IMPERIAL INSTITUTE HANDBOOKS

COTTON AND OTHER VEGETABLE

FIBRES : THEIR PRODUCTION

AND UTILISATION

IMPERIAL INSTITUTE SERIES
OF HANDBOOKS TO THE
COMMERCIAL RESOURCES OF
THE TROPICS, WITH SPECIAL
REFERENCE TO BRITISH
WEST AFRICA

Issued under the authority of the Secretary of
State for the Colonies

EDITED BY

WYNDHAM R. DUNSTAN,
C.M.G., LL.D., F.R.S.

Director of the Imperial Institute ; President of the
International Association for Tropical Agriculture

IMPERIAL INSTITUTE HANDBOOKS

COTTON AND OTHER
VEGETABLE FIBRES:

THEIR PRODUCTION & UTILISATION

BY ERNEST GOULDING, D.Sc. (LOND.), F.I.C.

SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL DEPARTMENT, IMPERIAL INSTITUTE
WITH A PREFACE BY

WYNDHAM R. DUNSTAN, C.M.G., LL.D., F.R.S.

DIRECTOR OF THE IMPERIAL INSTITUTE

WITH ILLUSTRATIONS

LONDON
JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET, W.

1919

ai

FIRST EDITION November, 1917

SECOND EDITION April, 1919

ALL RIGHTS RKSERVED

PREFACE

AMONG the industrial problems arising from the war,
one of the most important is that of the future of
our textile industries, especially in relation to the
sources from which they derive their raw materials
and the possibility of drawing these to a larger extent
than was the case before the war from countries
within the Empire.

The subject is one that has engaged the close
attention of the Imperial Institute for many years,
during which it has investigated the possibilities of
fibre production in all those British countries which
seem to present chances of success. The Institute
has given assistance, through experimental investi-
gations conducted in its laboratories and through
the supply of technical information, to Governments
of the countries concerned, to producers overseas
and to merchants and manufacturers at home. A
very large amount of information has been collected
on questions connected with the experimental pro-
duction and value of fibres in various countries,
much of which has been published in the " Bulletin
of the Imperial Institute " and in special reports.
In connection with cotton cultivation especially
the work of the Imperial Institute has been con-
tinuous and has been conducted in intimate association
with experimental cultivation overseas, and with the
operations of the British Cotton Growing Association.
In these subjects of cotton cultivation alone the In-
stitute has issued a large number of special reports.

The increased attention which must shortly be
given to extending these sources of supply of cotton
and other industrial fibres rendered it desirable that
a general summary should be published of the posi-
tion and prospects of the world's production and
utilisation of fibres, and it has been therefore decided
to issue the present volume in the Imperial Institute
series of Handbooks to the Commercial Resources
of the Tropics. Its preparation has been entrusted
to Dr. Ernest Goulding, who for many years has been

42G498

vi PREFACE

in charge of the Fibre Section of the Scientific and
Technical Department of the Imperial Institute.

It will be seen that besides cotton there is room
for an increased British production of several im-
portant fibres in those countries in which experi-
mental cultivation has already shown that they can
be grown with success.

British Africa, and especially East Africa, may
become the chief country of production of Sisal
hemp hitherto principally obtained from Mexico.
Mauritius may be able to produce larger quantities
of the similar fibre known as Mauritius hemp, which
could also be cultivated in several other countries.
India seems likely to be able to meet the increasing
demand for jute, in the production of which it holds
at present a virtual monopoly. If need be, however,
jute could be grown in other countries, of which
West Africa is one of the most promising. Among
foreign countries Russia and Belgium occupy a similar
position with reference to the main production of
flax. It is hoped that Ireland may be able to extend
her production in the future, whilst Canada is devoting
increased attention to the subject. East Africa is
a new and promising field for the cultivation of this
most useful fibre, which it appears might also be
grown in certain parts of India and Egypt.

Of the greatest importance to this country are
the prospects of increasing the growth of cotton
within the Empire and lessening the uncertainty for
the Lancashire cotton industry of so great a depend-
ence on the cotton crop of the United States. It
is satisfactory to learn that the Government are now
considering the steps which should be taken to
consolidate and extend the successful pioneer work
of the British Cotton Growing Association in this
direction. The problem is one of vital importance
and involves economic questions of some difficulty
presenting different aspects in the various countries
concerned. It also opens up a wide field for assistance
from well-conducted plans of experimental investiga-
tion in those countries in which it appears that^fcotton
cultivation could be successfully extended.

WYNDHAM R. DUNSTAN.

February ', 1917.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTORY

Classification of fibres — Methods of investigation, including micro-
scopical and chemical examination, determination of length and
diameter of ultimate fibres, and measurement of strength and elonga-
tion under stress pp. i-S

CHAPTER II
COTTON

Cotton plant and its products — Structure and composition of cotton
fibre — Cultivation — Diseases and pests — Preparation of cotton for the
market • • • pp. 9-48

CHAPTER III

COTTON PRODUCTION IN THE PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES
AND THE CHIEF COMMERCIAL VARIETIES

Production and varieties of cotton in the United States, Egypt,
India, Peru, Brazil, Mexico, Asiatic Russia, China and Japan — Cotton
prices •••• pp. 49-75

CHAPTER IV

COTTON GROWING IN BRITISH WEST AFRICA AND
OTHER PARTS OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE

Nigeria, Gold Coast, Sierra Leone, Gambia — Anglo -Egyptian Sudan
— Uganda, East Africa and Nyasaland Protectorates— British West
Indies — Cyprus ... • • • pp. 76-97

yn

viii CONTENTS

CHAPTER V
FLAX, HEMP, AND RAMIE

Flax — Climate and soil — Cultivation — Diseases and pests — Prepara-
tion— Production — Cultivation in British Territory — Structure, pro-
perties and uses — Commercial value. Hemp — Climate and soil —
Cultivation — Preparation — Production, yield and commercial value —
Structure, properties and uses. Sunn hemp. Ramie, rhea, or China
grass — Cultivation; preparation, yield, characters and uses — Other
nettle fibres pp. 98-130

CHAPTER VI
JUTE AND SIMILAR FIBRES

Jut* — Climate and soil — Cultivation — Pests — Harvesting — Prepara-
tion— Characters, structure and uses — Commercial varieties and prices
— Production and export — Jute manufacturing industry — Jute growing
in West Africa. Jute substitutes — Abutilon spp. — Hibiscus spp. —
Honckenya ficifolia — Sida spp. — Triumfetta spp. — Urena spp.

pp. 131-153

CHAPTER VII
CORDAGE FIBRES

Manila hemp — Cultivation — Harvesting and preparation — Yield —
Properties, structure, and uses — Grading and commercial value — Pro-
duction and export. Banana and plantain fibres. Sisal hemp — Produc-
tion— Cultivation — Preparation — Cost of production — Characters, pro-
perties and uses — Commercial value — Utilisation of Sisal refuse — Sisal
hemp in West Africa — Zapupe fibre. Mauritius hemp. Bowstring
hemp. New Zealand hemp — Cultivation — Preparation — Yield — Char-
acters, properties and uses — Grading, exports, and commercial value —
Cultivation in St. Helena, Azores, and Scotland. Oil palm fibre

pp. 156-197

CHAPTER VIII
MISCELLANEOUS FIBRES

Pineapple fibre — Coir — Piassava — Palmyra — Kitool — Mexican fibre
— Italian and Mexican whisks — Flosses or silk-cottons — Vegetable
curled hair — Raffia or bass — Paper-making materials . pp. 198-222

LIST OF PRINCIPAL PUBLICATIONS ON FIBRES . . pp. 223-231
INDEX pp. 233-241

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

PAGB

PLATE I. AMERICAN COTTON BOLL .... 12

PLATE II, FIG. i. GINNING COTTON BY MEANS OF THE

CHURKA GIN IN THE TINNEVELLY DISTRICT, MADRAS 46

PLATE II, FIG. 2. GINNING COTTON BY MEANS OF THE
MACARTHY SINGLE-ROLLER GIN IN THE NYASALAND

PROTECTORATE ....... 46

t

PLATE III, FIG. i. PICKING SEA ISLAND COTTON IN ST.

VINCENT ........ 52

PLATE III, FIG. 2. A FIELD OF FINE SEA ISLAND

COTTON, ST. VINCENT 52

PLATE IV, FIG. i. COTTON FIELD, NYASALAND PRO-
TECTORATE 93

PLATE IV, FIG. 2. BALING COTTON, NYASALAND PRO-
TECTORATE . . . . . . • • 93

PLATE V, FIG. i. GINNING FLOOR, CENTRAL COTTON

GINNERY, ST. VINCENT 94

PLATE V, FIG. 2. SHIPPING BALES OF SEA ISLAND

COTTON, ST. VINCENT ... . . -94

PLATE VI, FIG. i. SUNN HEMP PLANT (Crotalaria

juncea), GODAVERI DISTRICT, MADRAS . . 122

PLATE VI, FIG. 2. FIELD OF SUNN HEMP, GODAVERI

DISTRICT, MADRAS 122

x LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

PAOB

PLATE VII. JUTE (Corchorus capsularis) . . -131
PLATE VIII. JUTE (Corchorus olitorius) . . .132

PLATE IX, FIGS, i & 2. SISAL HEMP PLANTS, SHOWING
LEAF-SCARS, LAUTOKA EXPERIMENT STATION, FIJI . 172

PLATE X, FIG i. HARVESTING NEW ZEALAND HEMP

LEAVES . . . . . . . 190

PLATE X, FIG. 2. STRIPPING NEW ZEALAND HEMP . 190
PLATE XI, FIG. i. DRYING NEW ZEALAND HEMP . 193
PLATE XI, FIG. 2. GRADING NEW ZEALAND HEMP . 193

PLATE XII, FIG. i. COIR. REMOVING THE HUSKS

FROM COCONUTS IN CEYLON .... 200

PLATE XII, FIG. 2. PALMYRA PALMS, CEYLON. . 200

COTTON

AND OTHER VEGETABLE FIBRES

CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTORY

VEGETABLE fibres are in general more or less fila-
mentous or thread-like products, consisting of the
tougher and more resistant parts of plants, and
possessing considerable strength and flexibility. In
virtue of these characteristics, they are of great
economic value for the manufacture of durable
materials, such as are required for clothing, sacking,
floor coverings, and cordage, as well as for paper-
making and many other purposes.

They may be classified (i) in accordance with the
part of the plant from which they are derived, and (2)
according to the economic uses to which they are
applied. These two schemes may be referred to as
morphological and economic respectively.

Morphological Classification. — The vegetable fibres of
commerce are derived from various parts of plants as
indicated below :

(1) The hairs borne on the seeds or on the inner
walls of the fruit or capsule. Cotton is the principal
member of this class, which also includes kapok and
other flosses or silk-cottons. Each hair consists of a
single, long, narrow cell, free from transverse parti-
tions.

(2) The fibres of which the inner bark or bast tissue
of stems is composed. This class is represented by
flax, hemp, jute, ramie and related products. The

^V£ Yi >'V*'« ' INTRODUCTORY

long strands in which these fibres appear in commerce
are not individual cells, but are aggregations of
numerous small elongated cells, the so-called ultimate
fibres. In the case of flax and hemp, the ultimate
fibres are on the average about i inch long ; those of
ramie are much longer and vary from 3 to 12 inches
or more, whilst those of jute and its allies are only
about 0*1 to 0*2 inch in length.

(3) Fibres which are obtained from leaves and
constitute the strengthening or fibro-vascular system
of these organs. This class includes the commercial
products known as Manila hemp, Sisal hemp, Mauri-
tius hemp, and New Zealand hemp. These fibres, like
those of the preceding class, consist of long strands
composed of a great number of small, elongated,
ultimate fibres, varying in length from 0*05 to 0-25
inch.

(4) The woody fibre of trees which is used in enor-
mous quantities for paper-making and consists of the
various elements of which the fibro-vascular tissue of
wood is composed.

(5) In this class may be placed a miscellaneous
series of products, such as coir, the fibres of which the
husk (or mesocarp) of the coconut fruit is composed ;
piassava, which consists of the ribs of the sheathing
leaf-stalks or petioles of various palms ; bass or
raffia, composed of epidermal strips peeled from the
leaves of certain palms ; Italian whisk or broom corn,
the stems of a certain kind of millet ; and Mexican
whisk, the roots of a species of grass.

Economic Classification. — A classification of the
fibres in accordance with their industrial uses must
necessarily be somewhat arbitrary as some of the
products are employed for several purposes, and
should therefore appear in more than one class.
Cotton, for example, is not only used for making
textiles, but is also employed for the manufacture of
cordage and paper, and for many other purposes.

(i) Fibres used for the Manufacture of Textiles. —
The principal members of commercial importance
belonging to this group are cotton, flax, hemp, ramie,
and jute.

CLASSIFICATION OF FIBRES • 3

(2) Cordage Fibres. — In this class are included
Manila, Sisal, Mauritius, and New Zealand hemps.
(The fibres of Class i are also more or less largely used
for the manufacture of ropes or twine.)

(3) Brush and Mat Fibres. — This class is repre-
sented by piassava, coir, palmyra, and certain Agave
fibres, such as Mexican fibre (A. heteracantha) .

(4) Fibres used as Stuffing Materials in Upholstery.
— Kapok and other flosses or silk-cottons are em-
ployed for this purpose.

(5) Paper-making Materials. — Almost any fibrous
material is capable of being used for paper-making.
The wood of various forest trees, especially spruce
and poplar, is used extensively for this purpose.
Among West African fibres, that of Adansonia digitata
may be mentioned, which has been used from time to
time for the manufacture of a certain class of wrapping
paper.

(6) Miscellaneous. — In this group may be placed
any other fibrous materials not included in the fore-
going classes. Reference may be made to bass or
raffia, and various products suitable for the manu-
facture of baskets, fans, hats, and other articles.

METHODS OF INVESTIGATION

The methods of investigating fibres consist of (i)
observation of the general characters of the product,
including colour, length, softness, lustre, and fineness,
(2) microscopical examination, (3) chemical examina-
tion, and (4) the measurement of strength and extensi-
bility.

Microscopical Examination. — Microscopical examination
is of great value for the identification of fibres.
It enables the form and character of the ultimate
fibres to be ascertained and facilitates the measure-
ment of their length and diameter. The discussion
of this subject is outside the scope of the present work,
but a general statement with regard to the form and
dimensions of the ultimate fibres of each product
dealt with is given in the respective sections. For a
fuller account of the microscopical structure of fibres,

4 INTRODUCTORY

reference should be made to other treatises, such as
Matthews' Textile Fibres and Wiesner's Die Rohstoffe
des Pflanzenreichs. A general method for preparing
the ultimate fibres for the measurement of their length
and diameter is given for convenience at the end of
the following section.

Chemical Examination. — The chief constituent of vege-
table fibres is the substance known as cellulose,
which is composed of the three elements, carbon,
hydrogen, and oxygen, combined in the proportions
represented by the formula C6Hi0O5. Associated with
this substance is a certain amount of water and a
small proportion of mineral matter. The cellulose does
not exist in fibres as a single definite compound, but
rather as a more or less complex product which may
be regarded as composed of a typical or true cellulose
with certain other groups. The cellulose of fibres may
thus be divided into two classes, (i) the pectocelluloses
and (2) the lignocelluloses. The pectocelluloses are
represented by the fibre substance of cotton, hemp, and
flax, and consist of the true or typical cellulose associ-
ated with so-called pectic bodies, which can be removed
by treatment with alkali. The lignocelluloses form the
fibre substance of such products as jute, Manila and
Sisal hemps, and wood, and consist of a complex of
true cellulose with lignone which itself is a complex
of certain simpler groups.

One of the chief objects of the chemical examina-
tion of fibres is the determination of the character of
the cellulose and the proportion of true cellulose
present. The methods usually employed are based
on those described by Cross, Bevan, and King in their
Report on Indian Fibres and Fibrous Substances. The
following is a summary of the processes adopted, to-
gether with an indication of the manner in which the
results are interpreted.

Moisture. — The amount of moisture is determined
by drying a specimen at 100 — iio°C. It is to some
extent an index of the susceptibility of the fibre to
attack by hydrolytic agents. Textile fibres of the
highest class are distinguished by their relatively low
moisture content. Owing to the variation of this

METHODS OF INVESTIGATION 5

constituent (i to 2 per cent.) with changes in the
hygroscopic state of the atmosphere, all the other
results of analysis are expressed as percentages of the
dry fibre.

4sht — The percentage of ash is determined by com-
pletely incinerating the fibre and weighing the
residue. An abnormally large percentage of ash
usually indicates the presence of mineral impurity
introduced during the preparation of the fibre.

a-PIydrolysis. — The fibre is boiled for five minutes
with dilute solution of sodium hydroxide (i per cent.
Na2O), and is then washed free from alkali, dried, and
weighed. The loss in weight indicates the amount of
substance removed by the solvent action of the
alkali.

^•Hydrolysis. — Another portion of the fibre is
boiled for an hour with alkali of the same strength.
In this case, the loss in weight includes not only the
substance removed by the solvent action, but also-
that rendered soluble by the " degrading " action of
the alkali. It is evident, therefore, that the difference
between the values obtained on a- and ^-hydrolysis
indicates the susceptibility of the actual fibre substance
to attack by hot, dilute caustic alkali.

The results yielded by these determinations afford
an indication of the ability of the fibre to resist pro-
longed exposure to moisture and the attack of alka-
line liquids with which the fibre may be treated
during the processes of manufacture.

Mercerisation. — The fibre is left at the ordinary
temperature in contact with concentrated sodium
hydroxide solution (33 per cent. Na2O) for an hour.
It is afterwards thoroughly washed with cold water,
dried, and the loss of weight determined. The visible
effects of this treatment are generally a shrinkage in
length of the strands of fibre and the production of a
wavy and crinkled outline. The chemical effect
consists chiefly of hydration changes. The result of
the determination indicates the power of the fibre to
withstand the action of strong caustic alkali.

Nitration. — The fibre is submitted to the action of
a mixture of equal volumes of concentrated nitric

6 INTRODUCTORY

acid (sp. gr. 1*42) and sulphuric acid (sp. gr. 1-84) for
one hour at the ordinary temperature. It is then
removed, allowed to drain for a few moments, and
transferred to a beaker containing a large volume
of water. After the fibre has been washed free from
the acid, it is heated with water until boiling com-
mences, and is finally dried in the water-oven. The
increase in weight is noted. In general, the increase
in weight on nitration bears a direct relation to the
other chemical constants.

By the process of nitration the celluloses are con-
verted into their nitrates, giving a corresponding
increase in weight. The lignocelluloses furnish bright
orange-coloured products, whilst those of the pecto-
celluloses are colourless, or nearly so.

Cellulose. — The fibre is boiled for five minutes with
a solution of dilute sodium- hydroxide (i per cent.
Na2O), is washed free from alkali, and, while still
moist, is exposed to the action of chlorine gas for one
hour ; in some cases a longer exposure is necessary. It
is then washed and treated with a solution of sodium
sulphite, which is slowly heated until it boils ; after
two or three minutes' boiling, the product is collected
on a calico filter and washed ; it is afterwards treated
with acetic acid (20 per cent.) and again washed, dried,
and weighed.

When the chlorinated fibre is immersed in the
sodium sulphite solution, a brilliant purple or crimson
coloration is produced if the fibre belongs to the
lignocellulose type, whilst in the case of non-lignified
fibres, the solution remains practically colourless.

In this method of determining the percentage of
cellulose, the non-cellulose substance is rendered
soluble and removed, whilst the true cellulose is not
attacked. The percentage of true cellulose in a fibre
is the most important criterion of its composition and
value. A good fibre contains 75 to 80 per cent., or
even more.

Acid purification. — The fibre is put into acetic
acid (20 per cent.), which is slowly heated until it
boils ; the fibre is removed, washed first with alcohol
and afterwards with water, and then dried and weighed.

METHODS OF INVESTIGATION 7

The loss in weight is chiefly due to the removal of
casual impurities.

Determination of the Length and Diameter of Ultimate
Fibres. — A portion of the cellulose, obtained in
the manner described above, is placed in dilute
acetic acid, teased out with needles, and mounted on
a glass slip. The length and diameter of a number of
fibres thus separated are determined by means of
the microscope, and the maximum, minimum, and
average measurements are recorded. These con-
stitute very important factors in the valuation of
fibres, and are of assistance in determining their
suitability for different manufacturing purposes.

Determination of Strength and Elongation. — The strength
of fibres may be determined roughly by hand, but
considerable practice is required before it is possible
to form an accurate judgment in this way.

To obtain more definite and strictly comparable
results, recourse should be had to one of the machines
which have been specially designed for this purpose.
In order to obtain trustworthy figures, it is necessary
that a large number of determinations should be
made, and the average calculated.

Among the machines which have been devised for
the measurement of strength and elongation under
stress (sometimes inaccurately termed elasticity),
reference may be made to that of Schopper of Leipzig
and that of Reeser and Mackenzie of Philadelphia.

In Schopper 's machine, the fibre is clamped in a
vertical position between two jaws, the upper of which
is attached to one end of a horizontal beam, whilst
the lower is connected to a piston which moves in
a cylinder, and is lowered or raised by means of
hydraulic pressure. A pointer attached to the beam
is caused to move over a graduated scale as the
tension on the fibre increases. Immediately the fibre
breaks, the pointer stops, and thus registers the
breaking-strain on the scale. By means of an in-
genious arrangement, the elongation undergone by
the fibre before breaking is also recorded. This
machine can be used for any of the ordinary fibres,
and can be employed for the coarser fibres for which

8 INTRODUCTORY

the usual form of the Reeser and Mackenzie machine
is nof adapted.

In the Reeser and Mackenzie machine, the fibre
is held in a vertical position with its ends secured in
clamps, one of which is fixed and the other attached
to the arm of a balance. The other balance arm is
then loaded until the fibre breaks ; the loading is
effected, not by adding weights, but by a screw device
which pushes a movable bar along the beam until
breaking occurs. A scale allows the strain at the
moment of breaking to be read off. The increase in
length is ascertained by means of a scale situated
at the end of the beam where the fibre is held.

CHAPTER II
COTTON

COTTON is the most important of all fibres. It is
employed for the manufacture of the greater part of
the clothing material of all nations, and has become
vitally necessary to every civilised community.
The plant is grown over enormous areas, and its
cultivation gives employment to millions of people.
The world's commercial supply of cotton in 1913 was
estimated by the Department of Commerce of the
United States at about 11,127 million pounds; this
figure refers only to the amount actually consumed in
the cotton mills, and does not include the enormous
quantities utilised in the homes of the primitive
races of China, India, Asiatic Russia, various parts
of Africa, South and Central America, and other
regions. The chief countries of production are the
United States, which in 1913 contributed about 60*9
per cent, of the world's commercial supply ; India,
which furnished about 17-1 per cent.; Egypt, about
6*6 per cent.; China, 5*4 per cent.; Russia, 4-5 per
cent. ; Brazil, rg per cent. ; the remaining 3-6 per
cent, was supplied by various other countries, includ-
ing Peru, Mexico, various parts of Africa other than
Egypt, Greece, Italy, Turkey, and Indo-China.

Cotton is the raw material of the greatest manu-
facturing industry of the British Isles. According
to the Census of Production (1907), it is estimated
that in 1907 the total value of the cotton yarn
produced amounted to about £96,000,000, and that
of cotton piece goods to about £82,000,000. The
number of persons directly employed in the industry
was returned as 572,869, of which 220,563 were males
and 352,306 females.

10 COTTON

The values of the total exports, in the same year,
of cotton goods manufactured in the United Kingdom
are given in the Board of Trade Returns as follows :
yarn, £15,416,971 ; piece goods, £81,049,207 ; other
cotton manufactures, including such articles as gloves,
hosiery, lace, ribbons, and sewing thread, £13,970,914 ;
making a grand total of £110,437,092. In 1913 the
grand total amounted to £125,600,951.

THE COTTON PLANT AND ITS PRODUCTS

The vegetable fibre, known as cotton, consists
of the long hairs which cover the seed of various
species of Gossypiiim, a genus of the Malvaceae, or
mallow family. The cotton plant is exceedingly
liable to variation, and consequently exists in very
many forms. The chief factors which influence this
tendency to variation are differences in soil, climate,
and environment. Moreover, the plant responds
freely to altered conditions of cultivation and also
readily undergoes hybridisation. The numerous
variations in the characters of the plant which have
originated from these several causes have been multi-
plied by the large interchange of seed which has
occurred between the different countries of produc-
tion, and have rendered it very difficult to determine
which are true species and which are only varieties or
races. Great confusion has therefore arisen in the
determination of the botanical identity of the various
cultivated forms. This confusion is illustrated by the
fact that whilst Linnaeus recognised only five species
of Gossypium, and Parlatore considered that there
were seven primary species, Todaro mentioned no less
than fifty-four species which he regarded as distinct,
the Index Kewensis (1908) enumerates forty-five
species, and Watt in his Wild and Cultivated Cotton
Plants of the World describes forty-two species. Con-
siderable ambiguity has been caused by the indis-
criminate manner in which botanical names have been
applied. It has often happened that one particular
species has been given different names by different
botanists. For example, G. barbadense, Linn., is

VARIETIES OF COTTON n

regarded by the Index Kewensis as synonymous with
G. acuminatum, Roxb., G. frutescens, Lasteyr., G.fus-
cum, Roxb., G.glabrum, Lam., G.javanicum, Blume, G.
maritimum, Tod., G. peruvianum, Cav., G. punctatum,
Schumm. and Thonn., G. racemosum, Poir., and G.
vitifolium, Lam. Further complications have arisen
owing to the same name being applied by different
botanists to different species. Thus, G. hirsutum,
Linn., and G. hirsutum, Cav., are different species ; G.
arboreum, Linn., G. arboreum, Parl., and G. arboreum,
Vill., are again all different from one another; G.
vitifolium, Lam., and G. vitifolium, Roxb., are also
distinct species. It will now be readily conceived
that no little difficulty exists with regard to the
nomenclature of the ordinary cottons of commerce.
In fact it is impossible to determine with any degree
of certainty the origin of some of the principal com-
mercial varieties. The ordinary Upland cottons of
the United States of America have been regarded by
many authorities as derived from G. herbaceum, Linn.,
but are now usually considered as the offspring of G.
hirsutum, Linn. Some authorities, however, regard
these species as identical. Many of the Upland
varieties are believed to be derived from hybrids of
G. hirsutum with Mexican cotton, G. mexicanum, Tod.,
or G. vitifolium, Lam. As illustrating the readiness
with which the plant undergoes variation, it may be
mentioned that more than one hundred distinct races
of Upland cottons have been brought into existence
by means of well-directed and long-continued efforts
to improve the stock.

Sea Island cotton has usually been regarded as G.
barbadense, Linn., but is considered by Watt to be a
hybrid form.

The Egyptian cottons probably cannot be referred
to any particular species, but are mostly hybrid forms
of G. barbadense, Linn., with other species. In
general, Egyptian cottons are regarded as G. bar-
badense, Linn., but are sometimes placed under G.
peruvianum, Cav., which some authorities consider as
synonymous with G. barbadense, Linn. Fletcher,
however, thinks that the present varieties were pro-

£2 COTTON

duced by hybridisation of the Sea Island plant with
G. vitifolium, Lam.

With reference to the Indian varieties, Professor
G. A. Gammie writes : " It is clearly evident that we
have at the most only one true species of cotton in
India, Gossypium obtusifolium, with its two sub-
species, G. arboreum and G. herbaceum." Other
botanists, however, regard the Indian cottons as
derived from various distinct species, including G.
herbaceum, G. neglectum, G. Wightianum, and G.
arboreum.

Brazilian cotton is generally considered to be the
product of G. brasiliense, Macf., and Peruvian cotton
that of G. peruvianum, Cav.

The cotton plant is a perennial shrub or small tree,
but is usually grown as an annual. The flowers vary
considerably in colour, according to the species. In
the case of the typical American Upland variety, the
petals are generally white or pale yellow when the
flower-bud first opens, but they gradually become
darker and redder until the third or fourth day, and
then fall to the ground. The flowers of the Sea
Island plant and most Egyptian varieties are yellow
with crimson spots at the base of the petals. Those
of the Indian varieties are mostly yellow with crimson
spots, but some of the tree cottons of India and Africa
(Gossypium arboreum) have deep purplish-red flowers.
After the petals have fallen the young fruit remains
enveloped in the calyx ; it gradually increases in size,
and is known as the " boll." When the boll is ripe,
it dehisces by from 3 to 5 valves, exposing the cotton,
which, now that the pressure on it is released, rapidly
expands and forms a large fluffy mass. As soon as
the boll has opened completely and is quite dry, the
cotton is ready to be gathered.

The seeds bearing the cotton fibre, forming the pro-
duct known as " seed-cotton," are collected from the
ripe bolls, and the cotton fibre or " lint," after removal
from the seeds by the process known as " ginning,"
constitutes the raw cotton of commerce. Seed-cotton
usually consists of about one-third of its weight of
cotton fibre and two-thirds of seeds.

PLATE 1

AMERICAN COTTON BOLL

Approximately natural size

COTTON SEEDS 13

The seeds of the cotton plant exhibit considerable
variation in size, colour, and other characteristics.
Some seeds, such as those of the American Upland
and Indian varieties, are closely invested with a coat-
ing of short, downy hairs, sometimes known as " fuzz,"
which remains attached to the seed after the removal
of the cotton, whilst those of certain other forms,
such as the Egyptian and Sea Island varieties, are
almost or entirely free from this covering. In general,
it may be said that short-stapled cottons have the
most fuzzy seed, and that if the staple becomes longer
owing to careful selective cultivation, there is a
tendency for the seed to become smooth or " naked."
The colour of the fuzz is very variable, in some cases
being white and in other cases brown, green, or grey.

In the case of the Upland cotton seed of the
United States, after the cotton has been separated
by ginning, the seeds are generally passed through
another machine, known as the " delinter," which
takes off any remaining cotton and also removes
most of the short, downy hairs or fuzz, the product
thus obtained being termed " linters " or " scarto."
This process improves the quality of the oil and cake
obtained from the seed, facilitates the handling of
the seed, retards fermentation during storage, and
renders the husks or " hulls " more suitable for use
as a subsidiary cattle food. The linters are employed
for the manufacture of paper, cheap yarns for carpet-
making, and other articles.

Cotton seed contains about 20 per cent, of oil which
is of value for soap-making and other purposes. In
extracting the oil from Egyptian and other smooth
or non-fuzzy varieties, the seeds are crushed without
previously removing the hard, outer seed-coats or
hulls, but American Upland seeds are usually hulled
or decorticated first. This is necessitated by the
presence of the fuzz which has escaped the delinter
and which, if allowed to remain, deteriorates the
quality of both the oil and the oil-cake. The hulls
are sometimes ground up and used as a diluent for
richer cattle foods, such as cotton-seed meal ; they
are also largely utilised for paper-making. The oil-

14 COTTON

cake, or residue remaining after the oil has been
expressed, is used extensively as a feeding stuff for
cattle. Ginned Upland cotton seed consists approxi-
mately of linters, 10 per cent. ; hulls, 35*8 per cent. ;
oil, 20 per cent. ; and oil-cake, 34*2 per cent.

According to the length of the individual fibres,
cotton is classed commercially as long-, medium-, or
short-stapled. The long-stapled cottons are from
about i J to i £ inches or more in length, the medium-
stapled about £ to i inch, and the short-stapled from
f to | inch.

The principal long-stapled varieties are Sea Island
cotton, the Egyptian varieties, and the so-called
" improved " American Upland cottons which have
been obtained from ordinary Upland types by con-
tinuous selection and careful cultivation. The
Brazilian and Peruvian cottons vary in length from
i to i J inches, and are therefore either medium- or
long-stapled. The chief medium-stapled cottons of
commerce are the ordinary American Upland kinds,
and the short-stapled class is represented by the East
Indian varieties.

STRUCTURE AND COMPOSITION OF THE COTTON FIBRE

The cotton fibre or hair is a single hollow cell
without any transverse partition. The hair is of
the form of a long, narrow tube or cylinder, the
base of which is attached to the seed-coat ; its
greatest diameter is at a point about one-third of its
length from the base. As the hair ripens, it loses its
cylindrical form and becomes more or less flattened,
and then appears as a narrow, somewhat opaque
ribbon or band with slightly thickened, rounded edges.
The surface of the hair is smooth and the fibre
would therefore be difficult to spin were it not for the
fact that it possesses a peculiar characteristic twist.
This twist is not present in the early stages, but only
becomes developed after the boll has opened and
the cotton has been exposed to air and sunlight.
The twists are not formed by complete revolutions

STRUCTURE AND COMPOSITION 15

of the fibre on its central axis, but are sometimes
in one direction and sometimes in another ; they
occur at irregular distances from one another and
vary in the degree of convolution. The number of
twists in a given length of the fibre is very variable,
and is increased by the exercise of care in the cultiva-
tion of the plant. The finer the diameter of the fibre,
the larger are the number of twists, and hence the
twists are most numerous in Sea Island cotton, which
is the finest variety yet produced. The presence of
the twist imparts a roughness to the fibres which
enables them to exert a certain amount of grip on
one another, and thus renders it possible for them to
be spun into a thread. Unripe cotton consists of
thin, transparent fibres with little or no twist. Such
fibres are known technically as " dead cotton/' and,
being very weak and brittle, they break up in the
processes of manufacture, thus increasing the amount
of waste, and also tending to weaken the yarn or
fabric into the composition of which they enter ;
they also possess the defect of not being able to take
dyes satisfactorily. For these reasons the presence
of much immature cotton reduces the commercial
value of the product.

In chemical composition, cotton consists chiefly
(about 90 per cent.) of a comparatively pure form of
cellulose, together with about 7 to 8 per cent, of water,
0-4 per cent, of wax and oil, 0*6 per cent, of nitrogenous
substances, and i per cent, of mineral matter. The
wax is present as a thin layer on the surface of the
fibre and renders it incapable of absorbing water
readily. The oil appears to be identical with that
contained in the seed. In the preparation of the
so-called absorbent cotton wool which is used for
dressing wounds and for similar purposes, the wax and
oil are removed by boiling the fibre with a dilute
solution of caustic alkali under pressure ; the cotton
is subsequently washed and treated with bleaching
powder and hydrochloric acid, and again washed and
dried. The nitrogenous constituents of cotton consist
of the remains of the cell protoplasm and allied
substances.

16 COTTON

When cotton is immersed in a strong solution of
caustic soda it undergoes certain remarkable changes,
the chief of which is the production of a silky lustre.
This phenomenon was discovered by John Mercer in
1844, and has led to results of great commercial
importance. The process is now carried out on a very
extensive scale under the name of " mercerisation,"
and is sometimes applied to the yarn and sometimes
to the woven fabric. The material is either kept in a
state of tension during the operation, or is allowed to
shrink in the alkaline liquid and afterwards stretched
to its original length before being washed. The
process not only produces an exceedingly high lustre
on the cotton, but also increases its power of absorbing
dyes. The structure of the cotton fibre undergoes
alteration ; the flattened, twisted tube characteristic
of ordinary cotton swells out, and is thus converted
into a hollow, cylindrical form. This change in form
is accompanied by a decrease in length and also by an
increase in tensile strength, mercerised cotton being
in some cases as much as 50 per cent, stronger than
ordinary cotton. Egyptian cotton generally mer-
cerises better than ordinary American cotton.

When cotton is treated with a mixture of nitric
and sulphuric acids, it is converted into nitrocellulose
or gun-cotton. This product has the general appear-
ance of ordinary cotton, but is rougher to the touch,
grating when rubbed between the fingers, and is in-
elastic. It explodes on percussion, and burns with a
flash. The combustion of gun-cotton is accompanied
with the liberation of a large volume of gas, to which
the force of the explosion is due. On dissolving nitro-
cellulose in ether, or a mixture of ether and alcohol, the
product known as collodion is obtained, which, when
painted on a surface, dries to a thin film. Collodion
is employed for closing wounds, for the preparation
of photographic plates, for the manufacture of cellu-
loid and other purposes. Gun-cotton is also em-
ployed in the manufacture of celluloid.

CULTIVATION 17

CULTIVATION

Cotton is chiefly cultivated in the tropical and
semi-tropical parts of the Northern Hemisphere, and,
to a much smaller extent, in the Southern Hemisphere.
In the Northern Hemisphere the northern limit of
cotton cultivation is, in general, the 4oth degree
of latitude. In the United States of America it does
not extend much beyond the 37th parallel, except
for a few isolated patches in the States of Kentucky
and Missouri. In Europe, however, cotton is grown
considerably beyond the 4oth degree, the industry
being carried on in Eastern Roumelia, on the Southern
slopes of the Balkans at 42°4o' latitude, whilst in
Central Asia cotton is grown for local consumption
as far north as 44°3O/. In China and Japan the cul-
tivation does not extend beyond the 4Oth parallel.
In the Southern Hemisphere cotton is not grown
nearly so far from the equator as it is in the Northern
Hemisphere, the limit being reached at about 25°.

Climate. — The cotton plant requires considerable
warmth and sunshine for its satisfactory growth.
About six or seven months are occupied in the grow-
ing and maturing of the crop, and it is therefore
necessary that the climate of the country should be
such as to maintain the necessary conditions for this
length of time. During the growing period a mean
monthly temperature of 65° to 8o°F. is desirable.
The temperature should be fairly uniform since the
plant is very susceptible to sudden changes of tem-
perature, and any check tends to produce premature
ripening. The rainfall during this period should be
such as to yield a uniform supply of moisture, keeping
the soil continuously moist but not wet. The most
favourable weather is that which provides much
sunshine during the day, and heavy dews or light
showers of rain at night. In the earlier periods of
growth, moderate showers of rain do not cause any
damage, but, as soon as the flowers have opened, dry
warm weather must prevail or otherwise the plant
suffers considerably and the yield is markedly
diminished. Heavy storms or continuous rains are

i8 COTTON

detrimental at any time. After the plant has
attained its full size, a lower temperature and a drier
condition of the soil are required in order to check
vegetative growth and enable the bolls to develop.
Under unfavourable conditions, such as lack of sun-
shine, excessive rain, or early frosts, the crop is liable
to be seriously diminished. The cotton plantations
should be so situated as not to be exposed to strong
winds, since these are liable to injure the plants and
also promote rapid evaporation with a consequent
drying of the soil.

Soil. — Success in cotton growing depends to a
large extent on the character and physical conditions
of the soil. The soil should contain a fair amount
of sand, which must be finely divided and thoroughly
incorporated with the other constituents. Soils which
are very rich in humus are unsatisfactory since they
lead to the production of too much foliage at the
expense of the fruit, and only a small quantity of fibre
is formed. Stony or rocky ground is objectionable,
whilst stiff, clayey soils are very unsuitable, as they
retain too much moisture and clog the roots. As a
matter of fact, however, cotton is cultivated with
more or less success on soils of almost every descrip-
tion. On very sandy soils, the supply of moisture
is usually deficient, the plant is small, the fruit is
formed too early, and the yield of cotton is usually
poor. In general, it may be said that the most suit-
able soil is a deep, medium loam with good natural
drainage, but capable of retaining sufficient moisture
to supply the needs of the plant. The Sea Island
cotton of the United States grows best on light, fine-
grained, sandy soils containing from about 4 to 8 per
cent, of clay, 4 to 6 per cent, of silt, and 75 to 90 per
cent, of fine sand. Such soils usually contain about
5 per cent, of moisture. The soils most suitable for
the cultivation of Upland varieties contain on an
average from 10 to 12 per cent, of moisture during the
growing season.

Cultivation and Harvesting. — In considering the system
of cultivation, it should be borne in mind that the
object of any system is to render assistance to the

CULTIVATION 19

plant so as to enable it to attain perfect development
and thus produce a crop of the best possible quality.
If the soil is stiff and hard, it must be thoroughly
broken up and loosened so that the root-system, con-
sisting of a long tap-root with numerous branches and
ramifications, may be able to penetrate it freely. If
it contains insufficient food-materials, recourse must
be had to manuring ; weeds, if allowed to grow, rob
the plant of food and moisture, and must therefore
be eliminated ; if the soil is too sandy, and conse-
quently lacking in moisture, supplies of humus must
be added. It is therefore evident that thorough
cultivation is of the utmost importance if satisfactory
crops are to be produced. The methods of cultiva-
tion practised in different countries vary a good deal,
and depend to a considerable extent on the local
conditions and the varieties grown. For these reasons
no attempt will be made to outline a general method
of cultivation, but the cultural systems of the United
States and Egypt will be reviewed in turn.

Cultivation in the United States

Since the United States of America is the most
important country of production, its methods of
cultivation will be considered first.

The climatic conditions in the cotton-growing
districts of the United States vary widely. The
rainfall is, in general, adequate to the needs of the
crop, and irrigation is rarely practised, except in
Arizona and California. The rainfall usually increases
from the spring to the middle of the summer, and
then decreases, the autumn being the driest period.

The soils met with in the cotton area are of various
types, ranging from heavy clays to light sandy soils.
As a rule, the most satisfactory results are obtained
on medium grades of loam.

The land is usually ploughed as early in the year
as possible to a depth of not less than 8 inches, and
sometimes to as much as 10 or 12 inches. The
ploughing should not merely turn the soil, but must
break it up completely, so as to bring it into a state of

20 COTTON

fine tilth. Deep ploughing is of value, since it makes
the soil more retentive of moisture, and also affords
the roots of the cotton plant a wider scope for obtain-
ing nourishment. In order to complete the disintegra-
tion of the soil, the ploughing is followed by harrowing,
any clods which have been left being thus broken up.
The assistance of the roller is sometimes called into
requisition for this purpose. When manure is to be
applied, it is usually spread over the land and worked
in at the first ploughing.

The seed is sown in rows, which are usually about
4 feet apart, although on the lighter kinds of soil
they are sometimes only 3j or 3 feet apart. The
distance between the plants in the row varies from
about 20 to 24 inches for good soils to 12 to 16 inches
for poor soils. The reason for planting fewer plants
on a rich soil than on a poor soil is that the former
naturally produces larger and heavier plants. When
either the variety of cotton or the soil is such as to
develop unusually large plants, the rows are widened
to as much as 5 feet and the spaces between the
plants increased to from 24 to 30 inches. The rows
are sometimes marked out by dragging over the land
a heavy wooden beam, provided with teeth set at
the desired distance from one another. A light
plough is run up the markings thus produced, making
furrows about 4^ inches deep. The seeds are moist-
ened before sowing in order to favour germination.
In some cases the wet seeds are rolled in wood-ashes,
lime, or guano, with the object of preventing them from
adhering to one another. As soon as the ground
has been properly prepared and is warm enough to
enable the seeds to germinate, sowing is commenced.
Some farmers prefer to manure the ground rather
heavily and postpone planting until decidedly warm
weather has arrived, but in this case it is safer to plant
the seed somewhat deeper than usual. The time of
sowing varies a good deal in different parts of the
American cotton-belt, but is, in general* between the
middle of March and the middle of April. In the
smaller plantations, sowing is done by hand, and
requires the labour of three persons, one to dig the

CULTIVATION 21

holes, another to place four or five seeds in each hole,
and the third to cover up the seed with the soil. In
all the more important undertakings, however,
mechanical sowers are employed, by means of which
as many as twenty acres can be sown in one day. The
seeds are covered with an inch of soil or even with as
much as three inches if the land is subject to drought.
When a mechanical sower is not used, the seed is
covered by means of light hoes. From eight to fifteen
days after sowing the young plants begin to appear
above the ground. When they are about 3 or 4
inches high, the land requires weeding, and the
cultivating plough is brought into action. This
implement ploughs the ground only to a depth of
i or 2 inches, as deeper ploughing is liable to injure
the roots of the young cotton plants. After the
cultivator has passed up the rows, the ground around
the plants is cleaned with hoes. In wet weather
all the weeds lying on the surface are picked up by
hand and put in heaps at the ends of the rows, as
otherwise they would only be transplanted by the
cultivator or hoe. Weeding is most important, for
unless the weeds are removed the crop is liable to be
seriously injured. About a fortnight after the first
weeding, the ground is again cleaned and stirred by
means of the cultivator in order to break up the surface
crust that forms after rain. If rain is frequent, or
if weeds persist in growing, the cultivator must be
used more often. The plants are now thinned out
from each group, leaving only the strongest one in
each case, and fresh seeds are sown in places where
no plants have survived. A little soil is drawn up
round each plant. From this point onward very
little work is required. The surface of the ground
round the plants is raised by the various hoeings to a
height of 3 or 4 inches above the level of the ground
between the rows. It is now only necessary to break
the surface of the ground occasionally, and to remove
the few straggling weeds which have hitherto escaped.
The date at which cotton-picking commences
varies in different regions, but it is usually about the
middle of August. The season of harvest extends

22 COTTON

through about three months, October being the most
important. Sometimes, however, picking can be
continued until the beginning of January, if the
ripening of the capsules has not been checked by the
cold. If the harvesting is postponed too long, there
is a danger that some of the cotton may be beaten to
the ground by rain and become discoloured. The
pickers carry a sack suspended from the shoulder
and open at the mouth, into which the seed-cotton is
placed as it is withdrawn from the bolls, the outer
case or husk of the capsule being usually left on the
plant. The work is done by coloured people of both
sexes and all ages, and the quantity that each person
gathers in a day naturally varies a good deal, some
picking less than ioo,lb. a day, whilst others collect
as much as from 300 to 350 Ib. It is necessary that
the cotton should be picked carefully, so as to exclude
fragments of capsules or leaves ; otherwise the
product will be " leafy " and its value consequently
diminished.

Owing to the great expense involved in this method
of picking by hand, efforts have been made to devise
a machine which would pick the cotton automatically.
Several such machines have already been invented,
and two of the most recent forms are briefly des-
cribed below.

The Crawford-Elliot cotton-picker consists essenti-
ally of a double row of bristle brushes, i\ inches in
diameter and 14 inches long. These brushes are
caused to revolve rapidly, and are introduced among
the plants and drawn up vertically. The ripe cotton
adheres to the brushes, which travel to a receptacle
in which the cotton is stripped off, and the operation
is repeated. It is claimed that this machine will
harvest the cotton at one-fourth of the cost of hand-
labour.

The Price-Campbell cotton-picker operates by
means of series of spindles, which are either corrugated
or bear suitable projections. These spindles are
carried in appropriate bearings, fitted into vertical
cylinders, a number of which are arranged on an
endless band on each side of the machine. The

CULTIVATION 23

spindles are set in rapid rotation, and when brought
into contact with the fibre which has burst from the
boll, the latter becomes entwined around them, and
is thus collected. The cotton is then detached auto-
matically from the spindles by a special mechanism,
and drops into a bag at the rear of the machine.
The cotton-picker is mounted on a trolley, which is
propelled at a walking pace by means of a petrol
engine. This machine gathers about 10 Ib. of seed-
cotton per minute or 6,000 Ib. per day of ten hours.
It picks about 90 per cent, of the ripe cotton, and the
remaining 10 per cent, is almost completely collected
by going over the same rows a second time. The
plants do not suffer any damage and neither the
flowers nor immature bolls are injured. The main
objection to the use of the machine is that it picks
more green leaf than is done in picking by hand, but
it is* stated that an appliance has been devised for
attaching to the machine which effects the separation
of the leaf from the cotton.

Such a machine, if capable of giving satisfactory
results in the ordinary plantations, would overcome
the difficulty of obtaining sufficient labour at the
picking season, which is the greatest obstacle to the
extension of the industry in the United States.

In the United States the second picking is regarded
as superior to the first, since the first picking always
contains a certain amount of sand and soil which has
been beaten up on the lower bolls by the splashing
of the rain. In Egypt, however, where the cotton is
grown under irrigation, the first picking is always
considered the best, and does not suffer this damage.

Cultivation in Egypt

The conditions of the soil and climate in Egypt
are very favourable to cotton cultivation, and most
of the physical phenomena characteristic of the
Nile valley can be readily adapted to the needs of
the plant. The success of cotton growing in Lower
Egypt is largely due to the hot, moist atmosphere

3

24 COTTON

and the elaborate system of irrigation. The rainfall
of Egypt is exceedingly small, amounting in average
years to only 1-5 inches at Cairo and 7-8 inches at
Alexandria. During the whole period of vegetative
growth of the cotton plant, little or no rain falls, but
the land is fortunately provided with a sufficiency of
water by the rise of the Nile and the distribution of
its water by means of numerous canals.

The mean annual temperature in the Delta varies
from 69*i°F. at Alexandria to 70- 3° F. at Cairo.
Further up the river, at Assouan, it reaches 80° F.
The extremes of temperature observed at Alexandria
are 45* i ° F. as a minimum and 99* 3° F. as a maximum.
At Cairo, as would be expected from its greater
distance from the sea, the range is wider, the extremes
being 36*5° and IO9'2°F.

The arable soils of Egypt consist almost entirely
of alluvial deposits, but, since the conditions pre-
vailing at their formation were not always the same,
the soil does not everywhere present the same physical
properties and chemical composition, and the nature
of the deposit varies with the depth.

In Upper Egypt, the ancient bed of the river con-
stitutes what is known as the Nile Valley. The river
here, during the annual flood, is diverted, by means
of flood-level canals, to fill large basins, where the
water deposits the alluvium and is then either dis-
charged into a lower-level basin and returned to the
Nile or allowed to sink entirely into the soil. By
repeated deposits of alluvium the arable land of the
Nile Valley has been reclaimed from the desert.

The Delta, on the other hand, has been won from
the sea by the rapid deposition caused by the mingling
of the river with the salt water. A difference has
consequently arisen in the nature of the soil of the
two regions. In the Nile Valley, the deposition of
the alluvium has been effected by gravitation alone,
and the soil is therefore not so rich in clay as is that
of the Delta, where the salt of the sea has caused a
more rapid precipitation of the argillaceous matter
and has also made the land more saline.

The typical soil of the Delta is a heavy, black clay

CULTIVATION 25

which is difficult to work, but is fertile and well
adapted to cotton cultivation. In those districts
which yield the best cotton, the soil consists of a
mixture of clay and sand, which is always accom-
panied by a large proportion of vegetable matter,
largely due to the growing of Egyptian clover or
" berseem " for fodder. The soils of other localities
vary from a sandy loam to almost pure sand.

In order to prepare the land for sowing, it is
ploughed thoroughly and deeply three or fuur times
aircKs afterwards thrown into rough ridges from about
32 to 40 inches apart. The land is watered a day or
two before sowing, and the seed is sown after having
been in water for 24-36 hours. Sometimes, however,
the seed is sown dry on dry soil, which is watered
directly afterwards. Since the cultivation of cotton
is carried on in Egypt by means of irrigation, the
plantations must be laid out in such a manner as to
facilitate watering. The land is divided into sections
by a second series of ridges running at right angles
to the ordinary ridges, so that the latter are usually
not more than 36 feet long.

The cotton is generally sown between the middle
of February and the middle of April, the actual date
varying according to the locality. Small holes are
made two-thirds up the ridges and 10 to 18 inches
apart, and the seeds are planted at a depth of about 3
inches, from ten to twenty being placed in each hole
and immediately covered with earth. The plants
appear above the soil in from ten to twelve days,
according to the weather experienced. The planta-
tions are watered from time to time, from eight to
ten waterings being given before the first crops are
gathered.

When the young plants have become well estab-
lished, the fields are hoed in order to destroy weeds
and to loosen the soil. Before the first watering,
which is given usually about thirty-five days after
sowing, the hoeing is sometimes repeated, and the
young plants are thinned out, only two typical ones
being allowed to remain. The second watering takes
place about twenty-five or thirty days after the first,
and when the land has become fairly dry, it is again

26 COTTON

hoed . About three weeks later the fields are watered
for the third time, and are subsequently hoed again.
The water is now applied more frequently, during
June, July, and August two waterings being given each
month if possible. During these summer months,
however, in which the Nile is low, the amount of water
is somewhat limited, and for this reason the frequency
of watering is restricted by the Irrigation Department.
It is estimated that the amount of water supplied to
the cotton plants from the time of sowing until the
first crop is gathered is roughly equivalent to a rainfall
of 31 to 35 inches.

A brief description may be given here of the
manner in which the watering is effected. The water
is supplied by the canals of the irrigation system ; it
reaches the land by free-flow where the water-level is
high, but where the high-water level is below that of
the soil the farmers themselves must raise it. This
is effected either by various primitive means or by
rotatory pumps worked by steam. The water is then
distributed throughout the farms by a rough and
somewhat leaky system of canals. From the canals
the water is conducted round the fields in small
ditches ; from these, in turn, it is allowed to run
along the furrows separating the ridges on which the
cotton, grows. The tops of the ridges always remain
above the water.

Since the ripening of the cotton bolls is not simul-
taneous, but extends over a period of two months or
more, the whole crop cannot be gathered at once, but
is collected in two or even three portions at intervals
of about a month. The picking is done by women
and children. In the Delta, the first crop is gathered
towards the middle of September, but in Upper
Egypt, where " Ashmouni " is grown, it is collected
at the end of August. In recent years, the time of
maturity of the crop has been accelerated by selection,
and, in addition, it is now common for 70-80 per cent,
of the crop to be gathered in the first picking. The
last portion of cotton to be picked is of inferior
quality ; it is not mixed with the other portions of
the crop, but is sold separately.

CULTIVATION . 27

Manuring. — Success in cotton cultivation is greatly
enhanced by judicious manuring. Cotton is not a very
exhaustive crop, since the stems, roots, leaves, and
husks of the bolis are usually returned to the soil, the
cotton fibre and seed only being actually removed from
the land. If the cotton-seed meal is used as a feeding
stuff for live-stock on the farm and returned as
manure to the land, the demands on the soil are very
small, since in this case the only food constituents
permanently withdrawn from the soil are those con-
tained in the cotton fibre. The only elements in
which a cotton soil is likely to be deficient are nitrogen,
phosphorus, and potassium. In addition to these
constituents, however, it is necessary that the manure
should be such as to increase the amount of humus
or organic matter and improve the mechanical con-
dition of the land, and therefore stable manure must
form the basis of the applications. This manure
should be liberally spread over the land before plough-
ing for the last time previous to sowing.

The application of soluble nitrogenous manure to
the soil is found to be very advantageous to the
growth of the young plant, which is unable to obtain
the necessary nitrogen rapidly enough from the stable
manure, even though the latter may contain quite as
much as is theoretically required. If, however, the
cotton crop has been preceded by a leguminous crop,
such as clover or cowpeas, the addition of soluble
nitrogenous manure will probably be unnecessary,
since such plants, through the agency of certain
bacterial organisms, have the power of assimilating
atmospheric nitrogen and enriching the soil in this
constituent. In any case, care must be taken that
soluble nitrogenous manures are not applied too freely
as they tend to produce luxuriant growth, and con-
sequently cause retarded ripening and deficient yield.
Nitrate of soda and sulphate of ammonia are the
artificial nitrogenous manures best suited to cotton,
about 100 Ib. of the former or 80 Ib. of the latter beine;
the quantity usually applied per acre.

Phosphorus appears to be the chief element required
by most cotton soils, and is generally added in the

28 • COTTON

form of superphosphate of lime. It can be used
alone, but is usually more effective if employed in
conjunction with potash and nitrogen manures. The
application of superphosphate is found to check
coarse growth, to encourage ripening, and to improve
greatly the quality of the fibre. A dressing of from
200 Ib. to 500 Ib. of this manure is applied per acre.

Potassium is generally less urgently required than
nitrogen and phosphorus. It is of comparatively
little value if applied alone, but often produces bene-
ficial results when employed in combination with
phosphoric and nitrogenous manures. .It is usually
applied either in the form of kainit or of muriate of
potash, from 50 Ib. to 200 Ib. per acre being used.

Rotation of Crops. — The practice which prevails
in many places of planting cotton year after year
without intermission is very undesirable, since it
generally results in the gradual deterioration and
exhaustion of the soil, and consequently diminishes
the size and quality of the crop. Such exhaustion,
in most cases, however, is only temporary, and if the
land is allowed to lie fallow for a few years, it gradually
regains its fertility. The reasons underlying the
advantages which accrue from a system of rotation of
crops are not yet thoroughly understood, but it is
certain that much more is involved than the mere
withdrawal of the nutritive constituents from the soil,
and it is probable that a by no means unimportant
part is played by changes induced in the texture of
the soil, and by the activity of insects, fungi, and
bacteria, both hostile and friendly.

In planning a rotation, it should be remembered
that different plants extract the constituents of the
soil in different proportions, and that whilst some
plants are provided with long roots and obtain their
food from the sub-soil, others have shallow, spreading
roots and procure their nourishment from the surface
layers. Other points to be considered are the effects
of the different crops on the growth of weeds and on
the presence of insects and other organisms. Bearing
these various factors in mind, it is evident that a crop
which has long, deeply penetrating roots, such as

CULTIVATION 29

cotton, should be followed by one having shallow,
spreading roots, such as oats or cowpeas, and that
one crop should not be immediately followed by
another which draws largely on the same ingredients
of the soil.

The particular crops to grow in a rotation depend,
of course, very largely on the country, its local condi-
tions and requirements. As an example, however,
mention may be made of the three-years system which
has been found very beneficial in the United States of
America. In the first year, maize is grown with
cowpeas planted between the rows ; the second year,
winter oats followed by cowpeas for hay ; and in the
third year, cotton. In Egypt, rotations of two or
three years' duration are commonly practised, the
cotton crop being almost invariably grown after
" berseem " (Egyptian clover) or a fallow, but occa-
sionally after beans.

Acclimatisation and Improvement of Cotton. — There are
several means which may be employed in attempting
to improve the cotton grown in a country. If
there is already a native cotton plant which appears
capable of yielding a satisfactory crop, attention
should be primarily directed towards the improvement
of this variety by careful cultivation and selection of
seed. The effect of seed selection on a cotton crop
is usually very pronounced, both quality and yield
being enhanced. Some improvement can perhaps be
achieved by simply picking out large, ripe, well-
developed seeds for sowing. Much more, however,
may be accomplished by selecting the seed in the field
from the most vigorous and prolific plants, or from
those plants which show the most desirable qualities.
If, for example, it is desired to increase the length of
staple, the seeds should be selected from those plants
which produce the longest fibre. By repeating this
process from year to year, a type of cotton can be
established in which the improved qualities will
remain fixed so long as care in cultivation and
continuous selection of the seed for sowing are
practised.

If, however, the country does not possess a cotton

30 COTTON

plant of a satisfactory type, it is necessary to have
recourse to the cultivation and acclimatisation of
exotic varieties. In making choice of the cotton to be
introduced, consideration must be given in each case
to the local conditions of climate and soil and other
factors which affect the prospects of success. When
a variety of cotton is introduced into a new country,
the conditions of its environment are changed, and the
constitution of the plant receives more or less of a
shock. In order for the plant to adapt itself to the
new conditions, it has to overcome certain obstacles,
and may become deteriorated in the process. By
collecting the seeds of such plants as arrive at maturity
and produce a good crop, and sowing these in the
following season, the plant will gradually become
accustomed to the new conditions, and each successive
generation will prove hardier than that preceding it.

It is necessary to make careful observations of the
behaviour of a newly introduced variety. The effect
of the climate must be noted, the results obtained
in different soils and situations should be recorded, the
date of flowering and fruiting must be observed, and,
especially in the case of cotton, the length of time
required by the fruit to ripen. Success in acclimatisa-
tion can only be achieved by devoting time and care
to the plant.

An improved type of cotton can sometimes be
obtained by artificial hybridisation or pollination.
Experiments in this direction, however, should only
be undertaken by a competent botanist who is pre-
pared to devote much time and study to the hybrids
produced, as well as to the offspring of successive
generations, with a view to the establishment of fixed
types. In order to effect the crossing, the petals and
stamens are removed from a flower-bud of one of the
plants chosen as the parent forms, leaving the pistil
standing alone. The flower is then covered with a
paper bag which is fastened round the stem by means
of fine wire. An expanded flower of the other parent
plant is also covered with a paper bag, and after a
day or two is cut off and carried to the flower which
has been already treated as described. Both coverings

CULTIVATION 31

are now removed, and the pistil of the prepared flower
is dusted with the pollen of the other. The seed
resulting from the cross is carefully planted, and
furnishes a number of different forms. From these,
a single plant which exhibits the desired qualities is
chosen, and the seed from this plant alone is used
for further improvement. By selecting the seed of
the second generation for sowing, and repeating the
process with several succeeding generations, a satis-
factory strain may be established. Many experts
do not regard artificial hybridisation as a satisfactory
method for obtaining improved varieties of cotton,
but prefer to take the seed of exceptionally fine plants
in the field, sow these, and submit their offspring to
the process of seed selection already described.

Efforts are now being made in India, Egypt and other
countries to obtain improved varieties of cotton by
means of hybridisation and selection experiments,
conducted in accordance with the principles estab-
lished by Mendel.

It is of fundamental importance that such scientific
work in breeding experiments should be systematically
conducted although immediate results cannot be
expected.

Perennial Cottons. — The methods of cultivation
described in the foregoing pages refer to the growth
of the cotton plant as an annual. A few words must
be added with regard to perennial cottons. The
cotton plant is naturally of perennial habit, and there
is no species known which grows wild in its native
country as an annual. There is little doubt that in
early times the cottons of India were grown entirely
as perennials, and the same is true of those of Egypt,
the cotton plant which was introduced into the latter
country by Jumel in 1 820 being described as a peren-
nial tree (vide page 54). As the demand for cotton
increased, it was doubtless observed that a more
regular crop could be obtained by planting afresh
each year, and probably for this reason the perennial
forms were gradually replaced by annuals. More-
over, when the plant is cultivated in a climate which
during part of the year is hostile to its growth, the

32 COTTON

plants naturally die off during the unfavourable
season and annual planting thus becomes inevitable.

Considerable advantages are gained by growing
cotton as an annual. The crop only occupies the
ground for six or seven months and can therefore be
readily alternated with other crops and a system of
rotation established to prevent deterioration of the
soil. The early harvesting of the cotton is, moreover,
of great importance in checking the spread of pests
and diseases. The ground ought to be thoroughly
cleared after each crop in order to reduce the risk of
disease as far as possible.

At one time it was the custom in the West Indies
and other countries to grow perennial stocks and to
ratoon the plants or prune them heavily at the end of
the season.

In connection with the growth of perennial cotton,
reference may be made to certain interesting experi-
ments which are being conducted in Hawaii on the
propagation of the plant by cuttings and also by the
method of budding. These experiments have already
given indications of success.

In some countries, particularly Brazil and Peru,
perennial tree-cottons are still grown on a commercial
scale. Some of these forms are referred to on pages 69-70.

DISEASES OF THE COTTON PLANT

The cotton plant is liable to be affected by numerous
diseases. These may be divided into three classes :
(i) those which are due to physiological causes, such
as deficiencies in certain kinds of nutriment and the
consequent weakening of the plant ; (2) diseases
caused by the attack of fungoid pests ; and (3) dis-
eases due to the attack of insect pests.

It is not possible in the present work to deal fully
with this subject, but reference will be made to the
most important of the diseases, and an indication will
be given of the best means of combating them.

Diseases due to Physiological Causes. — Among these may
be mentioned mosaic disease or yellow leaf blight, red
leaf blight, the shedding of bolls, and angular leaf spot.

DISEASES 33

Mosaic disease is characterised by yellow spots,
which arise on the leaves and occur in a more or less
regular order, thus producing a kind of mosaic pattern.
As the disease extends, the leaves frequently curl up
and fall to the ground. This affection is very often
aggravated by the attack of certain fungoid organisms.
The most effective remedy is thorough cultivation
with a view to improving the physical conditions of
the soil. It has been found that the application of
kainit to the soil is very beneficial probably owing to
its power of binding the particles of soil more closely
together and thus enabling it to retain moisture.
The same effect can be produced by rolling the land.

The occurrence of red leaf blight is manifested by
the leaves turning red. The growth of the plant
gradually ceases and the leaves fall. This disease is
due to the poverty of the soil, and indicates a lack of
potash, nitrogen, and probably also of phosphoric acid.
The obvious remedy is to supply the necessary food
constituents by suitable manuring.

The shedding of bolls not uncommonly causes
considerable damage in cotton plantations, and is
evidently provoked by unfavourable climatic condi-
tions, since it occurs most frequently in times of
drought or excessive rainfall.

Angular leaf spot is so called on account of dark
angular spots which appear on the leaves. These
spots at first present a watery appearance, but later
become black and then brown. It is always the less
vigorous plants which are attacked by this disease,
and it is therefore evident that the method of pre-
vention is to sow good, sound seed and to cultivate
carefully so as to give the plant the means of develop-
ing satisfactorily.

Fungoid Diseases. — The principal diseases of this
nature are anthracnose, wilt or frenching, root rot,
cotton leaf blight, mildew, and cotton boll rot.

Anthracnose is due to the fungus known as Colleto-
trichum gossypii. The malady may make its appear-
ance on the bolls, stems, or leaves. When it occurs
on the bolls, it first becomes visible as small, dull
reddish spots, depressed in the centre. As the spots

34 COTTON

increase in size, they turn black in the middle whilst
the edges remain of a pinkish hue. The pink colour
is due to a pigment contained in the spores of the
fungus. When the bolls are attacked before they
have attained their full size, they frequently become
deformed owing to unequal growth. In some cases,
the fungus penetrates the seeds, and thus ruins both
the seed itself and the cotton attached to it. The
disease occurs chiefly in warm, damp weather, during
the time that the bolls are developing and ripening.

When the fungus attacks the stem, reddish-brown
patches appear on the bark, and as a result of the
injury produced the leaves may turn yellow, wither,
and fall to the ground. The damage is sometimes
serious when the stems of seedlings are attacked, but
the effect of the fungus on the stems of well-developed
plants is not as a rule very harmful.

No direct remedy has yet been discovered for this
malady. The fungus is least prevalent in fields in
which the cotton is widely planted and thus enabled
to get plenty of light and air. The application of
artificial manures containing phosphates and potash
renders the plants more hardy and better able to resist
the disease. It is desirable in plantations in which
the blight has occurred that, after the cotton has been
picked, all the cotton-stalks and other remains of the
plants should be collected and burned. Cotton
should not be grown in such a field during the following
year.

Wilt or frenching is caused by Neocosmospora
vasinfecta, a fungus which enters the plant through
the roots and gradually grows upwards into the stem
and branches. The circulation of the sap is thus
interfered with, and the plant is unable to obtain the
necessary nutriment. The lower leaves are the first
to show signs of the disease. They develop a yellow
colour on the under-surface, and gradually die, and
fall from the plant. In extreme cases, all the leaves
fall off and the plant dies. The disease can be
recognised by breaking the stem of the plant, when
the fibro-vascular tissues are seen to be of a light
brown colour.

FUNGOID DISEASES 35

The only remedy for wilt is the production of a
variety capable of resisting the disease. Such re-
sistant forms have been developed by selection in the
United States, and it is considered that by this means
the Sea Island cotton industry has been saved from
extinction.

Root rot is produced by a fungus (Ozonium sp.)
which attacks not only cotton, but many other plants,
including apple trees, the paper-mulberry, and lucerne.
The fungus attacks the root and feeds on the material
contained in its tissues. The roots gradually wither
and decay and are therefore unable to absorb material
from the soil and supply the plant with the necessary
food and water. The roots of a plant which has
succumbed to this disease bear numerous small white
excrescences on the surface. The only method of
keeping the fungus under control is by means of a
system of rotation of crops. Cereal crops are suitable
to grow in such a rotation as they are not attacked
by the pest. Cotton should not be planted more than
once in three or four years in areas which have been
infested with root rot.

Cotton leaf blight is a common malady of the cotton
plant, but does not often cause much injury. The
fungus (Sphcerella gossypind) usually attacks the older
leaves of the plants as well as those which have
received some injury affecting their powers of nutri-
tion and assimilation . The disease is not uncommonly
found affecting the leaves of plants which have been
attacked by other diseases, such as mosaic disease.
Leaf blight is characterised by small spots which are
white or pale brown at the centre and reddish at the
edge. The prevention of this disease may be secured
by adopting methods of cultivation calculated to
render the environment more suitable for the cotton
plant.

Cotton mildew arises on the surface of the leaves in
small areas bounded by the veinlets. This fungus
(Ramularia areola) seems to cause but little damage
to the crop, although it is sometimes produced fairly
abundantly.

Cotton boll rot, black arm, and bacterial disease are

36 COTTON

all due to the organism known as Bacterium malva-
cearum. Boll rot is first noticeable as a small, dark-
brown patch on the boll at a point near the peduncle.
If it begins some time before ripening takes place the
boll does not open and the immature fibre decays, but
if it commences later only a portion of the boll is
affected and a certain amount of cotton may be
produced.

Insect Pests. — The cotton plant is attacked by a
great many different insects, some of the more
important of which are the boll-weevil, boll-worms,
cotton worms, cutworms, cotton aphis, cotton
stainers, and locusts.

Cotton Boll-Weevil. — The most serious insect enemy
of the cotton plant is the cotton boll-weevil (Antho-
nomus grandis). Its original home was Mexico, where
it caused considerable damage. In 1892 it entered
Southern Texas, and since 1894 has travelled at the
rate of from forty to seventy miles a year, and is still
extending. The pest is now prevalent in the States
of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas,
Oklahoma, Western Florida, and Georgia. The total
area infested was estimated in 1913 as about 296,300
square miles, comprising no less than 47 per cent, of
the whole cotton acreage of the United States. The
pest has now made such progress that nearly the
whole of the cotton-growing area of the country has
been invaded. The annual loss occasioned by the
depredations of the insect is enormous, but fortunately
the pest is confined to Mexico and the United States.

The boll-weevil is a small grey or brownish beetle
about one quarter of an inch long. It remains on the
cotton plant until the end of the season, and then
hibernates, finding a home in a sheltered situation,
such as is afforded by hedges and haystacks or by
grass, weeds or rubbish lying on the ground. With the
advent of spring, the weevil emerges from its winter
quarters and again betakes itself to the cotton plant.
The female insect eats into the boll and so makes a
cavity in which she lays her eggs. The egg hatches
in about three days, and a whitish grub or larva
emerges, which immediately begins to feed on the

INSECT PESTS 37

tissues of the boll, and consequently destroys the
cotton fibre. In from seven to twelve days the larva
changes into the pupa or chrysalis. The pupal stage
lasts for about three to five days after which the
weevil emerges, and about five days later begins the
production of another generation. A very large
portion of the weevils are killed by the winter frosts,
and it is probable that under average conditions not
more than 3 per cent, of those which hibernate sur-
vive. Large numbers of the weevils are destroyed by
insect enemies, many of which are parasitic. When
the young fruits which have been infested by the
weevil fall to the ground, the larvae contained in them
are very commonly killed by the heat of the sun, and
this explains the fact that dry seasons are very
inimical to the weevil. In order to control the pest,
it is therefore important that the ground should be
shaded as little as possible.

Many attempts have been made to destroy the
boll-weevil by means of poisons. It was found at
first that such methods usually had little effect and
that the results did not justify the expense incurred.
Recently, however, good results have been found to
attend the application of very finely powdered lead
arsenate.

The pest can be kept in check by observing the
following precautions. At the close of the season,
the plants should be uprooted and burned, together
with all dead leaves and other refuse which could
afford a place for hibernation. Attempts should be
made to secure an early crop by sowing early-ripening
varieties, planting as early as possible, and applying
manures when necessary. A good space should be
left between the rows of cotton as well as between the
individual plants in the row. Another method which
has been recommended is to employ a mechanical
device for causing the young infested fruits to fall to
the ground so that the larvae may be destroyed by
the heat or by parasites.

Special precautions are now being taken to prevent
the introduction of the boll-weevil into other countries
in imported seed. In several countries, regulation?

38 COTTON

are in force for the compulsory disinfection of all
cotton seed, and in Nyasaland and German East
Africa the importation of American seed has been
entirely prohibited.

Cotton Boll-Worms. — The American cotton boll-
worm (Chloridea obsoleta = Heliothis armiger), unlike
the boll-weevil, feeds not only on cotton, but on many
other plants, such as maize, peas, beans, tomatoes,
and tobacco. The eggs are usually laid on the under-
surface of the leaf. The larva or caterpillar emerges
in from two to seven days, and immediately begins
to feed near the place where it was^ hatched. In a
few days it reaches a boll, into whichlt bores. After
feeding on this, it migrates to another, and by con-
tinuing this course, causes great damage to the crop.
Growth is generally completed in about two or three
weeks, and the full-grown caterpillar is often as much
as ij inches in length. It now enters the ground
and becomes transformed into the chrysalis or pupa.
After about a month the moth emerges, and may
often be seen, especially in the evening, darting hither
and thither and seeking for a place to deposit its
eggs. The boll-worm has many natural enemies,
including several parasitic insects and certain bacterial
organisms. The woodpecker and other birds pick
out the caterpillars from infested maize ears and feed
on them.

The pest is found in great numbers on maize plants,
and especially on the silky tassels and young ears.
When the tassels have passed their edible stage and
the maize has begun to harden, the moth seeks another
food-plant, such as young cotton. On this fact is
based the so-called " trap-crop " method of destroying
the insect. It consists in planting maize near the
cotton at a period sufficiently late to provide a supply
of tassels when the cotton boll is in danger of being
attacked by the pest. As soon as the eggs have been
deposited, the ears are gathered and destroyed. By
planting the maize at different times, several broods
of the insect may be trapped, and in this way the
pest may to some extent be kept in check.

The use of poisons, especially Paris green and

INSECT PESTS 39

lead arsenate, is recommended for the purpose of
lessening the injury caused by the boll-worm. As
soon as it is noticed that the moths are becoming
numerous in the cotton fields, an application of the
poison should be made and should be repeated a
week or ten days later. Special care must be taken
to distribute the poison as far as possible over all
parts of the plant. One method of treating the plant
is to mix the Paris green with water in the proportion
of one pound to fifty gallons of water and apply it
by means of a spraying machine. Another method is
to dust the poison on the plants in quantities of
about two or three pounds per acre. The powder is
placed in a bag of some material which will allow a
certain amount to fall through as dust when the
bag is shaken. It should be borne in mind that the
poison must be employed cautiously as an excess
may cause injury to the plants . This plan of attempt-
ing to poison the boll-worms is not very commonly
adopted in the United States as so many of the
insects escape by being hidden in the bolls. Never-
theless, when the pest is abundant and the trap-crop
method has been neglected during the early part of
the season, the application of Paris green or lead
arsenate may save the crop from being entirely
destroyed.

The Egyptian cotton boll-worm (Earias insulana)
is smaller than the American insect but produces a
similar effect. This pest has caused much damage
to the cotton crops in Egypt and Northern India,
and has also produced injury in Northern Nigeria.
An allied species (Earias fabia) has been observed
in India, Ceylon, and Java. In India, the use of

bhindi " (Hibiscus esculentus] as a trap-crop has
proved beneficial for both species of Earias.

The pink boll- worm (Gelechia gossypiella) causes
great damage to cotton by attacking the seeds in
the boll. It is widely distributed in Europe, Asia,
and Africa, and has long been a destructive pest
in India. A few years ago, the occurrence of the
insect was observed in Egypt, where it multiplied so
rapidly that in 1913 it caused severe damage to the
4

40 COTTON

crop. The most effective means of checking its
depredations are : (i) to treat all seed at the time of
ginning in such a way that the worms protected in
the coupled seeds may be destroyed ; (2) to remove
and burn all bolls found on the cotton plants after
the last picking ; and (3) to confine all cotton seed
remaining in the country after April in buildings
fitted with wire netting over the apertures to prevent
the emerging moths reaching the cotton fields. Various
methods of destroying larvae in seed have been
studied, and the following have been found effective :
(i) treatment with hot air at £5° to 65° C. for about
four minutes ; (2) fumigation with carbon disulphide,
hydrocyanic acid gas or sulphur dioxide ; and (3) im-
mersion in " cyllin " solution (o'i per cent.) for 24
hours just previous to sowing.*

Cotton Worms. — The American cotton worm
(Alabama argillacea] is a bluish-green caterpillar with
small black spots or black stripes on its back. It
devours the cotton leaves, not infrequently stripping
the plant bare. The moth usually lays her eggs on'
the under-surface of the leaf. The eggs hatch in
three or four days, and the young larvae or cater-
pillars emerge. The larval stage lasts from one to
four weeks, and the caterpillar is then transformed
into the pupa or chrysalis, which is generally en-
closed in a rolled leaf. After a period varying from
a week to a month the moth emerges. Each moth
lays about 500 eggs, and there are usually five or
six generations produced during a single season.
The larvae and eggs are preyed upon by numerous
parasitic insects.

The principal method employed for the destruction
of the cotton worm is by the application of poisons
as already described in connection with the American
boll-worm. A favourite way of dusting the plants
with Paris green is to place a pole, carrying a sack
of the powder at each end, across the back of a horse
or mule and then ride the animal between the rows
of cotton. By jarring the sacks, a small quantity of

* Of these methods, the hot-air treatment has been accepted as the
most practicable, and a law has been promulgated in Egypt requiring
all ginneries to instal approved machinery to carry it out.

INSECT PESTS 41

the powder falls on to the plants, and two rows can
thus be dusted simultaneously.

The Egyptian cotton worm (Prodenia litura) does
much harm to " berseem " (Egyptian clover) and
cotton in many districts. The moth lays its eggs on
the under-surface of the leaf in batches of two or three
hundred. This behaviour is quite different from that
of the American cotton worm which lays its eggs on
nearly every leaf of the plant and seldom more than
three or four on the same leaf . The chrysalis is found
in the soil instead of within the folds of a leaf as in the
case of the American insect. The following methods
are recommended for the prevention of damage by
this pest. The soil should be prepared as long as
possible before the cotton is sown. The plants should
be examined every few days, and all leaves on which
eggs have been deposited should be collected and
burned. Difficulty was experienced in the past in
Egypt in obtaining a sufficient supply of labour for
this work, and the Government therefore issued a
decree making compulsory the collection and destruc-
tion of infested leaves and insisting on the employ-
ment of children to do the work at definite periods.
This now forms one of the ordinary field operations,
and the pest has been much reduced by a law pro-
hibiting the watering after April of berseem, in which
the cotton worm lives.

The Indian cotton leaf-roller (Sylepta derogatd)
sometimes causes serious damage. The pest can
usually be checked by picking off the affected leaves
and burning them, but in serious cases it may be
necessary to spray the plants with lead arsenate.
This moth has also been observed attacking cotton
plants in Southern Nigeria and East Africa.

Cutworms. — The larvae of certain moths, especially
species of Feltia and A gratis, eat off the plants just
as they come up. They feed at night, and the best
method of combating them is to place arsenicated
cabbage leaves or grass in places where they have
appeared. The larvae crowd under these for shelter
during the day and are thus destroyed. It has been
suggested in Egypt that the addition of small quan-

42 COTTON

titles of petroleum to the water used for irrigation
might assist in the destruction of the pest.

Cotton aphis. — The cotton aphis (Aphis gossypii)
attacks the young plant and appears in great numbers
on the leaf-buds and newly-opened leaves. It some-
times causes considerable damage by Bucking the
sap from the young leaves, but healthy and rapidly
growing plants can usually withstand the attack.
The common ladybirds and their larvae feed upon
these insects and thus diminish their numbers to
some extent.

The best remedy is the application of soap and
kerosene emulsion. This mixture is prepared by
dissolving half a pound of soft soap in one gallon of
boiling water, and pouring the hot solution into two
gallons of kerosene, and beating it up to a creamy
liquid. It is then made into a fairly permanent
emulsion by forcing it through a fine spray nozzle
into another vessel. This emulsion after dilution
with ten to twenty times its volume of water is sprayed
on to the infested plants.

Cotton stainers. — The large cotton stainers (Dysder-
cus spp.) are found in many countries in which cotton
is grown. In the early part of the season, the insects
attack the buds or young bolls and suck the sap
from them so that they cannot develop satisfactorily.
Later generations infest the open bolls, puncture the
seed, and stain the cotton with their yellow excre-
ment. The best remedial measure is to place heaps
of cotton seed or sugar-cane on the ground to which
large numbers of the insects will be attracted and
can then be destroyed by the application of kerosene
or boiling water.

The lesser cotton stainers (Oxycarenus spp.) do
not occur in America, but several species have been
observed in Africa and two in India. In Egypt,
although the pest is chiefly noticeable in its attacks
on damaged bolls, it is often the cause of boll-
shedding in the early stages of growth, its punctures
being apparently toxic. The insects feed on the
unripe seeds. The stains on the cotton are not
produced during the life of the pest, but are due to

INSECT PESTS 43

some of the insects being crushed in contact with the
fibre during the process of ginning. If, however,
before the cotton is ginned, it is spread out and
exposed to the sunshine the insects take to flight and
the staining is thus obviated.

Locusts. — These insects sometimes cause consider-
able damage by devouring the leaves and young
plants and thus rendering replanting necessary.
Paris green has been found to be useful in destroying
these insects, but the most effective plan is to place
upon the ground little heaps of bran mixed with
molasses and arsenic.

Leaf -blister mite. — The leaf-blister mite (Eriophyes
gossypii), although not an insect, is included here for
convenience. It is so small as to be invisible to the
naked eye, but its attack can be recognised by the
leaves becoming curled up and blistered. The blisters
or galls are at first of the same colour as the leaf, but
later become reddish brown. The mites inhabit
these galls and lay their eggs in them. The galls do
not appear upon the leaves only but on all parts of
the plant except the root. The mite does not usually
do much harm to full-grown plants, but sometimes
causes serious damage to young plants, thereby
diminishing the crop. In order to check this pest
the infested leaves should be gathered and burned.
The application of sulphur or a mixture of sulphur
and lime has also been recommended.

Disinfection of Cotton Seed. — When cotton seed is
transported from one locality to another, there is
always the danger of diseases or pests being carried
in it and thus being introduced into new regions.
It is therefore desirable that some method of fumiga-
tion or disinfection should be practised in order to
avoid the introduction of pests which, if once estab-
lished, may cause enormous damage and, as a rule,
can never be completely exterminated. Disinfection
is at present effected chiefly by the following methods,
viz. (i) fumigation with hydrogen cyanide, (2)
fumigation with carbon disulphide, and (3) treatment
with solution of mercuric chloride (corrosive sub-
limate).

44 COTTON

(1) Fumigation with hydrogen cyanide is practised
in Uganda. A fumigating chamber has been con-
structed at Entebbe which is about 8 feet square.
It is rendered air-tight by double match-boarding with
special paper packed between and is furnished with
movable trays for cotton seed. There is a door in
the front, and trap-doors are provided in the roof for
the escape of the vapour after the fumigation is com-
pleted. There are also two small side-doors for the
admission' of the fumigating materials after the
chamber has been closed. The mixture employed
consists of potassium cyanide, sulphuric acid and
water. The seed is left in contact with the vapour
for two or three hours.

(2) In the United States of America, fumigation is
usually effected by means of carbon disulphide.
Experiments which have been made by the Bureau of
Entomology have shown that the destruction of
insects, and, in particular, the boll-weevil, is more
effectually accomplished by carbon disulphide than
by hydrogen cyanide. Both these vapours, however,
are unable to penetrate a mass of cotton seed com-
pletely unless special measures are adopted for their
thorough distribution. This is especially the case
with fuzzy seeds which tend to cling together very
closely. Apparatus has therefore been specially
devised which enables a mixture of carbon disulphide
vapour and air to be passed through sacks of the seed
in such a manner as to reach every part.

The application of both hydrogen cyanide and
carbon disulphide requires the exercise of considerable
care as the former is exceedingly poisonous, and the
latter is inflammable and liable to cause explosions
if carelessly handled.

(3) The Imperial Department of Agriculture in the
West Indies recommends the use of mercuric chloride
(corrosive sublimate), and this method is said to have
been also adopted in some of the German Colonies.
The object aimed at in the West Indies is to prevent
the spread of diseases, and particularly fungoid
diseases, from one island to another. The solution
is made by dissolving one part by weight of mercuric

GINNING 45

chloride in 1,000 parts of water (or about one ounce
in seven gallons). The seeds are soaked for twenty
minutes in the solution, care being taken that they are
thoroughly wetted. They are then washed in water
and spread out in a thin layer to dry on a clean floor
or on clean canvas in the shade. Whilst drying, the
seeds should be turned over from time to time until
they are quite dry. It is necessary to exercise great
care in handling the corrosive sublimate on account
of its highly poisonous nature.

(4) For the destruction of the larvae of the pink
boll-worms in cotton seed, the Ministry of Agriculture
of Egypt advises treatment with hot air at a tempera-
ture of 55°-65° C. (v. page 40). Special plant has
been designed for this purpose in which the heat is
regulated automatically.

PREPARATION OF COTTON FOR THE MARKET

Ginning. — The process of removing the cotton or
" lint " from the seed is known as " ginning." In the
United States, the cotton used to be picked off the
seeds by hand . 'Very primitive implements have been
employed for the purpose in India and are still used
in many districts. One of these is a simple wooden
roller, worked with the foot on a flat stone slab on
which the seed-cotton is placed, the seed being thus
pressed out from the cotton. Another is the so-called
" churka " gin which, in its simplest form, consists
of a rough wooden frame containing two parallel
rollers set close together ; the upper roller is fixed
whilst the lower is rotated by means of a handle. In
some forms, the two rollers, which are either both
made of wood or one of wood and the other of iron,
are both movable and are made to revolve towards
each other by means of a crank or wheel at one or
both ends. On pressing some of the fibres of the
seed-cotton between the rollers and turning the
handle, the lint is drawn through and pulled off the
seed which, being too large and hard to pass through,
remains behind and falls to the ground. Various
forms of this machine are found in different parts

46 COTTON

of India ; the amount of cotton produced by a day's
work with it is not more than about five pounds.

It is evident that the cotton industry could not
have made gre%t progress, unless such slow and tedious
processes of ginning had been replaced by a more*
rapid and less laborious method. This problem was
solved by the invention of the saw-gin by Eli Whitney,
which was patented in Washington in 1794.

The saw-gin consists essentially of a series of
notched, circular, thin steel discs or " saws " which
are fixed on a cylinder. The cylinder revolves in a
box, one side of which consists of a grating of steel
bars between which the saws rotate. The saws
project from J to f inch beyond the grating, and
grip the fibre as the seed-cotton is fed on to them.
As the saws revolve, they pull the cotton off the
seed and draw it into the box with them whilst the
seeds remain behind, the openings being too narrow
to admit them. Immediately beneath the cylinder
carrying the saws is a rapidly revolving brush which
takes off the lint from the teeth of the saw as it enters
the box ; a blast of air then carries the cotton into the
condenser at the rear of the gin.

There are two kinds of gins in use at the present
day, namely, roller-gins and the saw-gin described
above. The latter can effect the separation of the lint
more rapidly than the former, but is more liable to
injure or break the fibres. In the case of the smooth-
seeded kinds of cotton, the lint is easily detached,
whereas in the fuzzy-seeded varieties, the fibre is
very firmly attached to the seed, and considerable
force is required to remove it. For these reasons,
saw-gins are used for the shorter and fuzzy-seeded
varieties such as the American Upland kinds, whilst
the longer, finer and smooth-seeded cottons, such as
Sea Island and Egyptian, are ginned by means of
roller-gins.

Roller-gins are of two kinds. One of these is con-
structed on the principle of the old Indian " churka "
gin and consists essentially of two rollers, which
rotate in opposite directions. The cotton is drawn
between the rollers, whilst the seed is held back by

From the Collections of the Imperial Institute '

GINNING COTTON BY MEANS OF THE CHURKA GIN IN THE
TlNNEVELLY DISTRICT, MADRAS

From the Collections of the Imperial Institute

GINNING COTTON BY MEANS OF THE MACARTHY SINGLE-ROLLER GIN
IN THE NYASALAND PROTECTORATE

46]

PRESSING AND BALING 47

means of a steel plate. The second kind of roller gin
is that known as the " Macarthy " gin, and is now
much more largely used than that just described, In
this case the seed-cotton is brought into contact with
a revolving roller covered with rough leather (usually
walrus- or buffalo-hide). The lint clings to the
leather and is thus torn away from the seed ; it is
then drawn between a steel plate, known as the
" doctor knife " (fixed tangentially to the roller and
very close to it), and a blade called the " beater,"
which moves up and down immediately behind the
fixed plate and parallel to it. Whilst the fibre is
held by the roller, the beater detaches the seed from
it. The lint is carried over by the roller and delivered
at the other side of the machine, whilst the seeds drop
through a grid into a box placed beneath it.

Pressing and Baling.— After the cotton has been
ginned, it is collected and made into bales. Great
pressure is usually applied in order to reduce the
bulk as much as possible before shipment. In olden
times, the baling was effected by very simple means,
but elaborate machinery is now employed for the
purpose.

The bales of different countries vary considerably
in appearance, shape, and weight, and can thus be
readily distinguished rom one another. The follow-
ing are the approximate weights of the principal bales
which appear in the English market : United States,
500 Ib. ; Egyptian, 700 Ib. ; Indian, 400 Ib. ; Brazilian,
from 200 Ib. to 260 Ib. ; Peruvian, between 170 and
200 Ib. The bales are usually more or less rectangular
in shape. The best made bales are those from India
and Egypt, whilst the American bales are badly
packed and usually reach their destination in a some-
what dilapidated state. The coverings 6f the
American bales are made of very cheap material and
are quite inadequate to protect the fibre. It has
been estimated that the amount of loss in transit
from the ginnery to the cotton-mill must in many
cases exceed 3 per cent, of the original weight of the
bale. Complaints have been made repeatedly by
spinners with regard to the dirty state in which the

48 COTTON

cotton arrives, but without much effect. During
recent years, however, attempts have been made to
introduce better systems into the United States, but
hitherto these have only been adopted to a very limited
extent.

The cotton exported by the British Cotton Growing
Association from West Africa is packed in rectangular
bales of 400 Ib. each.

CHAPTER III

COTTON PRODUCTION IN THE PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES
AND THE CHIEF COMMERCIAL VARIETIES

PRODUCTION IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

IT is generally supposed that the cotton plant is not
indigenous to the United States but was probably
introduced from Mexico. It is stated that the plant
was not grown as a fibre crop until about 1620, and its
cultivation underwent comparatively little develop-
ment until nearly two hundred years later. The
industry may be said to date from 1 794, the year in
which Eli Whitney's saw-gin was patented (see
page 46). From that time forward the production
and exports increased at a remarkable rate, as is
shown in the following table, which gives the approxi-
mate quantities of ginned cotton for 1790, and each
tenth year thereafter as well as for the years 1911-
1915. The only serious check which the industry
encountered was during the Civil War of 1861-1865.

year Production. Total Exports.

Millions of 15. Millions of Ib.

1790 ... ij *

1800 ... 35 20
1810 ... 85 59
1820 . . 160 120

1830 •-. . .350 265

1840 . . . 644 506

1850 . . .1,021 886

1860 . . .1,836 294

49

COTTON PRODUCTION

Year.

1870
1880
1890
1900
1910
I9II
1912

1913
1914
1915

Production.
Millions of Ib.

1,924
3.039
4,093
4,846

5,552
7,506
6,556
6,772
7,719

5,354

Total Exports.
Millions of Ib

1,399
2,130

2,797

3,238
3,852
5,159
4,471
4,480

4,332
3,978

The area devoted to cotton each year in the United
States is about 33 million acres. The principal
States in which the crop is grown are South Carolina,
Georgia and Alabama on the east of the Mississippi,
and the eastern half of Texas on the west of the river.
The acreage planted has increased during recent
years, owing partly to the development of new regions
in Oklahoma and Western Texas, but more largely to
extension within the so-called cotton belt. There
are vast areas of land which could be rendered suitable
for the crop, but the scarcity of labour is a formidable
obstacle to progress in this direction. It is considered,
however, that the production could be greatly
increased on the lands at present cultivated by the
more general use of manures, by the employment of
modern agricultural machinery for preparing the soil,
and by more diversified farming.

The average yield of ginned cotton in the United
States is about 200 Ib. per acre.

The crop consists mainly of Upland varieties, the
amount of Sea Island cotton produced being less than
one per cent, of the whole.

The consumption of cotton in the mills of the
United States has undergone a steady increase and
at the present time is growing more rapidly than the
production of the raw material. The following table
records the approximate quantities used in 1830,
and each tenth year subsequently, and also in 1912,
1913 and 1914.

COTTON IN THE UNITED STATES .51

Year. Millions of Ib. Year. Millions of Ib

1830 . . 62 1890 . . 1,245

1840 . .Il8 IpOO . . 1,701

1850 . . 202 1910 . . 2,l68

1860 . . 403 1912 . . 2,737

1870 . . 490 1913 . . 2,760

1880 . . 892 1914 . . 2,830

British cotton manufacturers rely mainly on the
United States for supplies of their raw material, and
the extended utilisation of the product in that country
has therefore caused considerable anxiety to them as
well as to the cotton manufacturers of other Euro-
pean countries. This has given rise to efforts to
create new sources of supply in order to render the
industry less dependent on the American crop (com-
pare page 76).

The quantities of cotton imported into the United
Kingdom from the United States in certain specified
years are given below :

Year. Millions of Ib. Year. Millions of Ib.

1875 . . 841 1908 . . 1,589

1880 . . ,224 1909 . . 1,640

1885 . . ,051 1910 . . 1,470

1890 . . ,317 1911 . . 1,682

1895 • • ,395 1912 . . 2,165

1900 . . ,365 1913 . . 1,585

1905 • • ,734 I9H • • 1,284

1907 • • ,756 I9r5 • • 2,022

The United States Department of Agriculture are
conducting important investigations with the object
of improving the cotton both in yield and quality.
Efforts are also being made to encourage farmers to
adopt scientific methods of cultivation, and educa-
tional work is being carried on in order to increase
their knowledge of the best ways of preparing and
manuring the soil, of selecting the seed, and of
establishing rotations of crops.

In view of the large quantities of Egyptian cotton
now being imported into the United States, the

52 COTTON PRODUCTION

Department of Agriculture have endeavoured to grow
these varieties in Arizona and South-eastern Cali-
fornia. As a result of prolonged acclimatisation and
breeding experiments, several different types have
been derived from the original stock of seed imported
from Egypt. Two forms, the so-called " Yuma "
and " Somerton " varieties, are as distinct in the
characters of the plants and fibre as some of the
newer varieties which have originated from " Mita-
fifi " cotton in Egypt (see page 58). Two other
varieties, termed " Pima " and " Gila," have been
described recently. The Yuma form is now grown
on a commercial scale in the Salt River Valley, but
the Somerton variety has been abandoned because,
although it produced excellent fibre, it was late in
maturing and developed vegetative branches to an
excessive extent. The cotton yielded by these new
varieties is regarded as equal in all respects to
Egyptian cotton of corresponding grades.

AMERICAN VARIETIES

Sea Island. — The Sea Island variety is the longest
and finest cotton the world produces, and is therefore
the most valuable. The fibre varies in length from
if to 2 J inches, and has a diameter of about 0*00064
inch. It is soft and silky and has an excellent lustre.
This cotton is grown chiefly in the Sea Islands of
South Carolina and in the interior of Georgia and
Florida, and is now being cultivated extensively in
the West Indies. The cotton grown in South Caro-
lina is of the finest quality but is almost equalled by
that now produced in the West Indies. The length
of staple of these products is usually about 2 inches
or more, whereas the cotton grown in Georgia and
Florida is generally from if to ij inches long. In
order to maintain the quality of Sea Island cotton, it
is necessary that seed selection should be practised
or the crop will deteriorate. The plant needs special
attention since it is more delicate than other varieties.
It requires a rather sandy soil, and a well-regulated
supply of water. The regions in the interior of

AMERICAN VARIETIES 53

Georgia and Florida which grow Sea Island cotton
also produce considerable quantities of Upland cotton,
and for this reason the plant undergoes hybridisation
and rapidly degenerates into the ordinary Upland
type ; it is therefore necessary to obtain new seed
frequently from the coast districts.

Sea Island cotton is used in commerce for spinning
only the finest and best yarns. The quantity of this
cotton produced is comparatively small; in 1913
about 30 million pounds were produced in the
United States and, roughly, 3 million pounds in the
West Indies.

American Upland Cottons. — These cottons are used
to a very much larger extent than any other
varieties, and are employed for the manufacture of
yarns of medium quality. They are produced in
enormous quantities in the United States, the crop
amounting on the average to about 6,000 million
pounds or approximately two-thirds of the total pro-
duction of the world. The fibre varies in length from
0'7 to i 'i inches, and in average diameter from
0-00076 to 0*00078 inch. The seeds are usually covered
with fuzz or down, differing in this respect from those
of the Sea Island variety , which are black and smooth.
In the Liverpool market, the American Upland cottons
are classed as " ordinary," " good ordinary ," " low
middling," "middling," "good middling," "fully
good middling," and " middling fair," these grades
being indicated by the abbreviations " Ord.," " G.O."
" L.M," " Mid.," " G.M.," " F.G.M.," and " M.F."
The " ordinary " grade is the poorest class of cotton ;
the quality of the other grades improves in the order
in which they are quoted, " middling fair " being the
best of all. *

Long-stapled or "improved" Upland varieties. — The
occurrence of long-stapled Upland cottons in the
United States of America and their special value
were first brought to general notice about thirty years
ago, and from that time onward considerable efforts
have been made to cultivate and improve the existing
forms as well as to produce new varieties of similar
character. These cottons are grown chiefly in the

54 COTTON PRODUCTION

alluvial delta region of Mississippi and Louisiana, and
to a smaller extent in the valley lands of the Red
River in Louisiana and Texas.

'• Improved " Upland cottons usually have a length
of between ij and if inches, and a diameter inter-
mediate between those of Egyptian and ordinary
Upland.

They are generally less lustrous than Egyptian
cottons, and are not so well adapted to the mercerising
process. There are a great many varieties of these
cottons, among which may be mentioned, " Allen's
Long Staple," " Bates' Big Boll," " Black Rattler,"
" Bohemian," " Commander," " Cook's Long Staple,"
" Culpepper," " Excelsior," " Griffin's Improved,"
" Hawkins' Improved," " Moon," " Peterkin,"
" Richmond," " Russell's Big Boll," " Shine's Early
Prolific," " Sunflower," and " Truitt's Big Boll."
Most of these forms were obtained by the selection of
choice individual plants in fields of ordinary Upland
cotton. It has sometimes been supposed that some
of the " improved " varieties were produced by
hybridisation of ordinary Upland with Sea Island
cotton, but it is now generally considered that most,
if not all, of the present forms were derived directly
from Upland cottons by methods of selection. Many
attempts have been made to obtain new varieties by
the artificial hybridisation of Sea Island and Upland
cottons, but there is apparently no authentic instance
on record of such a hybrid ever having been definitely
fixed.

PRODUCTION IN EGYPT

Although it is sometimes stated that cotton has
been grown in Egypt for many centuries, there does
not appear to be any authentic record of its cultiva-
tion prior to 1583. The crop was not cultivated
systematically until about 1820. In this year, Jumel,
a French engineer, called attention to a tree-cotton
growing in gardens, and suggested that the cultiva-
tion should be extended and an effort made to replace
the forms then existing by superior varieties. About
the same time, a change was made in the irrigation

COTTON IN EGYPT

55

system of Lower Egypt, and large areas were thus
rendered available for the crop. The industry de-
veloped very rapidly, and at the present time cotton
is the most important agricultural product of the
country.

The average area under cultivation during the
three years 1910-11, 1911-12, and 1912-13 amounted
to rather more than if million acres. In the same
period, about 78 per cent, of the total area planted
was situated in Lower Egypt, and 22 per cent, in
Upper Egypt. There is little prospect of any great
extension of the area in Lower Egypt, but in Upper
Egypt the land devoted to the crop has been gradu-
ally increasing and will probably continue to do so.
The area planted in Upper Egypt was 91,716 acres
in 1898-99, 280,745 acres in 1908-9, and 398,057
acres in 1912-13.

In the following table, statistics are given of the
total area planted, the total production of cotton,
and the yield per acre during the years 1895-6 to
1912-13.

Year.

Area planted.

Total Production.

Yield. "

Average
yield for
triennial
periods.

Acres.

Ib.

Ib. per acre.

Ib. per acre.

1895-6

1,035.649

522,600,500

505)

1896-7

1,090,677

582,362,400

534 [

531

1897-8

1,171,021

648,146,400

553 J

1898-9

1,163,870

553,572,200

476)

1899-1900

1,197,133

644,780,300

539 \

479

1900-1

1,277,071

538,384,300

422]

1901-2

1,297,380

630,939,700

486 \

1902-3

1,324,153

578,332,150

437 \

463

1903-4

1,383,145

644,711,200

466 J

1904-5

1,491,304

625,339,300

4*9 1

1905-6

1,626,133

590,326,400

363 f

407

1906-7

1,563,530

688,336,400

440 J

1907-8

1,664,147

716,594,500

43il

1908-9

1,702,751

668,698,900

392 \

374

1909-10

J,657,743

495,323,000

299 J

1910-11

1,705,029

750,158,800

44°)

1911-12

1,776,268

735,367,800

4H }•

424

1912-13

1,787,244

746,135,700

417 J

It will be observed that although the area under

56 COTTON PRODUCTION

cultivation has undergone a gradual increase, the
amount of cotton produced has not increased to a
corresponding extent. The diminution in yield from
1895-6 to 1909-10 is shown very clearly by the figures
expressing the average yield per acre during the
triennial periods. The decreased yield was un-
fortunately accompanied by a deterioration in the
quality of the crop. This decline appears to have
been due to processes which have been in operation
for a long time but have only been brought promin-
ently to notice during recent years. The subject is
of the utmost importance to the welfare of Egypt,
and has been investigated by a Government Com-
mission. The degeneration is attributed chiefly to
over-watering and insufficient drainage, accompanied
by a consequent rise in the level of the water in the
sub-soil with the result that the country is becoming
water-logged. When it is remembered that the
root of the cotton plant cannot grow under such con-
ditions, or that a root growing in good soil dies when
the soil becomes permanently charged with water,
it is obvious that satisfactory results cannot possibly
be expected in these circumstances. The primary
cause of the rise of the water-table is due to the con-
struction of barrages and regulators designed to raise
the level of the water in the river and the canals so
as to lessen the amount of lift required for pouring
the water on to the land. The defect of this system
of irrigation is that water is supplied to land which
did not receive it previously during the summer
months whilst no provision is made for the removal
of the excess. The methods recommended to over-
come the difficulty are to check the tendency of the
growers to over-irrigate, to keep the water in the
canals at as low a level as possible, to provide catch-
drains, where necessary, along both sides of the canals
to prevent infiltration, and to extend and improve the
whole drainage system of the country. Extensive
schemes are under consideration.

Other causes which have been regarded as con-
tributory to the decline in yield and quality are the
deterioration of the soil, the degeneration of the plant,

COTTON IN EGYPT 57

the ravages of insect pests, especially the cotton-
and boll-worms, insufficient manuring, and the culti-
vation of the crop by some growers in a biennial
instead of a triennial rotation. All these factors are
being taken into serious consideration by the Depart-
ment of Agriculture, and efforts are being made to
effect improvements in every direction.

The great increase in the crop of 1910—11 was due
to the fact that the Nile flood was late and the period
of over-watering consequently delayed. A prolonged
spell of warm weather in the autumn promoted
evaporation from the soil and thus prevented the soil
from being too wet. Similar conditions prevailed
in the following year. In 1913, the Nile flood was the
lowest on record and a large crop was again produced.
These results confirm the view that the excess of sub-
soil water was the principal cause of the fall in the
yield during earlier years, culminating in the dis-
astrous crop of 1909-10.

The distribution of the Egyptian cotton crop is
illustrated by the following figures giving the quanti-
ties (thousands of Ib.) exported to different countries
in the year 1913 : United Kingdom, 296,794 ; United
States, 66,712; Germany, 65,878; France, 65,001 ;
Russia, 59,420 ; Austria-Hungary, 42,795 ; Switzer-
land, 27,141 ; Italy, 26,340 ; Japan, 17,776 ; Spain,
15,812; Belgium, 2,437; Holland, 2,400; British
India, 713; Portugal, 700; Turkey, 442; Greece,
191 ; other countries, 92 ; total, 690,644.

EGYPTIAN VARIETIES

The cotton introduced into cultivation in 1820
was grown for many years under the name of " Jumel."
" Sea Island " cotton was introduced in 1822, and
was cultivated until about 1860. Brazilian cotton
is also said to have been grown from about 1827
onwards. In course of time, from these various
forms the " Ashmouni " cotton plant was evolved,
which is the oldest of the varieties now cultivated in
Egypt . The principal varieties grown at the present

58 COTTON PRODUCTION

time are " Ashmouni," " Sakellaridis," " Mitafifi,"
' Nubari," " Abassi," " Yannovitch," and " Assili."
The approximate percentage of the total cotton area
devoted to each of these varieties in 1913-1917 is
stated in the following table.

1913. 1914. 1915. 1916. 1917.

Mitafifi . . 36-2 26-6 17-7 8-5 5-7

Assili . . 3-8 7-6 4-2 4-0 2«2

Yannovitch . 10-1 7-3 2-4 0-3 o«i

Nubari . . 11-7 14-9 9-0 3-8 2*3

Sakellaridis . 14-3 22*5 46-2 62-3 67-6

Abassi . . 2-2 0-7 0-6 0-2 0-3

Ashmouni . 20*7 20-2 19*5 20*8 21-6

Other varieties . 1*0 0-2 0-4 o«i 0-2

100 100 100 100 100

Ashmouni. — This variety, though at first grown in
the Delta, is now cultivated almost exclusively in
certain districts of Upper Egypt, where it occupies
about 94 per cent, of the total cotton area. Ash-
mouni cotton is of a brownish colour, but not so dark
as Mitafifi ; it is less valuable than the latter and
does not yield such fine qualities of lint. The fibre is
i -i — i -3 inches long, and 0*00076 inch in average
diameter.

Mitafifi. — The Mitafifi or Afifi variety was derived
from Ashmouni, and was first cultivated in 1883.
The seeds of this plant are black and bear small green
tufts at their ends. The fibre is fine, very strong,
from i «3 to 1*5 inches long, and has an average dia-
meter of 0-00072 inch ; it is of a pale reddish- brown
colour. It is said that the colour is affected con-
siderably by salt, the cotton plants grown on the
more saline soils furnishing the darkest-coloured
cotton. Mitafifi cotton gives a high yield, ranging,
on average soils, from 500 to 600 Ib. per acre.

Nubari. — This variety, probably obtained by selec-
tion from Mitafifi, has come into favour during recent

EGYPTIAN VARIETIES 59

years, and has been grown on an extensive scale.
The cotton is of excellent staple, and closely resem-
bles a high grade of Mitafifi. The fibre is 1-3 — 1-6
inches long, and has an average diameter of 0*00068
inch.

Abassi. — This variety was obtained by selection
from Zafiri, which, in turn, was obtained from Mitafifi.
It was introduced into general cultivation in 1893.
The fibre is white, and in this respect differs from all
the other varieties cultivated in Egypt at the present
time. The cotton is fine, silky, 1-2 — 1-4 inches long,
0*00067 mcn m average diameter, and of good strength;
it is not so strong, however, as Mitafifi cotton, and is
more difficult to gin. During the last few years, the
cultivation of this variety has rapidly declined.

Yannovitch. — This cotton has been cultivated since
the year 1897. ^ *s supposed to have originated by
hybridisation from Mitafifi and Gallini (a variety,
closely resembling Sea Island, which was formerly
cultivated). The best qualities are grown on the
salt soils of the northern part of the Delta. The
fibre is very strong, 1-4 — 1«6 inches long, o«ooo68
inch in average diameter, and is one of the finest
and most silky of the Egyptian cottons.

Sakellaridis. — This variety has been recently estab-
lished, and is known by the name of the discoverer,
M. Sakellaridis, who found the plant some years ago
among a crop of Mitafifi cotton. This form matures
earlier than Mitafifi, and was grown in 1910 on a
fairly large scale in the Gharbia and Sharqia Pro-
vinces. Since that year it has become increasingly
popular, and now occupies 93 per cent, of the total
cotton area of Lower Egypt. The cotton is soft,
silky, lustrous, cream-coloured with a faintly reddish
tinge, of good strength, 1-4 — 1-7 inches long, and has
an average diameter of 0*00062 inch. The fibre is
superior to that of Yannovitch, being finer, more
silky, and slightly paler in colour.

Assil AM. — A superior type of Mitafifi cotton has
been produced by selection and is known by the
name of" Assili "(meaning" of pure original strain ")
or " Assil Ann."

60 COTTON PRODUCTION

Hindi. — Reference must be made to the so-called
" Hindi " cotton of Egypt, isolated plants of which
are commonly to be seen in fields of the Mitafifi
variety. The plant can be readily distinguished by
the fact that the boll opens in four, or sometimes
five, valves instead of three. It bears aVhite, some-
what coarse, inferior fibre, about one inch long, the
presence of which in Mitafifi cotton diminishes the
value of the crop . In 1 904, the Khedivial Agricultural
Society introduced the practice of examining the
Mitafifi seed for sowing and picking out all the long
and naked seeds, bearing long spikes at the pointed
ends, which were supposed to be of the Hindi variety.
Experiments have shown, however, that on planting
such seeds an excessively large proportion of plants
of the Hindi type is not produced. Moreover, it has
been found recently that some plants which produce
ordinary brown Mitafifi cotton bear long, naked,
spiked seeds of the Hindi type, and that ordinary
Mitafifi plants are sometimes produced from the so-
called Hindi seed. These facts evidently indicate
that such plants are hybrid forms, and it is obvious
that cotton possessing the Hindi character can never
be completely eradicated by picking out the naked
spiked seeds. The production of a pure Mitafifi
cotton could only be effected by starting afresh with
a few perfect plants, and sowing only the seed derived
from these, and thus in course of time a thoroughly
good cotton would be established. Great improve-
ment has resulted from the action of the Department
of Agriculture in distributing better seed to the
cultivators.

Uses of Egyptian Cotton

The special characteristics of Egyptian cotton
render it particularly useful for certain purposes for
which American Upland and other varieties are un-
suitable. It is better adapted to the mercerising
process (see page 16) than any other cotton, and its
high lustre and excellent capacity for dyes give it

COTTON IN INDIA 61

great value for mixing with silk and for the produc-
tion of fabrics with a brilliant finish. The brown
colour of the Mitafifi, Nubari and some other types
permits of their use in the manufacture of certain
articles,, such as underclothing, curtains and em-
broidery in which the natural e'en! shade is preferred.
Egyptian cotton is also of great utility for the pro-
duction of strong sewing thread, as well as for cycle
and motor tyres and other purposes for which strength
and smoothness are required.

PRODUCTION IN INDIA

The cultivation of cotton and its manufacture into
textiles have probably been practised in India for
three or four thousand years.

Indian cotton was almost exclusively employed in
the British cotton industry during its early years,
but was subsequently replaced by the product of the
United States. Much of the fibre formerly produced
in India was of a high grade but, during the last
hundred years or so, a striking change has taken place.
Short-stapled, inferior varieties have appeared, and
have become distributed throughout the country,
whilst the cultivation of the finer kinds has become
greatly restricted. The causes of this change may be
briefly indicated. In the first place, the introduction
of ginning machinery led the growers in many locali-
ties to cease their custom of ginning their cotton by
hand and reserving their seed for sowing, and induced
them to send their produce to the public ginning
factories, with the result that cotton from widely
separated areas was mixed together. The seed was
returned to the cultivators without discrimination,
and thus it commonly happened to be quite unfitted
for the particular locality in which it was to be sown.
Another cause was the change of market consequent
on the English spinners having abandoned Indian
cotton in favour of that of the United States. The
demand for the finer staples decreased, and a market
for the inferior kinds was found in Japan, Germany,
and India itself, where numerous mills were erected

62

COTTON PRODUCTION

for the production of coarse materials from short-
stapled cotton. The result was that Indian growers
were unable to obtain higher prices for long-stapled
than for short-stapled kinds, and, as the latter gave
the larger yields, they naturally turned their attention
to these in preference to the superior varieties. The
advantages of the short-stapled cottons to the culti-
vators may be illustrated by reference to the sub-
stitution of Jari cotton for the superior Hinganghat
or Bani variety in the Central Provinces and Berar
(see page 67). The inferiority of Indian cotton is
also largely due to impoverishment of the soil and
lack of care in cultivation. In some parts of the
country, the seed is sown broadcast on land which
has had little or no preparation and is rarely, if ever,
weeded. In the best cotton tracts, however, such as
the Broach and Surat districts of Bombay, a more
careful system of cultivation is adopted.

The cottons produced in India at the present
day are chiefly short-stapled, varying in length
from 0*5 inch to i inch, and for this reason are to a
great extent unsuitable for the Lancashire industry
as the machinery now in general use is particularly
adapted for cottons of longer staple, especially those
of the American Upland varieties which have a length
of one inch or more. The Indian cottons are, in
general, somewhat coarse, the average diameter
being about 0*00084 inch.

The area devoted to cotton in India and the pro-
duction and exports during the years 1905-6 to
1913—14 are stated below.

Year.

Area*

Production.^

Exports.

Acres.

Thousands of Ib.

Thousands of Ib.

1905-6

13,099,359

,667,380

828,748

1906-7

13,771,268

,941.832

828,894

1907-8

13,909,269

,512,960

958,947

1908-9

12,958,974

,680,060

761,422

1909-10

13,172,188

,97I,2OO

1,004,421

1910-11

14,447,690

,72I,2OO

972,877

I9II-I2

14,568,189

,60I,600

820,795

1912-13

14,138,497

,825,200

826,281

1913-14

15,844,363

2,318,800

1,190,147

* In British India, excluding Native States, t Including crop of certain Native States.

COTTON IN INDIA 63

About one-half of the crop is used in the Indian
mills, whilst the remainder is distributed to Japan,
Germany and other countries as shown by the follow-
ing statement of exports during 1913-14.

Exports of Raw Cotton (1913-14)

Quantity. Value.

Thousands of Ib. £.

Japan .... 539,567 12,934,223

Germany .... 189,064 4,001,628

Belgium .... 126,905 2,820,900

Italy . . . . 95,04i 2,121,177

Austria-Hungary . . 83,669 1,949,417

France .... $8,71% i, 349,195

United Kingdom . . 43>no « 957,35 1

Spain .... 18,696 448,502

Hong Kong . . . 12,273 264,895
China (exclusive of Hong

Kong and Macao) . 9,487 226,065

Other countries . . 13,617 288,302

Total . , . 1,190,147 27,361,655

The comparative magnitude of the cotton growing
industry in different parts of India is shown by the
following estimates (page 64) of the areas under cul-
tivation and the quantities produced in the various
Provinces and Native States in the year 1913-14.

Numerous attempts have been made from time to
time to effect an improvement in the cottons of India.
Strenuous efforts were made by the East India Com-
pany in 1829-1841, and were especially directed to
the introduction and acclimatisation of American
Upland varieties. These endeavours, however, met
with failure everywhere except in Dharwar. In
this district a New Orleans variety was established,
which is regarded as the parent form of the cotton
now produced (compare pages 67-68).

64

COTTON PRODUCTION

Province.

Estimated Area.

Estimated
Production.

Acres.

Thousands of Ib.

Bombay (including Native States)

7,100,000

628,800

Central Provinces and Berar

4,715,000

384,400

Hyderabad State .

3,653,000

160,000

Madras

2,593,ooo

205,2OO

Punjab (including Native Sta

es)

2,053,000

237,600

United Provinces

1,586,000

193,600

Central India States

1,426,000

109,200

Rajputana States
Sind (including Native States

470,000

332,000

52,800
53,200

Burma

288,000

20,000

Mysore

93,000

6,400

Bihar and Orissa

86,000

7,600

North- West Frontier Provinc

59,000

5,600

Bengal

51,000

5,200

Ajmer-Merwara

57,000

6,000

Assam

33,000

4,800

Total

2,080,400

The average yield of cotton per acre in India during 1913-14 thus
amounted to about 85 Ib.

During recent years, the problem of improving
the Indian staple has received a large amount of
attention at the hands of the Agricultural Depart-
ments. The work has included a survey and classi-
fication of the indigenous varieties, the introduction
of exotic varieties, the production of new forms by
hybridisation, the improvement of the native varieties
by seed selection, and endeavours to improve the
methods of cultivation. At the present time it is
considered that, in most districts, progress can be
best ensured by improving the indigenous cottons,
rather than by attempting the acclimatisation of
foreign kinds. The following are some of the prin-
cipal results that have been achieved.

In Bombay a hybrid of the local Coompta variety
has been produced which gives a higher yield of
cotton than the ordinary Coompta, and realises
better prices. The Broach variety has been intro-
duced into the Southern Mahratta country with great
success, and has proved more profitable to the growers
than the local Coompta ; the cultivation of this
cotton has recently undergone considerable extension,

COTTON IN INDIA 65

Cambodia cotton, an American Upland variety,
introduced from Cochin-China, is being grown in
several localities, and yields a very satisfactory crop.

Cambodia cotton is also being cultivated success-
fully in various districts of the Madras Presidency,
and the crop is now known in the Liverpool market
as " Tinnevelly American." Much attention has
been devoted to the ordinary Tinnevelly cotton,
which includes the forms termed " Karunganni " and
" Uppam." The lint of the former is much superior
to that of the latter, and an effort has therefore been
made to ensure that Karunganni should become the
principal form cultivated. Large quantities of pure
Karunganni seed have been grown and distributed
with the result that this form now predominates
throughout the southern portion of the Tinnevelly
District. Attempts have been made to improve
Northerns cotton in the Kurnul district, and a pure
variety is being cultivated and the seed distributed
to growers.

Promising results have been obtained with Egyp-
tian and American varieties in the Jamrao Canal
district of Sind.

In the Central Provinces and Berar, the different
types of cotton which constitute the Jari mixture
have been isolated and submitted to selection, in
order to ascertain which is the best form to grow for
the production of seed for distribution to the culti-
vators. It has been found that an acclimatised
American Upland cotton, known as " Buri," gives a
better yield per acre and a larger proportion of lint
on ginning than the local Jari, and is resistant to
wilt-disease ; this variety is now being extensively
grown. Buri cotton also promises to be very suc-
cessful in the Punjab.

In the United Provinces, an American variety is
being grown successfully in the Cawnpore area.
Buri cotton has also been introduced, and has given
promising results.

66 COTTON PRODUCTION

INDIAN VARIETIES

The Indian cottons of commerce are classed in
certain well-defined groups, distinguished by pecu-
liarities of staple, and designated according to the
localities in which they are grown. These groups or
commercial varieties must not be regarded as uniform
cottons, derived from a particular variety of plant, as,
although some of them are the product of a single,
definite botanical form, others are produced by
mixtures of different varieties or races.

The cottons may be roughly divided into early
and late varieties. The early cottons are sown from
March to June, and require five or six months to
reach maturity. They include Bengals, Oomras
and Hinganghat. These varieties are grown on light
s.oils, and are usually produced as mixed crops
showing wide variations in character. The late
cottons are sown from June to October and yield
a crop in about eight or nine months. They include
Broach, Dholleras, Coomptas, Dharwars, Westerns,
Coconadas, and Tinnevellys. These varieties are
usually found on deep, moisture-retaining, black,
loamy soils, and are generally grown as comparatively
pure crops of uniform character and consisting of
definite races of the cotton plant.

Bengals. — These cottons are grown chiefly in the
Punjab, United Provinces, Rajputana, and parts of
Central India, but comparatively little is produced in
Bengal. They are the shortest and coarsest varieties
grown in India, and are often depreciated by the
presence of yellow stains. The fibre is harsh, some-
what weak, and from about | inch to f inch long.

Oomras. — This cotton derives its name from the
town of Oomraoti or Amraoti in Berar, and is mainly
produced in the Province of Berar, and in the Khan-
desh, Barsi, and Ahmednagar districts of the Bombay
Presidency. The quality of the cotton from the
different regions varies to some extent, and the group
is therefore divided into Oomras proper, Belati,
Khandesh, and Barsi and Nagar. Oomras proper,

INDIAN VARIETIES 67

the chief cotton of Berar, is white, soft, strong, f— {
inch long, but is usually rather leafy, i.e., contamin-
ated with fragments of broken capsules. Belati
cotton is grown in Berar and the Central Provinces ;
it is white, rather harsh and weak, and shorter than
Oomras proper. Khandesh consists of a mixture
of at least three varieties, and is therefore of irregular
length (with an average of f — f inch), and is inferior
to Oomras proper ; it is usually somewhat leafy.
Barsi and Nagar cottons are, on the whole, of good
staple, but usually contain a good deal of " leaf."

Hinganghat or Bani is a superior cotton, produced
in the valley of the Wardha in the Central Provinces.
The quality of this cotton has undergone considerable
deterioration, and its cultivation has declined owing
to its gradual replacement by a mixture of varieties
knoWn as " Jari " which yields a coarse, short lint.
Jari cotton ripens earlier than the Bani variety, is
hardier and less liable to disease or injury from rain,
and gives a larger yield ; it is therefore preferred by
the Indian ryots. Hinganghat cotton is a white,
lustrous, strong cotton, with a length of about i inch.

Broach, the best and finest of the indigenous cottons
of India, is peculiar to the Southern Gujerat Province
of the Bombay Presidency. It is of good colour and
lustre, soft, silky, fine, and | — i inch long. The
staple resembles that of American Upland cottons,
but unfortunately the variety has undergone serious
degeneration and some of the finest forms have
entirely disappeared.

Dholleras. — This cotton is produced principally
in the Native States of Kathiawar, and in smaller
quantities in parts of Northern Gujerat and in the
Cambay and Baroda States. The product is fine,
soft, fairly strong, and J — -i inch long, but is usually
dirty and leafy. The quality of this cotton has been
impaired by the admixture of short-stapled varieties.

Copmptas. — This variety is grown in the Dharwar
district and somewhat 'resembles Broach, but is of
darker colour and less lustrous. It is soft, fine,
strong, and about i inch long, but is often dirty.

Dharwars. — This cotton is said to be an American

68 COTTON PRODUCTION

variety, derived originally from New Orleans seed,
which has become acclimatised in the Dharwar
district. It was at one time of excellent quality, and
although it has undergone considerable deterioration
it is still one of the best grades of Indian cotton.
Saw-ginned Dharwar is of good white colour, very
clean, soft, fine, silky, strong, and f — i inch long.

Westerns. — These forms are produced in the Madras
Presidency, and to a smaller extent in parts of the
Bombay Presidency and the Nizam's Territory.
They are of strong, coarse staple, £ — J inch long,
but are generally dirty and leafy. Westerns are sub-
divided into Westerns proper and Northerns, the
former coming from the country north of Bellary
and Kurnul, and the latter from Cuddapah and
Kurnul. Westerns proper are fairly white, but dull
and rough. Northerns are silkier than Westerns,
but possess a slightly red tinge.

Coconadas. — This variety is grown chiefly in the
Kistna district of the Madras Presidency, and to some
extent in the Godaveri and Nellore districts. The
cotton is fairly long, strong, and silky, but has a
reddish-brown tint ; it is used for the manufacture of
lace and dyed goods.

Salems or Coimbatores. — This is an acclimatised
exotic variety, derived from Bourbon seed, which is
grown in the east of Coimbatore, Madras Presidency.
The cotton was at one time of excellent quality, but
has greatly deteriorated, and is now very poor, short,
coarse, rough and weak. It is said to be employed
for adulterating the superior Tinnevelly cotton.

Tinnevelly. — This cotton is grown in Tinnevelly,
Madura, Trichinopoly, Tanjore, and South Arcot.
It is very white, has a silky lustre, and is fine, soft,
strong and remarkably clean. This variety is used
by English manufacturers for spinning in admixture
with American cotton, and is one of the few Indian
cottons suitable for the purpose.

PERUVIAN COTTON 69

PERU AND PERUVIAN VARIETIES

The greater part of the Peruvian cotton crop is
grown in the deep alluvial soil of the river-valleys
situated between the sea-coast and the Andes. This
region is characterised by an exceedingly low rainfall,
and elaborate systems of irrigation have therefore
been established. During recent years the produc-
tion has undergone a rapid increase. The crop
amounted to about 13 million Ib. in 1899, and to
nearly 48 million Ib. in 1909. The approximate
production in 1910 was estimated at 47 million Ib. ;
in 1911,48 million Ib.; in 1912, 53 million Ib.; and
in 1913, 71 million Ib. The principal varieties grown
are " smooth " Peruvian and " rough " Peruvian,
but Sea Island and Egyptian Mitafifi are also culti-
vated to a small extent. The relative quantities
of these cottons produced may be illustrated by
reference to the amounts exported in 1909, which
were approximately as follows : " smooth " Peru-
vian, 30,800,000 Ib. ; " rough " Peruvian, 15,700,000
Ib. ; and Sea Island and Mitafifi, 1,200,000 Ib.

"Smooth" Peruvian. — This cotton is of a type
resembling ordinary American Upland, and is about
i'O — 1*2 inches long. The plants are usually cut
down after the first crop has been picked and allowed
to grow up again for a second year. The second year's
crop is about 20 per cent, smaller than that of the
first year.

" Rough " Peruvian. — This is the true Peruvian
cotton (Gossypium peruvianum) and is only grown
in the regions of Piura and lea, where the atmosphere
is warmer and drier than in other parts of the coastal
area. The plants are grown as perennials, being left
in the ground for five or six years. The seeds
of this tree-cotton are of the " kidney " type, being
thus designated owing to those in each cell of the boll
being united to one another to form a kidney-shaped
mass. The fibre is of a peculiarly harsh and crinkly
nature, and is much prized for these qualities which
render it particularly suitable for spinning in con-

TO COTTON PRODUCTION

junction with wool. It meets with a ready demand
in all wool manufacturing countries, and especially
in the United Kingdom. The cotton is of good length,
viz. about i J — i J inches, and has an average diameter
of about 0*00078 inch.

BRAZIL AND BRAZILIAN VARIETIES

Although there is a very extensive area in Brazil
which is admirably adapted to cotton cultivation,
the crop is at present chiefly grown in the valley of
the San Francisco River. The industry has only
attained large proportions during the last forty or
fifty years. The production amounted to about
100 million Ib. in 1870, and was estimated in 1911
at about 150 million Ib. ; in 1912, 169 million Ib. ;
and in 1 9 1 3 , 2 1 3 million Ib . A large proportion of the
crop is used in the cotton mills of the country. The
cotton is generally detached from the seed by means
of roller-gins. It is baled by crude hand-presses,
and the cotton is therefore comparatively loosely
packed, the bales weighing on the average only about
250 Ib. each. The Brazilian cottons are known in
commerce by the names of the ports from which they
are shipped or by that of the province in which they
are produced, as, for example, Maranham, Maceio,
Paraiba, Ceara, and Pernam (an abbreviation for
Pernambuco). Both herbaceous and arborescent
forms are grown. The former are cultivated either
as annuals or biennials whilst the latter continue
to bear for eight years or. more. The herbaceous
cottons give a larger crop than the arborescent kinds
but the latter produce a longer fibre.

In general, Brazilian cotton is white, harsh and
wiry in character, of medium strength, from i inch
to 1*4 inches long, and about 0*00080 inch in diameter.

During recent years, Sea Island, American Upland
.and Egyptian varieties have been introduced into
Brazil, and have already become acclimatised.

Cotton is also cultivated to some extent in many

COTTON PRODUCTION 71

other parts of South America, including Colombia
and Venezuela. Attempts are being made to develop
the industry in Argentina.

PRODUCTION IN OTHER COUNTRIES

Mexico. — Cotton was extensively grown in Mexico
by the native Indians before the Spanish Conquest,
and it is estimated that the annual production at that
time amounted to about 116 million Ib. Under the
rule of the Spaniards the industry gradually declined
until in certain parts of the country it was altogether
abandoned. Since 1882, however, cotton growing
has again received attention, and it is not improbable
that Mexico will become an important contributor
to the world's cotton supply. There are large areas
well adapted to the plant in several of the States, but
the principal region of production is the Laguna
district in the States of Coahuila and Durango, where
about 8p per cent, of the total crop is grown. The
cultivation is carried on in this district under irriga-
tion, controlled by works on the Nazas river. The
fibre produced in this region is about 1*4 inches long,
and of good strength, but is finer and less silky than
American Upland cotton.

In many parts of the country, the cultivation is
still conducted in a very primitive manner, but in
the Laguna country and particularly on the Tlahua-
klo estate, owned by English and American capita-
lists, modern methods are employed. The cotton is
liable to the attack of many pests, including the boll-
weevil (Anthbnomus grandis). The crop of 1908 is
estimated to have amounted to about 70 million Ib.
and that of 1913 to about 75 million Ib. During
recent years, an immense manufacturing industry
has sprung up, with the result that not only is the
whole of the crop consumed locally, but a certain
quantity of Texas cotton is imported.

Asiatic Russia. — Cotton is grown on an extensive
scale in Turkestan and Transcaucasia.

Cotton growing is a very ancient industry in
6

72 COTTON PRODUCTION

Turkestan. It declined considerably immediately
after the Russian occupation, but has now revived.
The Russian Government have assisted the industry
by laying out irrigation canals and establishing
experiment stations. Efforts have been made to
improve the staple by distributing American Upland
seed to the growers together with instructions in the
methods of cultivation printed in the local languages.
In 1890, the crop amounted to 33,400,000 Ib. of
American cotton, and 12,900,000 Ib. of the native
Asiatic variety, whilst in 1909 it reached a total of
395,400,000 Ib., consisting almost entirely of American
varieties. The total production was about 400
million Ib. in 1912, and 447 million Ib. in 1913.

The rainfall is insufficient in the early period of
the plant's growth, and irrigation is therefore neces-
sary. The methods of cultivation are exceedingly
primitive and but little attention is paid to manuring.
Most of the cotton is ginned by a simple wooden
machine resembling the " churka " gin of India, but
modern ginning stations have been established at
some of the larger centres. Labour is comparatively
plentiful and cheap, and the rent of land is not high.
The yield could doubtless be largely increased by the
adoption of improved methods of cultivation, and
the difficulties due to the climate could probably be
overcome by breeding varieties adapted to the local
conditions.

In Transcaucasia, an indigenous variety of cotton
has been grown from very early times. This variety
is still largely cultivated, whilst American Upland
cotton is grown to a much smaller extent. The crop
amounted to about 22 million Ib. in 1891, and to
about 28 million Ib. in 1908, 56 million Ib. in 1912,
and 58 million Ib. in 1913.

China. — The amount of cotton produced in China
cannot be stated with any approach to accuracy,
owing to lack of statistics, but is roughly estimated
at 700 million Ib. per annum. It is grown chiefly
in the basin of the Yangtse River, the basin of the
Hoang Ho or Yellow River, and the Province of Che-
kiang. The methods of cultivation are very primi-

COTTON PRODUCTION 73

tive, and probably have not been varied for centuries.
The farmer usually practises some form of rotation,
and obtains two crops (such as wheat and cotton) or
even three (such as wheat, cotton and beans) from
the same land in one year.

Since 1895, several cotton-mills have been estab-
lished in China in which the locally-grown cotton is
chiefly employed. In spite of this, the exports of
raw cotton have steadily increased, and during the
years 1899 — 1908 amounted, on the average, to about
95,400,000 Ib. per annum, about 90 per cent, of
which went to Japan. In 1912 the exports were
about 107 million Ib., and in 1913 about 98 million Ib.

Chinese cotton is of rough staple, about J to f inch
long ; although shorter than Indian cotton, it is of
whiter appearance and freer from seed and leaf. The
fraudulent practice of watering the cotton to increase
its weight before sale still continues, in spite of official
proclamations forbidding it.

Japan. — The cotton plant is said to have been first
introduced into Japan in 781 A.D. from India, but its
cultivation soon ceased. It was probably re-intro-
duced by the Portuguese in 1592.

About one-half of the crop is produced in West
Japan, about two-fifths in Central Japan, and the
remainder in Shikoku, Kiushiu, and North Japan.

There are three varieties of cotton plant in Japan,
bearing white, yellow and red flowers respectively,
of which the yellow kind predominates. The seed
is sown at the beginning of May, and the crop is
harvested in September. As soon as the first leaves
appear, manures, such as oil-cake and fish-guano,
are applied in the furrows between the plants. The
plants are usually thinned out about the middle of
June. Ginning is effected by a primitive implement
known as the " rokuro " which corresponds with the
Indian " churka."

The cotton is usually of good quality, of fair lustre
and elasticity, but rarely more than three-quarters
of an inch long. During recent years the production
has gradually diminished, and the Japanese spinning
industry has become more and more dependent on

74 COTTON PRODUCTION

foreign supplies. In 1894 the production of unginned
cotton was estimated at about 104 million lb., but
in 1906 the output had fallen to about 13 million lb.
The crop of ginned cotton for 1908 was estimated at
about 3 million lb., and since that date the production
has tended to undergo still further diminution.

The manufacturing trade has grown remarkably
of late years, the amount of cotton consumed having
increased from about 350 million lb. in 1900 to
455 million lb. in 1909. Of the 425 million lb. im-
ported into Japan in 1908, about 200 million were
secured from India, 106 million from the United
States, and 87 million lb. from China.

Considerable attention is now being devoted to
the cultivation of cotton in Corea. American Upland
types have been introduced, and it is anticipated that
before long the country will be able to supply a fair
proportion of the raw material required by the
Japanese mills. In 1913, the area planted with
American cotton was 36,152 acres, and cotton to the
value of nearly £50,000 was exported to Japan. In
addition to this, it is estimated that over 100,000
acres were devoted to the native varieties.

COTTON PRICES

The prices of the different kinds of cotton are
governed more or less by that of a standard grade
of American Upland cotton known as " middling "
American (see page 53). The average value of this
grade in Liverpool during the period 1899-1914
was about 6d. per lb., but the price is subject to
violent fluctuations ; in 1894, it fell below 3^. per lb.,
whilst in 1904, owing to the creation of a corner by
American speculators, it rose to nearly gd. per lb.

The comparative values of some of the principal
kinds of cotton, when " middling " American is yd.
per lb., can be judged from the following prices which
were quoted in the Liverpool Cotton Association
Weekly Circular of the 6th March, 1914.

COTTON PRICES 75

Per Ib.
American.

American, middling . . . yd.

Sea Island, fine .... 13^.

„ „ , fancy Florida . . \2\d.

West Indian.

Sea Island, fine .... \6\d.
„ „ , extra fine . . . ig\d.

Egyptian.

Brown Egyptian, fully good fair 8*90^.

Ashmouni „ ,, „ . 8*30^.

Nubari „ „ „ . 9'i$d.

Yannovitch „ ,, ,, .10*05^.

Sakellaridis „ ,, „ 9* 9 5^.

Abassi „ „ „ . 9*50^.

Indian.

Machine-ginned Broach, good .
Oornra, No. i, good . . .
Bengal, good . . . . .
Tinnevelly, good ....

Peruvian.

Rough Peruvian, good fair . . 8*75^.
Smooth Peruvian, „ „ . 7*56^.

Brazilian.

Brazilian, Pernam, good fair . . 7-64^.

Maceio „ „ . . 7-59^.

„ Ceara „ „ . . 7-59^.

„ Maranham „ „ . . 7*590?.

A full discussion of the subject of cotton prices,
together with statistical information, is given in The
World's Cotton Crops, by John A. Todd (1915).

CHAPTER IV

COTTON GROWING IN BRITISH WEST AFRICA AND
OTHER PARTS OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE

AN account of cotton growing in Egypt and India has
already been given. In the following pages, brief
reference will be made to the position and prospects
of the industry in other parts of the British Empire.

It has already been pointed out (page 51) that the
Lancashire cotton industry is mainly dependent on
the United States for its raw material. A diminution
in the supply from this source is therefore liable to
entail serious consequences. Such an occurrence was
brought about by the American Civil War (1861-
1864) when the price of cotton advanced to an
extremely high figure and, as a result, thousands were
thrown out of employment and much distress was
produced throughout the country. During recent
years, considerable inconvenience and anxiety have
been occasioned in the cotton trade by a deficiency
in the supply, aggravated by artificial fluctuations in
price due to the manipulations of American speculators.
The shortage is attributed to the fact that during the
last thirty or forty years, the world's consumption of
cotton has been increasing more rapidly than the
supply. The greater part of this increase has taken
place in the United States where the quantity of
cotton used advanced from about 892 million Ib. in
1880 to 2,830 million Ib. in 1914 (cf. p. 51).

The danger to which the British cotton industry is
exposed by its dependence on the United States led
manufacturers to consider the possibility of obtaining
supplies from other sources, and in 1901 a committee
was appointed for the purpose of making the neces-

76

COTTON IN BRITISH WEST AFRICA 77

sary enquiries. The committee reported that suit-
able cotton for the Lancashire trade could be grown
in various parts of the British Empire. As an out-
come of this report, the British Cotton Growing
Association was inaugurated in June 1902 with the
object of extending cotton growing in British Posses-
sions. The Association immediately engaged in a
series of experiments and enquiries in connection
with which considerable help and encouragement was
afforded by Government officials. The work of the
Association together with that of the British and
various Colonial Governments, as well as of private
enterprise, has now resulted in the production of
cotton on a commercial scale in several parts of the
Empire, a brief account of which is given below.

Similar efforts have been made by Germany, France,
Portugal and Belgium to encourage cotton cultiva-
tion in their various Colonies and Dependencies.

BRITISH WEST AFRICA

Cotton is found in the wild state all along the
West Coast of Africa, and it has long been cultivated
by the natives for their own requirements. The
high prices ruling during the American Civil War
proved a great incentive to the native growers and
native buyers, especially in the Lagos Hinterland
and parts of the Gold Coast. Great exertions were
put forth by merchants, and ginning and baling
machinery was introduced. At the close of the war,
however, the price of cotton became normal again,
and, in consequence, the industry rapidly declined.

During recent years, renewed efforts have been
made to develop the cotton growing industry in the
British, French and German Possessions in West
Africa, and there is no doubt that there are vast areas
which possess both soil and climate of a kind well
adapted to the cultivation.

The exigencies of the climate are such that the
actual cultivation can only be carried on by the
natives, and the establishment of large European
plantations is practically excluded. The endeavours

78 COTTON GROWING

of the British Cotton Growing Association, the
(French) Association Cotonniere Coloniale and the
(German) Kolonial-Wirtschaftliches Komitee have
therefore been chiefly directed to encouraging the
natives to increase the areas devoted to cotton and
thus develop an export industry. These efforts have
already met with considerable success, especially in
the Southern Provinces of Nigeria, Dahomey, and
Togoland.

Numerous attempts have been made to introduce
exotic varieties, especially American kinds, into West
African cultivation, but the indigenous plants appear
to be the most hardy and to yield the most satis-
factory crops. It would appear, therefore, that, in
future, the most promising line of work will be to
endeavour to improve the staple of the native varieties
by the introduction of modern methods of cultivation
and especially by a regular and sustained system of
seed selection.

In the following paragraphs, a short account is
given of the efforts which have been made in the
different British West African Possessions and of the
present position and prospects of the industry in each.

Nigeria : Southern Provinces. — It is probable that
cotton has been a regular crop of the Southern Pro-
vinces for centuries ; it is employed by the natives
for the manufacture of their wearing apparel, and
during the American Civil War large quantities were
grown for export. The value of the exports in 1869
amounted to no less than £76,957, but from this time
the quantity exported rapidly diminished until in
1 879 the value of the exports was only £526. A small
export trade has since been regularly maintained.

The British Cotton Growing Association have
devoted more consideration to the Southern Provinces
of Nigeria than to any other part of West Africa,
and a great deal of excellent work has been accom-
plished in co-operation with the local Government.
Experimental plantations were established at various
centres for carrying out trials with different varieties,
and for producing seed suitable for distribution to
the natives. Buying stations and ginning factories

COTTON IN BRITISH WEST AFRICA 79

were established, and the Association undertook to
purchase seed-cotton from the natives at a minimum
price of id. per Ib. The results of the work on the
experiment farms proved that such plantations under
European supervision could not be commercially
profitable. It was found that certain American
varieties could be successfully established in the
country, but it was not considered advisable to dis-
tribute large quantities of exotic seed which had not
been thoroughly acclimatised. Efforts were there-
fore made to improve the native cotton by seed
selection at the ginneries, and this was rendered
possible by ensuring that all the buying centres came
under the direct control of the Association and that
the seed-cotton was ginned in their own factories. A
regular system of seed selection has been conducted
in this manner, with the result that the quality of the
cotton has undergone a steady improvement. The
undesirable varieties have been almost completely
eliminated, and a product of regular grade is now
being obtained which realises from 10 to 20 points
(o'iod.-o'2od. per lb;) in advance of the current price
of " middling " American cotton. This cotton is
slightly over one inch in length, somewhat harsh and
coarse, and of a brownish tint. Unfortunately the
seed-cotton gives rather a small yield of fibre (27 per
cent.) on ginning, but the cotton is very strong, and
suffers but little waste in the manufacturing processes.

In order to deal with the large quantities of cotton
seed which are not required for distribution, a mill
was erected at Ibadan for the expression of cotton
seed oil. It has been found, however, that in the
absence of a local demand for the oil and cake it is
more profitable to export the seed.

The best results have been obtained in the region
formerly known as the Western or Lagos Province,
where the natives have undertaken cotton growing
with considerable zeal. This region is inhabited by
the Yorubas, an industrious race, well versed in
agricultural pursuits and fully able to grow the crop
to advantage.

In the Eastern Province, much less cotton is pro-

8o COTTON IN BRITISH WEST AFRICA

duced as in the greater part of the country the rainfall
is too heavy. It is noteworthy, however, that the
best cotton grown in West Africa is produced in the
Ishan District of this Province.

The cultivation of cotton in Nigeria cannot be
carried on with success near the coast as the rainfall is
too heavy, and the greater part of the crop is therefore
produced in the interior, north of Ibadan . With a view
to facilitating transport, the Lagos Railway was ex-
tendedfrom Ibadan to Jebba in the Northern Provinces,
and subsequently to Zungeru. This line was finally
linked up at Minna with the railway which had been
constructed from Baro to Kano. The increased trans-
port facilities thus provided have enabled the industry
to undergo great expansion.

The following are the quantities of cotton exported
from the Southern Provinces of Nigeria during the
years 1902—1916 :

Year. Quantity (lb.). Year. Quantity (lb.).

1902 . . 12,359

1903 . . 281,000

(approx.)

1904 • •

1905 • • 1,374,875

1906 . . 2,695,923

1907 . . 4,089,530

1908 . . 2,294,356

1909 . . 5,032,916

1910 . . 2,478,316

1911 . . 2,238,190

1912 . . 4,372,773

1913 • . 6,361,120
'9H • . 5,649,840

1915 . • 2,697,072

1916 . . 7,454,160

These figures include the cotton passing through
the country from the Northern Provinces.

Nigeria : Northern Provinces.— Cotton is grown ex-
tensively in parts of the Northern Provinces, and
its cultivation is accompanied by a large manu-
facturing industry. The centre of this industry is
at Kano, which for centuries has been renowned for
its cotton goods, the trade in which is not limited
to Nigeria or even to West Africa, but extends as far
as the North of the Continent.

The native methods of cultivation show consider-
able variation. In some places, the cotton is grown
as an annual crop ; in others, the plants are left in

COTTON IN BRITISH WEST AFRICA 81

the ground for three years, whilst it is not uncommon
for the plants to be allowed to remain until the crop
becomes so small that it is hardly profitable to gather
it and the plantations are then abandoned. In some
localities, the cotton is grown in conjunction with yams.

There are enormous areas in the Northern Pro-
vinces suitable for cotton growing, and there are several
indigenous cottons of good quality and well adapted
for the English market. The cottons most widely
grown are native varieties of Gossypium peruvianum
which furnish fibre a little less than an inch in length.

The possibility of developing an export cotton
industry was considered by the Niger Company in
1888, and samples of indigenous cottons were sent to
England and were reported to be of rough but useful
staple. Trials were made with American and
Egyptian seed, and satisfactory results were obtained.
The matter was not carried any further at that time,
however, on account of difficulties of labour and
transport.

The British Cotton Growing Association have
established buying stations, erected ginneries, and
carried out experimental work on the cultivation of
American varieties of cotton. The experimental
work is now being conducted by the Agricultural
Department. In 1914 seed of the American variety,
known as " Allen's Long Staple," which had been
produced in 1913 on the Government plantation near
Zaria, was distributed to the growers for cultivation
under supervision . The plants produced from this seed
gave a larger yield per acre than the native variety,
and the seed-cotton was purchased by the British Cotton
Growing Association at i \d. instead of id. per Ib.

The completion of the Baro-Kano Railway has
opened up densely populated regions in the Zaria
and Kano Provinces, and it is anticipated that a
large and profitable industry will gradually be estab-
lished. It must be remembered, however, that the
amount of cotton available for export is limited by
the demand for local manufacture, for which purpose
higher prices are paid for the cotton than would be
justified by the value of the product in Liverpool.

82 COTTON IN BRITISH WEST AFRICA

It is possible, moreover, that the extension of cotton
growing may be restricted by the natives preferring
to plant ground nuts, a crop which is well suited to
the country and is rapidly increasing in popularity.

A large increase in the output of cotton has taken
place recently, however, and during the first six
months of 1916, the British Cotton Growing Associa-
tion purchased over 10,000 bales of 400 Ib. each.

There are no trustworthy figures available for the
quantities of cotton exported from the Northern
Provinces of Nigeria prior to 1908, but during the
years 1908-12, the exports were as follows : 1908,
56,986 Ib. ; 1909, 140,080 Ib. ; 1910, 58,688 Ib. ;
1911, 92,373 lb-; !9i2, 259,280 Ib.; 1913-14, no
separate returns for the Northern Provinces available.

Gold Coast. — In some parts of the Gold Coast, as
in other regions of West Africa, cotton growing has
long been, practised by the natives, who employ the
product for the manufacture of cloths for their own
use. The cultivation is carried on in a very primitive
manner. The cotton is not properly planted, but is
usually grown in conjunction with various food crops,
such as yams, maize, and cassava. As a rule, the
plants are not cut down at the end of each season and,
in some cases, they are allowed to remain in the ground
for many years. Cotton is picked from the plants as
long as it is worth gathering, but the fibre rapidly
deteriorates and after the first year is generally of
very poor quality.

Some of the indigenous varieties are of very fair
quality, and if carefully cultivated could probably be
considerably improved. Several attempts have been
made to introduce exotic cottons. An acre of land at
Aburi was planted with Egyptian cotton in 1890
and gave a satisfactory yield. During the same year
an experiment with Egyptian cotton was carried out
at Accra and a crop of good quality was produced.
From this time onward the native farmers were en-
couraged by the Agricultural Department to devote
attention to cotton cultivation, and large quantities of
American and Egyptian seed were distributed. These
efforts, however, did not meet with much success.

COTTON IN BRITISH WEST AFRICA 83

In 1903, the British Cotton Growing Association
commenced work in the Gold Coast, and a cotton
expert was appointed who was attached to the
Agricultural Department. A tour was made of the
country with the object of ascertaining the suitability
of the various districts for the crop. Large quantities
of American Upland seed were distributed and the
natives were urged to extend the cultivation. In
certain selected districts small experimental planta-
tions were established under the supervision of the
native chiefs . In 1 904 an experiment farm was started
at Labolabo near the Volta River, and 1 20 acres were
planted. In the following year several varieties,
including native, American and Egyptian kinds, were
grown at this farm. The American cottons gave the
largest yields, and the Egyptian the smallest yields.
The experiments were continued in 1906, and as a
result the conclusion was reached that the climate
was not suited to the growth of Egyptian varieties.
The best results with exotic cottons were obtained
with the American variety known as " Black Rattler.11
A steam ginnery and buying station were established
at Labolabo. The natives, however, did not make
much progress in the industry, although some advance
took place in the Peki District. In 1910, the British
Cotton Growing Association discontinued the agri-
cultural work, and this was subsequently resumed by
the Agricultural Department. The Association, how-
ever, still continued to take an active part in the
commercial side of the industry.

The exports of cotton from the Gold Coast during
1903-1916 were as follows :

Year. Quantity (lb.). Year. Quantity (lb.)-

1903 . . . 10,443

1904 . . . 57,661

1905 • • . 29,124

1906 . . . 92,886

1907 . . . 56,088

1908 . . . 51,480

1909 . . . 31,290

1910 . . . 11,421

I9H • ' • • 9,701

1912 . . . 20,395

1913 • • • 27,497

1914 • • • 23,514

1915 • • • 12,016

1916 . . . 17,896

It is evident from these figures that the vigorous

84 COTTON IN BRITISH WEST AFRICA

efforts which have been made to foster the industry
have not yielded encouraging results. The disinclina-
tion of the natives to grow cotton was formerly due
to the fact that they could provide for all their require-
ments by means of palm-oil and palm-kernels, the
preparation and collection of which entail compara-
tively little labour. Moreover, it happened, very
unfortunately from the point of view of the cotton
industry, that just at the time when the British
Cotton Growing Association were striving to stimulate
cotton growing, cocoa cultivation came into prominence.
This crop is more profitable to the native than cotton,
and large numbers are now engaged in its production.
The exports of cocoa increased from about 5 million
Ib. in 1903 to more than 118 million Ib. in 1914.

In spite of the lack of success attending the earlier
efforts, the Agricultural Department of the Gold
Coast continued their endeavour to create a large
cotton industry in the country. The sphere of work
was transferred to the Northern Territories, and an
agricultural station was established at Tamale in
1909, where experiments were made with the object
of ascertaining the best variety to grow, the most
satisfactory time for planting, and the most suitable
crops to grow in rotation with cotton. Attempts were
also made to acclimatise exotic varieties, and to
produce improved strains of indigenous cottons by
selection and hybridisation. Unfortunately, however,
these attempts to develop cotton growing in the
Northern Territories did not meet with success. The
yield of cotton was exceedingly small, and it was
considered useless to continue the efforts. In 1915
the enterprise was therefore abandoned.

Sierra Leone. — Cotton is indigenous to the country,
grows in almost all parts of the Protectorate, and is
cultivated by the natives for the manufacture of a
coarse kind of cloth which they wear much more
commonly than imported cotton goods.

The methods of cultivation employed by the natives
are of a very primitive description. After cutting or
burning the bush, the field is roughly hoed. At the
commencement of the rainy season, cassava is planted,

COTTON IN BRITISH WEST AFRICA 85

and a mixture of cotton seed with that of various
food crops, such as sesame, <( okra " (Hibiscus escu-
lentus), and rice, is sown broadcast. The cotton
plants are usually allowed to remain in the ground
for two or three years and sometimes attain a height
of 10 feet.

Attention was drawn to Sierra Leone as a promising
country for cotton growing in 1 890, when a supply of
Egyptian seed was forwarded for experimental trial.
The results of this experiment however do not appear
to have been successful.

In 1 902, 'the British Cotton Growing Association
commenced operations in Sierra Leone by sending
out an American cotton expert to carry out experi-
ments with the object of improving the quality of
the cotton grown, and also to endeavour to persuade
the natives to grow cotton for export. An offer was
made of id. per Ib. for all the seed-cotton brought in
for sale. American and Egyptian seed was dis-
tributed among the chiefs in the Protectorate, but the
results were unsatisfactory. The Government at-
tempted to encourage the industry by carrying
machinery or implements for the cotton plantations
and consignments of cotton for export free of charge
on the Government Railway.

In 1904, the British Cotton Growing Association
leased from one of the chiefs a large area of land,
adjacent to the Railway at Moyamba in the Ronietta
district of the Protectorate, and established an
experime. tal plantation. The crop for that year was
very disappointing owing to unfavourable weather,
the rainfall amounting to more than 100 inches. The
quantity of cotton exported amounted to about
13 tons.

In 1905, an area of 1,030 acres was cultivated at
Moyamba, a large part of which was devoted to
experiments with seed of imported varieties in order
to discover the kind best adapted to the country.
The most favourable results however were obtained
with the native " Quondi " variety which furnishes
cotton of a pale cream colour and about i inch long.
A ginning station was erected, but owing to a

86 COTTON IN BRITISH WEST AFRICA

recurrence of unfavourable conditions, the exports
during the year only amounted to about 31 tons.

The results obtained in 1906 were again disappoint-
ing, and in spite of the efforts of the British Cotton
Growing Association, the cotton exported amounted
to only 39 tons, and was of poor quality. It was
therefore decided to discontinue the work, and the
Moyamba plantation was abandoned.

The outcome of these efforts to create a cotton
growing industry in Sierra Leone has been to show
that the native " Quondi " cotton can be grown
satisfactorily, but that the rainfall is too heavy for
the cultivation of exotic varieties. The natives are
not attracted to cotton growing in the forest areas
where oil-palm, rubber and piassava trees abound,
but it is possible that beyond these regions they would
take to the industry if transport facilities were pro-
vided. The natives are, however, naturally indolent,
and are not easily persuaded to exert themselves to
produce anything that is not required for their own
immediate needs.

Although the British Cotton Growing Association
have withdrawn from Sierra Leone, experimental work
on cotton cultivation has not been altogether
abandoned but is being continued by the Department
of Agriculture.

The quantities of cotton exported from Sierra
Leone during the years 1903-1915 were as foMows :

Year. Quantity. Year. Quantity.

Ib. Ib.

1903 . . . 1,120

1904 . . . 28,267

1905 . . . 68,808

1906 . . . 87,805

1907 . . . 13,006

1908 . . . 336

1909-15 . . nil

Gambia. — The cultivation of an indigenous variety
of cotton has long been carried on by the natives of
the Gambia in a very primitive manner. The crop
is used for the manufacture of the " pagns " or native
cloths which are in considerable demand locally.
Small quantities of the cotton have occasionally been

COTTON IN BRITISH WEST AFRICA 87

exported ; in 1843 tne exports amounted to about
3 1 tons. An effort was made to stimulate the industry
in 1862 when a ton of Egyptian cotton seed was for-
warded to the Colony and distributed to growers.
This trial resulted in 47 tons of cotton being purchased
from the natives.

In 1 890 a further quantity of Egyptian cotton seed
was forwarded to the Colony. The plants raised from
this seed appear to have given good results.

In 1902 the British Cotton Growing Association
directed their attention to the Gambia, and an
American cotton planter was engaged to make a tour
of the country and report on the prospects of the
cultivation. Supplies of American and Egyptian
seed were forwarded to the Colony and distributed
to the natives. A little later, an Experiment Farm
was started at Willinghara in the Upper River
District, and a study was commenced of the climatic
conditions in their relation to the growth of cotton,
and seed selection experiments were undertaken with
both native and imported varieties.

During 1902, the Government purchased the seed-
cotton grown from imported seed at i\d. per lb., but
the natives were dissatisfied with the price, as there
was a local market for the product at 2d.-$d. per lb.
for making the " pagns " already mentioned. In the
following year, therefore, the Government purchased
the crop at 2d. per lb., but the payment of so high a
price for seed-cotton resulted in a considerable loss.
In 1905, the natives were offered only id. per lb. for
seed-cotton, and since they refused to sell at that price
the enterprise was abandoned.

The amount of cotton exported from the Gambia
during 1901-1915 was as follows :

Year. Quantity (lb.). Year. Quantity (lb.).

I9OI
I9O2
1903
1904
1905

48

1 2O

1,560

59,828

2,572

1906 . . . 129

1907-13 . . nil

1914 . . . 126

1915 • • • nil

The results of this endeavour have clearly demon-
7

88 COTTON GROWING IN THE SUDAN

strated that the natives of the Gambia will not take
up cotton growing for export. Ground-nut cultiva-
tion, which is the chief industry of the Colony, is more
profitable than cotton growing, and gives a sufficient
return to supply all the needs of the people. More-
over, the country is only sparsely populated, and the
climatic conditions do not appear very favourable to
cotton growing on a large scale.

ANGLO-EGYPTIAN SUDAN

Cotton growing has made rapid progress in the
Sudan during recent years. The rainfall is insufficient
for the crop in the north of the country, and irrigation
is therefore practised. In the south, however, a
certain amount of cotton is grown which depends
entirely on the rainfall. The following are the
principal districts in which the crop is produced.

About sixty miles south of Suakin in the Red Sea
Province,, the Baraka River forms a large delta, in
the centre of which is the village of Tokar. The rain-
fall in this region is inadequate for cotton growing,
and the only area available for cultivation is that
which is watered by the annual overflow of the Baraka
River. Unfortunately the flood varies greatly in
amount from year to year, and, moreover, a large
quantity of the water runs to waste as at present there
is no means of controlling it. A scheme has been
drawn up with a view to preventing this loss of water
but has not yet been put into operation. The industry
is somewhat hampered by the difficulty of transport,
but this would be solved by the provision of a railway
from Tokar to Suakin or Port Sudan. The cotton at
present grown at Tokar is almost entirely of the
Egyptian Mitafifi variety, but experiments which
have been continued for several years indicate that
long-stapled American cottons may eventually be
found more profitable.

In the Khartoum district, and in the Nile Valley
north of Khartoum, are a number of areas cultivated
by pump irrigation. The largest of these areas is that

COTTON GROWING IN THE SUDAN 89

of the Sudan Plantation Syndicate at Zeidab in the
Berber Province, where in some years successful re-
sults have been obtained with both Egyptian and
American varieties.

South of Khartoum and between the Blue and
White Niles is an extensive plain, known as the
Gezira, which has an area of about 4 million acres.
The soil of this region is well adapted for cotton
growing, but, owing to the low rainfall, irrigation is
necessary. An elaborate scheme has been devised
for effecting the irrigation of the Gezira and, as a
preliminary step, an experiment farm has been estab-
lished at Tayiba with a pumping installation to supply
the necessary water. The success obtained at this
farm has demonstrated the possibilities of cotton
growing in the region. The construction of a main
irrigation canal has been commenced, which is to leave
the Blue Nile at Sennar and run northwards parallel
to the course of the river. A pumping station has
also been erected at Barakat, a little south of Wad
Medani, and a large area was planted with cotton in

1914.

In Kassala, a considerable quantity of Mitafifi
cotton is grown under conditions similar to those
prevailing at Tokar, the land being watered by the
flood of the River Gash.

Estimates of the quantities of seed-cotton produced
in the different districts of the Sudan in 1912-13 and
1913-14 are given in the following table.

1912-13. 1913-14-

Metric tons. Metric tons.

Tokar (flood grown) . . . 5,140 2,983
Khartoum and Nile Valley North

of Khartoum (pump irrigation) i , 209 1,523

Tayiba (Gezira) (pump irrigation) 507 336

Kassala (flood grown) . 248 322

Gallabat (rain grown) . . 124 42

The total exports of cotton (calculated as ginned
cotton) from the Sudan during 1901-1916 were
approximately as follows :

90 COTTON GROWING IN UGANDA

Year. Quantity (lb.). Year. Quantity (lb.).

IQOI . . 881,600

1902 . . IIO,2OO

1903 . . 808,100

1904 • . 1^2,400

1905 . . 1,469,300

1906 . . 1,689,700

1907 • • 3,232,500

1908 . . 3,967,200

1909 . . 2,865,200

1910 . . 6,391,600

1911 . . 9,129,200

1912 . . 6,000,000

1913 • • 5,132,000

1914 . . 3,774,000

1915 . . 9,492,000

1916 . . 6,488,000

The fluctuation in the quantity produced from
year to year is largely due to variations in the Tokar
flood conditions.

UGANDA PROTECTORATE

The cultivation of cotton in Uganda on a com-
mercial scale was first undertaken in 1904, when seed
of several different varieties was introduced by the
Government and the Uganda Company. It was
found that American Upland cottons were superior
to Egyptian varieties, as they gave larger yields per
acre, were hardier, matured more rapidly, and proved
better adapted to the local conditions. Unfortunately
owing to the lack of any organisation for controlling
the industry, the seed became mixed, and for some
years the crop consisted of a mixture of the different
varieties which had been introduced in which the
American Upland character largely predominated.
The staple was consequently very irregular, and
spinners expressed dissatisfaction with the product.
In 1908, the Government turned their attention to
the matter, and an Ordinance was enacted under
which rules were made which prohibited the sowing
of any seed except that provided by the Government.
An American Upland variety, known as (< Black
Rattler," was distributed to the growers, and efforts
were made to eradicate all cotton of the Egyptian
type. A more uniform type of cotton was thus
produced, but the quality was still of a somewhat low
grade. The Agricultural Department, therefore, en-
deavoured to effect the production of an acclimatised
cotton of superior quality, and work in this direction

COTTON GROWING IN UGANDA 91

has been continued for several years. A seed farm
has been established, and pure American long-stapled
varieties have been substituted for the various
hybridised forms previously grown. In the year
1913-14 the whole of the main crop was of " Allen's
Long Staple " variety.

Transport difficulties offer a serious hindrance to the
extension of the industry. The seed-cotton, in loads
of about 60 lb., is carried on the heads of the natives,
sometimes for very great distances, to the nearest
buying station. After being ginned, the cotton has to
be conveyed to the railway connecting Lake Kioga with
Jinja on the Victoria Nyanza, whence it is shipped
across the lake to the terminus of the Uganda Railway.

In spite of these obstacles, however, the Uganda
cotton industry has developed with great rapidity,
as is shown by the following table, giving the quanti-
ties and value of the exports during the years 1904-
1915-

Year. Quantity, Value.

lb. '

1904
1905
1906

1907
1908

1910
1911
1912

1913
1914
1915

21,566* 235

96,098* 1,089

391,244* 11,411

1,605,184! 5i,594

1,625,755! 41,232

2,595,152! 59,596

5,538,885! 165,412

8,343,8i3t 230,850

10,517,621! 254,379

11,191,824! 317,687

13,126,587! 351,146

10,520,610! 245,426

* Partly ginned and partly unginned, the quantity of each kind not
being separately stated.

f Ginned cotton (export of seed-cotton having been converted on
the assumption that i lb. of ginned cotton is obtained from 3 lb. of
unginned).

EAST AFRICA PROTECTORATE

From 1904 onwards, efforts have been made by the
Department of Agriculture and the British Cotton

92 COTTON GROWING IN EAST AFRICA

Growing Association to promote cotton cultivation
in the East Africa Protectorate. European planters
have grown cotton, chiefly of Egyptian varieties, in
a few districts, especially near the coast in the neigh-
bourhood of Malindi, and in the Tana River Valley.
Unfortunately this enterprise has not proved very
successful, and in most places the natives are not
inclined to take up the industry as they prefer the
cultivation of food-crops. It has been proved that
cotton growing near the coast is not profitable, except
on the banks of the Tana and Juba Rivers where
irrigation can be effected. In the Lake District of
the Nyanza Province, however, the conditions are
favourable, and the natives are now planting cotton
as an adjunct to the cultivation of sesame and other
food-crops ; it is anticipated that the production
in this district will gradually increase.

The exports of cotton from the East Africa Pro-
tectorate during the years 1904-1914 are shown in
the following table.

Year.

1904
1905
1906
1907
1908
1909
1910
191 1
1912

1913
1914

Quantity.
Ib.

28,880

99,456
102,256

81,100
251,328
141,792
163,184
166,033
295,232
134,875

17,465

Value.

i

285

1,273
1,407

1,843
5,907
4,440

7,477

6,313

11,831

5,476
614

Reference may be made to the cultivation of cotton
in German East Africa, where much greater success
has been obtained than in the British Protectorate.
It has been found that American Upland varieties are
best adapted for native cultivation. The crop cannot
be grown very satisfactorily near the coast^ but
several districts in the interior possess favourable

PLATR IV

From the Collections of the Imperial Institute

COTTON FIELD, NYASALAND PROTECTORATE

From the Collections of the Imperial Institute

BALING COTTON, NYASALAND PROTECTORATE

[93

COTTON GROWING IN NYASALAND 93

conditions for the industry. The exports have rapidly
increased and in 1912 they amounted to 4,139,513 lb.
of value £105, 5 1 2, and in 1913 to 4, 8 28,96410. of value
£120,753.

NYASALAND PROTECTORATE

Cotton growing was introduced into Nyasaland in
1903. Unfortunately, just as in the case of Uganda,
a large number of different varieties were planted
with the result that considerable confusion occurred,
owing to hybridisation and the mixing of the seed.
Subsequently all the varieties were discarded with
the exception of Egyptian kinds, which are now con-
fined to the warmer districts of the Lower River, and
long-stapled American Upland forms, which are
cultivated on the higher lands. As a rule, Egyptian
cottons are grown in Nyasaland at elevations below
2,000 feet, and American Upland kinds from 2,000
to 4,000 feet. Considerable attention has been given
to the industry by the Agricultural Department,
and an excellent long-stapled American Upland form
has been acclimatised, which is known as " Nyasaland
Upland " and is valued in Liverpool at about 2d.
per lb. in advance of " middling " American. The
area devoted to the crop by European planters during
the season 1913-14 amounted to 25,697 acres, of
which 1 60 acres were planted with Egyptian cotton
and the remainder with the Nyasaland Upland
variety. A large and gradually increasing quantity
of cotton is also grown by the natives.

The development of the industry is hindered by the
lack of transport facilities. The only railway at
present in existence runs from Blantyre to Port
Herald on the Shire River, where the cotton has to be
conveyed on barges to the Zambesi River, and thence
down the latter river to Chinde on the coast of
Portuguese East Africa. At Chinde the cotton has
to be transferred to other barges which carry it to
Beira, whence it is shipped to Liverpool. A railway
from Port Herald to the Zambesi is now nearly com-
pleted, and negotiations are in progress for the con-

94 COTTON GROWING IN NYASALAND

struction of another line from the Zambesi to Beira.
When these railways are open for traffic, the industry
will probably make rapid progress.

The growth of the Nyasaland cotton growing in-
dustry is shown by the following figures giving the
quantities and values of the exports from 1902 to 1916.

Year. Quantity. Value.

Ib. £

1902 . 692 No complete returns

1903 . 56,897 1,778

1904 . 285,185 5,941

1905 • 776,640 1 6, 1 80

1906 . 526,119 15.345

1907 . 403,486 I3>998

1908 . 756,120 28,355

1909 , 858,926 26,209

1910 . 1,736,999 58,687

1911 • 1,359,904 44,199

1912 . 3,237,555 80,939

1913 . 2,401,142 65,486

1914 . 2,648,508 72,068

1915 . 3,065,248 68,586

1916 . 3,462,400 127,131

BRITISH WEST INDIES

Cotton was cultivated on an extensive scale in the
West Indies in the eighteenth century, and during
the years 1786-1790 no less than 70 per cent, of the
world's commercial supply was obtained from these
islands. Recent efforts to resuscitate the industry
have met with great success. Sea Island cotton is the
chief variety grown, but a small quantity of a native
type, known as " Marie Galante," is also produced,
especially in the island of Carriacou, the chief depend-
ency of Grenada ; the latter cotton has a length of
about i'2 — 1*4 inches. Sea Island cotton is usually
considered to be indigenous to the West Indies, but
the present crops are not obtained from the native
plant, but are chiefly derived from seed of the " Rivers '
type, which was imported from the Sea Islands of
South Carolina in 1903 by the Imperial Department

Photograph by W. N Sends, F.L.S.

GINNING FLOOR, CENTRAL COTTON GINNERY, ST. VINCENT

Photograph by W. N. Sands, F.L.S.

SHIPPING BALES OF SEA ISLAND COTTON, ST, VINCENT

91]

COTTON IN THE BRITISH WEST INDIES 95

of Agriculture. The product is mostly of a very fine
grade and realises excellent prices. The largest
quantities are produced in the Leeward Islands, St.
Vincent, and Barbados. The most valuable is grown
in St. Vincent where, during the last few years, some
of the finest crops have realised from 2s. to 2s. gd. per
Ib. Cotton of very high grade is also produced in
St. Kitts. The bulk of the West Indian cotton is
from 1 1 to 2 inches long, and usually obtains prices
ranging from is. $d. to is. nd. per Ib.

Ever since the re-introduction of Sea Island cotton
into the West Indies, continuous selection experiments
have been carried on with the object of maintaining
the quality of the crop and of establishing improved
strains particularly adapted to certain districts. The
plants are very subject to the attack of insect and
fungoid pests, and these have therefore been made
the subject of careful study with a view to their control.
Remedial measures have been devised, and in order
to avoid the transference of pests from one island to
another the cotton seed is disinfected before sowing.

The following are the approximate quantities of
cotton exported from the West Indies in 1903-1914.

Year. Quantity. Value.

1903 . , . 414,000 7,831

1904 . . , 776,000 28,029

1905 • • • 1,199,000 54.251

1906 . . . 1,662,000 83,705

1907 . . . 2,625,000 198,118

1908 . . . 2,762,000 175,093

1909 . . . 2,225,000 110,992

1910 . . . 2,138,000 135,222

1911 . , . 3,068,000 197.367

1912 . . . 2,388,000 143,065

1913 . . . 2,637,000 154,397

1914 • . 2,304,400 131.525

The quantities and values of the cotton exported
from the different parts of the British West Indies
in 1913 were as follows :

96 COTTON GROWING IN CYPRUS

Quantity. Value.

lb, £

Bahamas , 13,466 221

Jamaica .... 69,296 4,128

St. Lucia . . . 4,000 200

St. Vincent . . . 484,975 36,191

Barbados. . . . 433>O99 23,460

Grenada . . . 400,793 10,500

Leeward Islands . . 1,224,172 79*169

Trinidad and Tobago . 7,046 528

Total . . . 2,636,847 154,397

CYPRUS

Cotton was grown extensively in Cyprus in the
middle ages, and considerable quantities were ex-
ported to England in the seventeenth and eighteenth
centuries. A large export trade was developed during
the American Civil War, but since that time the
industry has declined. The cotton grown is chiefly
of a native type, and yields short, coarse fibre.
American Upland cotton is also cultivated, but, owing
to the rainfall being deficient and irregular, it is neces-
sary that irrigation should be practised if crops of good
quality are to be produced. A large part of the cotton
is used locally, and the remainder is exported, chiefly
to Marseilles and Trieste. The production has
increased greatly during the last few years, that of
1904 amounting to 534,254 lb. whilst that of 1913
was no less than 4,614,999 lb. The exports in the
years 1910-1915 were as follows :

Year. Quantity. Value.

lb. £

1910 . . . 806,736 24,538

1911 . . . 785)904 22,593

1912 . . . 1,546,496 40,085

1913 . . . 1,505,728 40,693

1914 . . . 1,048,992 27,605

1915 . 700,112 16,306

Cotton is being grown to 3 small extent in Malta,

COTTON GROWING IN THE BRITISH EMPIRE 97

Rhodesia, the Union of South Africa, Ceylon, Queens-
land, Fiji, and Papua. Detailed accounts of the
industry in all parts of the British Empire in which
the crop is cultivated, are given in " Papers and
Reports on Cotton Cultivation, presented to the Inter-
national Congress of Tropical Agriculture, Brussels,
May, 1910," and a summary of this information is
contained in the " Report on the Present Position of
Cotton Cultivation" by Professor Wyndham R.
Dunstan, C.M.G., LL.D., F.R.S., which was presented
to the same congress.

Reports on the quality and value of a large number
of British-grown cottons have been published in the
pages of the " Bulletin of the Imperial Institute ," and
in Professor Dunstan 's "British Cotton Cultivation"
(Cd. 3,997, 1908).

The areas under cotton cultivation and the amounts
produced in the various parts of the Empire, together
with the quantities and values of the cotton exported
therefrom, are recorded annually in the official
Statistical Abstract for the Several British Self-governing
Dominions, Crown Colonies, Possessions, and Pro-
tectorates.

CHAPTER V
FLAX, HEMP, AND RAMIE

FLAX

FLAX is a fibre obtained from the stems of Linum
usitatissimum, of the natural order Linaceae, which
is cultivated over wide areas in the temperate and
sub-tropical regions of both hemispheres. The plant
is grown not only for fibre, but also for its seed which
is known in commerce as linseed. In European
countries, it is grown chiefly for fibre, except in Russia
where large quantities of both seed and fibre are
produced. As a general rule, the flax plant is grown
either for fibre only or for seed only, for although
a certain amount of linseed can be obtained as a
by-product of flax cultivation, attempts to obtain
both products from the same crop usually result in
the production of an inferior quality of each.

The flax plant is an annual with a slender, erect
stem, branching only . at the top and bearing blue
flowers ; the fruit is a small five-celled capsule con-
taining ten seeds.

CLIMATE AND SOIL

The flax plant flourishes best in the colder parts of
the temperate zone, which are not liable either to
excessive heat or to drought. During the period of
growth, the climatic conditions should be fairly
equable, so that the plants may not receive any check
to their regular development. Coast lands, in which
the sky is often clouded and the atmosphere is humid,
are particularly favourable.

98

FLAX CULTIVATION 99

The most suitable soil for the flax crop is a moist,
well-drained, loamy or somewhat sandy soil, con-
taining a large proportion of organic matter. The
sub-soil should be rather compact and heavy and
retentive of moisture.

CULTIVATION

Land selected for flax growing should be level, as
an undulating surface by exposing some of the plants
and shading others tends to produce uneven stems,
and fibre of irregular quality. The preparation of
the land varies with the locality, the nature of the
soil, and the preceding crop. Lands on which a
cereal crop has been grown, and which are of a com-
pact nature are usually ploughed to a depth of from
6 to 8 inches in the autumn, and are harrowed and
rolled in the following spring to produce a satisfactory
seed-bed. In the case of light soils, deep ploughing
is sometimes injurious, and surface tillage for the
destruction of weeds is sufficient, the sub-soil thus
being left undisturbed.

If the soil is poor, manurial treatment is necessary.
Direct manuring with farmyard manure is not recom-
mended, as it leads to the production of an uneven
crop and coarse stems. This manure, however, may
be applied indirectly with advantage, some other
crop being grown on the manured land before the flax
is planted. The refuse from the retting and scutching
processes and any flax stems not used for fibre should
be returned to the soil. Artificial manures may be
applied in accordance with the requirements of the
particular soils. Potash manures, especially in the
form of kainit, or chloride or sulphate of potash, have
been found to give good results, and it has been
observed that they also check the " yellowing " of
the flax crop, which is due to the fungus, Asterocystis
radicis.

A flax crop should not be grown repeatedly on the
same land, but a rotation system should be adopted.
Suitable crops for such rotations are maize, oats,
clover, wheat, potatoes, and legumes. Only seed of

loo FLAX CULTIVATION

the highest quality should be used for sowing ; either
Riga (Russian) or Dutch seed is generally employed.

The seed should not be sown until all danger from
frost is past, since frost has the effect of causing the
young plants to branch and thus become of little
value for fibre production. The seed is sown broad-
cast and is sometimes mixed with dry earth to facilitate
its even distribution. After sowing, the land is lightly
harrowed and rolled. The amount of seed sown per
acre should be sufficient to ensure the production of
plants so close to one another as to yield tall, slender,
unbranched stems. The usual quantity is about
3 bushels per acre, but sometimes as much as 5 bushels
is used. The ground must be kept well weeded.

Harvesting is effected when the lower portions of
the stems begin to turn yellow, the leaves commence
to fall and the uppermost capsules become pale
brown. The crop is usually pulled by hand, the stems
being grasped just below the capsules and jerked up-
wards ; any bending or twisting of the stems should
be avoided. The stalks should be sorted to some
extent as they are pulled, and any coarse or branched
stems should be put aside to be used for tying the
stems into small bundles. The bundles of stems
are stood on end in shocks to dry. In countries
where labour is scarce, the stems are cut with a
reaping machine, but this method is open to the
objection that the fibre is shorter and is said to be
inferior in spinning quality to that from the hand-
pulled stalks. Moreover, sorting is impracticable
in this case, and the fibre is therefore of irregular
quality. It is also stated that the stems do not keep
so well when stacked as the cut ends admit moisture.

The yield of fibre is usually about 4 — 5 cwts. per
acre, but larger crops are sometimes obtained.

DISEASES AND PESTS

The principal pests by which the flax plant is
attacked are the flax yellowing and flax-wilt fungi,
flax-rust, and the flax dodder.

" Flax yellowing " is the most formidable disease

FLAX CULTIVATION 101

to which the crop is subject. It is caused by the
fungus, Asterocystis radicis, which attacks the young
plant when about 3 or 4 inches above the ground.
The stem of the plant becomes yellow, the lower
leaves wither and fall, and eventually the plant looks
as if it had been burned. At the first signs of the
disease, all affected plants should be pulled up and
destroyed. If a whole field should become infected.,
flax should not be grown in it again for at least 8
or 10 years.

The flax-wilt disease is due to Fusarium lini, and
is first recognised by the withering of the young
plants. It usually appears in patches of a few feet
in diameter and, if unchecked, it gradually spreads
throughout the whole crop. The disease is trans-
mitted from place to place by means of spores attached
to the flax seeds. If the seeds intended for sowing
are sprayed with a solution, containing i pint of
commercial formalin in 40 gallons of water, any spores
present on the seeds are killed, This treatment must
be applied in such a way as merely to moisten the
seeds, since if they are actually wetted they tend
to stick together. The fungus is liable to persist in
the soil and infect successive crops ; such land is
said to be " flax-sick." It is therefore inadvisable to
grow two crops of flax in succession on the same land,
but a rotation of crops should be adopted.

Flax-rust is due to another fungus, Melampsora
lini. The disease can be detected by the presence of
small orange spots on the sterri&> leaves or sepals, or
by the occurrence of smooth, black patches on the
stem. Affected plants should be uprooted and burned.

The flax dodder (Cuscuta epilinum) is a parasitic
plant of the natural order Campanulacese, and its
seeds are often found mixed with those of flax. The
dodder attaches itself to the stem of the young flax
plant and draws its nourishment from it, with the
result that the growth of the flax plant is checked
and the stems are rendered of no value for fibre.
The dodder seeds are much smaller than those of the
flax plant, and can be removed from the latter by
means of a sieve of fourteen meshes to the linear inch.

102 PREPARATION OF FLAX

Plants attacked by dodder should be pulled up and
burned .

PREPARATION OF FLAX FIBRE

Flax fibre consists of the bast tissues of the stem,
and is situated immediately beneath the epidermis
and surrounds the woody core. The fibrous fila-
ments are naturally united to one another by gummy
substances, known as pectoses, and in order to effect
the isolation of the fibre in a suitable condition for
the manufacturer, these substances must be removed.

Rippling. — The first step in the treatment of the
flax stalks or " straw " is the removal of the seed
capsules, which is effected by the process of " rippling "
or " seeding. " A handful of the straw held in such a
manner that the upper ends are spread out, is pulled
through the teeth of the rippling-comb which consists
of a vertical row of round steel teeth, firmly fixed in
a block of wood. In the best rippling-combs the teeth
are about 1 8 inches long, T\ inch apart at the bottom
and | inch at the top, the tapering being confined to the
last three inches. The process is sometimes carried out
by means of the seeding-machine, which consists of
two heavy cast-iron rollers, revolving within a cast-
iron frame ; the lower cylinder is driven from pulleys,
whilst the upper one turns in contact with the lower,
and releases the seed by the pressure of its weight on
the capsules. More complicated machinery is some-
times employed.

In the case of the Courtrai flax, the stalks are not
rippled directly they have been pulled, but are dried
and stacked until the following season.

After the straw has been rippled, it is tied up
in small, loose bundles, and is then ready to be sub-
mitted to the retting process.

Retting. — This is the most important process in
the preparation of the fibre. It consists essentially
in submitting the straw to the action of water and
allowing fermentation to take place. This effects the
conversion of the insoluble " gummy " matter into
soluble substances which are removed by the water.

PREPARATION OF FLAX 103

The fermentation is due to the agency of bacterial
organisms, which convert the pectose into soluble
products but do not attack the cellulose or true fibre
substance. This change is said to be brought about
by the activity of a special enzyme, pectosinase,
which converts pectose successively into pectin and
sugar, the bacteria afterwards fermenting the sugar
with the production of hydrogen, carbon dioxide, and
a little butyric acid. There are several different
methods employed for carrying out the retting process.

In many parts of Russia, especially the Archangel
district, " dew-retting " is practised. The freshly-
pulled straw is spread out in rows on the grass in a
moist meadow, about a ton to the acre, and is left
exposed for two or three weeks or more to the action
of the air, light, dew and rain. From time to time
the straw is turned over with a fork or a pole in order
to ensure that it may all become equally retted.
Dew-retting is the least satisfactory method, as the
product is liable to be uneven.

The method of retting most commonly adopted is
that of " water-retting " or " steeping.'' This pro-
cess may be carried out either in pools or in running
water. In the former case, the bundles of flax straw
are placed side by side in a pool or dam with the
root-ends downwards ; when one layer is finished a
second layer is placed on top of it in the same way,
and so on until the dam is full. The whole is then
covered with stones or with boards on which grass
sods, stones or clods of earth are piled in order to keep
the flax submerged. As fermentation proceeds, the
gases which are evolved tend to raise the flax above
the surface of the water, and at this point therefore
it must be more heavily weighted. On the other
hand, as the fermentation subsides the flax begins to
sink, and some of the load must be removed. The
straw must be examined from time to time in order
to ascertain whether the retting has proceeded far
enough. The determination of the exact point at
which to stop the process requires considerable experi-
ence and judgment. In general, it may be said that
when the fibre can be readily and completely separated

8

104 PREPARATION OF FLAX

from the woody core, it is time to withdraw the stems
from the pools. After their removal from the pool,
the bundles of straw are stood on end to dry and are
then stacked for a few weeks. In some' places, the
bundles are drained and then " grassed/' i.e. spread
evenly over a grassy meadow to dry.

The water used for retting should be as soft as
possible, and should not contain much iron or other
substances likely to discolour the fibre.

In some parts of Russia, a combination of dew-
retting and pool-retting is practised, the straw being
first immersed for some time in shallow pools, and
afterwards spread out on the grass and exposed to the
action of the dew.

The process of retting in running water is carried
out in the Courtrai district of Belgium, and yields
flax of the finest commercial grades. The bundles
of flax straw are packed root-end downwards in
wooden crates, which are about 12 feet square and
have a solid floor but open sides. A strip of jute
sacking is bound round the sides, and the crate is
placed in the river Lys, and loaded with stones until
the water just covers it. From four to fifteen days
are required for the necessary amount of fermentation
to take place, the actual time depending on the tem-
perature, the condition of the straw and other factors.
When the retting is completed, the crates are with-
drawn from the stream, and the bundles of straw
are removed and dried in the air. In some cases the
straw is again packed in the crates and immersed for
a second time.

Many attempts have been made to improve the
retting process by carrying it out in tanks or vats
containing warm water. The first invention of this
kind was made in 1846 by R. B. Schenk, who designed
large wooden vats in which the flax straw was
packed with the root-ends downwards. Water was
introduced into the vats and maintained at a tempera-
ture of 75°-95° F. Fermentation rapidly ensues under
these conditions, and the entire process only occupies
about fifty or sixty hours. An improvement was
suggested by Pownall, which consists in passing the

PREPARATION OF FLAX 105

straw, immediately after its removal from the vats,
between heavy rollers over which a continuous stream
of water is made to flow. This operation frees the
straw from the slimy matter adhering to it, and also
facilitates the subsequent breaking and scutching
operations.

A further development of this method is embodied
in the Legrand process, which was patented in the
United Kingdom in 1904. The straw is packed, root-
end downwards, in wooden crates similar to those
used in the Courtrai district. A series of three tanks
is employed, in which the water is maintained at
86°-88° F. These tanks are termed the " scouring "
tank (A), the " retting " tank (B) and the " rinsing "
tank (C). The crates are lowered into tank A by
means of an overhead travelling crane, and allowed to
remain there for twenty-four hours. During this time,
however, they are occasionally raised by means of
the crane, and held over the tank for a few minutes
to allow the water to drip through the bundles, and
then again plunged into the water, so that the latter
rises right through the straw and ensures that the
steeping is even throughout. The crates are then
transferred to tank B, and allowed to remain, with
occasional lifting and re-lowering, until the retting
is completed ; this takes from 2| days, in the case of
poor straw, to 3^ — 4 days with good, heavy straw.
Finally the crates are placed in tank C, in which the
straw is rinsed and the adhering impurities washed
away. The process requires to be carefully watched
in order that the flax may be withdrawn from the
retting tank at the right moment. The clean, warm
water is admitted in a slow and continuous stream
at the bottom of tank C, and is siphoned over succes-
sively into tanks B and A. After the crates have
been taken from the rinsing tanks they are placed on
trucks and left for a day or two to drain. The trucks
are then run out into a meadow, where the flax is
taken out of the crates, and the bundles are opened
and stood up in sheaves to dry and harden. The
Legrand method has several advantages over the
older methods . Owing to the regular manner in which

io6 PREPARATION OF FLAX

the straw is treated, the flax is more even in strength
and colour than that produced in other ways. More-
over, the time is reduced to three or four days, much
less labour is required, and the process can be carried
on all the year round without cessation. During
recent years, a somewhat modified form of this
process has been employed at certain factories in
Belgium and Holland.

In the retting process, whatever method is employed,
it is of great importance that the fermentation should be
stopped at the right point, since over-retting weakens
the fibre and increases the amount of tow, or " codilla,"
produced on scutching, whilst under-retting causes
part of the gummy encrusting matter to be retained,
and interferes with the subsequent manufacturing
processes.

Various efforts have been made to replace the
retting process by treating the straw with chemical
reagents, such as dilute caustic alkali, but such
methods have not yet proved successful on the large
scale.

Methods have also been suggested for preparing
the fibre by purely mechanical means without retting,
but these involve the loss of much of the fibre, and
yield a rough, hard product, which is of much poorer
spinning quality than that obtained by the retting
process .

Breaking. — The dry, retted stalks are passed be-
tween pairs of grooved or fluted rollers in order to
break the woody core into small pieces. There are
usually from six to twelve pairs of such rollers, which
are so adjusted that each pair works more closely
than the preceding pair.

Scutching. — The fragments of wood resulting from
the " breaking " process are removed by scutching.
The fibre is suspended in a. machine which is pro-
vided with a revolving cylinder, or drum, bearing
tough, flexible wooden blades on its periphery. As the
cylinder revolves the blades strike the flax, and thus
expel the broken wood, which is termed the " shieve "
or " boon." The operation necessarily causes a
considerable waste of fibre, some being broken by the

FLAX PRODUCTION

107

scutching blades and some adhering to the shieve.
This waste, known as " codilla " or " scutching tow/'
is used for spinning yarns for twines, canvas and other
articles. Much ingenuity has been applied to the
improvement of scutching machinery with a view to
saving time and labour and to producing as little
short fibre or codilla as possible.

Sorting and Baling. — After the flax has been
scutched it is sorted into separate lots according to
quality. It is then tied into small bundles, and
afterwards packed into bales under pressure. The
best qualities are covered with sacking, and each bale
is marked to indicate its grade. Raw flax is almost
invariably known in the market by the name of the
district in which it is grown, and is further classed
by special marks or letters to indicate the grade.

PRODUCTION OF FLAX

With the exception of Asiatic Russia, flax cultiva-
tion for fibre is almost entirely restricted to Europe.
An estimate of the production of the principal flax-
growing countries during 1907-1913, as far as official
data are available, is given in the following table,
which has been adapted from the statistics published
in the Year-book of the United States Department
of Agriculture.

Producing Country.

1909.

1910.

1911.

1912.

1913.

Tons.

Tons.

Tons.

Tons.

Tons.

Austria- Hungary

43,989

34,744

30,370

23,452

22,311

Belgium

12,050

22,320

23,214

28,571

17.606

Bulgaria

89

316

392

J37

—

France

13.613

14,780

20,091

20,569

Italy

3,232

3,073

2,714

2,460

2,559

Netherlands

5,999

6,334

9,343

9,472

7,4*3

Roumania .

727

1,986

2,022

3,995

2,125

Russia (European)

487,082

313,606

350,507

523,241

760,361

Russia (Asiatic)

43,036

—

—

Servia

49i

980

933

935

—

Sweden

670

625

670

541

.

United Kingdom

(Ireland) .

7.179

8,876

11,241

12,956

12,652

io8 FLAX GROWING IN THE BRITISH EMPIRE

The quantities and values of (i) flax, and (2) flax
tow or codilla imported into the United Kingdom
during the years 1912-15 are given in the tables
on page 109.

FLAX CULTIVATION IN BRITISH TERRITORY

Ireland and Canada are the only parts of the British
Empire in which flax fibre is at present produced on
a commercial scale.

Ireland. — -The Irish flax-growing industry attained
its maximum in 1864, when 301,693 acres were
devoted to the crop, but subsequently it underwent
a rapid decline, the lowest area on record being that
of 1898 which amounted to 34,469 acres. Some
improvement then took place, the average annual
acreage being 48,064 acres during 1901-1905, and
49,169 acres during 1906-1910. The areas planted
in the years 1911-1916 were as follows :

Year. Area. Year. Area.

Acres. Acres.

I9II. , . 66,6l8 1914 . . 49,253

1912 . . 55>°62 1915

1913 • • 59,305 1916

The principal cause of the decline in the industry
was the speculative nature of the crop due to un-
certainty of yield and price. It has been suggested
that it was partly owing to a change having occurred
in the climatic conditions, but there is no evidence
that such a change has really taken place. The
Irish flax-spinning industry has undergone great
extension in recent years, and at present only about
one-fourth to one-fifth of the fibre required in the
mills is produced in the country, the remainder being
imported.

Flax cultivation receives a great deal of attention
from the Irish Department of Agriculture who have
carried out experiments for several years past, par-
ticularly to ascertain the best seed for sowing and the
best manures for the crop, and to produce improved

FLAX IMPORTS

109

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109

no FLAX GROWING IN THE BRITISH EMPIRE

varieties by a system of selection. They also give
advice to the growers and endeavour to promote the
industry in other ways.

Canada. — Flax has been grown for many years
in the western part of Ontario, and certain other
districts. The exports during 1910-1915 were
approximately as follows :

Year. Quantity. Value.

Tons. £

1910 .... 592 26,084

1911 .... 348 15,040

1912 . . . .118 5,037

1913 . . . . 303 9,660

I9H • • . .336 7>!3i

1915 • • . . 540 17*978

Almost the whole of these exports were consigned to
the United States.

Other Countries. — Flax was at one time grown in
certain parts of Great Britain, and an attempt is now
being made to resuscitate the industry. For this
purpose, an association has been formed under the
name of " The British Flax and Hemp Growers'
Society " which is being assisted by grants from the
Development Commission. Flax is being cultivated
at Selby, Yorkshire, where the industry was carried
on extensively in the past, and also near Yeovil,
Somerset, and experiments are being made in retting
the stalks and preparing the fibre.

During the last three or four years efforts have been
made to ascertain whether flax could be grown
successfully in the East Africa Protectorate. Pre-
liminary trials proved so satisfactory that in 1913
the services of a flax expert from Courtrai, Belgium,
were secured, and it has been now demonstrated that
flax of a high quality can be produced. A sample of
the fibre was valued in London at £65 per ton, a price
only j£io per ton below that of the best Belgian flax.
Samples examined at the Imperial Institute also
proved to be of excellent quality. The cultivation
is being extended and a. scutching factory has been

FLAX FIBRE in

erected at Lumbwa. All the work involved, except
scutching, can be carried out by unskilled labour,
and the industry is undergoing rapid development.

Flax was formerly an important crop in Egypt, but
its cultivation declined as the cotton industry de-
veloped. Renewed attention has been given to the crop
recently, and in 1916 it occupied about 12,000 acres.

There is no doubt that flax could be grown success-
fully in some other parts of the Empire. Experi-
ments have been made in Cyprus, and the Transvaal
and Orange River Provinces of South Africa: Trials
on a more extensive scale have been carried out in
Bihar, India, and it has been proved that flax can be
grown and prepared successfully in that region at a
profit of about £4 per acre ; planters have not shown
any readiness, however, to take up the cultivation
owing to the uncertainty of prices and their disin-
clination to invest capital in a new industry. Experi-
ments which have been conducted in Victoria, New
South Wales, Queensland and Tasmania, have indi-
cated that the soils and climatic conditions of these
countries are suited to the requirements of the plant.

STRUCTURE, USES AND PROPERTIES OF FLAX FIBRE

Flax consists of long filaments, each composed of
a group of bast fibres. The length of the filaments
varies from 12 to 36 in., and the diameter from
0-0018 to 0*025 in,, with an average of about 0*006 in.
The best flax is of a pale yellow colour ; dew-retted
flax is usually grey, and incompletely retted flax has
a greenish tint. The fibre is soft, flexible, and lustrous,
and is stronger and more durable than cotton ; it is
also a better conductor of heat than cotton, and it is
for this reason that linen fabrics feel cold to the
touch.

The finest kinds of flax are employed for the
manufacture of linen fabrics, such as damasks, sheet-
ings, cambrics, and for linen thread and lace, whilst
the coarser qualities are used for canvas, hollands,
bagging and twine.

H2 FLAX FIBRE

The ultimate fibres of which the filaments are
composed are of regular, more or less cylindrical,
form and taper towards the ends. At occasional
points in their length, joint-like swellings occur which
commonly bear a cross-like marking and are termed
" nodes. " The walls of the fibres are so thick that the
central cavity or lumen is either very small or almost
obliterated, and to this peculiarity the remarkable
tenacity of flax is due. The outer surfaces of the walls
bear transverse markings, which are of value in pre-
venting the fibres from slipping over one another in
the spinning process, and also contribute to the
durability of linen fabrics. The length of the ultimate
fibres ranges from 0-3 to 1-5 in., and the diameter from
0-0005 to o'ooi in.

The yield of flax obtained in different countries
varies from 8 to 20 per cent, of the weight of the
rippled straw.

A few words may be added with reference to some
of the chief commercial varieties. The Belgian grades
are fine, long, and of excellent colour. Irish flax is
renowned for its good colour, softness, and fineness.
Italian flax is more lustrous than most other kinds.
The best French and Dutch grades are also of very
satisfactory quality. Russian flax is mostly of good
length, but only of medium or low quality.

COMMERCIAL VALUE

The average prices of Belgian flax per ton in Belfast
during the years 1905-1914 were as follows :

I

1905 . . .67

1906 . . .69

1907 . . .68

1908 . . .69

1909

68

1910 . . .73

1911 • • '87

1912 . . .88

1913 • -89

1914 . . .88

Irish flax during the same period realised the
following average prices per ton :

FLAX FIBRE

1905

1906 .

1907 .

1908 .
1909 .

£ *•
54 io
56 io

56 io
5i o

57 o

1910
1911
1912

1913
1914

£ s.

70 o

68 10

65 o

57 10

72 o

The following prices per ton were quoted in Dundee
for Russian flax at the beginning of each of the years
mentioned :

1905 .

1906 .

1907 .

1908 .

1909 •

1905 .

1906 .

1907 .

1908 .

1909 .

Petrograd Bejetsky

33 o
40 io
37 io
36 io
35 o

1910
1911
1912

1913
1914

Riga Livonian Crowns

£ *.

24 10
27 10

25 10

20 O
22 10

I9IO
I9II
1912

1913
I9H

£ s.

40 o

47 o

40 o

45 o

39 10

£ *.

26 15

32 15

27 o
32 o
24 10

HEMP

Common or true hemp is derived from the stems
of Cannabis sativa, a plant of the natural order
Moraceae, which grows wild in Central Asia, and is
cultivated in many parts of the temperate and
tropical regions of both hemispheres. The seeds of
the plant contain about 30 per cent, of a useful oil.
In hot countries the stalks, leaves and flowers produce
a resinous juice, possessing properties which render
it one of the most characteristic narcotics of Eastern
lands. The drug is known under various forms,
such as " charas," the resin itself ; " ganja," the
dried flowering tops of cultivated female plants ;

H4 HEMP CULTIVATION

" bhang," the dried leaves and flowering shoots of
either or both the male and female plants ; and
" hashish/' a Turkish preparation of the leaves.

The term " hemp " has unfortunately been applied
to various fibres which differ greatly from true hemp ;
and this has led to great confusion, especially in
statistical returns in which commonly no descriptive
prefix is attached. Among the commoner fibres which
bear the name of hemp may be mentioned Bombay,
Sunn or San hemp (page 122), Deccan or Ambari
hemp (page 146), Manila hemp (page 156), Sisal hemp
(page 166), Mauritius hemp (page 181), bowstring hemp
(page 185), and New Zealand hemp (page 187).

The common hemp plant is an annual, growing to a
height of 4 to 10 feet or even more. The stem is erect,
the flowers are small, yellowish-green and incon-
spicuous, and the fruit is a smooth, brownish-grey
achene containing a single seed. The plants are of
two kinds, one bearing male flowers and the other
female flowers.

Hemp is cultivated for fibre in most European
countries, and especially in Russia, Italy, Austria-
Hungary, Servia, France and Germany. The plant
occurs on both the east and west coasts of Africa.
In the United States of America, it is grown in Ken-
tucky and the neighbouring States, and it is also cultiv-
ated in Chile and Mexico. It is of common occurrence
in India and is cultivated to a limited extent in
Kashmir and the Himalayas, and is also grown largely
in China and Japan.

CLIMATE AND SOIL

The hemp plant requires a mild climate and a
humid atmosphere, and grows best on rich, loamy
soils containing a large quantity of humus. The
sub-soil should be fairly retentive of moisture, or
otherwise, in case of drought, the crop is liable to receive
a check and the fibre consequently becomes harsh
and woody. Light sandy soils and heavy clay soils
are quite unsuitable.

HEMP CULTIVATION 115

CULTIVATION

The land is usually ploughed in the autumn and
harrowed and rolled in the following spring. . If the
soil lacks fertility, it should be treated with a heavy
dressing of farmyard manure, or a " green manure "
crop should be dug in. Chalk, gypsum and potash
manures are sometimes applied with advantage.
Experiments in the United States have shown that
nitrate of soda or sulphate of ammonia or a. mixture
of one of these salts with chloride or sulphate of
potash has a very beneficial effect. The leaves and
the refuse from the retting and scutching processes
should be returned to the soil, and the same land may
then be planted with hemp for several years in suc-
cession without becoming exhausted. Rotation with
other crops is advisable however, and is essential if
the crop has been attacked by the root-parasite,
Orobanche ramosa, which sometimes .causes con-
siderable damage.

.The seed is sown in the spring as soon as all danger
from frost is over. The quantity of seed sown per
acre varies according to the quality of fibre desired.
For the production of fibre suitable for cordage or
coarse textiles, about one bushel per acre is used,
whilst if the finest hemp is required as much as 3
or 4 bushels per acre are sown. The seed is usually
sown broadcast, but in the United States machine
sowing in drills is commonly practised. After the
seed has germinated, little cultivation is required
beyond weeding during the early stages of growth
and thinning out the seedlings if they come up too
thickly. When the plants have reached a height of
8 inches, weeding may be discontinued.

If the crop is grown for fibre only, both male and
female plants are harvested at the same time, but if
both fibre and seed are desired, the male plants are
first collected by hand-pulling, and the female plants
are left for about 3 weeks longer for the seed to ripen.
The male plants are ready for harvesting when their
colour changes from deep green to light brown. The

ii6 PREPARATION OF HEMP

fibre from the male plants is said to be superior to
that from female plants which have been allowed to
produce seed. When both sexes are harvested
together, the plants are either pulled by hand or cut
with a kind of sickle. The method of pulling yields
the more valuable product as when the plants are
cut some of the best fibre is left in the stubble.

PREPARATION OF HEMP

Hemp consists of the bast tissue surrounding the
central woody column of the stalks. In order to free
the fibre from the gummy or pectous substances with
which it is encrusted and thus facilitate its removal,
the stalks are subjected to the process of retting.

Before the stalks are retted they are sometimes
dried. In Italy it is usual to lay them down in a
fairly shady place, and allow them to remain exposed
to the air for from four to six days, turning them over
occasionally. In some districts the stalks are hung
up on a sort of frame. The roots and ends of the
stems are then cut off, and the branches and leaves
are removed by beating with sticks. The stalks are
subsequently sorted according to length, and made
up into bundles, each containing ten or twelve. The
bundles are placed root-end downwards in cone-
shaped shocks to undergo further drying.

In France and some other countries the stalks are
not dried before retting ; but after the roots and tops
have been cut off they are made into bundles, and
retted immediately.

Betting. — This process consists essentially of sub-
mitting the stalks to the action of water so that a
kind of fermentation is set up. For an explanation
of this process, and an account of the changes involved,
reference should be made to the section on flax
(page 102).

Hemp is usually retted by one of three different
methods, known as " water-retting," " dew-retting,"
and " snow-retting." The extent to which the
retting is allowed to proceed has a great influence on
the strength and pliability of the fibre ; hemp in-

PREPARATION OF HEMP 117

tended for the manufacture of fine textiles should
therefore be retted more than that for coarser goods,
whilst fibre for cordage purposes should be retted
least of all. The progress of the operation can be
readily ascertained by drawing the thumb-nail along
a stalk from the root-end to the top ; when the fibre
readily strips off the stem, the retting, has proceeded
to a sufficient extent. If the fibre is over-retted it
is rendered weak and brittle, and it is therefore of the
utmost importance that the stalks should be with-
drawn at the right moment. For the accurate
determination of this point a good deal of experience
is necessary.

Water-retting is practised in Italy and in parts of
France, and may be effected either by still or running
water. Soft water gives the best results. Water
containing iron must on no account be employed, as
it causes the fibre to assume a rusty colour. The
duration of the process depends on the temperature
of the water, the state of the weather, and the quality
of the hemp stalks, but is roughly from one to three
weeks. If the atmospheric temperature is very high
it is well to run off some of the water and replace it
by a fresh supply. The retting water should not be
used more than once if the best results are to be
obtained ; but if it cannot be changed, and has to be
used for a second or third retting, its retting power
is diminished, and the resulting fibre is usually of
inferior quality and has a green colour. In some
cases the retting is carried out in pools or ditches,
3 or 4 ft. deep and of varying length and breadth.
The bundles of hemp are laid at the bottom of the
pool, covered with straw or sods, and loaded with
stones or logs of wood. Standing water is said to
yield softer fibre than running water ; the colour of
the product in the former case is inferior, but it can
be improved by subsequent treatment. In» some
hemp-growing districts the process is conducted in
basins situated at different heights, so that a small
stream constantly trickles down from one to another.
In certain of the larger undertakings in Italy the
ordinary pools or ditches are replaced by special

n8 PREPARATION OF HEMP

retting pits or tanks, lined with oak-planks or with
bricks, whilst in some parts of France pools lined and
floored with cement are employed.

River-retting is considered in France to give better
results than pool-retting. The bundles of hemp are
floated in the stream, and covered with boards loaded
with stones.

After the retting is finished the stalks are washed
with fresh water and dried by exposure to the sun
and air. In Italy the bundles are opened and the
stalks are stood on the grass, root-end downwards
in pyramidal shocks. In certain other countries the
hemp is spread out evenly in a field, and left for three
weeks or more, being turned over with light wooden
poles every three or four days. If showers of rain
occur during the drying period, considerable injury
is likely to be effected, as the fibre is caused to lose a
good deal of its lustre and to become harsh. In order
to avoid accidents of this kind the stalks are some-
times dried at a moderate temperature in bakers'
ovens or in brick-kilns. When the hemp is quite
dry it is tied up again in bundles, conveyed to a barn
or rick, and kept as dry as possible until required for
the further processes of preparation.

Dew-retting is generally adopted in the United
States and in ptirts of France. The stalks, after being
allowed to stand in shocks for a few days, are spread
out carefully in long rows in the fields of stubble from
which they have been cut, or on closely cropped
pasture land. They are here subjected to the action
of the rain and dew for a period varying from two to
ten weeks, and are turned over at intervals. If
necessary an occasional watering may be given. In
warm, rainy weather the hemp is liable to ret some-
what rapidly, and the risk of loss is thereby increased,
as it is often difficult to turn the stalks whilst the rains
continue. The result is that the fibre becomes retted
unevenly, and much of it may be over-retted. The
occurrence of light, warm showers soon after the
hemp has been spread out, however, is of value to
start the retting process. It is considered in the
United States that although water-retted hemp is

PREPARATION OF HEMP itg

of lighter colour and finer texture and commands
higher prices than the dew-retted fibre, it is never-
theless not so remunerative, as it requires a large
amount of labour and the use of expensive retting
tanks.

Snow-retting is sometimes practised in Russia and
Sweden. After the first fall of snow, the dried hemp-
stalks are spread out and allowed to be covered by
subsequent falls. They are left until the spring, and
then, after the snow has melted, are generally found
to be sufficiently retted.

The process of extracting hemp in Japan differs
widely from the three methods described above. The
stalks are tied into bundles, submitted to the action
of steam for a few minutes, and then dried in the sun.
They are subsequently dipped into water, and again
exposed to the sun for a few days. The bundles are
now thoroughly wetted by plunging them into water,
and are then heaped on a thick layer of straw mats
in a barn and allowed to undergo a moderate fer-
mentation. The arrangement of these heaps and the
regulation of the fermentative process so as to obtain
the best results demand considerable skill. After
the fermentation has proceeded to a sufficient extent
the fibre is stripped off by hand and immersed in
water. The epidermal tissue is removed by scraping
the product by hand with a special implement, and
the fibre is hung on bamboos to dry in a well-ventilated
barn. The product obtained by this means consists
of thin, smooth, pale straw-coloured ribbons.

Breaking and Scutching. — These processes are
carried out in a very similar manner to those de-
scribed in the case of flax (page 106). The greater part
of the hemp of commerce is broken by wooden hand-
breaks. The woody core of the stalks is crushed
between the heavy jaws of this implement, and the
" boon " or " shieve " is afterwards removed by a
simple beating or scutching process. Sometimes
breaking machines, composed of one or more pairs of
fluted rollers, are employed.

120

HEMP

PRODUCTION, YIELD AND COMMERCIAL VALUE

The approximate quantities of fibre produced in
the principal countries where hemp is systematically
cultivated are given (so far as statistics are available)
in the following table :

1910.

1911.

1912.

Tons.

Tons.

Tons.

Austria

14,811

14,043

*4»746

Bulgaria

1,064

1,109

Chile

683

93

269

France

12,936

14,396

13,640

Hungary

60,060

Italy

85,444

66,'268

93,375

Japan

8,972

9,423

Roumania

2,4°3

2,336

1,879

Russia (European)
Russia (Asiatic)

262,677
32,662

243,129
22,057

356,384
34,881

Servia

6601 (1908)*

More recent figures not available.

The imports of Italian and Russian hemp into the
United Kingdom during 1911-1915 were as follows :

1911.

1912.

1913-

1914.

1915-

Italian :
Quantity (tons)
Value (/)

io,343
372,416

7,881
342,091

9,102

376,044

15,258
620,984

25,004
1,259,701

Russian :
Quantity (tons}
Value (£}

12,579
384,976

13,764
458,752

12,818
432,201

7,679

284,370

5,321
260,368

The quantity of dry stems produced per acre is
usually about 2 or 3 tons. The yield of hemp amounts
to about 25 per cent, of the dry stalks, and the product
when combed furnishes about 65 per cent, of spinning
fibre, the remainder being obtained in the form of tow.

The commercial value of hemp depends to a large
extent on the colour and lustre. The nearly white
and pale grey are regarded as the best, the greenish-
coloured next, whilst the soft yellowish kinds are the
least valuable.

HEMP 121

The best hemp of commerce is the Italian variety,
especially the Bolognese product, which is distinguished
by an excellent colour, a silky lustre, a length of 6 ft.
or more, and a flax-like softness. Next to Italian
hemp stands the French fibre, particularly that of
Grenoble. The Russian kinds are rather coarse, but
are of great strength and durability. The hemp
of the United States generally resembles that of
Russia.

The prices of certain well known grades of Italian
and Russian hemp in London during the years 1903-
1912 were as follows : The average price of Italian
P.C. varied from £30 (December 1903) to £59 per ton
(October 1911). Italian S.P.S. varied from £24
(December 1903) to £41 per ton (October 1911). The
price of Russian F.S.P.R.H. ranged from £25 IDS.
(July-October 1904 and May 1905) to £40 IDS.
(December 1912), the average being £31 per ton.
During 1913 and 1914 (prior to the outbreak of war),
Italian P.C. fluctuated between £39 and £46, Italian
S.P.S. between £27 and £31, and Russian F.S.P.R.H.
between £39 and £41 per ton. In 191$; prices for
Italian P.C. were from £45 to £57 per ton.

STRUCTURE, PROPERTIES AND USES OF HEMP FIBRE.

Hemp appears in the market as narrow, ribbon-
like strands of a length varying from 3 to 6 ft. The
colour of the product depends on the manner in which
it has been prepared and dried, and may be nearly
white, of a straw tint, green, brown, pale or deep grey,
or nearly black. The fibre is very strong and durable,
and is not rotted by water. It cannot be bleached
satisfactorily, and is therefore generally used in the
unbleached state. Hemp is longer, more rigid, and
coarser than flax ; it does not consist of such a pure
form of cellulose as the latter, but is more cuticu-
larised. On account of its lack of elasticity and
flexibility, it is rarely used for the manufacture of fine
textiles.

The ultimate elements of which hemp is composed
appear under the microscope as prosenchymatous

122 HEMP

cells or fibres of somewhat irregular shape ; at certain
points in their length they are flattened, and at other
places cylindrical. The cell-wall is much more
variable in thickness than that of flax. The fibres
vary in length from 0-2 to 2-2 in., with an average of
about 0-9 in. ; and in diameter from 0-0005 to 0*0015
in., with an average of 0-0007 in. The lumen is
generally fairly wide, but becomes narrower towards
the end of the fibre and is practically free from cell-
contents. The surface of the fibre bears numerous
striations, but does not present nodes such as are
visible in the case of flax. The fibres are forked at
the ends, and this character enables hemp to be
readily distinguished from flax.

The chief uses to which hemp is applied are the
manufacture of ropes, cables, twine, nets, sail-cloth,
canvas, and tarpaulins. The fibre is also used for the
warps of carpeting materials.

SUNN HEMP

Sunn or San hemp, known also as Bombay hemp,
is exported from India in fairly large quantities, and
finds a market as a substitute for true hemp. It,
consists of the bast fibre of the stem of Crotalaria
juncea, a plant of the natural order Leguminosse,
which is cultivated in India and Ceylon and grows to
the height of 6-10 ft.

The plant can be grown most satisfactorily in dis-
tricts of moderate rainfall. It requires a light soil,
and grows well on a moderately deep soil which is
fairly retentive of moisture. It cannot be grown
on clay, and, if cultivated on a very rich soil, it is
liable to produce coarse fibre of poor quality.

The methods employed in different parts of India
for the cultivation of Crotalaria juncea and the
extraction of the fibre vary a good deal, but the
following may be regarded as fairly typical of the best
practice. Before sowing, the ground must be brought
into a good state of tilth by ploughing and repeated
harrowing. Sowing is generally carried out at the

SUNN HEMP 123

commencement of the rainy period (June or July).
The seed is either sown broadcast or planted by
means of a drill, the amount used being about 70 Ib.
per acre. After the seeds have germinated, no
further attention is jequired until the collection of the
crop which takes place from 4 to 5 months after
sowing. The plants should be 3 or 4 inches apart
in each direction.

Harvesting is usually effected during the flowering
stage but, in some cases, is deferred until the fruit
has been formed. The plants are generally uprooted
from the soil, but sometimes they are cut off close
to the ground by means of a sickle. The stems are
allowed to dry and the leaves and fruits are then
removed. It is preferable, however, at any rate in
humid regions, to treat the crop immediately after
it has been gathered, without permitting it to become
dry.

The fibre is extracted by means of a retting process,
similar to that employed in the case of jute (page 135).
The stems, tied up in bundles, are placed in pools of
water and kept submerged by being loaded with
stones or logs of wood. Retting is usually complete
in India in about five days, but a longer time is
required in cold weather. The bark is then stripped
from the stems, and the strips are cleaned by beating
them with sticks and dashing them repeatedly against
the surface of the water. When the fibre is quite
clean, it is squeezed to remove the water and then
hung on lines to dry.

The yield of dry stems usually amounts to 3 or
4 tons per acre ; the dry stems furnish about 8 per
cent, of their weight of clean fibre, and hence the
quantity of fibre obtained per acre is about 5 or 6
cwts.

Sunn hemp resembles European hemp in appearance,
but is not quite so strong. It consists of narrow,
ribbon-like strands about 4 or 5 feet long, with a
colour varying from grey to pale yellow. The fibre
is only slightly lignified.

The ultimate fibres of which Sunn hemp is com-
posed are approximately 0-2-0-4 inch long, and have

124 SUNN HEMP

an average diameter of about 0*0012 inch. The
fibres do not taper to a point, but the ends are thickened
and rounded.

The value of the fibre in the London market, where
it is known as " Bombay hemp," depends on the
colour, length and other characters, and usually varies
from about £15 to £30 per ton.

RAMIE, RHEA, OR CHINA GRASS

The fibre known as ramie, rhea, or China grass is
obtained from the stem of a plant of the natural
order Urticaceae, or nettle family, which grows to the
height of 4 to 8 feet, and in appearance, habit and
growth somewhat resembles the common nettle,
Urtica dioica, but is devoid of stinging hairs.

There are two varieties of the plant. One of these,
the China grass plant, which has been cultivated by
the Chinese from very early times under the name of
" ch'u ma," is known botanically as Boehmeria nivea.
The distinguishing characteristic of this form is the
presence of numerous, short, silvery hairs on the
under-side of the leaves which gives them a white,
felted appearance. The other variety, which is
termed " rhea " in the islands of the Malay Archi-
pelago, is known as Boehmeria nivea var. tenacissima
or the green-leaved China grass. It closely resembles
the Chinese plant, but the leaves are green on both
sides.

The true China grass plant is cultivated chiefly in
China and Formosa, whilst B. nivea var. tenacissima
is adapted to growth in tropical countries, such as the
Malay Islands and Mexico. The Indian plant has
been stated by many writers to be the form B. nivea
var. tenacissima, but Sir George Watt, who has made
a special study of this question, affirms that it is the
same variety as the Chinese plant.

The fibre is derived from the inner bark or bast
tissue of the stems.

RAMIE 125

CULTIVATION

The ramie plant is easy to cultivate, and thrives in
almost any soil, but is especially adapted to a
naturally rich, moist soil of a light loamy character.
In China it is usually grown on a red clay containing
sand. In the United States it has been cultivated
experimentally on a great variety of soils, and it has
been found that the plant grows best on light, sandy,
alluvial soils, although it will flourish on any good
soil which is capable of retaining its moisture through-
out the growing season. In order that the growth
of the stems may be rapid and continuous, a hot,
moist, and equable climate is required.

The ramie plant withdraws from the soil a large
quantity of valuable constituents. As only a small
proportion of these materials is contained in the fibre
it must be advantageous, on general principles, to
return as much as possible of the refuse of the crop
to the land. Experience has shown that without
liberal manuring the yield of fibre diminishes, and
that the application of organic manures, such as
liquid manure, farmyard manure, guano, or oil-cake,
is very beneficial. These fertilisers can sometimes
be supplemented with artificial manures.

The propagation of the ramie plant is effected
by means of seed, cuttings, or layers, or by division
of the roots. When the plant is grown from seed, it
is usual to sow it in the hot-bed and to transplant the
seedlings after five or six weeks' growth. The method
of growing the plants from cuttings is practised in
some parts of India. The stems are cut in the
spring, only the portions which have turned brown
being employed for the purpose. The cuttings
usually include three buds, a margin of a quarter of an
inch being allowed at each end beyond the top and
bottom buds respectively. When the plant is pro-
pagated from root cuttings, the young lateral shoots
with their roots are cut off and planted about a foot
apart in furrows four inches deep.

The amount of moisture supplied to the plants
during their growth must be carefully regulated. If

126 RAMIE

an excess of moisture is present the plant grows
rapidly but produces a fibre of poor quality. If, on
the contrary, the plant is unable to obtain sufficient
water, its growth is retarded and it becomes stunted.
When these two opposite conditions both occur
during one season, the plant yields a fibre of mixed
quality and irregular strength, which is liable to suffer
considerable loss in its extraction and preparation for
spinning.

PREPARATION OF THE FIBRE

The methods of preparing ramie fibre differ con-
siderably from those employed in the case of flax and
hemp. The encrusting substances are not removed
by a retting process, but are extracted by chemical
treatment.

The fibre known in commerce as " China grass "
is prepared in China entirely by hand. The stems are
first stripped, and the outer skin is removed by
scraping and washing, different methods being em-
ployed in different parts of the country. The
process is tedious and expensive, as the preparation
of a few pounds of the ribbons constitutes a day's
work. In the resulting product the fibres are firmly
embedded in a gummy substance of a pectose-like
nature, which must be removed before the fibre can
be spun into yarn. The operation of degumming
is not carried out in China, but is effected subsequently
in Europe by chemical means.

The preparation of China grass by hand-stripping
can only be made remunerative in countries where
labour is exceedingly cheap and plentiful, and con-
sequently numerous attempts have been made to
invent suitable decorticating machinery. In 1869,
the Government of India offered a reward of £5,000
for the best machine for decorticating the green
stems, and a trial was held in 1872. No machine,
however, completely fulfilled the requirements, and
the full prize was not Awarded. The reward was
again offered, and a secon'd official trial took place in
1879, but with no greater success. The effect of these
competitions was to stimulate invention, and, in

RAMIE 127

consequence, numerous decorticating machines have
been produced, but many of them have given very
disappointing results. A gradual improvement, how-
ever, has taken place, and, at the present time, the
difficulty of decorticating ramie stems by machinery
may be regarded as solved.

Ramie machines are of two kinds, namely, those
that merely strip the bark in ribbons from the stems,
and those that not only do this but further make
some attempt to remove the outer layer from the
ribbons. Machines of the first kind usually consist
of rollers which crush the stems, and beaters which
separate the woody portion from the bark. Those of
the second class possess also some mechanism by
which a scraping effect is produced on the strips of
bark, and the material prepared in this way resembles
hand-cleaned China grass.

The fibre having been separated from the stems in
the form of strips or ribbons, the next stage in its
preparation is the process of degumming. The object
of this operation is to dissolve and wash out the gummy
substances without attacking the cellulose ; the
epidermis becomes detached in the process, and may
be removed from the fibre by washing. Many
methods have been invented for degumming ramie
fibre, and satisfactory processes have now been
obtained, but, as a rule, the details are not published
or patented, but are jealously guarded by the manu-
facturers. The following description will serve as
an indication of the kind of treatment to which the
material is subjected. The ribbons are boiled in
dilute soda, are then exposed to the action of solution
of bleaching powder, and are afterwards immersed in
a bath of dilute acid, the two latter processes being
repeated until the whole of the gum has been extracted.
The result of this treatment is the production of a
white, lustrous fibre known as the " filasse."

On account of the liability of injury to the fibre
by the use of too severe treatment in degumming,
ramie spinners usually prefer to buy the fibre in the
form of ribbons, particularly of the hand-cleaned
China grass, and degum it by their own process.

128 RAMIE

YIELD

From two to four or even six cuttings of the stems
can be obtained annually according to the climate
and other conditions of the locality in which the crop
is grown. It is estimated that from two cuttings
the yield of fresh stems per acre amounts to about 1 5
to 20 tons, giving £— i ton of dry ribbons. The ribbons
furnish about 50 per cent, of their weight of degummed
fibre or filasse, and hence the yield of filasse per acre
amounts to approximately 7^— 10 cwts. per annum.

CHARACTERS AND USES

Ramie fibre is one of the strongest known. It is
extremely durable, and is said to be less affected by
moisture than any other fibre, but is somewhat lacking
in elasticity. The fibre has a brilliant, silky lustre,
can be dyed readily, and is exceptionally long. The
filasse consists of isolated ultimate fibres or small
groups of fibres. The ultimate fibres vary from 3 to
1 6 inches in length, and from 0*0008 to 0*003 inch
in diameter, the average diameter being about 0*0015
inch or about twice as great as that of cotton fibre.
The fibres taper towards each end, but the ends
themselves are rounded. They are thick-walled,
have a well-marked lumen and bear longitudinal
striations and occasional transverse markings. The
fibre substance consists of non-lignified cellulose.

Ramie fibre offers certain difficulties in the pro-
cesses of manufacture, one of which is its tendency
to cling to the rollers in the operations of drawing and
spinning. At one time, manufacturers attempted to
spin the fibre with machinery suitable for cotton,
wool, or flax, but these efforts ended in failure. It was
realised eventually that success in ramie spinning
could only be attained by the use of machinery
specially adapted to the manipulation of the fibre.
Such machines have now been invented, and their
employment has rendered it possible to utilise ramie
fibre with commercial success.

China grass is used extensively in China for the

RAMIE 129

manufacture of fabrics known as " grass-cloths."
It could be used for the manufacture of many
materials for which cotton, wool, or flax is now
employed. It has been used successfully in com-
bination with wool for the production of certain
classes of fabrics. The fibre is woven into goods of
various descriptions, such as lace, curtains, handker-
chiefs, tablecloths, counterpanes, plush, carpets,
and even clothing materials. It is also employed for
the manufacture of mantles for incandescent gas
lighting, and is said to furnish an excellent paper-
pulp suitable for making bank-notes.

Most of the ramie fibre at present employed in
Europe is imported from China. Experiments have
shown, however, that the plant is capable of growth
in most British Colonies and Dependencies, and that
it could be cultivated on a large scale if the demand
for the fibre were sufficient to warrant such an under-
taking. With regard to West Africa, successful
experiments were carried out at Kangahun in Sierra
Leone in 1909. Scraped ribbons of 3 to 4! feet in
length were produced, but these were not sufficiently
free from the outer bark to be comparable with hand-
cleaned China grass ; ultimate fibres extracted from
them at the Imperial Institute were found to be of
normal character. The plant has also been culti-
vated with success in the Cameroons.

During recent years the value of hand-cleaned
China grass in the London market has varied between
£30 and £50 per ton, whilst occasional consignments
of the so-called rhea ribbons, from which the outer
bark has not been removed, have realised from £10 to
£1$ per ton.

The ramie industry has not yet attained very large
dimensions. Planters hesitate to grow the crop
on a commercial scale unless they can be assured of
a market for it. Spinners, on the other hand, com-
plain of the irregularity of supplies and the high price
of China grass, and therefore do not feel justified in
establishing special mills for the manufacture of ramie
goods.

130 ' RAMIE

OTHER NETTLE FIBRES

There are several other plants of the nettle family
which yield fibres somewhat resembling that of ramie,
and reference may be made to two Indian plants,
Villebrunea integrifolia and Girardinia heterophylla .

The former plant, known as " ban rhea " (wild
rhea), is a stingless nettle which grows wild on waste
land, and yields a silky fibre, two or more inches long.
It is stated that the bark contains less gummy matter
than that of Boehmeria nivea, and that for this reason
the fibre can be more easily extracted.

Girardinia heterophylla, the " Nilgiri nettle," is a
tall plant provided with stinging hairs. It yields
a soft, silky fibre, resembling ramie fibre in general
character, but coarser and less lustrous. The ultimate
fibres possess the remarkable length of from 6 to 20
inches.

Before the introduction of cotton into Europe, the
fibre of the common stinging nettle (Urtica dioica)
was used, especially in Germany and Picardy, for the
production of yarns which were woven into the so-
called " nesseltuch " (or nettle-cloth), which was
capable of being bleached as white as linen. A few
years ago, a method was devised for extracting this
fibre on a commercial scale with a view to its utilisa-
tion for the manufacture of textiles. During the
European war, renewed attention has been given to
nettle fibre in Germany in order to compensate for
the lack of cotton.

PLATE Vir

From the Collections of the Imperial Institute

JUTE (Corchorns capsularis)
a. Capsule. b. Flower.

[131

CHAPTER VI
JUTE AND SIMILAR FIBRES

JUTE is one of the cheapest fibres, and is used tor the
manufacture of coarse fabrics, such as sacking, hes-
sians, horse-cloths and inexpensive carpets, and also
for making inferior kinds of cordage. Practically the
whole of the crop is produced in India. It was almost
unknown to European commerce before the year 1 830,
although it had long been employed by the natives
of Bengal for making twine and cloth.

THE JUTE PLANT

Jute is a bast fibre, that is, a fibre found between
the bark and the inner woody portion of the stem ;
it is derived from two species of plants, Cor chorus
capsularis and C. olitorius, belonging to the natural
order Tiliacese. These plants are annuals, grow to a
height of 8 to 15 feet, and have long, straight, cylin-
drical stems, about £-f inch thick, which do not bear
any branches except near the summit. The leaves
are about 2-4 inches long, about an inch wide towards
the base, and gradually taper upwards until they end
in a long, sharp point ; the margins are coarsely ser-
rated, and the base is prolonged into tail-like append-
ages. The flowers are yellow, and occur in groups of
two or three together. The fruit of C. capsularis is
a small, wrinkled, nearly globular, flat-topped capsule,
whilst that of C. olitorius is a long, cylindrical, four-
or five-celled capsule with an elongated beak. These
differences in the form of the fruit are the chief dis-
tinguishing characters of the two species. There are
numerous races of each of these species, and especially

132 JUTE AND SIMILAR FIBRES

of C. capsularis, which vary in the colour of the stem
and leaf-stalk, in the shape of the leaf, the height of
the plant, degree of hairiness, size of flower, shape
and number of valves of the fruit, and in the time of
flowering.

Each species possesses red- and green-stemmed
races ; it is said that the green form of C. capsularis
yields the best fibre. C. olitorius is more widely dis-
tributed in India than C. capsularis, but is never
cultivated when the latter can be grown, as it yields
a less valuable fibre and takes longer to come to
maturity.

CLIMATE

Jute flourishes best in the hot damp climates and
humid districts of the tropical and sub-tropical zones
with a rainfall of 50 inches or more. After the
plant has become well rooted, it is not injured by
flooding of the land, and will even grow luxuriantly
when half submerged in water. On the other hand,
a swampy soil and excessive atmospheric humidity
are by no means necessary ; the crop can be grown
with success on land that is never flooded, provided
that the soil is kept moist by rain or irrigation. It is
desirable, however, that there should not be much
heavy rain, especially at the time of sowing and during
the early part of the season. The best conditions are
alternate sunshine and rain ; excessive rain is not
harmful after the plant has reached a height of two or
three feet. When there is water standing at the roots
or covering the land, thfc, plants tend to produce
surface roots, which injure that portion of the stem
on which they arise and consequently render the fibre
less valuable ; drought, on the other hand, causes the
plants to be stunted, and in dry districts the fibre
produced is harsh, woody and brittle.

SOIL

Jute can be cultivated on almost any kind of soil ;
but lateritic and open gravelly soils, and light sandy
soils, are unfavourable. Clay soils give the largest

Vlll

From the Collections of the Imperial Institute

JUTE (Corchorus olitorius)

JUTE CULTIVATION 133

yields, but it is said that the stems do not ret uniformly.
Sandy soils produce coarse fibre. Rich loams, that
is, rich mixtures of clay and sand, seem the best.
In India, the finer varieties are cultivated on the
higher lands on which rice, pulses, vegetables and
tobacco are grown ; such crops are often rotated with
the finer qualites of jute. The coarse and larger
varieties are grown on alluvial deposits and islands
formed by rivers, and also on the lowlands liable to
inundation. The plant also grows on salt-impreg-
nated soils, such as those of the Sunderbans.

CULTIVATION

The soil is broken up thoroughly and finely pulver-
ised, heavy or clayey soils requiring more ploughing
than lighter or alluvial soils ; the more thorough the
ploughing the better the yield. In India, 4-12
ploughings are given with the primitive ploughs of the
country, and at the last ploughing all weeds are
collected, dried and burned. The land is sometimes
hoed instead of being ploughed. The soil is also
harrowed or the clods are broken up with a mattock.
Manures are sometimes used when the seed is sown
early. On lands, such as the rich alluvial areas in
Eastern Bengal, which receive a deposit of silt each
year from the rivers that inundate them, manuring
is not usually necessary. In other cases, however,
the continuous growth of the plant on the same soil
renders it liable to become much branched, and this
leads to a diminution in the length of the fibre. Jute
is a somewhat exhausting crop, but the exhaustion
can be remedied by manuring, by fallowing, or by
rotation with other crops, such as mustard, rice, and
pulses. The manures used are cowdung, oil-cake,
rice-crop stubble, and ashes. Cowdung gives the
best results, and should be applied in quantities of
2—5 tons per acre. The manure is spread on the
land as evenly as possible and ploughed in before
sowing. The return of the jute stems to the soil after
the fibre has been extracted is of value as affording
additional organic matter. Green manuring with

134 JUTE AND SIMILAR FIBRES

Sunn hemp (Crotalaria juncea), Lathyrus sativus, or
Phaseolus Mungo is sometimes practised with good
results.

The seed is sown between the middle of February
and the end of June, according to the climatic and
other conditions of the locality. The seeds are sown
broadcast on a clear, sunny day, the soil having been
sufficiently moistened by rain, and are then lightly
covered to a depth of J inch to i inch, either by hand,
or by harrowing, or by drawing a wooden beam over
the field. They must not be ploughed in deeply or
left on the surface uncovered by earth. The amount
sown is about 8-10 Ib. per acre. The seed for sowing
is usually obtained from a few plants allowed to
mature the previous year in a corner of the field ;
it is of importance that the seed should be carefully
selected.

Efforts are being made by the Agricultural Depart-
ment of Bengal to improve the yield and quality of
the fibre, and races of the plant have now been obtained
which are decidedly above the average in both respects.
Seed farms have been established in order to produce
seed of these improved kinds in sufficient quantities
to supply the needs of the cultivators.

When the plants have grown several inches or a
foot high, the land is weeded and the plants are
thinned out. The space left between the plants is
usually 6 inches, but is sometimes 8— 10 inches. It
has been stated that spacing of 4-6 inches gives the
best results. When the seed is sown sparsely, a
better yield is obtained but the fibre is coarser.

PESTS

The jute plant is sometimes infested by a small
black weevil (Apion sp.) which feeds on the leaves.
The insect breeds in the stems, in which the grubs
bore tunnels, thus causing the plant to become
stunted and withered.

A green semilooping caterpillar (Cosmophila sabu-
lifera) has been observed on jute plants grown experi-
mentally in Bihar. It attacks the terminal leaf-

JUTE CULTIVATION 135

buds with the result that the growth of the main shoot
is stopped.

Jute seedlings are sometimes attacked by ground
grasshoppers.

HARVESTING

The plants mature in three or four months, so that
the crop sown in March is harvested in June and
that sown in June is harvested in September or
October. In India, the best time for cutting the crop
is considered to be either when the plant is in flower
or just after the appearance of the capsules, the fibre
obtained at these periods being of superior quality.
It is usually considered that fibre obtained from plants
which have not flowered is liable to be weak, whilst
that from plants in seed is harsh and deficient in
lustre. Late cutting gives a woody and inferior
fibre.

Jute is usually harvested by cutting the stems near
the root by means of a bill-hook or sickle with a toothed
edge ; when the land is under water, boys sometimes
dive in with a sickle to cut the crop, and the retting
heap is built on the spot. On swampy and submerged
land the crop instead of being cut is sometimes pulled
up. The stems are made into bundles, each con-
taining as much as a man can carry ; sometimes the
tops are cut off and the leaves removed before
retting, but this is not always done.

PREPARATION OF THE FIBRE

As has been already stated, the fibre is located
between the bark and the central woody cylinder of
the stem. In order to free it from these and obtain
it in a form in which the individual strands are distinct
from one another, the process of retting is employed.
The stems are immersed in water, and allowed to
remain until the fermentation set up has converted
the gummy or pectous substances by which the fibres
are bound together into soluble decomposition pro-
ducts. The latter are carried away by the water,
and when the fermentation has proceeded far enough
10

136 JUTE AND SIMILAR FIBRES

the fibre can be easily separated. In some districts,
the crop is stacked for two or three days before
retting, whilst in others the stalks are made into
bundles and immersed in water immediately after
reaping. They are sometimes immersed in running
water, but more often in stagnant ponds ; the former
plan is said to give the best fibre, especially as regards
colour. The bundles are covered with a layer of
refuse tops of the jute or of other plants, or with clods
of earth or logs of wood, in order to make them sink ;
stones are preferable to earth as being less likely to
injure the colour. It is stated that the stems should
be covered so as to be protected from direct sunshine.
In some places, the bundles are turned over during
the steeping.

The time required for satisfactory retting varies
with the age of the plants, the temperature of the
water, and with other conditions, and lasts from a
week or ten days to a month or even more ; after
the right point is reached, further retting is injurious
to the fibre, so the pools must be visited daily and the
conditions of the stems examined to see whether the
fibre separates properly. When the retting is far
enough advanced the bundle is unfastened, and the
cultivator, standing up to his waist in the water,
having first removed adventitious roots, loosens
portions of the fibre at the end of the stems, and
grasping these he skilfully strips off the whole from
end to end without breaking either stem or fibre.
When a certain amount of fibre has been stripped off,
he washes it by taking a large handful, swinging it
round his head, dashing it repeatedly on the surface
of the water, and drawing it through the water so as
to wash off the bark-; he then spreads it out on the
surface of the water, and carefully picks off any
pieces of bark which still remain. It is then wrung
out so as to remove as much water as possible and
hung on lines to dry. It is said that jute dried in the
shade is of a better colour than that dried in the sun.

The operations vary somewhat in different locali-
ties ; the fibre is sometimes loosened by means of a
wooden beater before separating it from the stem, and

PREPARATION OF JUTE 137

a thick plank or heavy piece of wood held firmly in
position by posts driven into the bed of the pond is
recommended as facilitating the washing process by
offering something more resistant than water to dash
the root-ends of the plant against, these being less
perfectly softened by the retting than the upper parts.

These primitive methods yield an exceptionally
pure product, and the retting accomplishes the
separation of the strands of bast fibre. Great care is
required in the retting operation. If under-retted,
the fibre is gummy and in the form of ribbons, whilst
if over-retted the product is weak and deficient in
lustre. The process has not yet been superseded by
machinery. The average yield is a little over 1,200 Ib.
per acre, but double this quantity is sometimes
obtained. *

When thoroughly dry, the jute is made up in bunches
of as much as can be conveniently held in one hand ;
these are doubled in the centre and taken in bundles
to the market, where they are sorted according to
quality and colour, and then packed in bales for
export. The best portions of the crop are exported
as " jute proper,11 the lower grades of the fibre are sold
as " rejections," and the hard woody root-ends are
known as " cuttings." In Calcutta the bales for
export are made by means of hydraulic presses and
weigh about 400 Ib. each.

CHARACTERS, STRUCTURE AND USES OF JUTE

Jute consists of strands of fibre varying from 5 to 8
feet in length. It is usually of a pale yellow or
yellowish -brown colour and possesses an excellent
lustre. Each strand is composed of a large number
of ultimate fibres, varying from 2 to 5 mm. (0*08 to
0*2 inch) in length and from about 0*02 to 0*025 nun.
(0*0008 to 0*001 inch) in diameter. A transverse
section of a filament of jute shows from about 8 to 20
ultimate fibres of more or less polygonal outline . These
ultimate fibres are thick-walled but have a fairly
wide lumen. Their surface is smooth and free from
transverse markings such as are borne by flax fibres.

138 JUTE AND SIMILAR FIBRES

Jute differs considerably from cotton, flax and hemp
in chemical composition. It consists of a highly
iignified form of cellulose, whereas the other fibres
mentioned are composed of a more or less pure form
of this substance. A specimen of " extra fine "
Calcutta jute, examined at the Imperial Institute by
the methods described on pages 2-6, gave the following
results : moisture, 9-6 per cent. ; ash, 0-7 per cent. ;
loss on a-hydrolysis, 9*1 per cent.; loss on /3-hydro
lysis, 13*1 per cent.; cellulose, 77^7 per cent.

Jute is much weaker than flax or hemp and is not
nearly so durable. It can be dyed with ease and is
capable of combining directly with basic dyestuffs.
It cannot be satisfactorily bleached, as treatment
with bleaching powder and alkalis renders the fibre
weak and brittle. The fibre is very susceptible to
the prolonged action of water and rapidly undergoes
deterioration. It is stated that jute rarely arrives
in the United Kingdom in as good a condition as that
in which it leaves India. This is considered to be
due to a renewal during transit of the incipient fer-
mentation set up in the fibre during the retting process.
It not uncommonly happens that the fibre at the
centre of a bale becomes quite rotten, and is then said
to have suffered " heart damage. " The cause of this
injury is attributed to a large extent to the fraudulent
practice of watering the jute before shipment.

The fibre is employed in the Calcutta mills chiefly
for making the coarser classes of jute fabrics, especi-
ally gunny cloth and gunny bags, whilst in Dundee
it is used for the manufacture of hessians, bagging,
tarpaulins, sacking, carpets, rugs, matting, and
backing for linoleums and oil-cloth.

The fibre at the base of the jute stem is hard and
coarse. It is therefore customary to cut off about
6-8 inches from the lower end of the fibre before
baling it, since if this portion were allowed to remain
it would reduce the spinning quality of the material.
These " root-ends " or " butts " are baled separate^
and are sold for paper-making.

JUTE PRODUCTION

139

COMMERCIAL VARIETIES AND PRICES
Jute is grouped commercially in four main classes,
known as Serajgunge, Naraingunge, Daisee and
Dowrah. Serajgunge is soft and from white to grey
in colour. Naraingunge is of a darker colour than
Serajgunge, ranging from pale buff to reddish-brown ;
it is of good strength and excellent spinning quality.
These two varieties are employed for the manufacture
of the best jute yarns. Daisee is dark-coloured, but
is soft, long, and of good quality, and is largely used for
making carpet yarns. Dowrah is strong but harsh
and of inferior quality. Each of these classes is
graded according to quality and colour, and receives
a corresponding baler's mark.

The market price of jute is subject to severe fluctua-
tions . This may be illustrated by reference to the prices
per ton of " first native marks " (a fibre of medium
quality) in December of each of the years 1903-1916.

£ *•

• 19 15

. 20 O

. 25 10

• 35 10
1 8 10
26 10

1903 .

1904 .

1905 .

1906 .

1907 .

1908 .

1909 •

i

s.

12

16

is

o

1910
1911

19

28
16

10
0
IO

1912

1913
1914

H
13

IS
15

1915
1916

42

PRODUCTION AND EXPORT

The area devoted to jute in India is approximately
3 million acres, and the average annual production
amounts to about ij million tons. The official sta-
tistics for the years 1906-7 to 1913-14 are as follows :

Year.

Area.
Acres.

1906-07
1907-08
1908-09
1909-10
I9IO-II
I9II-I2
1912-13
1913-14

3,523,558

2,835,453
2,756,820
2,828,669
3,090,827
3,323,951

Production.
Tons.

,629,900
,753,200
,126,950
,286,900
,416,450
,470,480
,700,320

,588,200

140 JUTE AND SIMILAR FIBRES

About one-half of the total crop is now consumed
in the Indian jute mills, the remainder being exported.

The following table gives the quantities and values
of the total exports, and exports to the United
Kingdom, during 1908-09 to 1914-15.

Total Exports

Year. Quantity. Value.

Tons. £

1908-09 . . 893,995 13,223,037

1909-10 . . 730,418 10,058,873

I9IO-II . . 636,623 10,326,649

I9II-I2 . . 810,155 15,037,734

1912-13 . . 876,294 18,033,782

1913-14 . . 768,451 20,550,929

1914-15 . . 505,095 8,606,802

Exports to the United Kingdom

Year. Quantity. Value.

Tons. I

1908-9 . . 337,937 5,601,794

1909-10 . . 297,799 4,289,508

1910-11 . . 234,719 3,885,292

1911-12 . . 345,762 6,530,513

1912-13 . . 340,673 7,352,i7i

1913-14 . . 290,369 7,826,358

1914-15 . . 265,580 4,495,943

Nearly the whole of the crop is produced in Bengal.
Of the 3,323,951 acres planted in India in 1912-13,
no less than 2,927,100 acres were in Bengal whilst
298,500 acres were in Bihar and Orissa and 98,300
acres in Assam. The fibre exported in 1913-14 was
shipped from the different Provinces in the following
quantities : Bengal, 746,439 tons ; Bombay, 9 tons ;
Madras, 22,003 tons ; total, 768,451 tons.

The exports in 1913-14 were distributed to the
following countries :

Tons. Tons.

United Kingdom 290,369
Germany . . 158,380
United States of

America . 117,744

France . . 72,708

Austria-Hungary 45,727

Italy . . 37,770

Spain . . 21,181

JUTE INDUSTRY 141

Tons. Tons.

Russia . . 9,086

Belgium . . 4,617

Japan . . 3,703

Brazil . . 3,594

Holland . 1,425

Argentina . 900

Greece . . 564

Australia . . 376

Uruguay . , 179

Hong Kong . in

Formosa . . 7

Ceylon . . 5

Straits Settlements 5

Total . . 768,451

JUTE MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY

Jute was used by the natives of Bengal for making
cordage and gunny cloth long before its introduction
into European industry ; the cloth was woven by
means of hand-looms.

In Great Britain, attention was first directed to
the fibre at the end of the eighteenth century, and
early in the nineteenth century it was spun and
woven in Abingdon. Small quantities of jute con-
tinued to be imported into the United Kingdom for
several years, but it was not until 1832 that the
utilisation of the fibre acquired any great importance.
About this time, experiments were carried out in
Dundee, which led the way to the development of an
enormous industry. The success achieved is said
to have been largely due to the use of whale oil to
soften the fibre and thus facilitate its spinning. The
growth of the industry was stimulated by the Crimean
war of 1854-55 and the consequent diminution in
the supply of Russian flax and hemp.

The progress made in Dundee in spinning and
weaving jute by means of machinery led to the
introduction of mills into the neighbourhood of
Calcutta. The first jute mill^ was erected in 1854,
and from this time forward the Indian jute manu-
facturing industry has steadily increased at a remark-
able rate. During the period 1901—2 to 1913—14,
the number of jute spindles increased from 331,382
to 744,289, the number of looms at work from 16,119
to 36,050, the number of mills from 36 to 64 and the
number of persons employed from 114,795 to 216,288.

142 JUTE AND SIMILAR FIBRES

EXTENSION OF CULTIVATION

The whole of the world's jute supply is furnished by
India with the exception of comparatively insignificant
quantities produced in other countries. The plant is
grown to a limited extent in Mexico, Egypt and
China, and has been introduced into the United States
of America. Successful experiments have recently been
made in the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan and in West Africa.
Efforts are being made to extend the cultivation in
India to other Provinces than Bengal and Assam, and
certain irrigated tracts in the Punjab, Central Pro-
vinces and Madras are regarded as affording favourable
conditions for the purpose. In all these places, how-
ever, the facilities for the cultivation are less favour-
able than in Bengal, and it is considered* unlikely
that under present conditions the industry will be
undertaken on an extensive scale outside Bengal,
Bihar and Assam.

An account of attempts to establish jute cultiva-
tion in British West Africa is given in the following
paragraphs. So far the attention given to cotton and
other agricultural crops has interfered with progress
in this direction.

JUTE GROWING IN WEST AFRICA
From the facility with which the jute plant can be
cultivated and its fibre extracted, it seems very prob-
able that there are numerous localities in West Africa
suitable for its cultivation and that the natives would
soon be able to acquire the method of preparing the
fibre for the market. The crop would not prove a
rival to cotton since it can be grown on land quite
unfitted for the cotton plant. There are large areas
in which the climatic conditions appear likely to be
well adapted to the growth of the plant. The lower
reaches of the Niger and the lagoon country of Nigeria
seem to be particularly favourable.

Jute was first cultivated experimentally in West
Africa in 1896, when large quantities of seed were
supplied to several places on the coast. The experi-
ments demonstrated that fibre of a good quality could

JUTE GROWING IN WEST AFRICA 143

be produced in the country, but they were on too
small a scale to show whether a successful industry
could be established on commercial lines. In 1905,
in consequence of the increasing utilisation of jute
in India and the consequent difficulty experienced
by the jute spinners of Dundee in obtaining adequate
quantities of their raw material, the Dundee Chamber
of Commerce endeavoured to introduce the cultiva-
tion into British West Africa. Early in the year
1906, arrangements were made by the Colonial Office
with the Government of India for a supply of Indian
jute seed for distribution in the West African Pos-
sessions, and a Memorandum on the cultivation and
preparation of the fibre drawn up by the Inspector-
General of Agriculture, India, was communicated to
these countries. It was proposed that experiments
should at first be carried out on a small scale in order
to ascertain the adaptability of Indian jute to West
African conditions.

Gambia. — An experimental trial was made in the
Gambia in 1897. The fibre produced was strong, of
good spinning properties, well prepared, and was
classed as being of medium quality and quite market-
able ; it was rather short, however, on account of
the season of growth having been exceptionally dry.

Further experiments were made in 1907 at Kotu,
and several samples of the fibre examined at the
Imperial Institute were found to be of good service-
able quality. The yield per acre, however, was too
small and the cost of production too great for the crop
to prove remunerative.

Sierra Leone. — Considerable attention has been
devoted to jute growing in Sierra Leone, and much
interest has been taken in it by the Government of
that Colony. A specimen of fibre, probably derived
from Corchorus capsularis, grown in the Ronietta
district, was examined at the Imperial Institute in
1905, and was found to resemble Indian jute in both
chemical and mechanical properties. A specimen of
the fibre of C. capsularis grown at Kangahun was
composed of fine, soft, silky, lustrous fibre, of good
colour, but poor strength, and was valued at £22-

144 JUTE AND SIMILAR FIBRES

£23 per ton with medium qualities of jute at £22-
£25 per ton. This fibre had been well cleaned, but
had probably been over-retted and was therefore weak.

On the whole, the results obtained in Sierra Leone
were not very successful ; this was largely due to the
ignorance of the natives with regard to the methods
of cultivation, and partly to the fact that no manure
was applied.

Southern Provinces, Nigeria. — An experimental trial
wars carried out at Old Calabar in 1896 on a some-
what unsuitable, light, sandy soil. The seed was
sown rather late, and the dry season was well
advanced before the plants were fully grown. On
account of these unfavourable conditions, the crop
matured early and, in consequence, the fibre was of
short staple. In other respects, however, it was of
satisfactory quality. qft

In 1907, a specimen of the fibre of Corchorus olitorius,
grown on the Onitsha Plantation, was examined at
the Imperial Institute, and was found to be of fair
colour and lustre, but weak and rather harsh, and
had probably been over-retted ; it was regarded as
worth £14 i os. per ton, when medium qualities of
Calcutta jute were quoted at £14-^16 per ton.

Two samples of the product of C. capsularis, grown
in the Western Province, were also received at the
Imperial Institute in the same year. One of these
samples, grown from a green-stemmed variety, was
soft, lustrous, of good length and strength, and was
considered to be equal to " good medium " Bengal
jute and worth £15-^16 per ton, with " first marks "
Calcutta jute at £14 per ton ; this fibre would have
been more valuable if about 6 inches of the rough
root-end had been cut off as is done in Bengal. The
other sample, from a green-stemmed variety, was of
similar quality but darker colour, and was valued at
j£i 3~^J4 Per t°n and said to be saleable in any quantity.

Northern Provinces, Nigeria. — Two samples of jute,
grown in Northern Nigeria, one from imported seed
and the other from local native seed, were examined
at the Imperial Institute in 1907. The former
consisted of soft, fine, greyish, fairly lustrous fibre,

JUTE SUBSTITUTES 145

but had not been very well cleaned. The fibre was
about 4 feet long, and was regarded as very suitable
for spinning and worth £24 per ton, with medium
qualities of Indian jute at £23-^25 per ton. The
sample grown from native seed was harsher, more
brittle and had not been well prepared ; it was
valued at £22 per ton.

A specimen of native jute cultivated by riverside
villagers in the Borgu Province was also examined at
the Imperial Institute. It consisted of nearly white,
fairly well cleaned, rather harsh* fibre, about 5 feet
long, and on the whole of good quality, but rather
harsh and weak.

JUTE SUBSTITUTES

There are numerous plants of the natural orders,
Malvaceae and Tiliaceae, which yield bast fibres similar
to jute and capable of replacing it in manufactures.
From a commercial standpoint, the two most im-
portant of such plants are Abutilon Avicennce and
Hibiscus cannabinus which yield the fibres known in
the markets of the United Kingdom as " China jute "
and " Bimlipatam jute " respectively. The methods
of preparing these fibres are essentially the same as
those employed in the case of jute. In the following
pages, attention is given more particularly to the jute-
like fibres of West Africa.

Abutilon spp. — Abutilon Avicennce, the Indian
mallow, a plant of the natural order Malvaceae, is
cultivated on an extensive scale in China, and the
fibre, which is strong and lustrous, is exported under
the name of " China jute." It is said to yield about
one ton of fibre per acre. The plant has been intro-
duced into the United States of America, and grows
there luxuriantly ; the seed is able to withstand the
severity of the winter, and the plant is thus enabled
to propagate itself continuously. A . asiaticum and A .
indicum occur in India, and also in parts of West
Africa, and yield fibres similar in character to that of
China jute.

Hibiscus spp. — A large number of species of Hibiscus,
also belonging to the Malvaceae, yield jute-like fibres.

146 JUTE AND SIMILAR FIBRES

Hibiscus Abelmoschus. — This plant is cultivated
throughout West Africa, and grows in most tropical
countries. A sample of the fibre from India,
examined at the Imperial Institute, was found
to possess characters strongly resembling those of
jute.

Hibiscus cannabinus. — This species is cultivated in
India, chiefly in Madras, but also in Bombay, Bihar,
and the United Provinces, and the fibre is known as
"Ambari hemp " or "Deccan hemp." A considerable
amount of fibre is produced in Madras and exported to
the United Kingdom, where it is sold under the name
of " Bimlipatam jute " and realises prices about
equal to those of medium grades of jute. It has been
estimated that the crop yields from two to three tons
of fibre per acre. A study of Hibiscus cannabinus
has been carried out by the Agricultural Department
in India, and seed of the best races has been selected
for multiplication, so that pure seed can now be
supplied in large quantities to the growers. The fibre
of this plant is somewhat coarser than true jute,
but can be used for most purposes to which jute is
ordinarily applied . Hibiscus cannabinus is also grown
in West Africa and in many other tropical countries.
It is an important fibre-plant of Nigeria.

Hibiscus esculentus. — This plant is the well-known
" Okra," " Awkraw " or " Bhindi," which yields a
mucilaginous seed-pod used in many parts of the
world as a vegetable and appears to be grown in all
parts of West Africa.

A sample of " Awkraw " fibre was forwarded to the
Imperial Institute from Sierra Leone in 1905. The
material was of a pale straw colour, fairly lustrous,
but not well cleaned, somewhat harsher than jute, and
about 3 1 to 4 feet long. On chemical examination
it was found that " Awkraw " fibre is of a somewhat
different character from Indian jute, and is much more
susceptible to the attack of alkali and on this account
would probably be somewhat less durable. Com-
mercial experts reported that this fibre could be spun
with good results when mixed with jute, and if of
somewhat greater strength would be worth from

JUTE SUBSTITUTES 147

to £20 per ton (with jute at from £16 to £25 per ton),
and would no doubt find a ready sale.

A second sample of the fibre, described as " Okra "
fibre, was sent from Sierra Leone for further investiga-
tion in 1906. This sample was obtained from the
plants after the second series of fruits had been
gathered, in order to test the value of the fibre pre-
pared at this particular stage. The fibre was mostly
from 2 feet to 2 feet 8 inches long, but some short
strands about 18 inches in length were also present.
In general the product resembled the previous sample
of " Awkraw " fibre, but was softer, whiter, and more
lustrous, though only about two-thirds the length.
The strength was poor and uneven. Commercial
experts, to whom the sample was submitted, des-
cribed it as a brittle, jute-like fibre which, though
of good colour, was mostly tender and weak. Its
value was considered doubtful, but probably from
£20 to £22 per ton. At the time of this valuation,
jute prices were much above the average, and, under
ordinary conditions, this sample would not have been
worth more than about £15 per ton. As a sample of
fibre prepared from the older plants was valued at
£i 8 to £20 per ton when prices were normal, it appeared
that in spite of the better appearance of the sample
under consideration, its value would be less on account
of its inferior length and poor strength . 1 1 is , however,
unsafe to draw a general conclusion as to whether the
period at which the sample was collected is the best
until further experiments have been made.

Another specimen of " Okra " fibre received from
Sierra Leone was well cleaned, soft, nearly white,
lustrous, of fairly good strength, and about 5 feet long.
The fibre compared favourably with the sample
examined in 1905. The proportion of cellulose was
lower, but the comparatively small losses sustained on
hydrolysis showed that the fibre was likely to resist
the action of water satisfactorily. This product was
well grown and beautifully prepared ; it was valued
at £20 per ton (with " medium " jute at £15-^17 per
ton), and was said to be readily saleable in large
quantities. This sample of fibre was prepared from

148 JUTE AND SIMILAR FIBRES

" Okra " plants cut after the first crop of fruits had
been gathered.

A sample of the fibre of Hibiscus esculentus, received
at the Imperial Institute from the Southern Provinces,
Nigeria, was of uneven quality. The best portion
was almost white, lustrous, rather harsh and not very
well cleaned and prepared ; the remainder was of
darker colour and of irregular staple. The product
was valued at £18 per ton (with " medium " jute at
£23-^25). The harshness of the fibre suggested that
it had been prepared from old plants, and it had
evidently been insufficiently retted.

Hibiscus guineensis. — This species occurs in the
Southern Provinces-, Nigeria, and is known to the
natives as " Ramo." A specimen of the fibre for-
warded to the Imperial Institute from Olokomeji
in 1907 consisted of well cleaned, nearly white fibre,
of good lustre and fair strength, but was rather
harsher than jute ; its length varied up to a maximum
of 7 feet. The fibre would prove valuable as a jute
substitute, and would be saleable in large quantities
at £17 per ton (with " medium " jute at £i 5-^17 per
ton).

Hibiscus lunariifolius . — It is stated that this plant,
which is known in the Northern Provinces of Nigeria
as " Ramma," is, with the exception of cotton, the
only one systematically cultivated in that country
as a source of fibre. An account of the cultivation
has been given by Mr. Gerald C. Dudgeon on pp. 138-
140 of the handbook of this series, entitled The
Agricultural and Forest Products of British West
Africa. Fibre was exported from the Northern
Provinces in large quantities in 1908 and 1909, and it
is believed that these consignments consisted mainly
or entirely of the product of H. lunariifolius. The
exports in 1908 amounted to the value of £1,382, and
in 1909 to the quantity of 755,690 Ib. of value £4,050.
In the following year, the exportation of the fibre
seems to have ceased and has not since been resumed.

A sample of " Ramma " fibre from the Northern
Provinces, examined at the Imperial Institute, con-
sisted of brownish-white fibre which was on the whole

JUTE SUBSTITUTES 149

well prepared but insufficiently cleaned. The pro-
duct possessed good lustre and strength, and varied
in length from 3 to 7 feet. The fibre suffered com-
paratively small loss on hydrolysis, and would there-
fore resist the prolonged action of watej. It was too
harsh for use as a jute substitute, but was suitable
for making strong and durable ropes. It was regarded
by experts as worth about £12 per ton (with
" common " jute at £11-^12 per ton).

Another sample of the fibre, examined at the
Imperial Institute in 1910, was found to be superior
to the earlier sample, being of better colour, less harsh,
and about 8 feet long. It was regarded as worth £16-
£17 per ton (with " first native marks " Calcutta jute
at £14 75. 6d. per ton), and such fibre would be readily
saleable as a substitute for jute.

Hibiscus quinquelobus . — This plant is known in
Sierra Leone as " Kowe " or " Corwey "in Mendi,
and " Nassim " in Timani, and is sometimes referred
to as " West African jute." Owing to the facility
with which this fibre can be prepared, it has received
special attention, and efforts have been made to en-
courage its production. Experiments on the cultiva-
tion of this species have been conducted at Mabang.
A small trade in the fibre was developed during the
years 1904-05.

The first sample of the fibre submitted to the
Imperial Institute consisted of well cleaned bast
ribbons of fair strength. The length of the fibre
varied from 3 feet to 7 feet 9 inches, most of it being
about 5 feet long. The fibre was of a pale buff colour, of
fair lustre, fine, and fairly soft. From the results of
chemical examination it was evident that " Corwey "
fibre is of good quality and resembles jute in its
chemical composition and behaviour. The com-
mercial experts to whom the sample was referred
classed the material as a strong, bast-like fibre of
good colour, and worth £25 to £26 per ton (June, 1906).

A consignment of about one ton of " Kowe " fibre
was forwarded to the Imperial Institute in April,
1907. The product consisted of brownish-white
ribbons composed of interlacing fibres which were

150 JUTE AND SIMILAR FIBRES

slightly lustrous, well cleaned, rather harsh, of fair
but uneven strength, and of irregular length varying
from 3 feet 6 inches to 6 feet. In chemical composi-
tion and behaviour the sample was very similar to the
" Kowe " fibre examined previously. The loss on
hydrolysis was unusually low and indicated that the
fibre would prove durable. The product was sold at
public auction in London, with the result that a
portion of the material realised £18 per ton, whilst
the remainder sold at £17 55. per ton. The brokers
who sold the consignment reported that £i& per ton
was about the price, subject to market fluctuations,
which might be expected for future lots of this fibre,
for which it seemed possible that a demand might be
created. It is probable that the fibre was purchased
by rope-makers, as at that time Manila hemp was
at an exceptionally high price.

The sale of another small consignment in 1909
was attended with considerable difficulty, and a much
lower price was obtained. It appears that, although
the fibre can be used for spinning in admixture with
jute, spinners do not care to purchase it when they
can obtain ample supplies of Indian jute at a reason-
able price. Moreover, it fails to attract rope-makers
when Manila hemp is cheap and plentiful. It there-
fore follows that, in these circumstances, the fibre is
classed in the market as " nondescript " and has to
be sold at a very low price to anyone who can find a
use for it.

Hibiscus rostellatus. — This species, known in the
Gambia as " Darwaso," yields a moderately lustrous,
nearly white fibre of the nature of jute.

Hibiscus Sabdariffa. — This plant grows in Northern
Nigeria and in the Northern Territories of the Gold
Coast, and is known to the natives of the latter
country as " Rama." It is also cultivated in many
parts of India and occurs in the West Indies and in
Florida. The fibre is fine, strong and silky, and from
6 to 7 feet long.

Hibiscus squamosus. — A specimen of the fibre of
this species, received at the Imperial Institute from
the Gold Coast, consisted of strong, lustrous fibre,

JUTE SUBSTITUTES 151

and was regarded by commercial experts as similar
to " Daisee " jute from Calcutta.

Hibiscus tiliaceus. — This species is known in the
Gambia as " Bafoodo julo." It is widely distributed
in tropical countries and yields a fibre of fair quality.
A sample from the Gambia, examined at the Imperial
Institute in 1907, was fairly lustrous, but rather
harsh, and about 5 feet long. Commercial experts
reported that it was not of good spinning quality.

Honckenya ficifolia. — This plant, of the natural
order Tiliacese, grows abundantly in the swamps of
the Sierra Leone Protectorate, and would yield a
perpetual supply of stalks for retting if care were taken
in cutting it. It is known by the various names of
" Napunti " (Timani), " Potepo " (Mendi), and " Bolo-
bolo " (Yoruba).

Attention was directed to the fibre of this plant
as long ago as 1888, when a sample, accompanied
by botanical specimens, was forwarded from Lagos
through the Colonial Office to the Royal Botanic
Gardens, Kew. The fibre was reported by commercial
experts to belong to the jute class, to be superior to
jute in strength, and to be readily saleable, and worth
at that time £16 per ton (Kew Bulletin, 1889, 15).

The preparation of this fibre was investigated by
Government agents in Sierra Leone, who reported
that considerable difficulty was experienced in separat-
ing the outer bark from the inner fibrous layer, and
that this was particularly marked in the case of the
older plants. Experiments were made with a view
to ascertain whether the fibre could be more success-
fully extracted from young plants, but the results
were not very encouraging.

The first sample of fibre forwarded to the Imperial
Institute from Sierra Leone consisted of uncombed
bast ribbons, which varied in length from 4 to 10 feet,
the greater part being from 6 to 10 feet long. The
fibre was well cleaned and prepared, but was of poor
strength, and varied in colour from white to brown.
On chemical examination the material furnished re-
sults which show that the " Napunti " fibre closely
resembles Indian jute in its Chemical character, and
ii

152 JUTE AND SIMILAR FIBRES

is nearly as rich in cellulose as " extra fine " Indian
jute (compare page 138). It suffers a comparatively
small loss on hydrolysis, and should consequently
prove very resistant to the prolonged action of water.
The product was described by experts as a jute-like
fibre of mixed colour, and of value about £20 per ton
(June, 1906).

A sample of " Napunti " fibre collected from young
plants of the first year's growth, before they had
flowered, consisted of soft, fine, greyish fibre of rather
poor lustre ; it had been well cleaned, but probably
over-retted as its strength was very poor. It was
from 3 feet to 3 feet 6 inches in length, and was re-
garded as worth about £20 per ton (with " medium "
jute at £22-^25 per ton and " common " jute at
£18 i os. — £20 per ton).

Two other samples, collected from old plants after
flowering, were of little value, as they consisted of
ribbons and tended to split up into short pieces on
combing.

In connection with another sample of " Napunti "
fibre, it was stated that the material represented the
only form in which the natives could prepare this
fibre, and it was consequently desired to ascertain
whether it would have any commercial value. The
sample consisted of a large bale of coarse, brown,
fibrous bast ribbons, which were woody and gummy.
The length of the ribbons was from 3 to 4 feet. The
fibre in this form appeared to be only suitable for
paper-making, but owing to its bulky nature, it seemed
doubtful whether the exportation of such material
would be remunerative in view of the cost of transport.
A sample of the ribbons was submitted to a paper
expert for an opinion regarding the suitability of the
material for paper-making. He reported that it
could be used for the manufacture of paper, but that
he could not recommend bringing the raw material
to England. It would be better, he thought, to
consider the advisability of treating the material
before shipment and reducing it to a condition of un-
bleached " half-stuff," leaving the paper-maker to
bleach it as required. In the expert's opinion the

JUTE SUBSTITUTES 153

unbleached " half-stuff " would probably fetch from
£7 to £8 per ton if sold in sufficient quantity and if
of uniform quality. Special experiments, however,
proved that the " Napunti " ribbons as received
yielded 47-3 per cent, of air-dry " half-stuff " (con-
taining 8 per cent, of moisture), which is approxi-
mately equal to the amount furnished by esparto grass
(page 219). Consequently over two tons of ribbons
would be required to furnish one ton of " half-stuff."
In view of these results it was considered extremely
doubtful whether the course suggested by the expert
would be remunerative. The cost of preparing the
crude ribbons was given as about \d. per Ib. (£4 1 35. 4^.
per ton), and as the material yields less than half its
weight of " half-stuff," valued at £7 to £8 per ton,
there would be no margin for expenses, freight and
profit. It is therefore evident that, unless the cost of
production of the " Napunti " ribbons could be
greatly reduced, there is not much chance of the fibre
being utilised for paper-making.

Sida spp. (natural order, Malvaceae). — S. carpini-
folia, S. rhombifolia and S. urens occur in West Africa
and yield useful fibres of the nature of jute. Samples
of the fibre of S. carpinifolia from India, and of S.
rhombifolia from India and Nyasaland, examined at
the Imperial Institute, were found to be of useful
quality and to resemble jute very closely in chemical
composition and behaviour. Small consignments of
S. rhombifolia fibre received from India in 1912 and
1913 were fine, soft, very lustrous, and of excellent
quality, and it was considered that, if produced in
commercial quantities, such fibre would realise a price
about 20 per cent, in advance of that of " first marks "
Calcutta jute. Unfortunately, the plant gives a
somewhat smaller yield per acre than jute, and the
fibre is more troublesome to prepare, owing to the
interior of the stem being soft instead of hard and
woody.

Triumfetta spp. (natural order, Tiliaceae). — T. cordifolia
and T. rhomboidea are both found in West Africa.
A specimen of the fibre of T. cordifolia var. Hollandii
from the Gold Coast, examined at the Imperial

154 JUTE AND SIMILAR FIBRES

Institute, consisted of soft, lustrous fibre, of pale
buff colour and fine and even diameter ; it was of
good strength and 5 feet long. The fibre was of
excellent quality, and was regarded as worth £35 per
ton (with finest Bengal jute at £35-^40 per ton).

Samples of the fibre of T. rhomboidea from Nyasa-
land have also been examined at the Imperial Institute.
The fibre was found to be of useful quality and suitable
for employment as a substitute for medium grades of
jute.

Urena spp. (natural order, Malvaceae). — Urena
lobata occurs in India, the United States, South
America, Africa, and other countries. The fibre
would probably be a good jute substitute. The plant
is known in West Africa as " Na fen fe " (Timani),
" Subwe " (Mendi), " Ake-iri " (Yoruba). It occurs
everywhere along the West African coast, but is
extremely variable in the form of its leaves. Good
specimens of fibre have been prepared in Sierra Leone,
but the plant growing there does not form long,
straight stems, and the fibre is therefore rather short.

Samples of Urena lobata fibre from India have been
examined at the Imperial Institute, and found to be
fine, soft, lustrous, and of excellent spinning quality.
The fibre was very similar to jute, and it was thought
that, if produced in commercial quantities, it would
realise prices a little in advance of " first marks "
Calcutta jute. It is stated that in India by ratooning
the plants a second year's crop can be obtained of
equal value to that of the first year.

The product of Urena lobata is known in Brazil as
" Aramina " fibre. The coffee trade of Brazil de-
mands a supply of about 4 million bags per annum,
and large quantities of jute yarn are imported from
Dundee for their manufacture. The expansion of
the coffee industry caused a search to be made for a
Brazilian plant yielding a fibre suitable for the pur-
pose, and this led to the discovery of " Aramina."
A Company is now in existence at Sao Paulo, which
was formed in 1905, to promote the cultivation of this
plant, and to manufacture textiles and cordage from
" Aramina " fibre and jute. A large factory has

JUTE SUBSTITUTES 155

been established capable of producing 6,000 coffee
bags per day. Samples of this Brazilian fibre have
been examined at the Imperial Institute, and the
results have been published in the Bulletin of the
Imperial Institute, 1903, I, 24—25.

Urena lobata is also being grown for its fibre in
Madagascar and in Cuba.

A sample of the fibre of Urena lobata , received at
the Imperial Institute from the Gambia, was soft, of
a greenish-grey colour, well cleaned and prepared, fine,
lustrous, of good strength and about 3 feet long. In
chemical composition and behaviour, the fibre was
superior to a specimen of " medium quality " Indian
jute with which it was compared. It was only half
the usual length of jute, but would nevertheless be
readily saleable as a jute substitute at £17 per ton
(with " medium " jute at £i 5-^17 per ton).

In Northern Nigeria, U. sinuata is grown by the
road-sides, and is said to be cultivated to some extent
in Bida (Nupe Province) for the manufacture of ropes,
where it is known by the name of " Rama."

CHAPTER VII
CORDAGE FIBRES

FOR many centuries, hemp (the fibre of Cannabis
saliva) has been employed on an extensive scale for
the manufacture of cordage (see Chapter V). As the
cultivation of this fibre in Europe gradually declined
to some extent on account of the increased cost of
production, due especially to insufficiency of labour,
attention was directed to certain tropical products
which are suitable as substitutes. The most important
of these is Manila hemp which serves as the best
material for the manufacture of marine cordage.
Other fibres, which have come into prominence and
find a ready market for the rope and twine industry,
are Sisal hemp, Mauritius hemp and New Zealand
hemp.

MANILA HEMP

Manila hemp, or Abaca fibre, is produced almost
exclusively in the Philippine Islands. From time to
time, attempts have been made to introduce it into
other countries, but usually with little or no success.
In the year 1822, an effort was made to grow the plant
in Bengal, and in 1859 it was introduced into Madras,
but in neither case was a satisfactory result obtained.
In 1873, an experimental trial was made in the
Andaman Islands, and the plant proved to be well
adapted to this locality. The cultivation of the
plant and the preparation of its fibre in the Andaman
Islands, however, have never become an important
industry, and but little attention is paid to it. Attempts
have also been made to introduce the plant into
British North Borneo and the West Indies. During

MANILA HEMP 157

recent years, some success has been obtained with
Manila hemp in Java. The fibre produced in this
island is not of so fine a quality as that of the higher
grades produced in the Philippines but is nevertheless
quite suitable for the market. It is considered that
the cultivation of this product might perhaps have a
good future in Java as a native industry.

THE MANILA HEMP PLANT

Manila hemp is derived from the sheathing leaf-
stalks of Musa textilisy a plant of the banana or plan-
tain family. The plant has a branching under-
ground stem or rhizome which bears numerous small
roots. From time to time, this rhizome throws up
erect stems so that an old plant may bear from ten
to twenty-five shoots of various ages growing in a
cluster. The apparent aerial stem is composed of
from sixteen to twenty-five broad, overlapping leaf-
bases (or, rather, sheathing petioles) which grow up,
one inside another, until they form a kind of trunk,
12 to 1 6 inches in diameter. The real stem arises
through the middle of this structure and is usually
not more than about 3 inches thick. When the
formation of the sheaths is completed, the flower-bud
develops and puts forth a thick axis or spike on
which the flowers are produced in clusters ; the
clusters nearer the base bear pistillate or female
flowers, whilst those nearer the summit bear the
staminate or male flowers. The fruit is smaller than
that of most bananas ; it is hard and green, unfit for
food, and contains numerous large, black seeds. In
general appearance, the plant resembles the ordinary
fruiting banana, but the leaves are paler in colour,
narrower and more pointed, whilst the stems are of
a purplish-red colour with broad, green ^treaks.

CULTIVATION

Climate. — Since the Manila hemp plant bears
enormous leaves and only very short roots, it requires
Considerable humidity both of the atmosphere and of

158 CORDAGE FIBRES

the soil, and is therefore only able to thrive in countries
which possess a somewhat heavy rainfall, more or less
evenly distributed throughout the year. A drought
of two or three weeks greatly hinders growth, whilst a
prolonged drought is usually fatal. The occurrence
of rain every two or three days is beneficial, but a
continuous wet season is unfavourable. The plant
demands a warm climate, and probably would not
grow in a satisfactory manner in regions with a
average temperature of less than 72° F. It grows
most rapidly and luxuriantly in the open plains,
provided that there is always a sufficiency of moisture,
but it can also be cultivated in districts which possess
a moderately dry season, if planted in sheltered
situations. High winds are exceedingly injurious,
and in windy places the plantation must therefore
be protected by a belt of large trees. The production
of Manila hemp is sometimes carried on in the Philip-
pines at altitudes of as much as 3,000 feet above the
sea, but the yields are not so high as those obtained
in lower situations, and, in general, the temperature
is too low for perfect development at elevations of
more than 1,000 to 1,600 feet.

Soil. — The Manila hemp plant requires a loose, moist
soil, rich in humus, and well drained ; it will not
thrive on swampy land. The presence of a moderate
amount of potassium is necessary, and potash manures
should therefore be added if the soil is deficient in this
constituent. Plant ashes are commonly employed
for this purpose. It is probable that the presence of
large quantities of lime is also desirable. The con-
figuration of the land is of some importance, level
lands being usually more favourable than the hillsides,
except in districts with a very heavy rainfall.

Propagation. — The plant is usually propagated by
means either of root-cuttings or, most commonly, of
the suckers which arise at the base of the parent plant,
but sometimes it is grown from seed. In the latter
case, the seeds must be collected from fruits which
have not become over-ripe. They should be
thoroughly washed and afterwards soaked for several
hours and planted, 6 to 8 inches apart, at a depth of

MANILA HEMP 159

about an inch. The seedlings may be transplanted
after ten or twelve months.

Planting. — New plantations are usually established
on freshly cleared forest land. The young plants,
whether grown from suckers, rhizomes or seed, are
planted about 8 to 10 feet apart in straight rows, this
arrangement giving about 700 to 450 plants per acre
If possible, the ground should be well ploughed ;
this, of course, cannot be done on land which has
only just been cleared but, in such cases, the soil
must be well broken up round each plant. The
plantation requires very little attention subsequently,
but the larger weeds are usually cut down about twice
a year. In some cases, the growth of weeds is kept
down by planting camotes (sweet potatoes) or legu-
minous plants, such as cowpeas and velvet beans,
between the rows, but this should not be done until
the Manila hemp plants have attained a height of at
least 12 inches.

HARVESTING AND PREPARATION OF THE FIBRE

The fibre reaches its maximum tensile strength
shortly before the shoot flowers. At this stage, the
stalk is cut in a slanting direction a few inches from
the ground, and the leaf-sheaths are afterwards
stripped off. As a rule, cutting should not be com-
menced until the plant is from two to three years old.
Subsequent cuttings can be made every six or
eight months. The coarser and stronger fibre is
located in the outer part of the sheath, whilst the
fibre of the inner part is comparatively soft and weak.
For this reason, the outer layer is separated from the
inner portion, and the latter is usually thrown away.
The outer part is then cut into strips, about 2 to 3
inches in width, and each strip, while still fresh and
succulent, is drawn between the edge of a blunt
knife or " bolo " and a hard, smooth wooden block
attached to a light frame constructed of rattan
canes. By repeated scraping, all the soft, pulpy,
cellular tissue is removed, and the clean fibre remains
in the hands of the operator. The product is then

160 CORDAGE FIBRES

hung on bamboo poles or wire lines and allowed to dry
in the sun as rapidly as possible, and is afterwards tied
up in bundles and finally graded and baled for export.
It is of great importance that the fibre should be
thoroughly dry, as otherwise it is liable to become weak
and discoloured. The bales weigh about 275 Ib. each.

Machines have now been introduced into the
Philippines for extracting the fibre, and it is probable
that before long they will be adopted in all the larger
plantations, and the old methods of cleaning by hand
will gradually be superseded.

During the usual process of separating the strips,
part of the fibre is left attached to the inner layer of
the sheath, and in drawing the strips under the knife
a further quantity is lost. It is estimated that the
amount of waste created in these two operations is
not less than 30 per cent, of the total fibre.

YIELD

The freshly cut stalks weigh from 90 to 220 Ib.
each, and give from one to five Ib. of fibre. Accord-
ing to another estimate, the fresh stalks yield from
1 1 to 2\ per cent, of dry fibre. The yield per acre
depends on various factors, such as the method of
cultivation, the particular variety grown and the con-
ditions of soil and climate of the locality. The annual
yield varies from 3 cwts. to i ton per acre, \ ton per
acre being usually regarded as very satisfactory.

PROPERTIES, STRUCTURE AND USES OF THE FIBRE

The Manila hemp of commerce is composed of
strands from 6 to 10 feet long, which are generally
flattened and appear more or less oval in cross-section.
The colour varies from pale straw to brown, but when
the product has been carefully extracted and dried
it is nearly white and highly lustrous. The fibre is
very strong and tenacious, and is so light as to be
able to float on water.

The strands are composed of aggregations of small,
ultimate fibres which are from 0*08 to 0*12 inch long,
and have a diameter of 0*0005 to 0*0017 inch with an

MANILA HEMP 161

average of about O'ooi2 inch. The walls of these
ultimate fibres are of fairly uniform thickness and
enclose a large central cavity. The^ fibres taper
gradually at the ends and terminate either in a sharp
or slightly rounded point.

Air-dried Manila hemp usually contains from 10 to
12 per cent, of moisture, but the fibre is very hygro-
scopic, and, if exposed to an atmosphere saturated
with water-vapour, it is capable of holding as much as
50 per cent. The product consists of a somewhat
lignified form of cellulose. The examination of a
specimen of commercial Manila hemp of good quality
at the Imperial Institute gave the following per-
centage results: Moisture, 10*2; ash, ri ; loss on
o-hydrolysis, n'2; loss on /3-hydrolysis, 17*8; loss on
acid purification, r6 per cent. ; cellulose, 78-6 per cent.

As has already been stated, the principal use to
which Manila hemp is applied is for the manufacture
of ships' ropes and cables, for which purpose it is
particularly adapted by its great tensile strength
and its lightness. In the Philippines, some of the
finer qualities are woven into muslins and other
fabrics for the local market, and a small quantity
of the fibre is employed in upholstery, packing, and
brush-making. The waste material obtained in the
process of preparing the fibre can be utilised for
paper-making and yields paper of excellent quality.

GRADING AND COMMERCIAL VALUE

Irt grading Manila hemp, attention is directed
chiefly to the softness, colour and strength of the
fibre. These characters are dependent on a number
of factors, including the variety cultivated, the con-
ditions of soil and climate under which the crop is
grown, and the methods employed in extracting and
preparing the fibre. The quality also varies consider-
ably with the size of the stalk, large stalks yielding
darker, coarser and stronger fibre than smaller ones.
The position of the sheath in the stalk also has a great
influence on the nature of the product ; the fibre
becomes softer, whiter and weaker from the outside.

162

CORDAGE FIBRES

sheaths towards the centre, the innermost sheaths
yielding the softest, whitest and weakest.

In order to regulate the industry and to effect an
improvement in the quality of the fibre produced, a
compulsory grading system was introduced by the
Philippine Government in 1914, and standard grades
were established. The regulations came into force
on the ist January, 1915.

Manila hemp (well cleaned fibre) is graded into
" extra prime," " prime," " superior current,"
" good current," " midway," " current," " seconds,"
" brown," " damaged," " strings," and " tow."

Manila hemp strips (partially cleaned fibre) are
graded into " fair," " medium," " coarse," and
" coarse brown."

As an indication of the relative values of the
different grades, a list of prices quoted in the London
market in June, 1915, is given below.

Grade.

Extra Prime

Prime

Superior Current

Good Current

Midway

Current

Price per ton. Grade.

56-58

52-54
50-52
48-50
44-46
41-42

Seconds

Brown

Fair

Medium

Coarse

Coarse Brown

Price per ton.

• 38-39

• 36-38

• 37-38

• 32-33
. 28-29
. 27-28

PRODUCTION AND EXPORT

The growth of the Manila hemp industry of the
Philippines is shown by the following list of exports.

Total Exports of Manila Hemp

Year.
1818

1825
1840
1850
i860
1870
1880
1890

Tons. Year.

41

1900

276

1904

8,502

1909

8,561

1910

30,388

191 1

31,426

1912

50,482

I9U

67,864

I9J4

Tons.

89,438
121,637
165,299
160,595
146,208

172,347
117,904

MANILA HEMP 163

The chief importing countries are the United
States and the United Kingdom. The quantities
and values of the exports to the United Kingdom
during 1909-1915 were as follows :

IMPORTS INTO THE UNITED KINGDOM *

Year. Quantity. Value.

Tons.

1909 ^. . . 58,583

1910 . . . 64,106 1,520,199

1911 • • 75,449 1,647,542

1912 . . . 83,313 1,990,481

1913 . . 64,579 2,000,450
I9H • • • 54,206 1,396,593
1915 . . . 57,783 1,760,471

The great demand for Manila hemp has led the
growers to increase the production at the expense of
quality with the result that comparatively small
quantities of the better grades are now produced,
the great bulk of the exports consisting of the poorer
grades. In consequence of this large output of the
inferior qualities, prices fell very considerably after
1907. The following are the London market quota-
tions in January of each of the years 1906-1916 :

Date. Fair Current f Good Current.

Per ton. Per ton.
£ '• £ >.

1906 . . . 40 o 48 5

1907 . . . 42 o 53 o

1908 . . . 29 o 38 10

1909 • • . 23 10 33 15

1910 . . . 26 5 32 15

1911 . . 19 o 34 10

1912 . . . 21 10 34 10

1913 . . . 34 o 69 o
I9H • • • 27 15 57 o

1915 . . . 28 10 43 10

1916 . . . 56 10 63 10

* These figures include small quantities of "Maguey" fibre (see
p. 167).

f This grade was about equal or slightly superior to the " fair "
quality of the new grading system.

164 CORDAGE FIBRES

BANANA AND PLANTAIN FIBRES

Besides the Manila hemp plant, there are several
other species of Musa which bear fibrous leaf-sheaths.
Among these the most common is the ordinary
fruiting banana. The fibre extracted from this plant
is, however, generally much weaker than Manila hemp,
and would be of comparatively little value for cordage
manufacture. There are enormous quantities of
banana stems cut down after the fruit harvest and
thrown away, which presumably might be employed
for the production of fibre. It must be borne in
mind, however, that when the market values of other
cordage fibres, such as Manila and Sisal hemps, are
low, the fibre of the fruiting banana would only realise
very low prices and would not be profitable to extract .
It has been suggested that the banana leaf-sheaths
might well be employed on the spot for conversion
into pulp for paper-making. The product might
either be exported as pulp or manufactured into paper.
The erection of pulp or paper mills involves a large
initial outlay, but in the case of a country with a
large banana industry, it is possible that it might
yield a satisfactory return. On the other hand, it
has been pointed out that for the manufacture of one
ton of paper, no less than 132 tons of the raw material
would have to be handled, and that the cost of collect-
ing, cleaning, drying and crushing the material, and
converting it into pulp, would be very considerable.
Moreover, the class of paper produced would not be
of very good quality.

Experiments made in Jamaica in 1884 showed that
a banana stem after fruiting, which weighed 108 lb.,
yielded 25 oz. of clean fibre or about 1-44 per cent, of
its gross weight. The stems of the plantain, which is
used as a vegetable, gave yields amounting to about
2 per cent, of a fibre which was superior to the banana
fibre, being whiter and finer and more like Manila
hemp.

In the East Africa Protectorate, there is a banana
plant (Musa Livingstoniana) which grows wild in
several districts, and yields a fibre of good quality.

BANANA AND PLANTAIN FIBRES 165

Samples of this fibre have been examined at the
Imperial -Institute, and are described in Selected
Reports from the Scientific and Technical Department,
I.— Fibres (Cd. 4,588). They were regarded by
commercial experts as comparable with the best
fibres used for rope-making and similar to the
superior grades of Manila hemp, and it was stated
that such fibre would be readily saleable in the London
market.

The fibres of two other species growing in East
Africa, viz. M. Ensete and M. ulugurensis, have also
been examined at the Imperial Institute. These
fibres are prepared by the natives in a very primitive
manner, but samples from each species which were
forwarded to Germany in 1903 were reported by
experts to be of very good quality, though inferior
to true Manila hemp. The plants do not produce
suckers, and therefore can only be propagated from
the seeds, which in both cases germinate fairly easily.
The yield of fibre from Musa ulugurensis is small in
comparison with that from Musa textilis, the Manila
hemp plant, but it is possible that this disadvantage
may be compensated by the more rapid growth of the
former plant and by cheaper labour and improved
methods of fibre extraction.

The examination of these fibres at the Imperial
Institute showed that both are of a useful character,
that of M. Ensete being decidedly superior to that of
M. ulugurensis. Both products were regarded by
commercial experts as of very promising quality and
equal in value to high-grade Manila hemp.

Banana Fibre in West Africa. — Bananas and plan-
tains are cultivated in all parts of West Africa.
Specimens of fibre prepared from these plants in
Sierra Leone, the Gold Coast, and Southern Nigeria
have been investigated at the Imperial Institute.

Three samples forwarded from Sierra Leone in
1902 were of inferior quality, and although this was
largely due to defective preparation, it was still
considered unlikely that these fibres would be of value
for any but local uses.

A specimen received from Southern Nigeria in 1906

166 CORDAGE FIBRES

under the name of " Ndehe Ukom " was white, very
lustrous, of fair but uneven strength, but only about
2 feet long.

A specimen of well cleaned plantain fibre, which
was brownish-white and of good lustre, was for-
warded from the Gold Coast in 1907. The product
was of fair but very irregular strength and about
4 feet long. It was superior to other specimens of
plantain fibre which had been examined at the Imperial
Institute, and was regarded by commercial experts
as worth £40 per ton (with " good " Manila hemp at
£38 to £42 per ton). A sample of banana fibre,
which was forwarded at the same time, consisted of
well cleaned, brownish-white fibre, of good lustre, but
uneven diameter and very irregular strength. The
product was about 4 feet long, and very similar to
the preceding sample. It was valued at £36 per ton
(with " fair " Manila hemp at £35 to £36 per ton).

SISAL HEMP

Sisal hemp, so-called from the name of a port in
Yucatan, Mexico, whence it was first exported, is a
valuable cordage fibre, derived from the leaves of
Agave sisalana and certain other species of Agave.
These plants are members of the natural order
Amaryllidaceae ; they are commonly, but erroneously,
spoken of as " aloes " and must not be confounded
with the true aloe which is of widely different char-
acter. The Sisal plant has a short trunk bearing a
number of thick, fleshy leaves, which range from three
to six feet in length and from about four to six inches
in width. At a certain age, which varies in different
countries and seems to depend largely on the climatic
conditions, it throws up a " pole " or flowering stem
twenty to thirty feet high . The flowers are produced in
dense clusters at the ends of short lateral branches, and
after they have begun to wither buds arise in the axils
of the flower-stalks. From these buds arise small
plants, known as " bulbils, " which grow to the length
of a few inches, and then fall to the ground and, under
suitable conditions, take root. After the production
of the bulbils, the whole plant withers and dies.

SISAL HEMP 167

The Agaves are indigenous to South America
and the southern parts of North America, especially
Mexico. They have been introduced into many other
countries, including Florida, the Bahamas and other
parts of the West Indies, British Honduras, South
Africa, East Africa, West Africa, Madagascar, Mauri-
tius, India, Indo-China, the Dutch East Indies, the
Philippine Islands, the tropical parts of Australia,
Papua, Fiji, and Hawaii.

There are a great many different kinds of agave
in existence and so much confusion has arisen with
regard to their nomenclature that it is often extremely
difficult to establish the identity of plants yielding
commercial varieties of fibre. Comparatively re-
cently, however, Professor Lyster Dewey, of the
United States Department of Agriculture, has stated
that there are only three species which are concerned
with the question of the commercial production of
Sisal .hemp. These are as follows : (i) Agave four-
croydes, the Yucatan Sisal plant, which furnishes
over 90 per cent, of the world's supply ; the leaves
of this species bear marginal spines. It was formerly
known as A. rigida var. elongata, and occurs in Mexico,
Cuba, and South America, and has been introduced
into East Africa. (2) Agave sisalana. This species is
grown for local use by the natives of Central America
and Southern Mexico, but is not exported from Yuca-
tan to any great extent. It is cultivated com-
mercially in the Bahamas, West Indies, East Africa,
India, Indo-China, and to a small extent in Java.
(3) Agave Cantala. This is the " Maguey " plant
of the Philippine Islands, and is grown in limited
quantities in Java and India.

PRODUCTION

' The first attempts to introduce Sisal hemp into
commerce were made in Mexico in 1839. The fibre
was cleaned in a primitive manner, and was after-
wards packed in loose bales and sent to New York,
where it found a market but was not very remunera-
tive. The methods of preparation were so slow and

12

i68

CORDAGE FIBRES

tedious that, even with the cheap labour of that time,
the cost of production was discouraging. The State
Government, recognising the need for a suitable
machine to extract the fibre, offered a prize to the
inventor of an apparatus capable of producing a
certain quantity per hour. This offer resulted in the
invention of the " raspador " machine (seepage 175)
by a Franciscan friar and led to a gradual expansion
of the industry. The following figures illustrate the
development since 1880. In that year the exports
of " henequen " (as the product is termed in Mexico)
amounted to about 18,820 tons ; in 1885, 44,580 tons ;
in 1890, 46,680 tons ; in 1895, 63,900 tons ; in 1900,
83,270 tons ; in 1905, 99,500 tons. Since 1905, the
annual export has been, on the average, rather over
100,000 tons per annum. The value of the fibre
exported from Mexico in the year 1913 amounted to
over £3,000,000. A large proportion of the fibre
(over 90 per cent.) is exported to the United £>tates,
where it is employed for the manufacture of binder
twine used in harvesting the immense crops of the
Western States. The rest of the exports are con-
signed to European countries.

Imports of Sisal Hemp into the United States

From

1911.

1912.

1913-

1914.

I9J5. .

Tons.

Tons.

Tons.

Tons.

Tons.

Mexico .
Germany*
United Kingdom
British West

111,405

2,285
700

103,683

6,731
789

136,559
13,295
675

195,086
11,917
625

175,884
2,144
2,327

Indies f
Cuba
British India .
Dutch East In-

2,987
49

3,195
16

3,°23
44

3,659
I

M

2,935

i

4

dies
Philippine Islands
East Africa Pro-

87
32

—

—

3,325

2,150

tectorate
Other countries .

148
34

53

273

10

910

319

Total quantity .
Total value ' .

H7.727
£2,519,284

114,467
£2,472,259

153,869
£3,709,129

215,547
£5,387,652

185,764
£4,285,906

* Probably mostly or entirely derived from German East Africa.
{• Almost entirely from the Bahamas.

SISAL HEMP 169

The Sisal hemp or " Pita " plant has long been
acclimatised in the Bahamas, but was not seriously
regarded as worthy of systematic cultivation until
1888 when the Governor of the Islands took steps to
encourage the establishment of a local fibre industry.
During the next few years, several large undertakings
purchased extensive tracts of land and planted them
with the Sisal agave. The rapid growth of the in-
dustry is shown by the following data of the quanti-
ties and value of the fibre exported in certain years :

Year. Quantity. Value. Year. Quantity. Value.

Tons. £ Tons. £

1891 . 9 149

1892 . 30 692

1893 • 52 1,200

• 79

1895 . 242 3,987

1897 • 402 4,522

1899 . 607 16,942

1903 « i,439 38,805

1906 . 1,726 40,140

1909 . 2,610 48,805

1911 . 2,979 44,855

1912 . 3,600 66,427

1913 • 3,236 69,950

1914 . 2,502 46,685

The whole of the fibre exported from the Bahamas
enters the United States.

The production of Sisal hemp in India has not
assumed important dimensions, although it has
frequently been made a subject of commercial enter-
prise. The cultivation of agaves has been carried
on for several years on a plantation in Assam, but the
results have not been such as to warrant any great
extension of the industry. In the Coimbatore District,
Madras, the fibre has been extracted on a commercial
scale from plants growing beside the railway. Sisal
plantations have been established by several Euro-
pean undertakings in Madras, but the crop is not
attractive to the ryots. In the Central Provinces,
Agave Cantata is grown to some extent as a hedge-
plant, but comparatively little fibre is extracted.
Agaves also occur in Burma, but are not systematic-
ally grown for fibre. The actual amounts of Sisal
hemp exported from India are not known, as the
official returns do not class this fibre separately but
include it with Sunn or Bombay hemp (Crotalaria
juncea) under the general heading of " hemp."

170

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<;

CORDAGE FIBRES

In the Philippine Islands the produc-
tion of Sisal hemp or " Maguey " fibre
constitutes a comparatively small but
gradually increasing industry. The ex-
ports, which are consigned chiefly to the
United Kingdom and the Continent of
Europe, amounted to 875 tons in 1901 ;
1878 tons in 1905, and 4,484 tons in 191 1.

In the three following years the quantity
and value of the exports were as fol-
lows :

1912. 1913. 1914.

Quantity, tons 7,038 6,958 5,440
Value, £ . 114,436 123,115 86,887

The Sisal hemp plant was introduced
into East Africa in 1893. In that Year
the German East Africa Company ordered
i ,000 plants from Florida, but only 62 of
them survived the journey. These were
carefully tended in a plantation at Ki-
kogwe, and new plants were propagated
from them, so that in 1 898 the number
had increased to 63,000. In 1899, ma"
chinery was introduced for extracting
the fibre. By the beginning of 1900
there were as many as 1 50,000 plants
established, of which 4,000 were more
than three years old and were ready for
cutting. The first shipment of fibre was
made in 1900, and consisted of 7! tons,
of value £155. From this time forward
the industry progressed at a remarkable
rate, as is shown by the accompanying
table, which records the quantity and value
of the exports of the fibre from German
East Africa during the years 1905-1913.

In British East Africa, the cultivation
was started in 1903, experiments being
made first in the Nairobi District, and a
little later in other districts. The plants

SISAL HEMP 171

have reached maturity on many of the planta-
tions and the extraction of the fibre has been com-
menced. On a plantation of about 1,000 acres at
Punda Milia in the Fort Hall District, a factory has
been erected which is provided with machinery for
extracting and baling the fibre. Excellent results
have been obtained and consignments placed on the
market have been reported to be of high grade, and
have realised maximum prices. Machinery has also
been installed at Nyali on the mainland, opposite the
island of Mombasa, and at other places in the Pro-
tectorate. The industry has gradually extended, and
in 1913 about 7,000 acres were under cultivation.
Sisal plants grown at the coast yield a higher per-
centage of fibre than those grown in the highlands
and also furnish a finer fibre, but in the highlands a
larger yield per acre is obtained and the cost of labour
is less. The prospects of the industry appear very
promising both at the coast and in the highlands.

The exports of Sisal hemp from British East Africa
in the year 1913-14 were as follows:

To Quantity.

Cwts.

United Kingdom . 16,573
Germany . . . 8 1 1
United States . . 4,083

Total . . 21,467 12,525

In 1914-15, the total exports amounted to 33,621
cwts. of value £36,059.

The cultivation of Sisal hemp has been undertaken
recently in the Nyasaland Protectorate, and, in 1914,
about 400 acres in the Blantyre district were devoted
to this crop. The cultivation of experimental plots
at various altitudes in Nyasaland has shown that the
higher localities are too cold and that the most satis-
factory results are obtained below 2,500 feet.

Efforts are being made to establish a Sisal hemp in-
dustry in Papua, and in 1914 the area under cultivation
amounted to 3,110 acres. During the year 1913-14,
142 tons were exported, of the value of £3,633.

172 CORDAGE FIBRES

Experiments in Sisal hemp growing were com-
menced in Fiji in 1907, and satisfactory results were
obtained at the Nasinu and Lautoka Experiment
Stations, situated respectively in the wet and dry
regions of the island of Vitilevu, but the dry zone was
found to be best adapted to the crop. Efforts are
being made to encourage planters to take up the
cultivation.

Sisal hemp is also being grown in comparatively
small quantities in Mauritius, Jamaica and certain
other islands of the West Indies, and in Queensland
and the Northern Territory, Australia. Experiments
have been made in Uganda, Rhodesia, and various
other parts of the British Empire.

CULTIVATION

Climate and Soil. — The Sisal plant requires a
tropical climate with moderate atmospheric humidity.
It is very hardy, but is liable to be injured by excessive
rain.

It is usually stated that the plant flourishes on
rough, dry, stony or rocky soils which are unsuitable
for other crops, but there is little doubt that good
soils are not unfavourable. On poor soils, the plants
are of somewhat inferior appearance but yield leaves
containing a large proportion of fibre whilst, on rich
soils, longer leaves are produced which furnish com-
paratively less fibre. It is probable, however, that
in the latter case the greater length of the leaf more
than compensates for the lower percentage of fibre.
In general, it may be stated that the most suitable
soil is a dry, permeable, sandy loam, containing a
certain amount of lime. Good drainage is of great
importance as the roots of the plants are sensitive
to moisture and are liable to be seriously injured by
standing water.

Preparation of the Land. — The land selected for
a plantation should be fairly hilly in order to allow
of easy drainage. Most writers agree that it is not
necessary to break up the soil to any great extent,

•Frow */z0 Collections of the Imperial Institute

From the Collections of the Imperial Institute

SISAL HEMP PLANTS SHOWING LEAF-SCARS

L,autoka Experiment Station, Fiji

172]

SISAL HEMP 173

but the land must be cleared of trees and scrub,
and stumps must be uprooted in order to render the
surface even. On the other hand, it is stated that in
German East Africa the best results are obtained on
land' which has been thoroughly cleaned and well
hoed. In any case, it is essential that the under-
growth should be removed, as if the Sisal plants are
shaded the fibre becomes weak and inferior. The
land subsequently requires to be lightly hoed four or
five times a year in order to keep it free from weeds.

Planting. — The Sisal plant comparatively rarely
sets seed, and its propagation is therefore effected by
means either of bulbils, which are produced in the
manner already described (p. 166), or of suckers which
arise from the rhizome. The bulbils are usually
grown in nursery beds until about 8—12 inches high,
and are then planted out. Suckers can be planted
immediately after their removal from the parent
plant. Planting is generally carried out during the
rainy season, all fibrous roots and lower leaves having
been first removed to facilitate new growth. The
plants should be set in rows about 8 feet apart. The
distance between consecutive plants in the row
varies a good deal in practice, but probably 6 feet is
the most satisfactory, this arrangement admitting
about 900 plants per acre.

Harvesting and Yield. — The period whicfr must elapse
before harvesting can be begun varies in different
countries, but, in general, after about from three to
five years healthy plants will yield leaves ready for
cutting. The cutting is effected by means of a
special form of blade or sickle with a curved end.
Each leaf is cut off close to the trunk, care being
taken not to injure the younger leaves on the plant.
The number of leaves which can be cut per annum
varies greatly. It is estimated that in Mexico, each
plant yields about twenty-five leaves a year, whilst in
East Africa double that number are obtained. The
average weight of the leaves in the latter country is
about 2 lb., and the yield of dry fibre is approximately
3 per cent. Hence the yield of fibre per acre con-
taining 900 mature plants should amount to about

174 CORDAGE FIBRES

2,700 lb.; and a yield of at least a ton per acre may
therefore be anticipated.

As the result of actual trials carried out at Punda
Milia, it was found that 91 2 leaves, weighing 2, 2 63 lb.,
or an average of 2-48 lb. per leaf, yielded 52 J lb.
(2*32 per cent.) of dry, brushed fibre, equivalent to
about i lb. of fibre from seventeen leaves. The
plants from which these leaves were cut were spaced
8 feet x 8 feet, this arrangement giving 68 1 plants
per acre. Taking 1 60 as the average number of leaves
produced per plant during its life, the total yield per
acre, when calculated by means of the above figures,
is 6,240 lb., or a little less than 3 tons. As the plant
lives at Punda Milia for about three years after the
first leaves are ready for cutting, these observations
are in agreement with the estimated yield of one ton
per acre per annum given in the preceding paragraph.

Duration of Life of the Plant. — As has been already
stated, the duration of life is determined by the
production of the pole or inflorescence. In Mexico
the plants are said to live for fifteen or sometimes
even twenty-five years before poling, whilst in more
tropical countries they live a much shorter period,
the average length of life in German East Africa
being only about six years. In general, the duration
of the plant appears to be largely dependent on
conditions of soil and climate. It has been asserted
that the life may be prolonged by cutting out the
pole as soon as it appears above the leaves, the plant
being thus rendered available for fibre for nearly a
year longer than it would be otherwise, but experi-
ments which have been conducted in German East
Africa do not support this view. The early poling
of Sisal plants in East Africa has been much discussed
and has been regarded by some planters as a great
disadvantage. It appears, however, that the com-
paratively short life is due to the fact that there are
two growing seasons in this country, and growth is
checked twice a year, whereas in less tropical countries
there is only one growing season per annum. Thus
it is evident that the plant in East Africa lives through
approximately the same number of growing seasons

SISAL HEMP 175

as it does in other countries, but only about half as
many years. Moreover, the number of leaves pro-
duced per plant (on the average about 200) is roughly
the same in each case, and hence the comparatively
brief duration of life is rather an advantage than
otherwise as the total crop of the plant is produced
in a relatively shorter time.

Since the plants in a Sisal plantation do not all pole
at the same time, the work can be carried on con-
tinuously by the intercalary method sometimes
adopted in German East Africa. As the plant lives
for only about six years, cutting can only be carried
on for two or three years before it dies. New plants
are therefore continually being inserted between the
old ones, so that when one plant dies another is ready
for cutting, and the work of the plantation can proceed
without interruption. Some planters, however, do
not approve of this method, but prefer to let all the
plants in a plantation pole and die and then allow
the land to lie fallow for a year or more before re-
planting.

EXTRACTION AND PREPARATION OF THE FIBRE

The fibre is extracted from the leaves by a process
of crushing and scraping or " scutching. " The leaves
should be treated as soon as possible after they have
been cut, as otherwise the juices become dry and
gummy, thus rendering extraction more difficult.
They should be graded according to length before
being scutched, and the fibre of the different lengths
should be kept separate. The strands of fibre must
be kept as parallel as possible, and not be allowed
to become tangled. It must be borne in mind that
good white fibre of uniform length and carefully
cleaned and baled commands a much higher price than
mixed fibre, ill-cleaned and badly baled.

Modern machinery for Sisal hemp extraction is
based on the principle of the old " raspador " which
was the earliest form of machine employed in Mexico.
This machine consists of a wheel, like a four-foot
pulley, with a 6 inch face, and with pieces of brass

176 CORDAGE FIBRES

running across the face at intervals of about 12 inches.
The wheel runs in a heavy wooden case and makes
about 1 1 o revolutions per minute . The leaf is inserted
through a small hole in the case, and held firmly at
one end by a strong clamp whilst the rest of the leaf
is allowed to whip downwards as the wheel rotates.
A heavy block, like the brake of a car-wheel, is brought
by means of a lever on to the- leaf and presses it against
the revolving wheel. The leaf is thus crushed, and
the pulp and epidermal tissue are scraped away by
the brass strips and thrown into a pit under the wheel.
The fibre is then withdrawn, and the leaf reversed in
order that the other end may be cleaned in the same
manner.

In East Africa large, machines worked by power
are generally employed which are capable of extracting
from one to three tons of fibre per day. An illustrated
account of these and other machines has been pub-
lished in the Bulletin of the Imperial Institute, Vol.
XIII (191 5), pp. 440-442.

It is essential for the production of good, strong
fibre that immediately after leaving the machine it
should be well washed with clean water as otherwise
both strength and colour are impaired. The factory
must therefore be provided with an ample supply of
water. Drying is effected by hanging the fibre on
lines in the open air, care being taken that it does not
become wetted by rain. After drying, the appearance
of the product can be greatly improved by the use of a
brushing machine to ensure the removal of any par-
ticles of dried pulpy matter which may still adhere
to it.

COST OF PRODUCTION

The cultivation and extraction of Sisal hemp on a
remunerative scale require a large amount of capital,
as at least 500 acres must be planted to warrant the
erection of a factory and the installation of the neces-
sary machinery. The crop is therefore unsuitable for
individual planters, unless possessed of ample means,
but it can be grown with considerable profit by a
number of planters working in co-operation.

SISAL HEMP 177

The cost of cultivating Sisal hemp and preparing
it for the market varies greatly in different countries,
and depends on the climate, soil, labour supply and
other local conditions. The following results, based
on actual experience at Punda Milia in the East
Africa Protectorate, are of interest in this connection.
The establishment of a plantation of 1,000 acres
requires a capital of £4,000. The cost of machinery
required to prepare the fibre from the leaves produced
on a plantation of this size is £5,000. A return can-
not be expected until four years after the plantation
has been established. As already stated, one ton
of dry fibre per acre per annum may be anticipated for
three years from the date of the first cutting. The
cost of producing a ton of dry fibre is about £12,
including £i per ton for transport to the railway.

It is estimated that in German East Africa the net
profit varies between 15 and 30 percent., depending
on the current price of the fibre. The crop possesses
several advantages, among which may be mentioned
that it is almost immune from the attack of insects
and practically free from disease, and that the manu-
facture of the fibre can be carried on more or less
continuously throughout the year.

CHARACTERS AND PROPERTIES OF SISAL HEMP

Sisal hemp consists of strands or filaments from
3 to 5 feet long, of a nearly white or pale yellowish
colour. It is very strong but a little harder and less
flexible than Manila hemp. The fibre from different
sources varies a good deal in diameter. The strands
are composed of a mass of ultimate fibres about 2-5
millimetres (o'o8-o'2 inch) long, which are polygonal
in transverse section and have a large polygonal
lumen. The fibre substance consists of a lignified
form of cellulose. The commercial value of the
product depends chiefly on its length, strength, colour,
and freedom from pulpy matter of the leaves which
sometimes adheres to the fibre owing to inefficient
cleaning.

178 CORDAGE FIBRES

COMMERCIAL VALUE

The market price of the fibre fluctuates in sympathy
with that of Manila hemp. The average value of the
best Mexican Sisal hemp on the London market during
the years 1 907-1 9 1 4 was about £2 5 per ton . The best
fibre from East Africa usually realises £i or more per
ton in advance of that of the Mexican product. The
extent to which the price is liable to fluctuation is
illustrated by the following statistics. During 1908,
Mexican Sisal was quoted at from £25 to £27 per
ton. In 1909, the price fell gradually from £26 in
January to £24 in April, and then rose rapidly to
£29 i os., and remained at that figure from June to
December. During 1910, the value gradually declined
from £29 i os. in January to £20 in December. In the
first half of 1911, the price was about £ 19-^20, but
rose during the second half of the year to £22 los.
During the months of January to June 1912, quota-
tions varied from £24 105. to £25 ios., but during the
latter half of the year the value rose to £37 ios. in
November, and subsequently fell to £35 ios. per ton.
The price remained at about this figure until September,
1913, and then fell until in December the fibre was
quoted at about £28 per ton. In 1914, prices declined
somewhat during the first six months of the year,
remained at about £26 ios. during July and August,
and during the last four months fluctuated between
£20 and £25 per ton. During 1915 considerable em-
barrassment was caused in the trade, owing to the
political situation in Mexico and the increased
freights due partly to the European war, and prices
were therefore very erratic and uncertain, rising to-
wards the end of the year to about £38 per ton.

UTILISATION OF SISAL REFUSE

In the course of extracting the fibre from agave
leaves, a large quantity of refuse is produced. A
good deal of consideration has been devoted to deter-
mining the best way of utilising this material. At the
present time, the greater part of it appears to be used

SISAL HEMP 179

in the plantation itself for application to the soil.
It has been stated, however, that it is better to dry
and burn the refuse and employ the ashes as a manure
than to apply the fresh or dried refuse directly to the
soil. Lommel (DerPflanzer, 1911, VII, 531) has found
that 100 Ib. of the dry refuse yield about 13 Ib. of ash,
which contains about 80 per cent, of carbonate of
lime, ii per cent, of carbonate of potash, and 4 per
cent, of phosphate of lime.

The refuse has also been suggested as a possible
material for paper-making, and it has been stated that
a company has been formed in Mexico for the utilisa-
tion not only of the leaf refuse but also of the stumps
of the plants for the purpose. It is proposed to erect
a mill in Yucatan, capable of working up 15 to 20
tons of the raw material per day. The work is to be
restricted at first to the manufacture of half-stuff for
export. Trials have been made at a mill in New
Orleans, which show that the material yields a very
strong paper.

It has also been suggested that the leaf refuse could
be used as a source of alcohol, but considerable diffi-
culty is found in fermenting it. It may be mentioned,
however, that a factory has been established in
Mexico for this purpose.

A patent has been taken out in Germany for the
extraction of oxalic acid and a wax, resembling
Carnauba wax, from the refuse.

The utilisation of Sisal leaf waste in the fresh form
as a feeding stuff for stock is reported to have given
fairly satisfactory results. The waste contains a
moderately high percentage of sugar, and it has been
thought that it might also give good results when
used in the dry form and in admixture with other food
materials.

SISAL HEMP IN WEST AFRICA

In 1890 specimens of the leaves of an agave were
received in this country from Sherbro in Sierra
Leone where the plant is known as " Wild Sarsapa-
rilla." The leaves were identified at Kew as those

iSo CORDAGE FIBRES

of a form of Agave rigida (Kew Bulletin, 1892, p. 36),
and it was evident, therefore, that at some time or
other the Sisal hemp plant had been introduced into
West Africa. It is not improbable that the agave
would be well adapted to cultivation in some parts of
the country.

A small sample of Sisal hemp was forwarded from
Sierra Leone to the Imperial Institute in the early
part of 1907, and consisted of fairly lustrous fibre
which was well cleaned and prepared, and was of fair
strength, but of somewhat uneven colour and only
22-27 inches long. The product was regarded as
worth about £28-^30 per ton, but if it had had a
length of about 4 feet its value would have approxi-
mated to that of Mexican Sisal hemp, which was then
quoted at about £35 per ton.

Experiments in Sisal hemp cultivation are being
made in the Northern Territories, Gold Coast, but the
plants are not yet ready for cutting.

During recent years, Sisal hemp has been grown
on a small scale in Togo ; a consignment exported in
1912 was considered to be equal in quality to the fibre
produced in German East Africa. Experiments on
the cultivation of the Sisal agave have also been
carried out in Dahomey, and in Senegal and the French
Sudan.

ZAPUPE FIBRE

Reference may be made here to a fibre closely
allied to Sisal hemp and known as " Zapupe " fibre.
The name " Zapupe " has been applied to several
species of Mexican agaves, of which A. Zapupe and A.
Lespinassei are the most important. The former is
known as the " blue Zapupe " or " Estopier," whilst
the latter is the " green Zapupe " or " Tepezintla."
The fibre has lately been produced on a commercial
scale in the neighbourhood of Tuxpam and also in the
northern parts of Vera Cruz. It is claimed that the
plant bears leaves ready for cutting at a much earlier
age than the Sisal agave, that it gives a larger yield
of fibre per plant, and has a greater longevity. The
fibre is of excellent quality and equal in value to Sisal

MAURITIUS HEMP 181

hemp ; the strands are usually somewhat finer than
those of the latter fibre.

MAURITIUS HEMP

The Mauritius hemp plant, Purer cea gigantea, is
a member of the same natural order as the agaves, viz.
Amaryllidaceae, and has a similar habit. It has thick,
fleshy leaves and produces an inflorescence or " pole/'
which reaches a height of 20 to 30 feet and bears
numerous bulbils, the life of the plant is usually
about seven to ten years, and leaves can therefore be
cut for about four or five years before the plant
" poles " and afterwards withers and dies.

Furcrcea gigantea occurs widely in tropical America,
and has been introduced into Mauritius, St. Helena,
India, Ceylon, Algeria, Natal, Nyasaland, the East
Africa Protectorate, Uganda, Rhodesia, the West
Indies, Australia, and other countries.

The fibre is produced in commercial quantities
chiefly in the island of Mauritius, although there is
no doubt that it could be readily grown in many other
countries.

The plant is known in Mauritius as " aloes " and
is said to have been first introduced into the island
from South America about the year 1790 as an
ornamental garden plant. In 1837 it had established
itself in several parts of the island, and, although
receiving no attention, it gradually spread over waste
lands and abandoned sugar estates, until in 1872
the plants were so abundant as to suggest their
utilisation for the extraction of fibre. An industry
was started about the year 1875, and has continued up
to the present time.

Until recently, little, if any, systematic cultivation
was practised in Mauritius, but during the last ten years
plantations have been established, and it has been
found that better results can be obtained in this way
than by depending on the wild plants. The plant is
found more or less in all parts of the island, and
especially on the uncultivated coast lands. It re-
produces itself by means of the bulbils, which fall

182

CORDAGE FIBRES

to the ground in sufficient quantities to ensure rapid
multiplication.

The fibre is usually extracted in Mauritius by means
of the machine known as the " gratte " or " scraper/'
which is manufactured locally and somewhat resembles
the raspador which is so largely used in Mexico for
the preparation of Sisal hemp (page 175). After
leaving the machine the product is thoroughly washed
with water, then soaked in a soap solution for 36-48
hours, again washed with water, and afterwards hung
on wooden rails to dry in the sun. It is then brushed
and made into bales of about 500 Ib. for export. The
fibre is classed according to its colour into " prime, "
" good," " good fair," and " fair " grades.

The yield of dry fibre from the fresh leaves usually
varies from 2 to 2*5 per cent., whereas in the case of
Sisal hemp a yield of about 3 per cent, or more is
obtained. It is probable that one acre of planted
Furcrcea would give about 50,000-60,000 leaves,
yielding from f to i ton of marketable fibre.

The quantities and value of the fibre exported
during the years 1894-1915 are given in the following
table :

Year.

Tons.

£

Year.

Tons.

4

1894 .

844

n,435

1905

1,648

36,202

1895 .

1,291

27,116

1906

1,919

47,282

1896 .

950

16,889

1907

2,834

63,231

1897 .

1,165

16,167

1908

2,108

39,966

1898 .

I,472

28,475

1909

1,849

33,897

1899 .

2,214

37,735

1910

1,989

4i,833

I9OO .

3,056

62,695

I9II

2,104

40,37i

1901 .

1,223

22,623

1912

2,214

45,465

I9O2 .

2,111

60, 1 20

1913

2,867

56,904

1903 .

i,49S

35,335

1914

1,869

38,948

1904 .

1,890

40,225

1915

1,313

3i,742

The product is almost entirely shipped to the
United Kingdom, whence the greater part of it has
been usually re-exported, mainly to Germany.

It is evident from these figures that the prices
obtained for Mauritius hemp are liable to considerable
variation. These fluctuations, like those of Sisal

MAURITIUS HEMP 183

hemp, take place more or less in accordance with the
Manila hemp market. The values of all these fibres
in London were very high at the en.jj.pf 1905 and the
beginning of 1906, when " good fair " Mauritius hemp
was quoted in London at about £30 per ton. The
price fell rapidly during 1907, until in March 1908
it had reached £19 105. per ton. The value then
remained fairly constant, fluctuating between £19
and £21 i os. until the latter part of 1909, when a
gradual rise took place. During 1910, the price
varied between £24 and £27, and in 191 1 between £23
and £25. The value rose slightly during 1912, reach-
ing a maximum of £28 IDS. in November and falling
to £27-^27 i os. per ton in December.

During 1913 and 1914, " prime " qualities fluctu-
ated between £26 and £32, "good white " between
£23 and £28 i os., and " fair " between £21 and £26 per
ton. Towards the end of 1915, the price of " prime "
rose to £34-^36, and that of " good white " to £32-
£34 per ton.

Mauritius hemp resembles Sisal hemp in its general
properties, but is usually somewhat finer, softer and
weaker than the latter. It is chiefly employed for
rope manufacture, and especially for mixing with
Manila and Sisal hemps for the production of medium
grades of cordage.

It does not seem likely that any great extension of
the Furcrcea industry will take place in Mauritius.
There is no doubt, however, that the plantations
which are being established will involve only a small
expense for cultivation and upkeep, and this will be
largely compensated by the diminution in the cost
of collection and transport of the leaves, which usually
forms a considerable proportion of the cost of produc-
tion, owing to the plants being distributed over wide
areas and Often at a great distance from the factory.
It is recommended that the plants should be laid out
in rows about 4 or 5 feet apart, and with the same
distance between successive plants in each row. It
is stated that the leaves can be cut about four years
after planting, and subsequent cuttings made every
eighteen to twenty-four months until the plant dies.

13

184 CORDAGE FIBRES

About thirty years ago, Purer ceo, gigantea was
introduced into Natal and has since spread along the
coast lands, ^b; serious attempt was made about
twelve years ago to cultivate the plant in the vicinity
of Port Shepstone. Plantations were established,
encouragement was given to the settlers to plant
small areas with this crop, and a mill was erected and
equipped with the needful machinery. The planta-
tions were afterwards neglected, but were reclaimed
in 1906, and modern machinery was installed. The
transport of the leaves to the factory was found to be
a heavy expense, but this could have been consider-
ably reduced, either by laying down tram-lines or
erecting machinery in the plantations. With regard
to the collection of the leaves, it was found that the
best results were secured by cutting from seven to
nine leaves each month. About 1,000 acres are now
devoted to the crop, and the average yield is about
one ton of dry fibre per acre. A small export trade
has been established, and the product has realised
good prices in the London market.

Furcrcea gigantea also grows well in Nyasaland, and
produces fibre of excellent quality throughout the
Protectorate up to elevations of 2,900 feet. During
the last few years, plantations have been established,
especially in the Blantyre district, and small quanti-
ties of the fibre are now being produced for export.

Another species, F. cubensis, grows readily in
Tobago and Trinidad and in many other tropical
countries, and is said to yield a strong, lustrous fibre.
The yield of dry fibre varies from 2 to 3 per cent,
of the weight of the fresh leaves.

The cultivation of Mauritius hemp does not appear
to have been attempted in British West Africa, except
on a small experimental scale in parts of Nigeria and
in the Northern Territories, Gold Coast. Experi-
ments have been carried out in Senegal, however,
and have given very satisfactory results.

Samples of the fibre of Furcrcea cubensis were for-
warded to the Imperial Institute from Sierra Leone
in 1902 and 1905. It is stated that the plant from
which this fibre was derived is not indigenous to the

BOWSTRING HEMP 185

country, but was probably introduced from Kew.
The fibre was 3-4 feet long and of satisfactory colour,
but was inferior to that of F. gigantea.

BOWSTRING HEMP (Sansevieria spp.)

There are numerous species of Sansevieria (natural
order Liliaceae), the leaves of which yield fibre suitable
for use in cordage manufacture and known as " bow-
string hemp." These plants are abundant in tropical
Africa, and also occur in Ceylon, India, the Dutch
East Indies and China. The fibres resemble Sisal
hemp in general properties, but there is a considerable
diversity in character between the products derived
from different species. The leaves arise from the
base of the plant, and vary in length from 2 to 6 feet
or more. They are of a fleshy and succulent nature,
but whilst those of certain species, such as S.guineensis,
are comparatively flat and wide, others, such as those
of S. Ehrenbergiij are thick and narrow. The plants
possess large, thick underground stems or rhizomes
which, in some species, throw out more or less
numerous branches.

The Sansevierias require a temperature of not
less than 60° F., and demand a humid climate and a
certain amount of shade. Most species prefer a rich,
moist, loamy soil, but S. Ehrenbergii generally grows
on arid land. When planted in a favourable environ-
ment, the plants grow rapidly and become perman-
ently established by means of their rhizomes. Hitherto
fibre has been extracted from wild plants only, but
in order to create a lasting industry it would be
necessary to have recourse to systematic cultivation.
Propagation can be effected by means of cuttings of
the rhizomes ; in some cases the leaves, or portions
of them, if embedded in moist earth to a depth of
about 2 inches, will throw out fibrous roots and sub-
sequently develop suckers.

The fibre is extracted from the leaves of these plants
by methods similar to those employed in the prepara-
tion of Sisal hemp.

186 CORDAGE FIBRES

Several species of Sansevieria, including S. guineen-
sis, S. Ehrenbergii, S. cylindrica, S. sulcata, S. Stuckyi
and S. Volkensis, grow wild over extensive areas of
the East Africa Protectorate, and in 1905 the extrac-
tion of fibre, chiefly of S. Ehrenbergii, was under-
taken on a commercial scale in the neighbourhood of
Voi. An account of this enterprise will be found in
the Bulletin of the Imperial Institute (1907, V, 24-31).
More recently, however, the preparation of this fibre
has declined and attention has been transferred to the
cultivation of Sisal hemp (see page 170).

Sansevieria Ehrenbergii grows over large areas in
elevated and moist districts of Somaliland, and during
1908-1910 some quantity of the fibre was prepared
and exported . The industry has now been abandoned .
This fibre has also been extracted in Abyssinia.

The fibre of S. Ehrenbergii possesses a peculiarity
which seems to be a definite characteristic of the pro-
duct of this particular species, and consists of a very
marked variation in the diameter of the fibrous strands
or filaments. The fibre from the interior of the leaf
is fine, whilst that from the more external portions is
very coarse. The diameter of the finer fibre varies
from about 0*001 inch to 0*0055 inch, whilst that of
the coarser strands attains to as much as 0*0 1 8 inch.
In preparing the fibre for the market, the greater
part of the finer fibre is usually combed out and lost.

S. cylindrica is found in Africa from Zanzibar in
the east to Angola in the west. Small quantities of
the fibre have been exported from Angola, where it
is known as " Ife* " hemp.

Sansevieria guineensis has a wide distribution, and
is found in Central America, the West Indies, West and
East Africa and Mauritius. In the Zambesi region,
the fibre is known as " Konje " hemp. The fibre is
white, fine, of even diameter and of excellent strength.

This species grows under the shade of trees in a
narrow belt along the coast of Sierra Leone. It also
flourishes in inland districts, and has been cultivated
at Lumley and Mabang. In order to create a profit-
able industry in this fibre, it would be necessary to
employ machinery for its extraction, but the plants

NEW ZEALAND HEMP 187

are not sufficiently abundant in any one locality to
warrant the introduction of machines. Facilities
have been offered by the Government for the estab-
lishment of plantations, but these have not been
taken advantage of to any great extent. Samples
of fibre of S. guineensis from Sierra Leone and from
the Gold Coast have been examined at the Imperial
Institute, and found to be of excellent quality and
suitable for use with the finest Manila hemp. Speci-
mens of the fibre have also been received at the
Imperial Institute from Southern Nigeria under the
name of " Ojakoko " fibre.

S. Roxburghiana has long been grown in India and
the fibre, known as " Murva " fibre, is used by the
natives for making ropes, mats and coarse cloth. The
leaves are from 3 to 4 feet long.

S. zeylanica, another Indian species, which is cultiv-
ated in Ceylon, bears leaves which are only about
2 feet long and are therefore of less value for fibre.

NEW ZEALAND HEMP

The fibre known as New Zealand hemp or New
Zealand flax is obtained from the leaves of Phormium
tenax, a member of the natural order Liliaceae. It was
first introduced to the notice of Europeans by Captain
Cook, who states (A Voyage to the Pacific Ocean, 1785,
vol., i., p. 149) that there is a plant " which deserves
particular notice here, as the natives make their gar-
ments of it, and it produces a fine, silky flax, superior
in appearance to anything we have, and probably at
least as strong. It grows everywhere near the sea,
and in some places a considerable way up the hills,
in bunches or tufts, with sedge-like leaves, bearing on
a long stalk yellowish flowers, which are succeeded
by a long, roundish pod, filled with very thin, shining,
black seeds."

The plant exists in several varieties. The long
sword-shaped leaves grow in opposite rows and clasp
one another at the base; each leaf is folded in two
longitudinally, the outer surface being shiny and the
inner surface dull. The leaves of some varieties are

i88 CORDAGE FIBRES

from 5 to 6 feet or more in length, whilst those of others
are much shorter.

The smaller varieties are grown on high and dry
lands ; they yield a finer fibre and are much more
easily stripped than the larger plants grown on
marshy land.

Phormium tenax is indigenous to New Zealand, and
is also found in Norfolk Island and other parts of
Australia. It has been distributed to the Azores,
St. Helena, Algeria, the south of France, Natal, South
India, and California. The plant has also been intro-
duced into the south of Ireland, and flourishes on the
south-west coast of Scotland. It is planted in the
Scilly Isles in order to resist encroachments of the sea,
and has been cultivated in the Orkney Islands.

In the south of New Zealand the plant is not found
far from the sea nor at a great elevation ; in the North
Island it grows best near the coast, but is also found
abundantly in the interior up to a height of 2,000 feet.

CULTIVATION

In order to obtain Phormium tenax fibre of good
quality, the plant must be cultivated on suitable soil,
although almost any soil is capable of supporting its
growth. The plant thrives best on a rich, moist,
well-drained soil, and is found in its greatest luxuri-
ance in the vicinity of swamps and rivers upon moist,
alluvial soil. It also grows well on a rich, dry, clay
soil with a yellow clay sub-soil, especially if sheltered
from the wind and at the same time provided with
plenty of light and air. The plant does not give good
results on stagnant marshes, but grows well after such
swamps have been drained. Drainage is effected by
means of open trenches of a depth sufficient to keep
the water about 12 inches below the surface. In the
dry summer months these drains may be temporarily
stopped, if desired, in order to irrigate the soil. Allu-
vial soil is ploughed in the winter or spring, and left
to dry until the autumn, when it is again ploughed.
Planting is then carried out, usually in March or April,
when the autumn rains commence. Early planting

NEW ZEALAND HEMP 189

is advantageous, as the plants put out roots during
the winter and are thus enabled to grow vigorously
with the advent of spring.

Propagation can be effected by means of seed or by
division of the roots. The former method is not
satisfactory, since the early growth of the plant is
very slow and the seedlings are apt to develop char-
acters different from those of the parent plants. The
usual plan is to plant out the roots at a distance of
6 feet from one another in rows 6 feet apart, this
arrangement giving about 1,000 plants to the acre.
It is not improbable, however, that it would be more
advantageous to allow not more than 4 feet between
the rows and 3 feet between consecutive plants, as in
this case the plants would shelter one another and
would produce finer fibre, whilst at the same time a
larger crop would be obtained per acre. Should the
land become impoverished as a result of planting so
closely, manuring must be resorted to. According to
another method, ten or twelve rows of plants are set
in close proximity, and then a road-space of 10 or 12
feet is left in order to facilitate the gathering of the
leaves.

One Phormium plant yields from twenty to thirty
roots suitable for transplanting. Some difference of
opinion exists as to the number of roots which should
be planted together. If the plants are being set wide
apart, two or three roots may be placed in one spot,
but if close planting is adopted, one root is sufficient.
Care must be taken to avoid planting roots which have
borne a seed-stem or those from the centre of an old
plant, since these are not so productive and are liable
to flower, the nourishment being thereby diverted
from the leaves. Flower-stalks must be removed as
early as possible, and the wound rubbed with a little
dry earth to prevent " bleeding."

The Phormium tenax plants usually grow together
in tufts or bunches containing, on the average, ten
shoots, each bearing five leaves ; thus each group of
plants has about fifty leaves. The leaves vary in
length from 3 to 10 feet, and are not ready for cutting
until the plants are from five to eight years old.

igo CORDAGE FIBRES

according to the conditions under which they are
grown. In New Zealand the leaves are usually cut
in December or January. If two or three of the
centre leaves of each plant are left untouched, a crop
of three or four leaves can be obtained each year.

The suitability of the leaves for cutting is judged by
their texture and firmness, or by a splitting at the
apex, or the recurving of the blade from the midrib.
As already stated, only the outer leaves should be
cut ; in order not to injure the leaves enclosing the
central shoot, the knife is inserted between the leaves,
and the outer leaves are cut downwards and out-
wards.

PREPARATION OF THE FIBRE

The method of extraction practised by the natives,
who use only the upper part of the leaf and only one
side of it, consists in scraping away the softer tissues
with the edge of a mussel-shell and subsequently
soaking the fibre in water and drying it. Early in
the last century considerable quantities of fibre were
prepared in this way, 60 tons, of total value £2,600,
being exported in 1828, 841 tons in 1830, and no less
than 1,062 tons in 1831 . The fibre thus produced by
the natives is of much finer quality than that obtained
by the use of machinery.

There are several machines which are used for
extracting New Zealand hemp, but they are all con-
structed on the same principle. The leaf is intro-
duced between horizontal, fluted, revolving feed-
rollers, by which it is crushed and held securely while
being scraped. As it passes out, the epidermis and
parenchymatous tissue are stripped off by means of a
beating-drum, revolving more rapidly than the feed-
rollers and carrying flanges on its periphery which
press the leaf against a bar and thus exert a scraping
action. An arrangement is provided for adjusting
the distance between this bar and the drum, so that
neither can the leaf pass through unstripped nor the
fibres be cut. Vulcanised indiarubber cushions or
steel springs are placed over the journals of the upper

From the Collections of the Imperial Institute

HARVESTING NEW ZEALAND HEMP LEAVES

.From the Collections of the Imperial Institute

STRIPPING NEW ZEALAND HEMP

jgo]

NEW ZEALAND HEMP 191

feed-roller so as to accommodate the varying thickness
of the leaves. The quality of the fibre produced
depends largely on the form of the scrapers or beaters
and the speed of revolution of the drum, but more on
the ease and accuracy with which the machine can be
adjusted.

After leaving the machine the fibre is cleaned by
means of revolving brushes, which brush off all the
pulpy matter left on it from the stripping-drums.
The product is, in some cases, passed through a
" finishing " machine, by which the strands of fibre
are divided into finer filaments. The fibre is soaked
in water for a time, then spread out in the sun to be
bleached, and afterwards hung on lines to dry. The
dry fibre is made up into hanks of about 5 Ib. each,
and these are packed in bales of about 400 Ib. and
pressed for shipment.

YIELD

The yield of fibre from the green leaf of Phormium
tenax is usually given as about 10 to 14 per cent.

It is stated that there is a great difference in the
yield per acre afforded by ordinary swamp flax, that
is, Phormium grown in the ordinary way, and the
cultivated plant. The average yield of green leaves
from an acre of uncultivated ilax is 10 to 15 tons, rich
lands sometimes furnishing as much as 25 tons, whilst
an acre of cultivated flax grown on good soil yields
45 to 55 tons. Moreover, the cultivated plant gives a
much higher percentage of fibre ; the yield is one ton
of fibre from 7 tons of leaves of the cultivated plant,
and one ton from 8 or 9 tons of uncultivated. *The
fibre from the cultivated plant is also of better quality
than that from the uncultivated.

The cost of production varies to some extent accord-
ing to the locality and the conditions, but it has been
estimated that at Wairoa a ton of fibre ready for
shipment costs about £14 to produce.

192 CORDAGE FIBRES

CHARACTERS, PROPERTIES AND USES OF THE FIBRE

New Zealand hemp is a lustrous, soft, flexible fibre
and varies in colour from nearly white to pale reddish-
brown.

The bundles of ultimate fibres form filaments of
unequal thickness, but these filaments can be separated
into finer strands by friction. It is for this reason
that the hand-prepared fibre is so much finer than that
prepared by machinery. The former is said to be as
soft as fine flax, and suitable for the manufacture of
fine textiles. The machine-prepared fibre, however,
being coarser, is chiefly used for the manufacture of
rope, twine, and floor-matting.

Microscopical examination shows that the ultimate
fibres vary from 0*12 to 0*75 inch in length, and from
0*0004 to 0*0008 inch in diameter, and are regular
and uniformly thickened. The surface is smooth and
free from markings or striations. The fibre substance
is strongly lignified.

PRODUCTION AND EXPORT

When the colonists first arrived in New Zealand,
the valuable qualities of the Phormium fibre were well
known, as it was in constant use by the natives, and
constituted the first article of barter in the trade
carried on by the Maoris with Europeans. A very
considerable trade in the fibre existed as early as 1828
(see p. 190), when the Islands were only visited by
whalers and Sydney traders, £50,000 worth being sold
in Sydney between 1828 and 1832. A factory for the
manufacture of articles from New Zealand hemp was
established at Grimsby in Lincolnshire in 1832, but
failed for some unexplained cause, notwithstanding
that the results at the time were regarded as satis-
factory. From 1853 to 1860 the average annual
value of the fibre exported was £2,500 reaching as
much as £5,000 in 1855 ; but up to that time the only
fibre exported was that prepared by native labour, no
machinery of any kind being used. In 1860, there-
fore, when the native disturbances affected the

From the Collections of the Imperial Institute

DRYING NEW ZEALAND HEMP

From the Collections of the Imperial Institute

GRADING NEW ZEALAND HEMP

[193

NEW ZEALAND HEMP 193

Waikato and other interior districts of the North
Island, the production was confined to the native
tribes north of Auckland, so that in 1861 the export
fell to two tons, of value £43. Attempts were then
made to devise machinery by means of which the fibre
could be profitably extracted by European labour.
About this time the increasing demand for white rope
and the limited quantity of Manila hemp available
led to a rise in the value of New Zealand hemp from
£21 to £56 per ton, and even to £76 in America during
the Civil War. These high prices stimulated the
endeavour to introduce Phormium to compete with
Manila, and several machines were invented for pro-
ducing the fibre rapidly from the green leaf. With
these machines the export trade again increased, so
that from 1866 to 1871 the yearly average was about
£56,000. The total quantity exported between 1864
and 1876 amounted to 2.6,434 tons, valued at £592,218.
In order to encourage the industry, the New Zealand
Department of Agriculture has repeatedly offered
bonuses for a machine or process which should be an
improvement on the machines or processes in use,
and which should be found to reduce materially the
cost of production, improve the product, or increase
the yield of dressed fibre. Another bonus has been
offered for a process for utilising the waste products
of the hemp. As a result of these offers, improve-
ment has been effected in various machines, including
those for converting scutching wraste into market-
able tow and those for washing and trimming the
fibre, whilst a new automatic scutching machine
has been invented.

GRADING

Owing to the complaints of rope and cordage manu-
facturers with regard to the lack of uniformity in
New Zealand hemp, parcels bought under the same
classification and shipped from the same port varying
in colour and preparation, the Government passed an
Act in 1 901 providing for the establishment of a grading

194

CORDAGE FIBRES

station for the compulsory grading of all hemp ex-
ported. As a result of this, the quality of the fibre
rapidly improved, and the confidence of buyers was
secured. The system employed in grading hemp
for shipment consists in giving points according to the
following scale : —

Stripping, 25 ; colour, 25 ; scutching, 25 ; strength,
25 ; total, 100.

The highest grade, " superior," must score 90 marks
or over ; " fine," 80-89 ; " good fair," 70-79 ;
" fair," 60-69 ; " common," 50-59 ; " rejected,"
under 50. To each bale a tag is affixed stating the
grade of the fibre and bearing the signature of the
grader.

The compulsory grading system has now been
extended to tow, according to the following scheme :
No. i Grade, 80-100 marks ; No. 2 Grade, 60-79 ;
No. 3 Grade, 40-59 ; below 40 marks, condemned as
unfit for export. By far the greater part (over 90
per cent .) of the New Zealand hemp exported is of the
" good fair " and " fair " grades.

EXPORTS

The following table gives the quantity and value
of the exports of New Zealand hemp for every fifth
year from 1856 to 1906, and for each year from 1909
to 1915 : —

Year.

1856

1861

1866
1871
1876

1881
1886
1891
1896

Quantity.

Value. Year.

Tons.

i

22

552

1901

2

43

1906

45

996

1909

4,248

90,611

1910

897

18,285

1911

1,308

26,285

1912

1,1 12

15,922

1913

15,809

281,514

1914

2,968

32,985

1915

Quantity.

Value.

Tons.

i

10,171

195,728

27,779

776,106

14,318

306,973

20,645

448,414

17,366

300,201

18,461

367,264

28,092

721,924

19,702

455,214

23,220

571,621

In 1913, 28,092 tons of New Zealand hemp of value

NEW ZEALAND HEMP

195

£721,924, and 6,299 tons of tow of value £65,138 were
exported and were distributed as follows :

Destination.

Hemp.

Tow.

Tons.

£

Tons.

£

United Kingdom

20,992

538,324

5,395

55,059

United States .

3>056

79,057

3

12

Victoria

2,149

56.293

598

6,670

New South Wales

i,5J3

38,274

278

3,105

South Australia

170

4,649

10

II7

Western Australia

108

2,994

10

126

Tasmania

i

12

5

49

Canada .

5i

1,070

—

Belgium

25

683

—

—

Holland •

25

497

—

—

Japan . .

2

7i

—

—

Total ....

28 092

721,924

6,299

65,138

COMMERCIAL VALUE

The commercial value of New Zealand hemp is
liable to considerable variation as it fluctuates in
sympathy with that of Manila hemp. The following
are the prices at which the " good fair " and " fair "
grades have been quoted in London in February of
the years 1907-1916 : —

February 1907
„ 1908

1909
1910

ii 19"

ii 1912

>, 1913

ii I9H

1915

1916

Good Fair.
per ton.

£ *•

40
27
24
26
19

21

34
26
29
48

Fair.
per ton.

o
is

o
15
10

15

10
o
o

36
26

22

25
19
20
32
23
27
46

15
15

15

15
o
5

10

10

10

o

CULTIVATION AND PRODUCTION IN ST. HELENA

Phormium tenax has been planted somewhat largely
in St. Helena and was cultivated successfully during

196 CORDAGE FIBRES

the years 1 876-1 880. The largest amount of the fibre
exported in any one year was 615 bales in 1879, and
the greatest value of the export (£1,890) was reached
in 1880. A factory was established at Jamestown
for extracting the fibre, but as this was several miles
distant from the plantations the cost of transport
absorbed all the profit.

The question of reviving this industry in St. Helena
came to the front in 1904, and in 1905 an attempt
was made to extract the fibre on a commercial scale.
This effort did not meet with much success, owing
partly to the difficulty of raising the necessary capital,
and partly to the fact that the machinery purchased
was not altogether satisfactory.

A further endeavour has been made in recent years
to re-establish the industry with Government assist-
ance and under the guidance of an expert from New
Zealand. A fibre mill was established by the Govern-
ment in 1908 and another mill was started by a
private firm in 1913. Very satisfactory results have
been obtained. In 1913, 1,296 tons of Phormium
tenax leaves were treated at the Government mill
with the production of 128 tons of fibre and 39 tons of
tow. The fibre realised an average price of £28 105.
per ton and the tow £14 105. per ton. Almost exactly
the same quantities were produced in 1914. In the
latter year, the private mill treated 1571 tons of the
green leaves and produced 177 tons of fibre and 45
tons of tow. The total exports of fibre and tow in
1914 amounted to 347 tons, of value £7,439.

CULTIVATION IN THE AZORES

The cultivation of Phormium tenax is now being
carried on in the Azores. The plant is said to grow
well in all parts of the island of St. Michael, and the
leaves vary in length from 6 to 8 feet. A factory has
been erected and equipped with machinery, and a
small export industry has been established.

OIL-PALM FIBRE 197

CULTIVATION IN SCOTLAND

During recent years, experiments have been made
with Phormium tenax in the South-west of Scotland.
Several acres have been planted, extracting machinery
has been introduced, and in 1913 a crop of fibre of
very satisfactory quality was produced. It has not
yet been definitely proved whether it will be possible
to establish a remunerative industry, as this will
depend very largely on the amount of labour required
and its cost.

OIL-PALM FIBRE

The leaflets of the West African oil-palm (Eiceis
guineensis) yield a pale yellowish-green, fine fibre of
great strength and excellent quality. Small quanti-
ties of this fibre have appeared from time to time on
the market, but the cost of production is so great as
to make it impossible to prepare it at any but a pro-
hibitive price, even with the advantage of native
labour. If, however, a cheap method of separating
the fibre from the leaves could be devised, the pro-
duct would be well worth exporting. The only use
to which the fibre has been applied hitherto is for the
local manufacture of fishing lines and fine cordage.
It is probable that if a constant supply were available
for export it would find a ready market.

CHAPTER VIII
MISCELLANEOUS FIBRES

PINEAPPLE FIBRE

THE leaves of the pineapple, Ananas sativus, of the
natural order Bromeliacese, yield a fine, strong, white,
silky fibre.

The pineapple is usually cultivated for its fruit and
comparatively rarely for its fibre. Pineapples are
grown in large quantities in the West Indies, the
Bahamas, Florida, the Philippines, Formosa, Java,
India, Indo-China and other parts of the tropics, but
the only countries which make much use of the fibre
are the Philippines and Formosa. In the Philippines,
the natives make beautiful silky fabrics, known as
" pina " and " rengue," which find a local market.
In Formosa also, the preparation of pineapple fibre
is a regular industry, and a quantity of the product
is exported to China where it is employed /or the
manufacture of " grass-cloths " of a particularly
high quality. A small amount of the fibre is also
produced in Java, but is not exported.

The pineapple does not thrive in wet soils, but is best
adapted to a porous, well drained soil, and is capable
of withstanding protracted drought. It is usually
propagated by means of the suckers which arise from
the parent plant near the ground, but it can also be
reproduced by means of slips. The plant cannot be
grown satisfactorily for both fruit and fibre, but when
it is being cultivated for the latter, the fruit is removed
soon after flowering has taken place in order that the
leaves may develop more freely. Moreover, the best
fibre is produced by plants grown in the shade, whereas

198

PINEAPPLE FIBRE 199

the fruits require to be exposed to the sun in order to
ripen properly.

The fibre is extracted in a very primitive manner.
In Formosa, the fresh leaves are laid on a board and
scraped with a potsherd, the fibre being thus freed
from the epidermal and pulpy tissues. In the Philip-
pines, the epidermis is first removed from the leaves
by means of a blunt iron or wooden scraper. A layer
of fibre is thus exposed, and is lifted with the fingers
or a flexible knife. The scraping is then repeated,
and a second layer of fibre is exposed which is removed
in turn. This process is continued until the whole
of the fibre of the leaf has been extracted. After the
fibre has been extracted it is washed with water and
dried and bleached by exposure to the sun. The
yield amounts to from 45 Ib. to 65 Ib. of dry fibre per
ton of fresh leaves.

Attempts have been made to prepare pineapple
fibre by means of machinery, but hitherto the machines
tested have not proved commercially successful. The
difficulty of obtaining a satisfactory machine is due
very largely to the peculiar structure of the leaf. The
upper surface is much more tender than the lower
which is more or less coriaceous. The fibres are
situated chiefly near the two surfaces and less abund-
antly in the centre of the leaf. It is therefore evident
that a machine capable of stripping the epidermis from
the lower surface would tend to tear away some of
the fibre from the upper surface and thus create a
good deal of waste.

1 Pineapple fibre is soft, fine, strong, white and
lustrous, and may be 3^ feet or more in length. It
would probably serve as a substitute for flax.f Small
samples which have been received in London from
time to time have been valued nominally at prices
varying from £20 to £40 per ton. A specimen re-
ceived at the Imperial Institute from the Gold Coast
in 1907 consisted of soft, white, lustrous fibre of even
diameter and good strength, and about 3$ feet long.

The ultimate fibres are remarkable for their extreme
fineness. They are from 0*12 in. to 0-36 in. long,
with an average of 0*25 inch, and have a diameter of

200 MISCELLANEOUS FIBRES

0*00012 in. to 0*00036 in. with an average of 0*00020
inch. The lumen appears as a mere line.

Although when the pineapple is grown for fruit,
its leaves cannot be used for the preparation of fibre
for textile purposes, yet it is possible that the leaf
refuse from the plantations might be employed to
advantage for the production of pulp for the manu-
facture of paper, and would thus form a valuable by-
product of the pineapple industry.

COIR

The fibre known in commerce by the name of coir
is derived from the thick fibrous layer which envelopes
the coconut.

The coconut palm (Cocos nucifera) has become
distributed throughout the coast regions of the whole
of the tropics and occurs most abundantly on the
shores of Southern Asia and the adjacent islands.
It is cultivated to the greatest extent in Ceylon, and
is also grown very largely in India and in South
America.

The fruit of the coconut palm is a drupe. Beneath
the outer skin or epicarp is situated the thick fibrous
layer, the mesocarp ; and within this is the endocarp
or woody shell of the nut which encloses the kernel.
There are many varieties of Cocos nucifera, but only
three of them, viz. var. rutila, var. cupuliformis, and
var. stupposa, bear a mesocarp of suitable quality
and sufficient size for use in the preparation of coir.
The first-named variety is said to furnish the best
fibre whilst the last gives a fibre which is harsh and
stiff. It is considered that the quality of the fibre
is influenced to some extent by the situation of the
plantation, coir obtained from palms growing near the
sea being finer than that yielded by inland trees.

The fibrous material in its raw state, that is, un-
beaten and uncombed, consists of fibres of varying
length associated with a quantity of corky and other
non-fibrous tissue.

For the preparation of coir the coconuts should
be gathered before the}' are quite ripe. The fibre

, PLATE ^

From the Collections of the Imperial Institute

COIR. REMOVING THE HUSKS FROM COCONUTS IN CEYLON

From the Collections of the Imperial Institute

PALMYRA PALMS, CEYLON

200]

COIR 201

becomes coarser as the nuts ripen and then requires
to be soaked for a longer period in order to free it
from the corky tissue, with the result that the coir
acquires a dark colour. In the old, native system of
treatment, the coconuts are immersed in pits of salt
water and left there for several months, but in the pre-
paration of the best commercial coir it is now usual
to detach the husks, which is accomplished by striking
the nuts on sharp spikes fixed in the ground or by
means of a simple machine, and to steep these in large
tanks of water warmed by steam. The treatment is
much shortened in this way.

After steeping the husks, which facilitates the
removal of the corky tissue, they are either beaten by
hand with wooden mallets or passed through a crush-
ing machine. The fibre, after leaving the crushing
machine, is passed into the extractor or breaking-
down machine, in which it is completely disintegrated.
The product is then treated by a " willowing " machine
to remove the dust and other non-fibrous matter.
In order to improve the colour of the fibre, it is some-
times bleached either by exposure to the sun or by
treatment with sulphurous acid.

After being cleaned, it is of great importance that
the fibre should be sorted. It is usually separated
by a process of combing or hackling into two grades.
The coarser and stiffer or " brush " fibre is employed
as bristles for brush-making, whilst the longer and
finer " mat " or spinning fibre is used for the manu-
facture of matting or ropes. The very short fibres
are utilised as a stuffing material in upholstery, and
the dust and refuse for gardening purposes.

The recorded estimates of the yield of coir per
coconut show great variation, as would naturally be
expected since the yield depends chiefly on the size
of the coconut. It seems, however, that on the
average ten fair-sized coast coconuts furnish about
5 Ib. of mat fibre and i Ib. of bristle fibre.

The commercial value of Ceylon " bristle " fibre
in the London market varied during the years 1912-
1915 from £i 8 to £26 per ton according to quality, and
that of Ceylon " mat " fibre from £8 to £14 per ton.

202

MISCELLANEOUS FIBRES

Coir is composed of a mass of very strong, elastic
filaments of a reddish-brown colour. These filaments
are thick in the middle and gradually taper towards
the ends, the diameter in the widest part varying from
0-002 to O'oi2 inch; they are from 6 to 13 inches
long, and either round or elliptical in cross-section.
The fibre is very resistant to the action of water, and
is so light as to float on it, and it is therefore of great
service for the manufacture of ships' ropes.

The individual filaments are composed of fibro-
vascular tissue consisting chiefly of very short,
irregularly thickened bast fibres of uneven diameter ;
these ultimate bast fibres are about 0-016 to 0*039
inch long and 0^0005 to O'OOOS inch in diameter.

The importance of the coir industry can be gauged
from the following statistics.

Exports of Coir from India

Raw Fibre.

Year.

1908-09

1909-10

1910-11

1911-12

1912-13

1913-14

1914-15

Quantity, tons
Value, £

491
6,830

658
9,458

619
8.541

564
7.603

466
6,532

74i
11,449

247
3.491

Manufactured Coir (excluding rope).

Year.

1908-9

1909-10

1910-11

1911-12

1912-13

1913-14

1914-15

Quantity, tons
Value, £

28,753
4l8,347

33.865
485.736

32,091
463.623

37.420
538,967

36,216
550,486

38,613
592,741

23,793
380,299

Exports of Coir (Raw and Manufactured) from Ceylon

Year.

1909

1910

1911

1912

1913

1914

1915

Quantity, tons
Value, £

i4.I05
172,139

15,461
197,278

15,900
1 75,69-1

18,408
203,239

19,487
222,476

17,712
188,512

.15.744
143,082

COIR 203

The exports from Ceylon in 1914 were composed of :

Quantity.

Value.

Tons.

i

Coir Fibre .

• n,397

86,157

„ Rope

852

n,354

•„ Yarn

5,456

90,790

Other forms .

7

21 I

Total

17,712

188,512

The above figures do not include the small quanti-
ties of coir matting which are exported, the values
of which in 1911-1914 were as follows : 1911, £473 ;
1912,^488; 1913, £378; 1914, £695; I9i5> £361.

Imports of Coir into the United Kingdom
Raw Fibre.

From

1907

1908

1909

1910

Tows.

Tons.

Tons.

Tons.

British India
Ceylon ....
Other British Possessions
Foreign Countries

Total
Total Value, £

398
1,101

6
68

268
595

51

305
50

19

289
53

6

1,573

914

374

348

16,310

9,057

5,240

5,004

The raw fibre was not separately enumerated in
the official statistics after 1910.

Yarn.

From

1908

1909

1910

1911

1912

1913

1914

1915

British India
Ceylon
Germany and
other Foreign
Countries

Total
Total Value, £

Tons.
11,300
4,446

372

Tons.
13,528
3,653

"5

Tons.
11,013
3,701

I70

Tons.

12,759
3,76o

231

Tons.
11,115
3,749

33i

Tons.
12,578
3,76l

272

Tons.

8,567
3,042

384

Tons.
2i,7J5
3,459

64

16,118

17,296

14,884

16,750

15,195

16,611

11.993

25.238

273,754

289,998

245,345

292,684

279,966

332,738

247,268

530,342

204 MISCELLANEOUS FIBRES

PlASSAVA

Piassava is the name applied in commerce to the
long, stiff, elastic strands, usually about 2 or 3 feet
long, and ^ in. to TV in. in diameter, which are
produced by certain palms, and are used extensively
for the manufacture of brooms and brushes. The
product is derived from the sheathing leaf-bases which
clasp the trunk of the palm-tree. After the leaves
have fallen, a portion of the dilated leaf-stalk remains
attached to the stem ; the softer parts of this structure
gradually suffer deca}' until finally there remain
numerous coarse strands composed of the sclerenchy-
matous tissue of the fibre-vascular bundles. These
are at first directed upwards from the trunk, but sub-
sequently bend downwards and give the tree a
peculiar, characteristic appearance. The piassava
consists of these elastic, wiry filaments which vary in
colour from brownish red to dark purplish. The
following are the chief commercial varieties .

Bahia Piassava. — This fibre is derived from Attalea
funifera, a palm which grows in the forests of Bahia,
Brazil, to a height of 30-40 feet. The natives cut the
long stiff strands from the stem by means of a small
axe. The best fibre is obtained from young trees,
about six to nine years old. The product is roughly
hackled, straightened and cleaned, and pressed into
bundles for export. Bahia piassava is chocolate-
coloured, a little flattened in form, flexible and very
resistant. It is largely used for the brushes of road-
sweeping machines.

Para Piassava. — This variety is obtained from
Leopoldinia Piassaba, a palm growing to a height of
15-40 feet, and occurring abundantly in the White
River region and certain other parts of Brazil. The
fibre is obtained much in the same way as the Bahia
kind. It is strong and black, and is used for making
strong brushes such as are used for grooming horses.
This product forms only a small proportion of the
piassava of commerce.

Madagascar Piassava. — This product is derived from
Dictyosperma fibrosum, a palm known in the island
of Madagascar as " Vonitra." The fibre was intro-

PIASSAVA

205

duced into the markets of Europe in 1 890 ; it is of a
rich brown colour, and is finer and more flexible than
Brazilian piassava, but only i J to 2 feet long. Only
small quantities of this piassava appear in commerce.

West African Piassava. — Large quantities of pias-
sava are now produced in West Africa from Raphia
vinifera, the " wine-palm/' which occurs abundantly
in many parts of the country. It was first introduced
into European commerce in 1890 from Liberia, the
head-quarters of the industry being situated at Grand
Bassa. The large profits obtainable from the collec-
tion and export of this product soon attracted atten-
tion in other parts of the West Coast and the trade
rapidly extended.

The masses of fibrous strands which constitute
the sheathing leaf-bases are cut from the trees and
immersed in water for a few days until all the non-
fibrous matter has decayed. The strands are after-
wards cleaned by drawing them through a primitive
kind of hackling instrument consisting of nails driven
fairly closely together into a board. In some districts,
the product is cleaned by drawing the strands through
split bamboos which are either held by the feet or
stuck into the ground. The fibre is then carefully
dried by exposure to the sun. West African pias-
sava varies in colour from light brownish red to deep
brown, is 3-4 feet long, and of a stiff, wiry and very
resistant nature. It is used chiefly for making brooms
and brushes, but can also be employed for the manu-
facture of baskets, chair bottoms, etc.

In the Ivory Coast, piassava is obtained from Raphia
Hookeri, but although the palm is very abundant,
only small quantities of the product are exported.

Imports of Piassava into the United Kingdom

From

1912

1913

1914

1915

Tons.

£

Tons.

£

Tons.

£

Tons.

£

Brazil

1, 208

43365

1,217

44.255

1,274

44,47°

1,837

72,157

Liberia

i,573

29,680

l,75°

32,183

948

26,685

4,082

116,983

British West

Africa

219

4.°°3

139

2,402

240

9,841

650

18,877

206

MISCELLANEOUS FIBRES

Exports of Piassava from Sierra Leone and Nigeria

From

1912

1913

1914

1915

Tons.

£

Tons.

i

Tons.

£•

Tons.

£

Sierra Leone

1,146

15,461

839

I2,28o

98 ^

19,492

1,283

27,491

Nigeria

330

4,292

227

2,806

403

5,"7

372

5,038

The commercial value of piassava varies greatly
with the quality of the product. During the years
1913-1915, the prices generally ranged between the
following limits :

Bahia Piassava, £26 — £54 per ton.
African Piassava, £i 8-^36 per ton.
Allied to piassava are certain other fibres used for
brush-making, the chief of which are palmyra and
kitool.

PALMYRA

This fibre is obtained from the sheathing leaf-
stalks of the palmyra palm (Borassus flabellifer) which
grows throughout tropical India, and is also found in
West Africa. The product is strong, wiry, and about
2 feet long ; it is sometimes referred to in commerce
as " bassine." In transverse section, the fibrous
strands are of oval form, the longer diameter being
about 0-05 inch, and the shorter diameter about
0-03 inch. The commercial supply of this fibre is
derived chiefly from India and Ceylon. The exports
from Ceylon, in the years 1912-1915, were as follows :

Year.

1912

1913
1914
1915

Quantity.

Cwts.

1,889
1,059
1,784

2,588

Value.
i

2,175
1,079

2,372
4,228

During the years 1914 and 1915, the prices of
palmyra fibre in the London market varied within
the following limits : common to fair, £22-^27 •
medium to good medium, £28-^38 ; good to fine,
£30-^45 per ton.

BRUSH-MAKING FIBRES 207

KlTOOL

Kitool consists of the fibre produced at the base of
the leaf-stalks of the kitool or jaggery palm (Caryota
urens), which is distributed throughout tropical
Asia, and is commonly met with in the hotter parts
of India, Ceylon and the Malay Peninsula. It is
much finer than piassava and palmyra, its diameter
being about 0-025 inch, and is also softer and more
pliable. The strands are straight, smooth, and
lustrous, and vary in colour from dark brown to black.
The product is strong and elastic, and somewhat
resembles horse-hair. In the years 1912-1915, the
exports of kitool from Ceylon were as follows :

Year. Quantity. Value.

Cwts. £

1912 . 2,605 9,213

1913 .... 2,412 8,661

1914 . . . . 1,864 6,884

1915 . . . . 1,802 6,697

Small quantities are also exported from India.
During the years 1913-1915, the fibre was quoted ia
the London market at prices ranging from i d. to 1 1 d .
per Ib.

MEXICAN FIBRE

Mexican fibre, which is also known as Is tie or
Tampico hemp, is obtained from the leaves of certain
agaves, of which Agave heteracantha is the most im-
portant. The plants occur in all parts of Mexico,
but chiefly on the plains and mountain slopes of the
States of Coahuila, Tamaulipas, Nuevo Leon, and San
Luis Potosi. The last mentioned State is the principal
centre of the industry, and the fibre from this region
is shipped from Tampico.

The soil on which the plants grow is very poor and
highly calcareous. The leaves are usually from one
to two feet long, and bear sharp spines on their margins .
Only the central leaves are gathered, the outer ones
being left on the plant as they are too hard to admit
of satisfactory extraction of the fibre. After the

208 MISCELLANEOUS FIBRES

thorny margins have been stripped off, the leaves are
scraped on a hard, wooden block by means of a blunt
iron knife, and the fibre thus obtained is subsequently
spread out in the sun to dry.

The fibre is commonly known in commerce by the
name of the district in which it is produced. The
Jaumave fibre is the best quality, the Tula is shorter
and coarser, and the Matamoras is rather soft and
inferior to the other kinds in length and colour.

The fibre somewhat resembles Sisal hemp in appear-
ance, but is more wiry and of a pale yellow colour.
It is in considerable demand as a substitute for animal
bristles for the manufacture of cheap scrubbing brushes
and nail brushes.

During 1913, the price of Mexican fibre in the
London market varied, according to the quality of
the product, from £20 to £30 per ton. Towards the
middle of 1914, the value of the fibre rose to £40-
£60, and during 1915, it was quoted at prices ranging
from £32 to £70 per ton.

ITALIAN WHISK OR BROOM CORN FIBRE

The broom corn or broom millet is a variety of
Sorghum vulgare which has round, cane-like stems,
bearing panicles or seed-heads with long, wiry, straight,
nearly erect branches which constitute the brush or
whisk. The plant is cultivated extensively in the
United States, Italy and elsewhere, and is also grown
on a commercial scale in New South Wales. It has
been cultivated experimentally in the British West
Indies and in Nyasaland, and samples of the brush
from the latter country have been examined at the
Imperial Institute (Bulletin of the Imperial Institute,
1915, XIII, 201).

Italian whisk usually consists of 2 or 3 inches of
the stem surmounted by a brush of stiff, stout, golden
yellow stalks, of a uniform length of about 2 feet. It
is employed for the manufacture of the whisk brushes
used by hair-dressers, drapers, and others.

MISCELLANEOUS FIBRES 209

MEXICAN WHISK OR ZACATON FIBRE

This and similar products are known in France by
the name of " chiendents." Mexican whisk consists
of the roots of Epicampes macroura, a grass with
coarse, tufted leaves which occurs extensively in the
Mexican highlands and attains a height of 6 or 7 feet.
The roots are collected by hand, washed in water,
and dried in the sun, and are exported from Vera
Cruz under the name of " Raiz de Zacaton " ; they
are about 9-1 2 inches long, of pale yellow colour and
wavy appearance, and very flexible. The yellow
colour is said to be obtained by exposing the roots to
the fumes of burning sulphur. They are used chiefly
in France and Germany for the manufacture of carpet
brooms, clothes brushes, and velvet brushes. The
product is not altogether satisfactory, as, when
thoroughly dry, the fibres become brittle and are apt
to break when being used as brushes.

A product, resembling Mexican whisk, but of
superior quality, is obtained from a European grass,
Chrysopogon gryllus. The roots are collected and
treated in much the same way as those of Epicampes
macroura. The industry is principally carried on in
Italy and Hungary.

FLOSSES OR SILK-COTTONS

The seeds of many plants are enveloped by hairs
which facilitate their distribution by the wind. These
hairs are sometimes attached to the seed itself, as in
the case of cotton, Calotropis gigantea, and Funtumia
elastica, but in other cases arise from the inner wall
of the capsule, as in Eriodendron anfractuosum and
other plants of the natural order Bombacacese.
Cotton is, of course, the most important of these pro-
ducts, but many of the others have been found useful
for various purposes, the chief of them being the
flosses or silk-cottons, which are used principally for
stuffing upholstery. The flosses are fine, soft, lustrous
fibres, but are very weak.

210 MISCELLANEOUS FIBRES

The most valuable of the flosses is the product,
known as " kapok," which is derived from Eriodendron
anfractuosum, a large forest tree, which occurs in the
Dutch East Indies, India, Ceylon, West Africa and
other parts of tropical Africa, the West Indies, and
South America. The commercial supply is obtained
chiefly from Java, but small quantities are exported
from India and from the Philippines. The greater
part of the Indian floss exported, however, is the
product of Bombax malabaricum.

The kapok tree grows at the sea-level and up to an
altitude of 3,000 or even 4,000 feet, but gives the best
yield and quality of fibre when situated at less than
i ,500 feet above the sea. It is said to flourish best on
a porous, sandy clay soil, in a warm climate, and to
be capable of withstanding heavy rains and resisting
long periods of drought.

The propagation of the tree can be easily effected
by means of either cuttings or seed. In the latter
case the seed is sown in nurseries, and is only lightly
covered with earth. If the soil is poor, stable manure
should be applied about ten days before sowing. The
seed should be planted in rows about 10 to 12 inches
apart. When the young plants are about 5 or 6
inches high, they should be no longer shaded, but
exposed to the sun. If the plants do not obtain
plenty of sunshine, they grow tall and thin. The
seedlings are planted out when from eight to twelve
months old. In Java, kapok trees are commonly
planted about 12 to 15 feet apart along the roads in
the coffee and cocoa plantations. When the trees
are grown in special plantations, they should be
placed about 18 feet apart (about 144 trees to the
acre), for if planted more closely they soon interfere
with one another. The trees commonly attain a
height of 30 feet, but sometimes grow to 50 feet or
even more.

Before transplanting, it is advisable to strip off all

the leaves and to cut the stem down to a height of

1 1 to 2 feet, and also to cut the chief roots so as to

make stumps of them. If the top is not cut it will

* usually die down to the ground. The trees sub-

KAPOK 211

sequently require very little attention, but the soil
must be kept free from weeds.

During the early years of growth other plants
can be cultivated between the young trees. In Java
it is a common practice to grow pepper in this way,
but it should not be planted before the kapok trees
are three or four years old.

The trees begin to bear in the third or fourth year,
but sometimes not till later. The crop is never very
large until the sixth year. It has been found in Java
that a dry fruit weighs on the average about 414
grains and contains 76 grains of fibre. In Cambodge,
the average weight of a dry fruit is said to be 494
grains, and the average weight of fibre 107 grains. A
well developed tree gives an annual yield of from 2 to
4 Ib. of clean fibre.

The tree flowers in April or May, and the fruits
mature at the end of October or in November. As the
fruit ripens it becomes yellowish-brown, and then
begins to open. As soon as this point is reached, the
fruits are gathered by means of long bamboo poles
bearing small hooks at the upper ends. They are then
left on a clean floor, preferably of cement, and exposed
to the sun in order that they may ripen completely
and open fully. The fibre and seeds are picked out
of the capsules by women and children, and are dried
in the sun for some days.

The seeds are usually removed from the fibre by
beating with sticks or by means of a simple machine.
Special machines have been recommended for the pur-
pose, but it must be remembered that in most cases
the kapok is only a subsidiary product and produced
in small quantities, so that the provision of expensive
machinery would not be remunerative.

The kapok is packed in bales by means of hydraulic
or hand presses ; each bale weighs about 80 Ib. It
must not be compressed too severely as the fibres are
liable to be broken, and this not only impairs the
resilience of the material, but also reduces its buoyancy
by enabling water to enter the cavity of the fibre.
The number of bales exported from Java in recent
years is as follows: 1907, 92,874; 1908, 109,852;

212 MISCELLANEOUS FIBRES

1909, 87,685; 1910, 106,442; 1911, 123,295; 1912,
149,610 ; 1913, 120,710.

The value of the total imports of kapok into the
United Kingdom amounted to £27,645 in 1909,
£29,020 in 1910, £38,023 in 191 1, £44,664 in 1912,
£27,458 in 1913, £37,869 in 1914, and £79,002 in 1915.

Kapok consists of pale yellowish, highly lustrous,
silky hairs which are unicellular and of cylindrical
form. The hairs are from 0*6 to 1*2 inches long,
with an average length of 0*75 inch, and from 0-0004
to 0-0012 inch in diameter, with an average of 0-0007
inch. The cell-wall is very thin, and it is for this
reason that the strength and durability of the fibre
are so small. The base of the hair is dilated and bears
annular or reticulate markings, but other parts of the
cell-wall are smooth and devoid of markings. The
free end tapers gradually to a point. The hairs are
straight and do not possess the twist which is charac-
teristic of true cotton. The cells are full of air
and are very light ; they also possess the property
of being impermeable to moisture, and on this account
are extremely buoyant. It has been stated that
kapok can support about thirty-five times its own
weight in water, whereas cork can only carry about
five times its weight.

Kapok is employed chiefly as a substitute for hair or
feathers for stuffing cushions, pillows, mattresses,
chairs and similar articles, and is well adapted for this
purpose on account of its lightness, its springy or
resilient nature, and its non-hygroscopic and non-
absorbent character. Owing to its buoyancy, it is
used as a packing material for the manufacture of
buoys, life-belts, and life-saving jackets.

Many attempts have been made to employ kapoK
as a textile material, but considerable difficulty has
been experienced which is due chiefly to the fact that
the fibres have a smooth, slippery surface and there-
fore lack cohesive force. The difficulty has been
surmounted recently however by roughening the sur-
face of the fibre by chemical treatment, and so enabling
it to exert the necessary grip. By a special arrange-
ment and adaptation of the spinning machinery the

KAPOK 213

roughened fibres can be spun either alone or in ad-
mixture with cotton. These processes are applicable
not only to kapok, but also to many other flosses.
The yarns so produced cannot be satisfactorily
bleached, but are readily dyed and possess an excellent
lustre and a woolly character, and are said to be
suitable for the manufacture of plushes, lace and
other materials.

During recent years the market value of kapok has
fluctuated considerably, as is shown by the following
average prices per Ib. : Java kapok, 1904-06, $\d.-6d. ;
1907-1909, 5fd.-6ffi?. ; 1910, 6ld.-j%d. ; 1911
lod. ; 1912-1913, ?%d-9d. ; 1914-1915, 6\
Calcutta kapok, 1904-1910,4^-5^.; 1911, $d-
1912-1913, 6d.-?d.', 1914-1915, $d.-6d.

Allied to kapok are many other plants of the Bom-
bacacese which bear flosses derived from the inner
wall of the capsule. Among these may be mentioned
Bombax spp., especially B. Ceiba of South America
and B. malabaricum of India, Chorisia spp. of South
America, Eriodendron Samauma of Brazil, and Q chroma
Lagopus of tropical America and the West Indies.

Various plants of the natural order Asclepiadaceae,
including Asclepias spp., Calotropis gigantea, C.
procera, and Gomphocarpus brasiliensis, produce silk
cottons attached to the seeds. Reference may also
be made to Funtumia elastica (Apocynaceae), the well-
known rubber tree of West Africa, and Cochlospermum
Gossypium (Bixaceae) which occurs in India. Most
of these products are decidedly inferior to true kapok
in resilience, and are therefore less valuabfe for
upholstery purposes.

VEGETABLE CURLED HAIR

Another fibre used as a stuffing material in up-
holstery is one obtained from the leaves of the dwarf
fan palm, Chamcerops humilis, which grows wild in
some parts of Southern Europe, and is very abundant
in Algeria and Tunis. The fibre is extracted by sub-
jecting the leaves to the action of a rapidly revolving
drum, the surface of which is studded with spikes.

214 MISCELLANEOUS FIBRES

The leaves are kept moist during the operation by
causing a jet of water to play on them. Short, coarse
fibres are thus obtained which, after being dried, are
twisted together into a kind of rope. The rope is
left for a few weeks, and is afterwards untwisted ;
the fibres then present a crinkled appearance and
constitute the material known as " vegetable curled
hair " or " crin vegetal." The product is used
either in its natural or " green " state or is dyed black
by means of logwood and sulphate of iron. Large
quantities of crin vegetal are exported from Algeria,
chiefly to Germany, Italy, Austria-Hungary and
France. The black kind is used by upholsterers as a
substitute for horse-hair.

Total Exports of Vegetable Curled Hair from Algeria

Year. Quantity. Value.

Tons. £

1911 . . . 46,426 212,320

1912 . . . 54,686 296,520

1913 . . . 58,509 332,960

Exports from Algeria to the United Kingdom

Year. Quantity. Value.

Tons. i

1911 . . • 1,670 7,640

1912 . . . 1,696 8,960

1913 . . . 3,441 19,600

Algerian curled hair is usually quoted in the London
market at the following prices : green, £5-^6 per ton ;
black, £9 per ton.

RAFFIA OR BASS

This product is the well-known material which is
used by gardeners for tying up plants, and is also
employed for the manufacture of matting. It is
obtained by peeling off the cuticle from the leaves
of various species of Raphia palms, and consists of a
thin fibrous substance which is divided, by means of
a kind of Comb, into strips or ribbons of the width

MISCELLANEOUS FIBRES 215

desired for the purpose for which it is intended. It
is chiefly supplied from Madagascar where it is derived
from Raphia Ruffia. The product usually comes
on the market in straw-coloured or pale yellowish-
brown strips varying from J inch to f inch in width
and from 3 to 4 feet long. Small quantities of coarser
kinds of raffia are exported from West Africa where
they are obtained from other species of Raphia,
especially R. vinifera.

Exports of Raffia from Madagascar

Year. Quantity. Value.

Tons. £

I9H • • • 6,256 137,543

1912 . . . 6,9^1 I5I>5I7

1913 • • • 5,96l 137,048

The exports of raffia from Madagascar to the
United Kingdom in 1913 amounted to 330 tons, of
value £8,491.

The value of the material varies with the quality ;
it is usually quoted in the London market at prices
ranging from £25 to £35 per ton.

PAPER-MAKING MATERIALS

No account of vegetable fibres would be complete
without some reference to the numerous materials
used for paper-making. Within the limits of the
present work, however, it is only possible to draw
attention to some of the principal products used for
this purpose, leaving any reader who may be par-
ticularly interested in this branch of the subject to
consult the special text-books on paper-making.

The supporting tissue of all the higher plants is
composed of fibrous elements which, when isolated
from the softer, cellular tissues, can be reduced to a
pulp capable of being used, either alone or in admixture,
for the manufacture of paper. The practical applica-
tion of these products on a commercial scale, however,
depends on several factors, such as the supply of the
raw material, the cost of collecting and converting it

15

216 MISCELLANEOUS FIBRES

into pulp, and the quality of the product, including the
length, strength and felting capacity of the fibres,
and the colour of the pulp and the ease with which it
can be bleached.

The chief fibres at present employed in the paper
industry are cotton., flax, hemp, jute, Manila hemp
and other cordage fibres, wood pulp, esparto, and
straw.

In the case of cotton, the raw material consists
mainly of rags and waste from the spinning mills ;
during recent years the " fuzz " or short fibre on the
husk of the cotton seed has also been employed. Flax
is used in the form of linen rags, spinning waste,
and scutching refuse. The hemp employed consists
similarly of spinning waste, scutching refuse and old
cordage. Ramie waste is sometimes used for special
kinds of paper to which it imparts considerable
tenacity. Jute waste of several kinds is used, such
as the butts or root-ends (page 138), waste from the
textile factories, and old sacking. Manila hemp and
other rope-making fibres (such as Sisal hemp and New
Zealand hemp) reach the paper-mills chiefly in the
form of old ropes ; these are disintegrated by
machinery and treated with caustic soda or lime.
Manila hemp furnishes strong, tough papers.

Wood Pulp. — Enormous quantities of wood are
now employed for conversion into wood pulp for
paper-making. The soft, coniferous woods, such as
the various kinds of fir, pine and spruce are used in
Scandinavia and Canada, whilst poplar and timber
of certain other dicotyledonous trees are employed in
the United States and certain parts of Europe.

Wood pulp is of two kinds, mechanical and chemical.
In the manufacture of mechanical wood pulp, the
trees after being felled are sawn into blocks about
2 feet long. The bark is then removed and the wood
is ground by forcing the blocks by hydraulic pressure
against rapidly revolving grindstones over which a
continuous stream of water is caused to run. The
ground wood is carried by the water into a pit below
the grinder and the coarser pieces are removed by
passing it through a series of strainers. The pulp is

PAPER-MAKING MATERIALS 217

then submitted to pressure to expel the water, and
is subsequently converted into sheets by passing it
between rollers. It is usually packed for export in
the moist state, as if it is kept dry for any considerable
time it loses its felting power.

The process of preparing chemical wood pulp
consists essentially of the digestion of the chipped
wood with a chemical solution under pressure at a
high temperature. In the " sulphite " process of
manufacture, the liquor employed consists of an
aqueous solution of bisulphite of lime or magnesia,
prepared by passing sulphur dioxide (sulphurous acid
gas), produced by burning sulphur or pyrites, up
towers packed with lumps of limestone or dolomite
through which water is trickling. In the " soda "
process, the wood is digested with an aqueous solution
of caustic soda, and in the " sulphate " process, a
solution of sodium sulphate and caustic soda is
employed.

Whilst mechanical wood pulp consists merely of
ground wood and contains all the encrusting sub-
stances of the fibres, chemical wood pulp is composed
of the fibres which have been freed from the resinous
and gummy matters by the action of chemicals.
Chemical wood pulp is therefore of much better
quality than that produced by the mechanical method
and realises considerably higher prices. It is mostly
exported in the dry state, as the loss of felting power
which takes place with mechanical pulp does not
occur in the case of this product.

The total imports of wood pulp into the United
Kingdom during the years 1911-15 were as follows :

Year. Quantity. Value.

Tons. I

1911 . . . 784,296 3,743,445

1912 . . . 925,590 4,418,420

1913 • • • 977,757 4,6i7,739.

1914 . • • 990,272 4,888,170

1915 . . . 954,050 5,314,245

The quantity and value of the different kinds of
wood pulp imported into the United Kingdom in 1914

218

MISCELLANEOUS FIBRES

and the countries of origin are shown in the following
tables.

Mechanical Wood Pulp

DRY.

Tons. £

Russia . . . 1,308 6,289

Sweden . . . 3,914 1 9,799

Norway . . . 211 1,074

Other Countries . . 192 1,152

Total

Russia

Sweden

Norway

Canada

Newfoundland

WET.

Tons.

2OO

108,948
280,178

51,751

Total . . 551,408

28,314
I

410

248,814

635,172
259,702
129,380

1,273,478

Chemical Wood Pulp, Dry

BLEACHED.

Russia .
Sweden .
Norway .
Germany
Austria-Hungary
United States .
Other Countries

Total

Russia

Sweden

Norway

Germany

Portugal

Austria-Hungary

Other Countries

Total

Tons.

L

272

2,870

5,071

51,027

129,610

'803

8,255

106

i,i33

1,114

12,296

262

2,852

18,681

208,043

UNBLEACHED.

Tons.

i

•

31,893

26l,8lO

•

282,898

2,350,093

•

51,500

455,681

•

24,798

202,585

•

1,144

9,521

ry

2,007

15,332

S .

2,159

19,417

396,399

3,314,439

PAPER-MAKING MATERIALS 219

Chemical Wood Pulp, Wei

Tons. £

Sweden . . . 10,347 37,3 1 8

Norway . . . 5,054 !5,34O

Other Countries • 2,758 11,238

Total . . 18,159 63,896

The relative value of the different kinds of wood
pulp is shown by the following prices which were
quoted in the London market in July, 1914:
Mechanical Wood Pulp :

Dry, £4-£4 55. per ton.

Wet, £i 195. 6d-£2 per ton.
Chemical Wood Pulp :

Sulphite, bleached, £11 i5s.-^i 2 55. per ton.

Sulphite, unbleached, £7 ios.-^8 125. 6d. per ton.

Soda, unbleached, £6 175. bd-f^ 155. per ton.
Esparto. — This product is a grass, Stipa tenacis-
sima, which grows wild over large areas in Spain, and
in Algeria and other parts of North Africa. It
flourishes on sandy, ferruginous soils in dry, sunny
situations on the coast. The plants attain a height
of 3 or 4 feet, and have cylindrical, wiry stem-like
leaves coated with short hairs ; they usually grow
in patches varying from i to 3 feet in diameter. The
leaves are gathered during the dry, summer weather
by grasping them with the hand and exerting a firm,
steady pull. They are tied into bundles and packed
tightly in bales by hydraulic pressure.

Esparto is converted into a pulp for paper-making
by heating it with solution of caustic soda under
pressure. The average yield of dry pulp is about
45 per cent, of the weight of the raw material. The
ultimate fibres of which the pulp is composed vary in
length from 0-5 to 3 mm. (0-02-0-12 inch) and have
a fairly uniform diameter of average about 0-012 mm.
(0-0005 inch).

The approximate quantity and value of the esparto

220 MISCELLANEOUS FIBRES

imported into the United Kingdom during 1910-
1915 were as follows :

Quantity.

Value.

Tons.

i

1910

. 193,218

666,136

1911

. 201,636

671,999

1912

• 198,713

692,264

1913

. 204,957

743,354

1914

• 183,144

728,470

1915 .

• 137,538

660,569

The sources of the

imports in 1914 are

shown below

Quantity

Value.

From

Tons.

I

Algeria .

81,780

295,058

Spain .

37,263

194,096

Tripoli .

7,66 1

28,074

Tunis .

56,212

210,287

Other Countries . 228

955

Total

. 183,144

728,470

The prices of esparto and esparto pulp in the London
market in July, 1914, were as follows :

Esparto, Spanish, £$-£$ 105. per ton.

Esparto, North African, £3 ios.-^4 2s. 6d. per ton.

Esparto pulp, bleached, £1 5-^19 per ton.

Straw. — Large quantities of straw pulp, made by
heating straw with caustic soda solution under pres-
sure, are imported into the United Kingdom chiefly
for the manufacture of brown papers and straw boards.
The straws of wheat, barley, oats and rye are those
most commonly used for this purpose, and give yields
of pulp varying from 40 to 45 per cent. Straw pulps
were quoted in London in July, 1914, at £12-^13 per
ton.

Bamboo. — The Chinese have long employed bamboo
for making their native paper, but its use in modern
paper-mills has been retarded owing to the severe
treatment which was found necessary to disintegrate
the nodes of the mature canes. This difficulty has
now been surmounted, however, by crushing the

PAPER-MAKING MATERIALS 221

•

canes and treating them with hot water before sub-
mitting them to the action of chemicals in the digester.
Factories in which bamboo constitutes the raw
material have been established in Formosa and Indo-
China, and the erection of factories in India is at
present under contemplation.

Bagasse or Megasse. — A good deal of attention has
been devoted to the fibrous residue of the sugar
factories, which is left after the removal of the juice
from the sugar-cane and is known as " bagasse " or
" megasse." This product has been employed in
paper-mills in Trinidad and Cuba, and its use seems
likely to extend.

Baobab Bark.— The " Baobab " or " Monkey
Bread " tree (Adansonia digitatd) is extremely abund-
ant in West Africa. The inner bark of this tree is
very fibrous and is said to possess properties which
render it of exceptional value for the manufacture of
strong, light-coloured wrapping paper with a high
finish. In order to prepare the material for the
market, the hard outer bark is first removed by
chopping and the inner bark is then stripped off in
large sheets. It is used by the natives for making
ropes and sacking. Small quantities are exported
to the United Kingdom from West Africa, and realise
prices of about £4 IDS. to £6 per ton in Liverpool.
The ultimate fibres of this material vary in length
from 0-14 to o-2i inch, with an average of 0*18 inch.

Other Materials. — Among other materials which
have been employed commercially, mention may be
made of peat which has been used to some extent in
the manufacture of cheap brown paper, and the paper
mulberry (Broussonetia papyri/era) which is employed
in China, Japan and Burma, and yields a very strong
paper.

A number of other fibrous materials have been
investigated at the Imperial Institute, and found to
be capable of being converted into satisfactory pulp
for paper-making. An account of these will be found
in Selected Reports of the Imperial Institute, Part 7,
Fibres, and in the Bulletin of the Imperial Institute
(i9i2,X, 372; 1913, XI, 68; 1914, XII, 42 ; and 1916,

222 MISCELLANEOUS FIBRES

•

XIV, 163). Among the more promising of these are
the papyrus of the Sudan and East Africa Protectorate,
" Elephant grass " (Pennisetum purpureum) of Uganda,
and the " Spanish reed " (Arundo Donax) and "Tam-
bookie grass " (Cymbopogon Nardus var. vallidus) of
the Transvaal.

In the Kew Bulletin (1912, No. 9) attention has been
drawn to the suitability for paper-making of Hedy-
chium coronarium, of the natural order Zingiberacese,
a plant which is indigenous to India and also occurs
in Central America, the West Indies, New Zealand,
West Africa, and Brazil. Reference is made in the
same issue to two other plants of the Zingiberacese,
viz. Amomum hemisphericum and Alpinia nutans,
and also to the " Marram " grass which commonly
grows on the sand-hills of the coasts of the United
Kingdom.

All these plants yield satisfactory pulps which
would be quite serviceable for paper-making.

LIST OF PRINCIPAL PUBLICATIONS
ON FIBRES

GENERAL

Beauverie, J. Les Textiles Vegetaux. (Paris : Gauthier-Vil-

lars, 1913.)
Cross, C. F., Bevan, E. J., and King, C. M. Report on Indian

Fibres and Fibrous Substances. (London : Spon, 1887.)
Dodge, C. R. Descriptive Catalogue of Useful Fiber Plants

of the World. Report No. 9 (1897), Fiber Investigations,

U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Dudgeon, Gerald C. The Agricultural and Forest Products of

British West Africa. (London : Murray, 1911.)
Hannan, William. Textile Fibres of Commerce. (London :

Griffin, 1902.)
Herzog, A. Mikrophotographischer Atlas des technisch wich-

tigen Faserstoffe. (Miinchen : Obernetter, 1908.)
Imperial Institute. Selected Reports from the Scientific and

Technical Department. Part I, Fibres. (Cd. 4588, 1909.)
Imperial Institute. Technical Reports and Scientific Papers,

1903.
Matthews, J. Merritt. The Textile Fibres, their Physical,

Microscopical and Chemical Properties. (New York:

Wiley & Sons, 1913.)
Mitchell, C. A., and Prideaux, R. M. Fibres used in Textile

and Allied Industries. (London : Scott, Greenwood,

1910.)
Morris, D. Cantor Lectures. Journal of the Society of Arts.

Vol. XLIII (1895).
Perrot, E. Les Grands Produits Vegetaux des Colonies

franchises. (Paris : Larose, 1915.)
Sddebeck, R. Die Kulturgewachse der deutschen Kolonien

und ihre Erzeugnisse. (Jena : Fischer, 1899.)
Sender, Heinrich. Die tropische Agrikultur. (Wismar : Hin-

storff, 1900-1912.)
Span's Encyclopaedia of the Industrial Arts, Manufactures and

Raw Commercial Products. Article on " Fibrous Sub-
stances derived from Plants," Vol. I, pages 909-1000.

(London : Spon, 1882.)

223

224 PRINCIPAL PUBLICATIONS ON FIBRES

Watt, George. Commercial Products of India. (London :

Murray, 1908.)
Watt, George. Dictionary of the Economic Products of

Indta. (Calcutta: Government Printing, 1889-1896.)
Wiesner, Julius. Die Rohstoffe des Pflanzenreiches. (Leipzig :

Engelmann, 1900.)

COTTON

A.B.C. of Cotton Planting. Bulletin No. 45 (1907), Imperial
Department of Agriculture for the West Indies.

The Cotton Plant : its History, Chemistry, Culture, Enemies
and Uses. Bulletin No. 33 (1896), Office of Experiment
Stations, United States Department of Agriculture.

Der Baumwollbau in den Deutschen Schutzgebieten : Seine
Entwicklung seit dem Jahre 1910. Veroffentlichungen
des Reichs-Kolonialamts, No. 6. (Jena : G. Fischer,
1914.)

Die Baumwollfrage. Denkschrift iiber Produktion und Ver-
brauch von Baumwolle. Massnahmen gegen die Baum-
wollnot. Veroffentlichungen des Reichs-Kolonialamts,
No. i. (Jena : G. Fischer, 1911.)

Balls, W. Lawrence. The Cotton Plant in Egypt : Studies
in Physiology and Genetics. (London : Macmillan, 1912.)

Balls, W. Lawrence. The Development and Properties of
Raw Cotton. (London : A. & C. Black, 1915.)

Bowman, F. H. Structure of the Cotton Fibre. (London :
Macmillan, 1908.)

British Cotton Growing Association. Annual Reports and
other publications.

Burkett, C. W., and Poe, C. H. Cotton: Its Cultivation,
Marketing, Manufacture, and the Problems of the Cotton
World. (London : Constable, 1906.)

Dudgeon, Gerald C. The Progress of Egyptian Agriculture,
with special reference to Cotton. Bulletin of the Imperial
Institute, Vol. XI (1913), pp. 90-101.

Dudgeon, Gerald C. History, Development and Botanical
Relationship of Egyptian Cottons. (Egyptian Agricul-
tural Products, No. 3A, 1916, Ministry of Agriculture,
Egypt.)

Dunstan, Wyndham R. British Cotton Cultivation. Re-
ports on the quality of cotton grown in British possessions.
(Cd. 3997, 1908.)

Dunstan, Wyndham R. Cotton Cultivation in the Bntish
Empire and jn Egypt. (Cd. 2020, 1904.)

PRINCIPAL PUBLICATIONS ON FIBRES 225

Dunstan, Wyndham R. Report on the Agricultural Resources

of Cyprus, with special reference to Cotton Cultivation.

(Cd. 4324, 1908.)
Foaden, George P. Cotton Culture in Egypt. Bulletin No.

42 (1897), Office of Experiment Stations, U.S. Department

of Agriculture.
Foaden, George P. Notes on Egyptian Agriculture. Bulletin

No. 62 (1904), Bureau of Plant Industry, U.S. Department

of Agriculture.
Foaden, George P., and Fletcher, F. Text-book of Egyptian

Agriculture. (Cairo : National Printing Department,

1908.)
Girola, Carlos D. El Algodonero. Su Cultivo en las varias

Partes del Mundo. (Buenos Aires : Compania Sud-

Americana de Billetes de Banco, 1910.)
Henry, Yves. Le Co ton dans 1'Afrique Occident ale franc, aise.

(Paris : Challamel, 1906.)
2nd International Congress of Tropical Agriculture, 1910.

Papers and Reports on Cotton Cultivation. (London :

1911.)
3rd International Congress of Tropical Agriculture, 1914.

Transactions, pages 133-502. (London : Bale, Sons &

Danielsson, 1916.)

International Federation of Master Cotton Spinners' and Manu-
facturers' Associations. Official Reports of International

Congresses, 1904-1913. (Manchester.)

International Federation of Master Cotton Spinners' and Manu-
facturers' Associations. Official Report on Egypt and the

Anglo-Egyptian Sudan. (Manchester, 1913.)
Lamborn, L. L. Cotton Seed Products. (New York: Van

Nostrand, 1904.)
Lecomte, Henri. Le Coton. Monographic : Culture, Histoire

Economique. (Paris : Carre et Naud, 1900.)
Lecomte, Henri. Le Coton en Egypte : Culture, Preparation,

Exploitation. (Paris : Challamel, 1908.)
Oppel, A. Die Baumwolle, nach Geschichte, Anbau, Verar-

beitung und Handel. (Leipzig: Duncker & Humblot,

1902.)
Roux, F. C. La Production du Coton en Egypte. (Paris :

Armand Colin, 1908.)
Schanz, M. Die Baumwolle in den Vereinigten Staaten von

Nordamerika. Beihefte zum Tropenpflanzer, No. I, Vol.

IX (1908), pages 1-62.
Schanz, M. Die Baumwolle in Agypten und im englisch-

agyptischen Sudan. Beihefte zum Tropenpflanzer, Nos,

1-2, Vol. XIV (1913), pages 1-181,

226 PRINCIPAL PUBLICATIONS ON FIBRES

Schanz, M. Die Baumwolle in Ostindien. Beihefte zum

Tropenpflanzer, Nos. 5-6, Vol. XIV (1913), pages 439-609.
Schanz, M. Die Baumwolle in Russisch-Asien. Beihefte

zum Tropenpflanzer, No. I, Vol. XV (1914), pages 1-134.
Schmidt, Arno. Indian Cotton. (Manchester : International

Federation of Master Cotton Spinners' and Manufacturers'

Associations, 1914.)
Todd, John A. The World's Cotton Crops. (London : Black,

Watt, George. Wild and Cultivated Cotton Plants of the
World. (London : Longmans, Green, 1907.)

Zimmermann, A. Anleitung fur die Baumwollkultur in den
Deutschen Kolonien. (Berlin : Kolonialwirtschaftliches
Komitee, 1910.)

FLAX

Bulletin of the Imperial Institute, Vol. IX (1911), pages
355-380.

Carter, H. R. Flax : its Cultivation and Preparation for
Market. (London : Bale, Sons & Danielsson, 1918.)

Dodge, C. R. A Report on Flax Culture for Fiber in the
United States, including Special Reports on Flax Culture
in Ireland, in Belgium, and in Austria, and with State-
ments relative to the Industry in Russia. Report No. 4
(1892), Office of Fiber Investigations, United States De-
partment of Agriculture.

Dodge, C. R. A Report on Flax Culture for Seed and Fiber
in Europe and America. Report No. 10 (1898), Office of
Fiber Investigations, United States Department of Agri-
culture.

Eyre, J. Vargas. The Possibility of Reviving the Flax In-
dustry in Great Britain. Journal of the Board of Agri-
culture, Supplement No. 12 (1914), pages 1-56.

HEMP

Bulletin of the Imperial Institute, Vol. X (1912), pages 94-111.

Bruck, W. F. Studien iiber den Hanfbau in Italien. Der
Tropenpflanzer, Vol XV (1911), pages 129-141, 187-201,
244-264.

Dewey, H. Lyster. Hemp. Yearbook of the Department of
Agriculture, United States, 1913, pages 283-346.

Dodge, C. R. A Report on the Culture of Hemp in Europe,
including a Special Consular Report on the Growth of
Hemp in Italy. Report No. n (1898), Office of Fiber
Investigations, United States Department of Agriculture.

PRINCIPAL PUBLICATIONS ON FIBRES 227

SUNN HEMP

San Hemp in the Pabna District. Agricultural Ledger (of

India), 1908-9, No. 7.
Howard, A., and Howard, G. L. C. Studies in Indian Fibre

Plants, No. I, On two varieties of Sann, Crotalaria juncea ,

L. Memoirs of the Department of Agriculture, India,

Vol. Ill (1910), pages 177-189.
Pdtil, P. C. San Hemp (Crotalaria juncea} . Bulletin No. 47

(1911), Department of Agriculture, Bombay.

RAMIE

Bulletin of the Imperial Institute, Vol. Ill (1905), pages 55-59.

Kew Bulletin, 1888, pages 145-149, 273-280, 297-298 ; 1889,
pages 268-278, 284-287 ; 1891, pages 277-278 ; 1892,
pages 251, 304-306 ; 1898, pages 209-224.

Boeken, H. J. Ramie. Der Tropenpflanzer, Vol. X (1906),
pages 8 1-88.

Carter, H. A. Ramie (Rhea), China Grass. (London : Tech-
nical Publishing Co., 1910.)

Dodge, C. R. A Report on the Cultivation of Ramie in the
United States. Report No. 7 (1895), Office of Fiber In-
vestigations, United States Department of Agriculture.

Jackson, H. V. Ramie, Rhea or China-grass. Agricultural
Gazette of New South Wales, Vol. XVIII (1907), pages

744-755-

Michotte, F. Traite Scientifique et Industriel de la Ramie.
(Paris : Michelet, 1890.)

JUTE

Bulletin of the Imperial Institute, Vol. Ill (1905), pages 251-

262.

Burkill, I. H., and Finlow, R. S. The Races of Jute. Agri-
cultural Ledger (of India), 1907, No. 6.
Finlow, R. S. Jute and its Substitutes. Transactions of the

3rd International Congress of Tropical Agriculture (1914),

pages 518-545.
Imperial Institute. Handbooks of Commercial Products.

Indian Sect ion. No. 5, Jute. (Calcutta: Superintendent

of Government Printing, 1892.)
McLeod, C. C. The Indian Jute Industry. Journal of the

Royal Society of Arts, Vol. LXIV (1915), pages 105-120.
Wolff, Richard. Die Jute : ihre Industrie und Volkwirtschaft-

liche Bedeutung. (Berlin : Siemenroth, 1913.)

228 PRINCIPAL PUBLICATIONS ON FIBRES

JUTE SUBSTITUTES

Bulletin of the Imperial Institute, Vol. Ill (1905), pages
251-262.

Kew Bulletin, 1890, pages 229-230 (Hibiscus esculentus).

Kew Bulletin, 1891, pages 204-206 (Hibiscus cannabinus).

Kew Bulletin, 1889, Pages 15-16 (Honckenya ftcifolia).

Dunstan, Wyndham R. Hibiscus cannabinus. Reports upon
Bimlipatam Jute. Agricultural Ledger (of India), 1903,
No. ii.

Finlow, R. S. Jute and its Substitutes. Transactions of the
3rd International Congress of Tropical Agriculture (1914),
pages 544-545 (Hibiscus cannabinus).

Howard, A., and Howard, G. L. C. Studies in Indian Fibre
Plants, No. 2, on some new varieties of Hibiscus canna-
binus, L., and Hibiscus Sabdariffa, L. Memoirs of the
Department of Agriculture, India, Botanical Series, Vol.
IV (1911), pages 9-36.

MANILA HEMP AND OTHER MUSA FIBRES

Bulletin of the Imperial Institute, Vol. VIII (1910), pages
265-273.

Kew Bulletin, 1887, April, pages 1-3, 5-8 ; 1892, page 243 ;
1894, pages 289-293 ; 1895, page 208 ; 1898, pages 15-18.

Copeland, E. B. Elements of Philippine Agriculture. (Yon-
kers-on-Hudson, New York : World Book Co., 1908.)

Department of Agriculture, Industry, and Commerce, Java.
Fibres of the Netherland East Indies. Transactions of
the 3rd International Congress of Tropical Agriculture
(1914), pages 584-586.

Edwards-, H. T., and Saleeby, M. M. Abacd (Manila Hemp).
Farmers' Bulletin, No. 12 (1910), Bureau of Agriculture,
Manila.

Wright, Hamilton M. Handbook of the Philippines. (Chi-
cago : McClurg & Co., 1907.)

SISAL HEMP AND OTHER AGAVE FIBRES

Bulletin of the Imperial Institute, Vol. XIII (1915), pages
430-446.

Kew Bulletin, 1887, March, pages 3-8 ; 1889, pages 57-61,
254 ; 1890, pages 50-54, 158-161, 273-278 ; 1891, pages
J75-i77 ; 1892, pages 21-40, 141-143, 183-184, 189-190,

PRINCIPAL PUBLICATIONS ON FIBRES 229

217-218, 272-277, 283 ; 1893, pages 78-80, 141-144,
315-321, 329-330 ; 1894, pages 189-190, 412-414 ; 1896,
page 119 ; 1906, pages 190-192 ; 1907, pages 396-400 ;
1913, pages 231-233.

Braun, K. Die Agaven, ihre Kultur und Verwendung mit
besonderer Beriicksichtigung von Agave rigida var. sisa-
lana, Engelm. Der Pflanzer, Vol. II (1906), pages 209-
240, 241-257, 273-288, 289-304, 307-310.
Brack, W. F. The Present Position and Prospects of Fibre
Cultivation in the German Colonies. Transactions of the
3rd International Congress of Tropical Agriculture (1914),
pages 560-572.

Department of Agriculture, Industry and Commerce, Java.
Fibres of the Netherland East Indies. Transactions of
the 3rd International Congress of Tropical Agriculture
(1914), pages 581-584.

Dodge, C. R. A Report on Sisal Hemp Culture in the United
States. Report No. 3 (1891), Office of Fiber Investiga-
tions, United States Department of Agriculture.
Drummond, J. R., and Prain, D. Note on Agave and Fur-
craea in India. Agricultural Ledger (of India), 1906,
No. 7.

Edwards, H. T. The Cultivation of Maguey in the Philippine
Islands. Farmers' Bulletin, No. 13 (1906), Bureau of
Agriculture, Manila.

Ludewig, H. J. Die Kultur des Zapupe im Canton von Tuxpan,
Mexiko. Der Tropenpflanzer, Vol. XV (1911), pages 235-

243-
Mann, H. F., and Hunter, J. Sisal Hemp Culture in the

Indian Tea Districts. (Calcutta : City Press, 1904.)
Marques, A. Culture et Preparation du Sisal (Henequen).

Etude faite aux iles Havai. (Paris : Challamel,

1909.)
Wigglesworth, A. Fibre Industry of British East Africa.

Transactions of the 3rd International Congress of Tropical

Agriculture (1914), pages

MAURITIUS HEMP

Kew Bulletin, 1887, March, pages 8-10 ; 1890, pages 98-104.
Stockdale, F. A. The Fibre Industry of Mauritius. Bulletin

No. 5 (1915), Department of Agriculture, Mauritius.

Transactions of the 3rd International Congress of Tropical

Agriculture (1914), pages 546-559.

230 PRINCIPAL PUBLICATIONS ON FIBRES

BOWSTRING HEMP (Sansevieria spp.)

Kew Bulletin, 1887, May, pages i-n ; 1889, pages 222-224 >

1892, pages 129-132.
Brown, N. E. Sansevieria, A Monograph of all the Known

Species. Kew Bulletin, 1915, pages 185-261.
Sorge, R. Aufbereitung der Sansevierenblatter. Der Tro-

penpflanzer, Vol. X (1906), pages 584-597.
Wigglesworth, A. Fibre Industry of British East Africa.

Transactions of the 3rd International Congress of Tropical

Agriculture (1914), pages 503-505.

NEW ZEALAND HEMP

Bulletin of the Imperial Institute, Vol. V (1907), pages

36-45.
Hector, James. Phormium tenax as a Fbrous Plant. (New

Zealand : Government Printer, Wellington, 1889.)
New Zealand Department of Agriculture. Phormium tenax

(New Zealand Fibre Plant). Method of Fibre Extraction.

Bulletin No. 22 (New Series), 1912.

PINEAPPLE FIBRE

Kew Bulletin, 1887, April, page 8.

The Cultivation of the Pineapple for Fruit and Fibre. Bulle-
tin of the Imperial Institute, Vol. XIV (1916), pages
437-460.

COIR

Kew Bulletin, 1889, pages 129-132.

Hubert, Paul. Le Cocotier. (Paris : Dunod et Pinat, 1906.)
Smith, H. Hamel, and Pape, F. A. G. Coconuts : the Consols
of the East. (London : Tropical Life Publishing De-
partment, 1913.)

PIASSAVA

Kew Bulletin, 1889, pages 237-242 ; 1891, pages 1-5 ; 1892,

pages 299-300 ; 1894, pages 358-359-
Piassava Industry of British West Africa. Bulletin of the

Imperial Institute, Vol. XIII (1915), pages 555-556.

PRINCIPAL PUBLICATIONS ON FIBRES 231

MEXICAN FIBRE

Kew Bulletin, 1887, December, pages 5-7 ; 1890, pages 220-

224.
Endlich, R. Der Ixtle und seine Stammpflanzen. Beihefte

zum Tropenpflanzer, 1908, No. 5.

ITALIAN WHISK OR BROOM CORN FIBRE

Marks, G. Broom Millet. Agricultural Gazette of New
South Wales, Vol. XX (1909), pages 551-564.

Marks, G. Broom-making on the Farm. Agricultural Gazette
of New South Wales, Vol. XXV (1914), pages 589-597.

MEXICAN WHISK OR ZACATON FIBRE

Kew Bulletin, 1887, December, page 9 ; 1897, page 172.

Brand, Charles J., and Merrill, Jason L. Zacaton as a Paper-
making Material. Bulletin No. 309 (1915), United States
Department of Agriculture.

KAPOK AND OTHER FLOSSES OR SILK-COTTONS

Kew Bulletin, 1896, pages 204-207.

Bruck, W. F. The Present Position and Prospects of Fibre

Cultivation in the German Colonies. Transactions of the

3rd International Congress of Tropical Agriculture (1914),

pages 572-573.
Department of Agriculture, Industry, and Commerce, Java.

Fibres of the Netherland East Indies. Transactions of

the 3rd International Congress of Tropical Agriculture

(1914), pages 574-579-
Saleeby, M. M. The Kapok Industry. Bulletin No. 26 (1913),

Bureau of Agriculture, Manila.
Zimmermann, A. Ueber Pflanzenseiden. Der Pflanzer, Vol.

VIII (1912), pages 177-184.

RAFFIA OR BASS

Bulletin of the Imperial Institute, Vol. XV (1917), pages 434-
440.

Kew Bulletin, 1895, pages 88-92, 287-288.

Deslandes, M. Le Raphia, exploitation, utilisation et com-
merce a Madagascar. (Paris : Challamel, 1906).
16

INDEX

Abaca fibre, 156

Abassi cotton, 59

Abutilon asiaticum, 145

Abutilon Avicennce, 145

Abutilon indicum, 145

Acid purification of fibres, 6

Adansonia digitata, 221

Africa, East, cotton growing in,
91; flax growing in, no;
papyrus of, 222 ; Sansevieria
fibres of, 186 ; Sisal hemp
cultivation in, 172

Africa, South, cotton growing in,
97 ; flax growing in, in; see
also Natal ani Transvaal

Africa, West, banana fibre in,
165; baobab bark from, 221 ;
cotton growing in, 77 ; Hibiscus
fibres of, 145 ; jute growing in,
142 ; piassava production in,
205 ; ramie cultivation in, 129 ;
Sansevieria fibres of, 186; Sisal
hemp cultivation in, 179 ;
Triumfetta fibres of , 153 ; Urena
fibres of, 154, 155

Agave Cantata, 167, 169

Agave fourcroydes, 167

Agave heteracantha, 207

Agave Lespinassei, 180

Agave rigidav&r. elongata, 167

Agave sisalana, 167

Agave Zapupe, 180

Agave spp., 166

A gratis spp., 41

Ake-iri fibre, 154

Alabama argillacea, 40

Algeria, exports of crin vegetal
from, 214 ; production of es-
parto, 219

" Aloes," 166, 181

Alpinia nutans, 222

Amaryllidaceae, 166, 181

Ambari hemp, 146

American cotton, cultivation in
British West Africa, 78, 79, 81 ,
82, 85, 87 ; cultivation in
Sudan, 88 ; prices, 75 ; varie-
ties, 52

American Upland cotton, 53 ;
botanical source, n ; cultiva-
tion in Asiatic Russia, 72 ; cul-
tivation in Brazil, 70 ; cultiva-
tion in Corea, 74 ; cultivation in
Cyprus, 96 ; cultivation in India,
63, 65 ; cultivation in Nyasa-
land, 93 ; cultivation in Uganda,
90

Amomum hemisphericum, 222

Ananas sativa, 198

Angular leaf spot of cotton, 33

Anthonomus grandis, 36, 71

Anthracnose of cotton, 33

Aphis gossypii, 42

Apion sp., 134

Apocynaceae, 213

" Aramina " fibre, 154

Argentina, cotton production in, 71

Arundo Donav, 222

Asclepiadaceae, 213

Asclepias spp., 213

Ash determination of fibres, 5

Ashmouni cotton, 26, 58

Assil Afifi cotton, 59

Aster ocystis radicis, 99, 101

Attalea funifera, 204

Australia, broom corn cultivation
in, 208 ; cotton cultivation in,
97 ; flax cultivation in, in;
Sisal hemp cultivation in, 172

Awkraw fibre, 146

Azores, New Zealand hemp cul-
tivation in, 196

Bacterial disease of cotton, 35
Bacterium malvacearum, 36
Bafoodo julo fibre, 151

233

234

INDEX

Bagasse, use in paper making, 221

Bahamas, Sisal hemp cultivation
in, 169

Bahia piassava, 204

Bamboo, use in paper making, 220

Banana fibre, 164

Bani cotton, 67

Baobab bark, use in paper making,
221

Barbados, cotton growing in, 95

Barsi cotton, 66

Bass, 214

Bassine fibre, 206

Bast fibres, I

Belati cotton, 66

Bengals cotton, 66

Bhang, 114

Bhindi fibre, 146

Bimlipitam " jute," 146

Bixaceae, 213

Black arm disease of cotton, 35

Doehmeria nivea and var. tenacis-
sima, 124

Boll, 12

Boll-shedding of cotton, 33

Boll- weevil, 36, 71

Boll-worm, American, 38 ; Egyp-
tian, 39 ; pink, 39

Bolobolo fibre, 151

Bombacaceae, 209, 213

Bombax Ceiba, 213

Bombax malabaricum, 210, 213

Bombay " hemp," 122

Boon, 106, 119

Borassus flabellifer, 206

Bowstring hemp, 185

Brazil, cotton production in, 70

Brazilian cotton, botanical source,
12 ; prices, 75 ; varieties, 70

Breaking of flax, 106 ; of hemp,
119

British Cotton Growing Associa-
tion, 77, 78, 81, 83, 85, 87, 91

British East Africa — see East
Africa Protectorate

British Empire, cotton growing
in, 76

British North Borneo, Manila
hemp cultivation in, 156

British West Africa, banana fibre
in, 165; cotton growing in, 77 ;
Hibiscus fibres of, 145 ; jute
growing in, 142 ; piassava pro-
duction in, 205 ; ramie cultiva-
tion in, 129 ; Sansevieria fibres
of, 1 86 ; Sisal hemp cultiva-
tion in, 179 ; Triumfetta fibres
of, 153 ; Urena fibres of, 154

British West Indies, cotton grow-
ing in, 94 ; Manila hemp cul-
tivation in, 156 ; Sisal hemp
cultivation in, 172

Broach cotton, 64, 67

Bromeliaceae, 198

Broom corn fibre, 208

Broussonetia papyri/era, 221

Brush fibres, 3, 200

Buri cotton, 65

Calotropis gigantea, 209, 213

Calotropis procera, 213

Cambodia cotton, 65

Canada, flax growing in, 1 10

Cannabis saliva, 113, 156

Caryota urens, 207

Celluloid, 16

Cellulose, 4 ; determination of in
fibres, 6

Ceylon, coir exports from, 202 ;
cotton growing in, 97 ; kitool
exports from, 207 ; palmyra
fibre exports, 206 ; Sansevieria
zeylanica fibre of, 187 ; sunn
hemp cultivation in, 122

Cham&rops humilis, 213

Charas, 113

Chemical examination of fibres, 4

Chiendents, 209

China, cotton production in, 72

China grass, 124

China jute, 145

Chorisia spp., 213

Chrysopogon gryllus, 209

Ch'u ma, 124

Churka gin, 45

Cochlospermum Gossypium, 213

Coconadas cotton, 68

Coconut palm, 200

Cocos nucifera, 200

Cedilla, 107

Coimbatores cotton, 68

Coir, 200 ; exports from India
and Ceylon, 202 ; imports into
United Kingdom, 203

Colletotrichum gossypii, 33

Collodion, 16

Colombia, cotton production in,

71

Coompta cotton, 64, 67
Cor chorus capsularis, 131
Cor chorus "olitorius, 131
Cordage fibres, 3, 156
Corea, cotton production in, 74
Corwey fibre, 149
Cosmophila sabulifera, 134
Cotton, 9 ; acclimatisation and

INDEX

235

improvement, 29 ; American,
52, 75 ; baling, 47 ; botanical
characters, 10 ; Brazilian, 70,
75 ; chemical composition, 15 ;
climatic conditions in Egypt,
23 ; climatic conditions in
United States, 19 ; climatic
conditions required for, 17 ;
cultivation, 17 ; cultivation
methods in Egypt, 23 ; cul-
tivation methods in United
States, 19 ; diseases, 32 ;
Egyptian, 57, 75 ; ginning,
45 ; harvesting, 18 ; harvesting
in Egypt, 26 ; harvesting in
United States, 21 ; hybridisa-
tion, 30 ; imports into United
Kingdom from United States,
51 ; Indian, 66, 75 ; insect
pests, 36 ; irrigation in Egypt,
26 ; length of fibres, 14 ; manur-
ing, 26 ; mercerisation, 16 ;
perennial or tree, 12, 31, 69,
70 ; Peruvian, 69, 75 ; pre-
paration for the market, 45 ;
pressing and baling, 47 ; prices,
74 ; production in Argentina,

71 ; production in Asiatic
Russia, 71 ; production in
Brazil, 70 ; production in
British Empire, 76 ; production
in British West Africa, 77 ;
production in British West
Indies, 94 ; production in Cey-
lon, 97 ; production in China,

72 ; production in Colombia,
71 ; production in Corea, 74 ;
production in Cyprus, 96 ; pro-
duction in East Africa Pro-
tectorate, 91 ; production in
Egypt, 54 ; production in Fiji,
97 ; production in Gambia, 86 ;
production in Gold Coast, 82 ;
production in India, 61 ; pro-
duction in Japan, 73 ; produc-
tion in Malta, 96 ; production
in Mexico, 71 ; production in
Northern Provinces, Nigeria,
80 ; production in Nyasaland,
93 ; production in Papua, 97 ;
production in Peru, 69 ; pro-
duction in Queensland, 97 ; pro-
duction in Rhodesia, 97 ; pro-
duction in Sierra Leone, 84 ;
production in Southern Pro-
vinces, Nigeria, 78 ; produc-
tion in Sudan, 88 ; production
in Uganda, 90 ; production in

Union of South Africa, 97 ; pro-
duction in United States, 49 ;
production in Venezuela, 71 ;
propagation by budding and
cuttings, 32 ; regions of cultiva-
tion, 17 ; rotation of crops, 28 ;
Sea Island, 52, 75 ; seed selec-
tion, 29 ; soil conditions in
Egypt, 24 ; soil conditions in
United States, 19 ; soil condi-
tions necessary for, 18 ; sowing
in Egypt, 25 ; sowing in United
States, 19 ; structure of fibre,
14 ; tree or perennial, 12, 31, 69,
70 ; use in paper-making, 216 ;
varieties, American, 52 ; varie-
ties, Egyptian, 57 ; varieties,
Indian, 66 ; varieties, Peruvian,
69 ; weeding, 21 ; West Indian,
75, 94 I world's production, 9 ;
yield in Egypt, 55 ; yield in
United States, 50

Cotton aphis, 42

Cotton boll, 12

Cotton boll rot, 35

Cotton boll shedding, 33

Cotton boll- weevil, 36, 71

Cotton leaf blight, 35

Cotton leaf -roller, 41

Cotton mildew, 35

Cotton-picking machines, 22

Cottonseed, 13 ; disinfection of , 43

Cotton-seed cake and meal, 13

Cotton-seed oil, 13

Cotton stainers, 42

Cotton wool, 15

Cotton worm, American, 40 ;
Egyptian, 41

Crawford - Elliot cotton - picking
machine, 22

Crin vegetal, 214

Crotalaria juncea, 122

Cuscuta epilinum, 101

Cutworms of cotton, 41

Cymbopogon Nardus var. vallidus,

222

Cyprus, cotton growing in, 96 ;
flax growing in, in

Dahomey, cotton growing in, 78
Darwaso fibre, 150
Deccan hemp, 146
Decortication of ramie, 126 ; of

Sisal hemp, 175
Degumming of ramie, 127
Delinter, 13
Dharwars cotton, 67
Dholleras cotton, 67

236

INDEX

Dictyosperma fibrosum, 204
Diseases of cotton, 32 ; of flax,

100

Disinfection of cotton seed, 43
Dodder, 101
Dwarf fan palm, 213
Dysdercus spp., 42
Earias insulana, 39

East Africa Protectorate, cotton
growing in, 91 ; flax growing
in, no ; papyrus in, 222 ; San-
sevieria fibres of, 186 ; Sisal
hemp cultivation in, 170

Egypt, cotton production in, 54;
methods of cotton cultivation
in, 23

Egyptian cottons, botanical source,
1 1 ; cultivation in Brazil, 70 ;
cultivation in British West
Africa, 81, 82, 85, 87 ; cultiva-
tion in East Africa Protectorate,
92 ; cultivation in India, 65 ;
cultivation in Nyasaland, 93 ;
cultivation in Peru, 69 ; cultiva-
tion in Sudan, 88 ; cultivation
in Uganda, 90 ; cultivation in
United States, 52 ; prices, 75 ;
uses, 60 ; varieties, 57

Elceis guineensis, 197

Elephant grass, use in paper
making, 222

England, flax growing in, no

Epicampes macroura, 209

Eriodendron anfractuosum, 209,
210

Enodendron Samauma, 213

Eriophyes gossypii, 43

Esparto, 219

Estopier, 180

Feltia sp., 41

Fibres, chemical examination, 4 ;
classification according to
origin, i, uses, 2 ; determina-
tion of strength and elongation,
7 ; determination of length and
diameter of ultimate, 7; methods
of investigation, 3 ; micro-
scopical examination, 3

Fiji, cotton growing in, 97 ; Sisal
hemp cultivation in, 172

Filasse, 127

Flax, botanical characters, 98 ;
breaking, 106 ; climate and soil,
98 ; commercial varieties, 112 ;
cultivation, 99 ; cultivation in
British Empire, 108 ; cultiva-

tion in Canada, no; cultiva-
tion in East Africa Protectorate,
110 ; cultivation in England,
110 ; cultivation in Ireland,

108 ; diseases and pests, 100 ;
experiments in Australia, Cy-
prus, India, and South Africa,
in; harvesting, 100 ; im-
ports into United Kingdom,

109 ; manuring, 99 ; prepara-
tion of fibre, 102 ; prices, 112 ;
retting, 102 ; rippling, 102 ;
scutching, 106 ; seed sowing,
100 ; sorting and baling, 107 ;
structure, uses, and properties,
in ; use in paper-making, 216 ;
world's production, 107 ; yield,
100

Flax-rust, 101
FJax shieve or boon, 106
Flax-sick land, 101
Flax, tow or codilla, 107 ; im-
ports into United Kingdom, 109
Flax wilt, 101
Flax yellowing, 99, 100
Flosses, 209

Formosa, pineapple fibre in, 198
Frenching of cotton, 34
Fumigation of cotton seed, 44
Funtumia elastica, 209, 213
Furcreza cubensis, 184
Furcrcea gigantea, 181
Fusarium lini, 101
Fuzz of cotton seed, 13

Gambia, cotton growing in, 86 ;
Hibiscus rostellatus (darwaso)
fibre, 150 ; H. tiliaceus (ba-
foodo julo) fibre, 151 ; jute
growing in, 143 ; Urena lobata
fibre in, 154

Ganja, 113

Gelechia gossypiella, 39

German East Africa, cotton grow-
ing in, 92 ; Sisal hemp cultiva-
tion, in, 170

Ginning of cotton, 45

Girardinia heterophylla, 130

Gold Coast, banana fibre in, 166 ;
cotton growing in, 82 ; Hibis-
cus Sabdariffa (nama) fibre, 150 ;
H. squamosus fibre, 150; Mauri-
tius hemp experiments in, 1 84 ;
pineapple fibre from, 1 99; Sanse-
vieria guineensis fibre, 187 ;
Triumfetta cor di folia var. Hol-
landii fibre. 153

Gomphocarpus brasiliensis, 213

INDEX

237

Gossypiunt, different species of, 10
Gossypium peruvianum, 69, 81
Grass-cloths, 129, 198
Grasses, 208, 209, 219, 220, 221,

222

Gratte, 182

Grenada, cotton growing in, 94

Gun-cotton, 16

Hashish, 114

Hedychium coronarium, 222

Heliothis armiger, 38

Hemp, 156 ; botanical source,

113 ; breaking and scutching,
119; climate and soil, 114;
commercial varieties, 121 ; cul-
tivation, 115 ; harvesting, 115 ;
preparation, 116; prices, 121 ;
retting, 116 ; structure, proper-
ties, and uses, 121 ; use in paper
making, 216; where grown,

114 ; world's production, ^20 ;
yield, 120 ; see also bowstring
hemp, Deccan hemp, Manila
hemp, Mauritius hemp, New
Zealand hemp, Sisal hemp,
Sunn hemp, Tampico hemp

Hemp seed, 113

" Henequen," 168

Hibiscus Abelmoschus, 146; H.
cannabinus, 146 ; H. esculenlus,
146 ; H. guineensis 148 ; H.
lunariifolius, 148 ; H. quin-
quelobus, 149 ; H. rostellatus,
150; H. Sabdariffa, 150; H.
squamosus, 150 ; H. tiliaceus,

J51

Hindi cotton, 59
Hinganghat cotton, 67
Honckenya ficifolia, 151
Hulls of cotton seed, 13
Hydrolysis determination of fibres,

5

Ife hemp, 186

Improved American Upland cot-
tons, 53

India, coir exports from, 202 ;
cotton exports from, 63 •. cotton
production in, 61 ; flax growing
in, in ; flosses of, 210, 213 ;
hemp cultivation in, 114 ; Hibis-
cus fibres of, 146 ; jute manu-
facturing industry, 1 4 1 ; j ute pro-
duction and exports, 139; kapok
production in, 210 ; kitool pro-
duction in, 207 ; Manila hemp
cultivation in, 156 ; nettle fibres

of, 130 ; palmyra fibre in, 206 ;
ramie cultivation in, 124 ; San-
sevieria fibres of, 187 ; Sida
fibres of, 153 ; Sisal hemp cul-
tivation in, 169 ; Sunn hemp
cultivation in, 122; Urenalobata
fibre, 154

Indian cotton, botanical source,
12 ; characters of, 51 ; im-
provement of, 64 ; prices, 75 ;
varieties, 66

Indian mallow, 145

Insect pests of cotton, 36 ; of
jute, 134

Ireland, flax growing in, 108

Istle,207

Italian whisk, 208

Jaggery palm, 207

Jamaica, cotton exports from,
96 ; Sisal hemp in, 172

Japan, cotton production in, 73

Jari cotton, 65, 67

Java, kapok cultivation in, 210 ;
pineapple fibre in, 198

Jute, botanical characters, 131 ;
butts or cuttings, 137, 138 ;
characters, structure, and uses,
137 ; climate and soil, 132 ;
commercial varieties, 139 ; cul-
tivation, 133 ; cultivation in
India, 131, 139 ; cultivation in
West Africa, 142 ; extension of
cultivation, 142 ; harvesting,
135 ; manufacturing industry
in India and United Kingdom,
141 ; pests, 134 ; preparation
of fibre, 135 ; prices, 139 ; root-
ends, 137, 158 ; substitutes,
145 ; use in paper making, 216 ;
varieties, 131 ; see also West
African jute, China jute, Bim-
lipatam jute

Kapok, 210; cultivation, 210;
imports into United Kingdom,
212 ; preparation and baling,
211 ; prices, 213 ; uses, 212

Karunganni cotton, 65

Khandesh cotton, 66

Kidney cotton seed, 69

Kitool, 207

Konje hemp, 186

Kowe fibre, 149

Leaf -blister mite of cotton, 43
Leaf fibres, 2
Leafy cotton, 67

INDEX

Leeward Islands, cotton growing

in, 95

Legrand process of flax retting, 105
Leguminosae, 122
Leopoldinia Piassaba, 204
Lignocelluloses, 4
Liliaceas, 185, 187
Linaceae, 98
Linseed, 98
Lint, 12
Linters, 13

Linum usitatissimum, 98
Locusts, 43

Long-stapled cottons, 14
Long-stapled Upland cottons, 53

Macarthy gin, 47

Madagascar, exports of raffia, 215 ;
piassava from, 204

Maguey fibre, 163, 167, 170

Malay Archipelago, rhea cultiva-
tion in, 124

Malta, cotton growing in, 96

Malvaceae, 10, 145, 153, 154

Manila hemp, botanical charac-
ters, 157 ; cultivation, 157 ;
grading, 161 ; harvesting, 159 ;
imports into United Kingdom,
163 ; preparation of fibre, 159 ;
prices, 162, 163 ; production
and export, 162 ; properties,
structure, and uses of fibre, 160 ;
regions of cultivation, 156 ;
use in paper-making, 216 ;
yield, 160

Marie Galante cotton, 94

Marram grass, use in paper mak-
ing, 222

Mat fibres, 3, 200

Mauritius hemp, 181

Mauritius, Sisal hemp cultivation
in, 172

Medium-stapled cottons, 14

Megasse, use in paper making,
221

Melampsora lini, 101

Mercerisation of cotton, 16

Mexican cotton, botanical source,
ii

Mexican fibre, 207

Mexico, cotton production in, 71 ;
Sisal hemp cultivation in, 167

Microscopical examination of
fibres, 3

Mitafifi cotton, 58, 69, 88

Monkey bread tree, 221

Moraceae, 113

Mosaic disease of cotton, 33

Murva fibre, 187
Musa Ensete, 165
Musa Livingstoniana, 164
Musa spp., 164
Musatextilis, 157
Musa ulugurensis, 165

Na fen fe fibre, 154

Nagar cotton, 66

Napunti fibre, 151

Nassim fibre, 149

Natal, Furcrceagiganteain, 184

Neocosmospora vasinfecta, 34

Nesseltuch, 130

Nettle-cloth, 130

Nettle fibres, 130

New South Wales, broom corn
cultivation in, 208

New Zealand flax, 187

New Zealand hemp, botanical
source, 187 ; characters, pro-
perties, and uses of the fibre,
192 ; cost of production, 191 ;
cultivation, 188 ; cultivation
in the Azores, 196 ; cultivation
in St. Helena, 195 ; cultivation
in Scotland, 197 ; exports, 192,
194 ; geographical distribution,
1 88 ; Government bonuses for
machinery, etc., 193 ; grading,
193; harvesting, 189; prepara-
tion of fibre, 190 ; prices, 195 ;
production, 192 ; use in paper
making, 216 ; yield, 191

Nigeria, Hibiscus fibres of, 146 ;
Mauritius hemp experiments in,
184 ; piassava exports, 206

Nigeria, Northern Provinces,
cotton growing in, 80 ; Hibiscus
lunarii/olius (ramma) fibre, 148 ;
H. Sabdariffa (rama) fibre,
150; jute growing in, 144;
Urena sinuata fibre, 155

Nigeria, Southern Provinces,
banana fibre of, 165 ; cotton
growing in, 78 ; Hibiscus escu-
lentus fibre, 148 ; H. guineensis
(ramo) fibre, 148 ; jute growing
in, 144 ; Sansevieria guineensis
fibre, 187

Nilgiri nettle, 130

Nitration of fibres, 5

Nitrocellulose, 16

Northerns cotton, 65, 68

Nubari cotton, 58

Nyasaland, broom corn fibre in
208 ; cotton growing in, 93 ;
Furcrcea gigantea in, 184 ; Sida

INDEX

239

rhombifolia fibre, 153 ; sisal
hemp in, 171 ; Triumfetta rhom-
boidea fibre, 154
Nyasaland Upland cotton, 93

Ochroma Lagopus, 213
Oil-cake, cotton-seed, 13
Oil-palm fibre, 197
Ojakoko fibre, 187
Okra fibre, 146
Oomras cotton, 66
Orobanche ramosa, 115
Oxycarenus spp., 42
Ozonium sp., 35

Palms, 197, 200, 204, 205, 206, 207,

213, 214

Palmyra fibre, 206
Paper-making materials, 3, 129,

179, 200, 215
Paper mulberry, 221
Papua, cotton growing in, 97 ;

Sisal hemp in, 171
Papyrus, use in paper making, 222
Para piassava, 204
Peat, use as a paper-making

material, 221
Pectocelluloses, 4
Pennisetum purpureum, 222
Peru, cotton production in, 69
Peruvian cotton, botanical source,

12 ; prices, 75 ; varieties and

uses, 69
Philippines, kapok cultivation in,

210; " Maguey " fibre in, 163,

167, 170; Manila hemp in, 156 ;

pineapple fibre in, 198 ; Sisal

hemp in, 170
Phor mium tenax, 187
Piassava, 204 ; Piassava, Bahia,

204 ; Piassava, Madagascar,

204 ; Piassava, Para, 204 ;

Piassava, West African, 205
Pineapple, cultivation, 198 ; fibre,

198

Pink boll-worm, 39
Pita fibre, 169
Plantain fibre, 164
Potepo fibre, 151
Price-Campbell cotton-p i c k i n g

machine, 22
Prodenia litura, 41

Queensland, cotton growing in, 97 ;

Sisal hemp in, 172
Quondi cotton, 86

Raffia, 214

Rags, use in paper making, 216

Rama (Hibiscus Sabdariffa) fibre,
150

Rama (Urena sinuata) fibre, 155

Ramie, botanical characters, 124 ;
character and uses of fibre, 128 ;
cultivation, 125 ; cultivation
in China, 125 ; cultivation in
India, 125 ; cultivation in
Sierra Leone, 129 ; cultivation
in United States, 125 ; prepara-
tion of fibre, 126 ; prices, 129 ;
use in paper making, 216;
varieties, 124 ; yield, 128

Ramma fibre, 148

Ramo fibre, 148

Ramularia areola, 35

Raphia Hookeri, 205

Raphia Ruffta, 215

Raphia vinifera, 205, 215

Raspador, 168, 175

Red leaf blight of cotton, 33

Reeserand Mackenzie fibre-testing
machine, 8

Retting of flax, 102 ; of hemp,
116 ; of jute, 135 ; sunn hemp,
123

Rhea, 124

Rhodesia, cotton growing in, 97 ;
Sisal hemp experiments in, 172

Rippling of flax, 102

Roller-gins, 46

Root rot of cotton, 35

Rope, use in paper making, 216

Russia, Asiatic, cotton production
in, 71

St. Helena, New Zealand hemp

cultivation in, 195
St. Kitts, cotton growing in, 95
St. Lucia, cotton exports from, 96
St. Vincent, cotton growing in, 95
Sakellaridis cotton, 59
Salems cotton, 68
San hemp, 122
Sansevieria cylindrica, 186
Sansevieria Ehrenbergii, 185, 186
Sansevieria guineensis, 185, 186
Sansevieria Roxburghiana, 187
Sansevieria Stuckyi, 186
Sansevieria sulcata, 186
Sansevieria Volkensis, 186
Sansevieria zeylanica, 187
Sarsaparilla, wild, 179
Saw-gin, 46
Scarto, 13 *
Schenk process of flax retting, 104

240

INDEX

Schopper's fibre-testing machine, 7
Scotland, New Zealand hemp cul-
tivation in, 197
Scutching of flax, 106 ; of hemp,

119

Sea Island cotton, 52 ; botanical
source, 1 1 ; cultivation in Brazil,
70 ; cultivation in Peru, 69 ;
cultivation in West Indies, 94 ;
prices, 75
Seed-cotton, 12
Shieve, 106, 119
Short- stapled cottons, 14
Sida carpinifolia, 153
Sida rhombi folia, 153
Sida urens, 153

Sierra Leone, banana fibre, 165 ;
cotton growing in, 84 ; Furcraa
cubensis in, 184 ; Hibiscus
esculentus (" awkraw " or
" okra ") fibre, 146 ; H. quirt-
quelobus (" kowe ") fibre, 149 ;
Honckenya ficifolia fibre, 151 ,
jute growing in, 143 ; piassava
exports, 206 ; ramie growing
in, 143 ; Sansevieria guineensis
fibre, 187 ; Sisal hemp in, 179
Silk-cottons, 209

Sisal hemp, botanical characters,
1 66 ; characters and properties
of fibre, 177 ; climate and soil,
172 ; cost of production, 176 ;
cultivation, 172 ; cultivation in
Australia, 172 ; cultivation in
Bahamas, 169 ; cultivation in
East Africa, 170 ; cultivation
in Fiji, 172 ; cultivation in
India, 169 ; cultivation in
Mauritius, 172 ; cultivation in
Mexico, 167 ; cultivation in
Nyasaland, 171 ; cultivation in
Papua, 171 ; cultivation in
Philippines, 170 ; cultivation
in West Africa, 179 ; cultiva-
tion in West Indies, 172 ; dura-
tion of life of plant, 1 74 ; extrac-
tion and preparation of fibre,
175 ; harvesting, 173; planting,
*73 »* poling, 1 66, 174 ; prices,
178 ; use in paper making, 216 ;
uses, 156 ; yield, 173
Sisal refuse, utilisation, 178
Somaliiand, Sansevieria Ehren-

bergii in, 186
Sorghum vulgare, 208
Spain, production of esparto, 219
Spanish reed, use %in paper
making, 222

Spharella gossypina, 35

Stipa tenacissima, 219

Straw, use in paper making, 220

Stuffing materials, 3

Subwe fibre, 154

Sudan, cotton growing in, 88 ;

papyrus in, 222
Sunn hemp, 122
Sylepta derogata, 41

Tambookie grass, use in paper

making, 222
Tampico hemp, 207
Tepezintla, 180
Textile fibres, 2
Tiliaceae, 131, 145, 151, 153
Tinnevelly cotton, 65, 68
Togoland, cotton growing in, 78
Tow, flax, 107 ; New Zealand

hemp, 195
Transcaucasia, cotton production

in, 71
Transvaal, Spanish reed

(Arundo Donax) from, 222 ;

Tambookie grass (Cymbopogon

Nardus var. vallidus] from, 222
Tree or perennial cotton, 1-2, 31,

69, 70
Trinidad, cotton exports from,

96 ; Fur era; a cubensis in, 184
Triumfetta cor di folia, 153
Triumfetta rhomboidea, 153
Turkestan, cotton production in,

Uganda, cotton growing in, 90;
elephant grass from, 222 ;
Sisal hemp experiments in, 172

Union of South Africa, cotton
growing in, 97 ; flax growing in,
in

United States, cotton consump-
tion in, 50 ; cotton production
in, 49 ; imports of Sisal hemp,
1 68 ; methods of cotton cultiva-
tion in, 19

Uppam cotton, 65

Urena lobata, 154

Urena sinuata, 155

Urtica dioica, 130

Urticaceae, 124

Vegetable curled hair, 213
Venezuela, cotton production in

71

Viilebrunea integrifolia, 130
Vonitra palm, 204

INDEX

241

West African " jute/* 149
West African piassava, 205
West Indian cotton, prices, 75
West Indies, see British West

Indies

Westerns cottons, 68
Whisk, Italian, 208 ; Mexican,

209
Wilt disease of cotton, 34

Wine-palm, 205
Wood pulp, 216

Yannovitch cotton, 58, 59
Yucatan Sisal, 167

Zacaton fibre, 209
Zapupe fibre, 180
Zingiberaceae, 222

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African World.

IMPERIAL INSTITUTE SERIES OF HAND-
BOOKS TO THE COMMERCIAL RESOURCES
OF THE TROPICS

COCOA: Its Cultivation
and Preparation

By W. H. JOHNSON, F.L.S.

DIRECTOR OF AGRICULTURE IN SOUTHERN NIGERIA, AND FORMERLY

DIRECTOR OF AGRICULTURE IN THE GOLD COAST AND IN THE TERRITORIES

OF THE MOZAMBIQUE COMPANY, PORTUGUESE EAST AFRICA

With Illustrations. Demy 8vo. 6s. net

CONTENTS: HISTORICAL— BOTANICAL— CLIMATIC REQUIRE-
MENTS OF COCOA TREES— SOIL REQUIREMENTS OF THE COCOA
TREE— LAYING OUT A COCOA PLANTATION— SHADING AND INTER-
CROPS FOR COCOA— PROPAGATION— PLANTING, CULTIVATING, AND
PRUNING — MANURING — RESULTS OF MANURIAL EXPERIMENTS IN
VARIOUS COUNTRIES— DISEASES— VEGETABLE PARASITES AND
EPIPHYTES— HARVESTING AND TRANSPORTING COCOA BEANS TO
FERMENTING HOUSES — THE SCIENCE OF COCOA FERMENTATION —
METHODS OF FERMENTING IN VOGUE IN VARIOUS COUNTRIES-
WASHING AND DRYING COCOA— YIELDS AND EXPENDITURE— COM-
MERCIAL COCOA, ITS MANUFACTURE AND USES.

" Those owning established plantations, or who are thinking of
taking up cocoa-planting as an industry, will certainly need to add
Mr. Johnson's work to their book-shelves, and when they do so they
will find the information given to be compact, easy to understand and
follow, sound in practice, and reliable in detail. We are glad to see
such a book from so experienced an authority." — Tropical Life.

" It may be recommended to the notice of those interested in the
cocoa industry, as it contains a mass of information relative to plant-
ing and cultivation. Many valuable hints may be gleaned from its
pages, which cover the subject in a thoroughly comprehensive and
capable manner." — Financial Times.

" Mr. Johnson may be congratulated on compiling a most inter-
esting and valuable handbook of one of our chief colonial industries/'
— Northern Whig.

" The work, which is illustrated with numerous plates and statistical
tables, is most exhaustive in nature, and contains all the information
on cocoa and its production that a prospective planter in any part of
the world could possibly require." — Western Daily Press.

IMPERIAL INSTITUTE SERIES OF HAND-
BOOKS TO THE COMMERCIAL RESOURCES
OF THE TROPICS

THE

AGRICULTURAL AND
FOREST PRODUCTS OF
BRITISH WEST AFRICA

BY GERALD C. DUDGEON

CONSULTING AGRICULTURIST, MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE, EGYPT ;
LATELY INSPECTOR OF AGRICULTURE FOR BRITISH WEST AFRICA

With Maps and Illustrations. Demy 8vo. Price 6s. net

"The book will be of value to all prospective officials
in a part of the world that is rapidly coming to the front."
— Daily News,

"The information given is thoroughly practical, and if
the present book is a fair sample the series will be of high
utility."— Outlook.

". . . The admirable arrangement of the present volume
leaves nothing to be desired. Mr. Dudgeon has carried
out his task with thoroughness, and the book is excellently
equipped with maps, illustrations, and index." — Manchester
Courier.

" . .A remarkably interesting book." — Liverpool Daily
Courier.

" So far from being a dry technical treatise, Mr. Dudgeon's
book will be found interesting even by the general reader."
— Athenczum.

"... The careful marshalling of facts and purports
which Mr. Dudgeon has here got together cannot fail to
be of great value to all concerned in the development of
its natural resources." — Western Morning News.

THIS BOOK IS DUE ON THE LAST DATE
STAMPED BELOW

AN INITIAL FINE OF 25 CENTS

WILL BE ASSESSED FOR FAILURE TO RETURN
THIS BOOK ON THE DATE DUE. THE PENALTY
WILL INCREASE TO SO CENTS ON THE FOURTH
DAY AND TO $1.OO ON THE SEVENTH DAY
OVERDUE.

MAR 3 1936

MAR 26 1938

LD 21-100m-8,'34

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY