The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-08-05
S1,5OO, O0O,OOO |S I OLL IF WEEvIL IN PAST FIVE YEARS
Expert Says Government Alone Can Combat Great
 Southern Pest

NEW ORLEANS, August 4.-The cotton boil weevIi during the last five years including the season. just closed has cost the south not less than S1,5O0 100000, exclusive of the sew eral hundreds of millions spent for the seed that went to waste, accord Ing to the annual report of Col. II. G.. Hester secretary of the New Orleans Cotton exchange. made public today The estimate is based on 8 valuation of 15 cents pound. This stupendous total, said the report, has been at the expense of the yearly trade balances of the United Stats, and, as it is be- yond individual or state efforts, must be coped with by the federal govern ment for the benefit of the country at large"
 Colonel Hester placed the conner cial crop of the 1922-23 season at Ill., 2S2,S06 bales, Q decrease of 370,327 bales under that of 1921-22 and of a. 501 under that of 1920-1s21. The av- craze grade of the cotton was mid ding and ranked among most even running crops on record, with very little high or low grades. Although the crop was satisfactory as to grade, there was general complaint on the score of the staple. This was due to drouth.
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 Average Price Is 24 Cents. The report placed the average price of the cotton at 24. o6 cents per pound as compared with TITS cents last year, 16 0S cents year before last and 3S. .21 cents in 1919-29. The value of the crop, including the seed, was es timated at $t,571, ,299,S39 as against $1,173,sS3,5S2 last year.
 Colonel Hester said the actual growth of the crop of 1922-23 was 10, 424 900 bales. and that the amount of cotton carried on July 31 was 2,5T3, 900 bales against 4.S7s,000 last year, a decrease of 2,306,000 bales.
 The carry-over includes 177,000 balse of linters against 3S2,000 on July 31, 1922.
 Exports of cotton to foreign ports were 4,S50,795 bales against 6,322470 last year and 5,797590 the year be- fore, decrease compared with last year of ] ,471.675 and a decrease under year before last of 946.795. Southern consumption was the | largest of any year yet received, but foreign mills, finding that they could not obtain a sufficiency of American cotton without running values high er turned more towards foreign growths, with the result that the consumption of American cotton abroad decreased for the season 955,- 900 bales.
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 Consumption Of Crop.
 Consumption of American cotton in the south was 4,4sS,000 bales and in 1 the north 2,503,000 bales, a total of | 6,991,000 bales including linters | In addition to this, said the report, American mills consumed 346 900 | bales of foreign cotton, making the total consumption of American and l foreign growths by American mills 7,337,o00 against 6,552,000 bales last | year.
 Colonel Hester puts the worlds con sumption of American cotton at 12,-
 e31,0o0 bales against 12,S29,000 last
 year and 10.330,000 the year before.
 The consumption in the United States this year was 6,991 900 and for
 eign countries 5,640,000, showing an
 increase compared with last year of l 575,000 bales in the United States and a decrease of 955.000 in foreign coun-
 tries, or net total decrease in the years consumption of 19S,O0O bales under last year, and an increase over year before last of 2,301,000 bales.