The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1922-12-09
BcIittling the Boil wccvil.

IQe wall OIEeeL. jour Hal Ol q Ic-
cent date answered very completely
a statement made by Mr.. Aston H.
Garside, of the Merchants Nation
al Bank. Of Boston, to the effect
that the south can produce H.
100000 bales of cotton in 1928.
That paper points out that since
the world reserve of American cot
ton at the end Of this season bids
fair to be less than ten weeks sup
ply the size of the next crop is of
great importance and suggests
that Mr.. Garside in his statement is
not giving due weight to. the boil
weevi!.
Speaking before the New Eng
land Purchasing Agents Associa-
ton. Mr. Garside cited statistics of
yields of five weevil-afflicted states
in 1914-TeXas. Arkansas, Louis
lana. Mississippi and Alabama,
which averaged 1S5 pounds to the
acre. and then said:
.If next winter should be very
severe in the cotton belt, and a
large portion of the weevils should
be thereby destroyed. and if the
weather during the growing season
should make possible the raising
of a large quantity per acre ma
turing early before the weevil can
do serious damage, the south
might very well raise $50 or 1S5
pounds to the acre. which would
aggregate 100000 bales.
so far as the weather is con-
cerned." says the Wall Street Jour
nal. 1914 WAS freak year. Over
a period of II years climatic con-
-ditions were responsible for 22.3 per
cent of the loss in yield of cotton.
In 1914, however. it averaged only
1873 per cent. Never before or since
then has the country averaged as
much to the acre. Even in the east
ern states that up to two years ago
were free from meevils the 1914
average has not been attained. Nor
in the eight seasons following 1914
has anything like a yield of 1S5
pounds been produced in the whole
country. In fact, an average of III
pounds has not been produced since
then. although not until this year
did the weeyiis get up TO North
Carolina.
But the weevil is now a greater
factor than even the weather. Last
year its ravages accounted for more
than 80 per cent of the crop. ac-
cording to official estimates. The
weevil Will practically cover the
whole cotton belt next year aside
from the small acreage under r.
rigation in the extreme southwest.
Only a small percentage OF. weevils
may come out of hibernation. but
race suicide is not a problem with
them. A single female has been
known to lay $50 eggs. from four
to seven generations are produced
in Il season. all of which begin
propa CATION Theoretically. the in
crease from one female would run
into the billions in Il season. This
explains why it is that after the
first of August few blossoms are to
be seen in the fields.
1T is an error to count on a cot
ton that Will mature early before
the weeviIs can do serious dam
age" 40 variety of cotton has yet
been developed that viii, mature
before the weevils do serious dam
age. Cotton begins to bloom on
the bottom branches and then
works upward. This gives the
"bottom." middle and top
crops" The most that can be hoped
for without the use of poison is
variety that viii mature the bottom
and perhaps half the middle crop
before the first of August when
the weevils have increased to dan
seyous proportions.
But this will not produce iSo
pounds Even if all the top boiis
matured it could not be done. IN
fact. the records since 1870 show
that with the one exception of 1914,
that the average has never been
produced in the United States. The
loc1,