The very short staple fibre delinted from the seed by the cotton-oil mills, and known as qinters,° is used for various purposes, such as upholstering and in the manufacture of mat tresses, comforts, batting, cushions, wadding and pads; for mixing with shoddy and for making low grade yarns, wrapping twine, cheap rope, lamp and candle wicks ; for making ab sorbent cotton; and in the manufacture of in cotton, nitre powder and writing paper. The All of the New England States — except Vermont — the two Carolinas, Georgia and Alabama operated more than 1,000,000 spindles, Massachusetts being in the lead, followed in the order named by South Carolina, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Georgia, New Hamp shire, Connecticut, Maine and Alabama. Massa chusetts is also the largest consumer of raw cotton, North Carolina coming next, followed by South Carolina, Georgia and Alabama. As indicated by the increase in spindles, the largest increase in the annual consumption of cotton is in the cotton-growing States, the increase since 1910 amounting to 1,338,000 bales, or about 60 per cent, while the increase in New England since 1910 is 483,000 bales or about 24 per cent.
All of the cotton consumed in the United States is of domestic growth — except from 250,000 to 300,000 bales imported from other countries. Nearly 84 per cent of the foreign cotton is Egyptian, the remainder coming from China, Peru, East India and Mexico. The Egyptian cotton is used mainly for mercerizing and making highly finished cloths, balbriggan underwear, and lace curtains, sewing threads, and similar goods reauirine a long fibre and unprecedented consumption of in 1915 16, amounting to 880,916 bales, or an increase of nearly 114 per cent over the previous year, is explained through the great quantity of ex plosives manufactured for the Allied nations engaged in the European War.
The cotton manufacturing establishments in the United States turn out a great variety of products. Indeed, American ingenuity is con stantly finding new uses for cotton, the most wonderful of all fibres. A classification of the cotton mill products for 1915 shows that of the 2,098 establishments in the United States, 1,069 of them manufactured almost every known variety of yarns from the coarsest to the finest, many of these also manufacturing cotton goods. The number of establishments making the dif ferent kinds of wares may be classified as fol lows: 296 manufacturing sheeting, shirting and drills, 107 colored cotton goods, 97 print cloths, 89 fancy white goods, 86 duck, 86 cotton twine, 81 fine white goods, 81 cotton cordage, 76 cotton webbing, 73 cotton braid, 65 cotton towels, 59 converters' goods, 57 cotton batting, 57 cotton tape, 54 ticking, 52 satteens, 43 cotton uphol stery goods, 42 ginghams, 39 cotton felts, 36 cotton lace, 33 cotton flannel, 31 shoe laces, 31 denims, 30 cotton damask, 30 cotton bagging, 29 cotton plush, 23 cotton hammocks, 22 bed spreads, 19 cotton hair clothes, 17 cotton wicks, 16 cotton comforts, 16 absorbent cotton, 13 mosquito netting, 12 shade cloths, 11 cottonades, 11 tire fabrics, 10 book cloths, 8 crinoline, 6 cotton blankets. Besides these 1,893 establish
ments were engaged in the manufacture of hosiery and various kinds of knit goods.
According to the latest census statistics (1914) the total capital employed in cotton manufactures amounted to $W9,765,000, of which $358,856,000 was invested in the cotton States, and $540,908,000 in all other States. The total value of all goods manufactured was $701,301,000 the products of the Southern mills representing $283,189,000 in value, and those of all other States $418,111,000.
The value of the cotton goods of domestic manufacture exported during the fiscal year 1914 amounted to $51,467,000, which was an increase of $27,067,000, or nearly 121 per cent since 1900. More than one-half of the value of the exports in 1914 is accounted for by the ex ports of bleached, unbleached and colored cloths, amounting to 414,860,000 square yards and valued. at $28,845,000. Of the 199,8.87,000 square yards of unbleached cloths exported more than two-thirds went to China, the other countries in the order of the amount taken being Aden, India, Chile, Cuba, Philippine Is lands, San Salvador, British East Africa, Turkey, Canada, Bolivia and Columbia. Of the colored cloths exported the largest quan tity went to the Philippine Islands, and large quantities also to the West Indies, Central and South America and Canada. Of the other cot ton goods exported Canada was the largest cus tomer, taking very large proportions of the clothing and other wearing apparel, and of the Various other manufactures of cotton. In this connection it is worthy of notice that the value of imported cotton goods in 1914 amounted to $69,411,000, or $17,944,000 more than the value of the cotton goods exported. The largest con tributor to this trade was Great Britain, its imports being valued at $23,853,000, those of Germany at $17,618,000, France at $14,836,000, Switzerland at $10,335,000, Japan at $1,007,000, and all other countries at $1,759,000.