Southern Nigeria (Lagos) and northern Nigeria are the most
important cotton countries amongst the British possessions on
the coast. From the former there has been an export trade for
many years which fluctuates remarkably according to the demand.
Northern Nigeria is the seat of a very large native cotton industry,
to supply the demand for cotton robes for the Mahommedan
races inhabiting the country. The province of Zaria alone is
estimated to produce annually 30,000 to 40,000 bales, all of
which is used locally. Northern Nigeria contributes to the
cotton exported from Lagos. The country offers a fairly promising
field for development, especially now that arrangements
have been made for providing the necessary means of transport by
the construction of the new railways. The profits obtained from
ground-nuts (Arachis hypogea) in Gambia, gold mining in the
Gold Coast, and from products of the oil palm (Elaeis guineensis)
in the palm-oil belt serve to prevent much attention being given
to cotton in these districts.
| 1865 | 868 bales of 500 ℔. |
| 1869 | 1785 ”” |
| 1900 | 48 ”” |
| 1901 | 15 ”” |
| 1902 | 25 ”” |
| 1903 | 582 ”” |
| 1904 | 1725 ”” |
| 1905 | 2578 ”” |
Exports of Cotton from British West Africa, 1904, 1905 and 1906.
| 1904. | 1905. | 1906. | |
| Bales | Bales | Bales | |
| (500 ℔). | (500 ℔). | (500 ℔). | |
| Gambia | 120 | 5 | 0 |
| Sierra Leone | 56 | 139 | 176 |
| Gold Coast | 115 | 50 | 186 |
| Southern Nigeria and Lagos | 2296 | 2771 | 5392 |
| Northern Nigeria | 574 | 250* | 712 |
| Total | 3161 | 3215 | 6466 |
| *Approximately. |
Nyasaland (British Central Africa).—The cultivation of cotton
on a commercial scale is quite new in Nyasaland, and although
general conditions of soil and climate appear favourable the
question of transport is serious and labour is not abundant.
The exports were equivalent to 2 bales of 500 ℔ in 1902–1903,
114 bales in 1903–1904, 570 bales in 1904–1905, 1553 bales in
1905–1906 and 1052 bales in 1906–1907. In the lower river lands
Egyptian cotton has been the most successful, whilst Upland
cotton is more suited to the highlands.
British East Africa and Uganda.—In these adjoining protectorates wild cottons occur, and suitable conditions exist in certain localities. Experimental work has been carried on, and in 1904 Uganda exported about 43 bales of cotton, and British East Africa about 177 bales. In 1906 the combined exports had risen to 362 bales, including a little from German East Africa. In 1904–1905 there were some 300 acres under cotton in British East Africa. Lack of direct transport facilities is a difficulty. Some of the native cottons are of fair quality, but Egyptian cotton appears likely to be best suited for growing for export.
India is probably the most ancient cotton-growing country. For five centuries before the Christian era cotton was largely used in the domestic manufactures of India; and the clothing of the inhabitants then consisted, as now, chiefly of garments made from this vegetable product. More than two thousand years before Europe or England had conceived the idea of applying modern industry to the manufacture of cotton, India had matured a system of hand-spinning, weaving and dyeing which during that vast period received no recorded improvement. The people, though remarkable for their intelligence whilst Europe was in a state of barbarism, made no approximation to the mechanical operations of modern times, nor was the cultivation of cotton either improved or considerably extended. Possessing soil, climate and apparently all the requisite elements from nature for the production of cotton to an almost boundless extent, and of a useful and acceptable quality, India for a long series of years did but little towards supplying the manufactures of other countries with the raw material which they required. Between the years 1788 and 1850 numerous attempts were made by the East India Company to improve the cultivation and to increase the supply of cotton in India, and botanists and American planters were engaged for the purpose. One great object of their experiments was to introduce and acclimatize exotic cottons. Bourbon, New Orleans, Upland, Georgia, Sea Island, Pernambuco, Egyptian, &c., were tried but with little permanent success. The results of these and similar attempts led to the conclusion that efforts to improve the indigenous cottons were most likely to be rewarded with success. Still more recently, however, experiments have been made to grow Egyptian cotton in Sind with the help of irrigation. Abassi has given the best results, and the experiments have been so successful that in 1904–1905 an out-turn of not less than 100,000 bales “was prophesied in the course of a few years” (Report of Director, Land Records and Agriculture). The average annual production in India approximates to 3,000,000 bales. The area under cotton in all British India is about 20,000,000 acres, the crop being grown in a very primitive manner. The bulk of the cotton is of very short staple, about three-quarters of an inch, and is not well suited to the requirements of the English spinner, but very large mills specially fitted to deal with short-stapled cottons have been erected in India and consume about one-half the total crop, the remainder being exported to Germany and other European countries, Japan and China. In 1906 the United Kingdom took less than 5% of the cotton exported.
Cotton Production in British India.[1]
| 1859 | 1,316,800 bales of 500 ℔. |
| 1904 | 3,172,800 ”” |
| 1905 | 2,848,800 ”” |
| 1906 | 4,038,400 ”” |
About 50% of the cotton produced is consumed in Indian mills and the remainder is exported.
China.—Cotton has not been cultivated in China from such early times as in India, and although cotton cloths are mentioned in early writings it was not until about A.D. 1300 that the plant was grown on any considerable scale. There are no figures obtainable as to the production, but it must be very large, considering that the crop provides clothing for a large proportion of the population of China. During recent years a considerable quantity of cotton has been exported, but more than a compensating amount of raw cotton, yarns and textiles, is imported. An estimate of the crop puts it at about 1,500,000 bales.
Korea is stated to have originally received its cotton plants from China some 500 years ago. Conditions are well adapted to the cultivation of the plant, and since the cessation of the Russo-Japanese War the Japanese have undertaken the development of the industry. Figures are difficult to obtain, but an official report from the Japanese Residency General in 1907 estimated the crop at about 214,000 bales, all being used locally. In the future Korea may become an important source of supply for Japan, especially if, as appears likely, Korea proves suited to the cultivation of American cotton.
Japan received cotton from India before China, and the plant is extensively grown, especially in West and Middle Japan. The production is not sufficient to meet the home demand; during the five years of normal trade before the war with Russia Japan imported annually about 800,000 bales of cotton, chiefly from British India, China and the United States, and during the same period exported each year some 2000 bales, mainly to Korea.
Dutch East Indies.—In Java and other Dutch possessions in the East cotton is cultivated. A considerable amount is used locally, and during the six years ending in 1907 the surplus exported ranged from about 24,000 to 40,000 bales per annum.
Russia.—Some cotton is produced in European Russia in the southern Caucasus, but Turkestan in central Asia is by far the
- ↑ Cotton Production 1906, U.S.A. Bureau of the Census, Bulletin No. 76.
