New Britain herald., 1926-01-19
COTTON GROWING
 CAL|F. INDUSTRY
Efforts of 75 Years Being
 Recognized

Sacramento. Cal. Jan. 10 R>-For
 76 years tho Golden State has been
 trying to become known as tho land of cotton. and at last its ef- forts arc meeting with a success as striking as were some of its early
 failures.
 Figures of the Federal depart
 mont of agriculture disclose that tor several years California has produced more cotton than Virginia, the oldest cotton producing state: that Californias average yield per acre Is the highest of any cotton producing state, and that Califor- mia Acala cotton sells at pre- mium on the cotton markets of the United States.
 It was not always thus.
 In 1851. when farmers were still throwing away their blows to join the rush for California gold. T. 0. Selby received some cotton seed from Mississippi and planted 1t on his ranch just outside the city of Sacramento. Three years later the Sacramento Union acknowledged on it's editorial page the receipt of "a lot of beautiful cotton" grown on the Selby ranch. It quoted Mir. Selby as saying that only the high price of labor prevented California from becoming within a few years 'one of the heaviest cotton-pro- dueing states in the republic"
 In 1856 General Sutter, whose sawmill was the scene of the gold discovery. was growing cotton on his Hook farm near Marysville, al- though the newspaper men describ- ing the crop waXed far more en- thusiastic over the excellent brandy--real Simon pure stuff" which the general was making out l of wild grapes.
 This same year, too, the State l Agriculture Society offered s75 for the"best acre of cotton" No grow CT was able to qualify with full ] acre. but r. W. Gibson of Los Angeles showed the judges so fine an eight acre that they awarded | him a framed diploma.
 Then came the Civil War, threatening to deprive California Of all cotton importation from southern states. To hasten the de- velopment of cotton culture, the state in 1862 offered prize of S3.000 for the first hundred bales produced by q California grower. Later the prize was divided among several who produced the largest number of bales.
 When peace came the California they could not compete with south ern states using cheap negro labor, the growers turned their attention to other crops,
 Thereafter while cotton never ceased to be of great interest to oyperimcntors, commercial produc- ton Jagged until 1909. when Inn parisI Valley growers demonstrated cotton could be grown at a healthy profit on irrigated California. lands. The production this year totaled $50 bales
 Under lash of World War demand. Imperial Valleys cotton production expanded prodigiously and tempted other districts 10 try growing on a commercial scale. The first i'm portant San Joaquin Valley pro- ':artlon wos in 1918 and expansion as so rapid that in 1925 more 'Nan half the states cotton acreage ,ras in this region, Last year the 1 ate had an acreage of 17".000, the average yield being estimated it 351 pounds per acre as against 1928 pounds for the United States 2t large. The estimated total pro- Iuction was 12f,ho0 bales.
 State legislation has set aside certain countries where ouly Acala from the seed stock de- tnrioralion that comes from inter nrossing. A rigid and persistent Iarantlne is preserved against the poll wetyil.