Bolivia.— Cotton is not grown in Bolivia, nor are there any manufactures of cotton. The imports of cotton goods average in value about $1,000,000 a year, and are largely con fined to a few standard lines. The greatest demand seems to be for gray sheetings, white shirtings, printed flannelets and cotton trouser lugs or cassinettes. In most South American countries Great Britain has controlled about half the cotton goods trade, but prior to 1914 Germany had obtained nearly half the Bolivian trade, Great Britain only about a fourth, the remainder being divided between the United States and Peru, with a small amount going to Italy and France. Most of the gray sheeting used is from the United States and Peru, with a small amount from England. This is the only line in which the United States is prominent in this market, the imports consisting almost wholly of Massachusetts shirtings. Besides these about the only American cotton goods used are small amounts of drills, duck and ticking. The trade in white shirtings is monopolized by Great Britain, and that in printed flannelets was done mainly with Ger many, some of the finer grades coming from Great Britain. The cheap cotton trouserings or cassinettes were furnished almost entirely by Germany, as were corduroys, used not only for riding trousers but by the poorer white popula tion for suits, on account of their stout wear ing quality.
No detailed statistics of the cotton trade of this republic are obtainable, and hence the proportionate share of the United States is unknown. However, our exports of this class of goods for the fiscal year 1915-16 showed an appreciable gain over the previous year, particularly in bleached and unbleached goods. In bleached cloths the increase was from 110, 806 yards to 1,200,944 yards and in unbleached cloths from 1,934,264 yards to 3,069,619 yards, while the value of all cotton wares increased from $146,597 to $366,254.
Chile.— No cotton is grown in Chile, but there are three cotton factories of some im portance, operating about 5,000 spindles and 400 looms, besides there are seven or eight knitting mills. These mills make shirts, underwear and hosiery, and a small quantity of miscellaneous wares. Among the South American countries Chile ranks third as a buyer of cotton goods, its annual imports for some years prior to the European War averaging over $11,000,000 in value. Cotton goods form the largest single i item of the imports, the value of which amounted to $11,442,939 in 1905, to $13,262,180 in 1907, to $12,214,864 in 1909, to $9.025,176 in 1913 and, due to the war, to only $6,324,368 in 1914. There are no very recent statistics show ing the share of each country in the imports.
Among the principal imports, in the order of value, are colored and dyed goods in general, white shirting, knit goods, prints, drills, yarn, gray sheeting, osnaburgs, sewing thread, flan nel, passementerie,- lace, oxfords, bed-covers, handkerchiefs, ticking, cotton waste and cotton blankets. The trade of the United States, at the period named, consisted mainly of osna burgs for making flour sacks, flannel, gray sheeting, sail duck, white goods and yarn.
The value of the cotton goods exported from the United States to Chile in 1914-15 was $639,031 and $1,638,043 in 1915-16, an increase of $999,012, or 156 per cent. This increase was mainly confined to bleached, unbleached and colored cloths, the exports in 1914-15 being 6,780,257 yards, as compared with 12,211,220 yards in 1915-16.
Argentina.— Cotton cultivation has been undertaken on a small scale in Argentina for some years. There are large tracts of land in the northern and northwestern section of the country that are well adapted for cotton, but for lack of experience, capital and sufficient labor, the crop has made little progress. The provincial governments and various agricul tural societies have tried to encourage cotton growing by offering prizes at agricultural fairs, and in 1913 the province of Corrientes granted partial exemption from taxation, and a bounty for picking cotton. Most of the cot ton grown in Argentina comes from the ter ritory of Chaco, where European farmers are doing most of the planting, employing native Indians and peons from Paraguay and the province to pick the cotton. There are also small areas devoted to cotton in Cordoba, Santa Fe, Corrientes and several other prov inces. In 1907 the exports of raw cotton amounted to 116,767 pounds; in 1912 to 1,230, 000 pounds; in 1913, to 750,000 pounds, and 1914, to 609,500 pounds.
There is (1917) one cotton-spinning mill in Argentina with 9,000 spindles, and five cotton weaving mills with a total of 1,200 looms. The spinning mill has a capital of $850,000, and consumes from 650,000 to 750,000 pounds of raw cotton annually, most of which is im ported from the United States, and small quan tities from Brazil and Peru. The capacity of this mill is about 1,100,000 pounds of yarn. The five weaving mills have a capital of $730, 000 and employ 1,415 operatives. The produc tion of the mills is figured at 8,000,000 to 10, 000,000 yards annually, comprised mainly of duck, canvas, gray sheeting and shirting, and a, small amount of colored goods. There are also 43 knitting mills with 650 machines, with a yearly production of about 4,000,000 pounds.
The most important single item imported into Argentina is cotton goods. Of this trade' prior to 1914 Great Britain controlled about half, the remaining half being competed for by Italy, Germany, France, Belgium, the United States, Spain and other countries. As indi cating the share of each country in this trade the imports of a typical year is a fair illustra tion. The total value of the cotton goods im ported amounted to $27,119,134, and of this Great Britain furnished $13,428,662, or 49.5 per• cent; Italy, $5,403,737, or 20 per cent; Germany, $3,731,172, or 14 per cent; France, 41,623,565," or 6 per cent; Belgium, $916,788, or 3 per cent; the United States, $685,207, or 2.5 per cent; Spain, $663,266, or 2.5 per cent; and all other countries, $666,737, or 2.5 per cent.