of the last
century was the greatest business
achievement DURING that period in the
world. Beginning with a production
of a few bales in the early years OF
that century, cotton-grow1ng develop
ed in the South to a point where 1t
largely dominated the finances and po-
litics of this country and of Europe.
During the Civil War the famine In
cotton endangered the welfare of mil
lions of people in England. Inc
poverty in the Lancashire district
during that four-year period stands
out as one of the awful records IN the
life of an industrial center. A few
months age one of the foremost cot
ton manufacturers of England wrote
to an American friend that the ina
bility of England to secure It's sue
supply of American cotton, in any
one year, would greater dis
tress in the Lancashire district than
did the War. Millions of people IN
Lancashire are wholly dependent on
the manufacture of cotton. Mll!lons
of people throughout the world-hun-
areds of millions, indeed-are depend
emit for clothes upon the production,
from the South's staple, of the hnlsn-
ed cloth. Millions of people IN this
country are directly dependent upon
the growing and handling of cotton,
while the financial interests Of the ma
ton would be shaken to their founda-
ton by the loss of the cotton trade.
The South could weather the storm
better than any other section, because
the South could turn its farm lands
into the production Of diversified ag-
riculture, once more regaln1ng the
n~rosperity which never would have
been lost if this section had not by
force of circumstances unwlsely GEN.
tered it's agriculture upon the pro-
duction of cotton.
This great industry, without which
the world could scarcely maintain its
ciyilization-for without cotton clothes
we would sink back into barbarism-
is menaced by the boll-weevil. This is
not merely a menace to the South, for
the South could stand the shock of
its cotton crop being destroyed, better
than the world could stand the loss
of cotton goods. 1t is a menace to
the nation-a to civilization
itself.
1t is, therefore, incumbent upon
every agency of this Government and
of all other civilized governments;
upon chemical manufacturers, cotton
manufacturers and financiers, to
spend money with the utmost freedom
in encouraging chemists and others
to find a remedy for the boll-weevil.
Various remedies are being developed;
Some of them are more or less sue
cessful; but the task is very great.
The danger of the destruction of the
cotton industry is so vast that until
the whole nation realizes the extent
and Importance of that industry and
the seriousness of the menac the
task will not be tackled on a scale
commensurate with the magnitude of
the problem to be solved.
The world faces a cotton famine;
civilization may be at stake by the
loss of cotton. But we believe al
remedy will be found. We believe
that this crop-in many respects the
most important single crop I've given
by a beneficent Providence to hui
manity-will be saved from the de-
structive power of the boll-weevil, but
we believe that the utmost energy
of the nation must be concentrated up
on the solving of this great problem.