2. History and Distribution
Ancient History
The origin of the cultivation and commercial use of cotton is shrouded in the dim veils of antiquity. The records of India show that the plant was grown, and its fibre utilized, from the earliest times. The Phoenicians and the Hebrews are known to have made cotton clothing, and later the art was transmitted by them to the Greeks and Romans. The vague annals of China indicate a familiarity with this plant and its value extending back to the remote past, and the same is true of Japan. Cortez found a flourishing textile industry among the Aztecs in 1519, and in Peru, Pizarro found cotton garments said to antedate the civilization of the Incas. Again early Portuguese chroniclers relate the discovery of native cotton in Brazil.
Europe
America
The Arabs and Saracens were largely responsible for the introduction of the textile industries to western Europe in the ninth century, but it was not until about the middle of the seventeenth century that any great progress was made. During this time the British began to attempt the cultivation of cotton in their colonies, and it was about 1650 when the first Virginia plantations were begun. Since that time the United States has forged ahead until at present it grows over three-fifths of the world’s crop.
Egypt
The cultivation of cotton in Egypt was begun about 1821, American Sea Island seeds being imported at that time. The fertile alluvial soil of the Nile delta was found particularly adapted to this use, and extensive irrigation later expanded the area. The construction of the Great Assouan Dam late in the nineteenth century gave a tremendous impetus to the industry. Egyptian cotton is mostly of the long staple variety, the best, known as Sakellarides, averaging an inch and three-quarters.
India
Cotton culture in India is perhaps the oldest of all, but Indian cotton is of the short staple variety, and can only be used by certain manufacturers most of which are located in Japan and Germany. About twenty-five million acres are said to be under cultivation, but statistics are very meagre.
China
China has long been a large grower of cotton, but the native species are of a harsh, short fibre. Korea and the Yangtze and Wei basins are the chief sources, and American cotton has recently been introduced in the southern provinces.
Other Countries
Russia began to raise American cotton on a large scale in Turkestan only some twenty years ago, and bids fair to become a large producer. The plant is indigenous to almost all the Central and South American countries, and particularly in Mexico, Brazil and Peru, it has great potentialities. Peru has two kinds of native cotton known as the rough and smooth varieties. The former is of a very long and tough fibre and is valuable because it can be blended with wool.
American Varieties
The greatest part of the American crop consists of the Upland variety, although, as we have noted, there is a small but important crop of Sea Island in the Southern Atlantic states. Another long staple species, known as Pimas, has recently been introduced in Arizona, and the alluvial soil of Mississippi, Arkansas, and Louisiana has produced still other desirable species, locally known as “Rivers,” “Peelers,” and “Benders.” Before we consider the relative manufacturing merits of the various kinds of cotton, it would perhaps be well to consider briefly how the crop is grown.