F. A. OWEN PUBLISHING COMPANY,
DANSVILLE, N. Y.
Cotton Boll
THE STORY OF COTTON. <...> Have you ever wondered how clothes grow?
"Why," you say, "clothes don't grow! <...> We buythem or
make them from cloth."
Yes; but what is the cloth made from? <...> The caterpillar
spins a cocoon of fine silken thread. <...> We unravel this thread and
weave it into all sorts of silk goods. <...> Sometimes we weave it
with linen, or even cotton; but the cloth is best when all the
threads are of silk. <...> When the warm summer weather comes and they do
not need their heavy coats, we shear offthe thick wool. <...> The
sheep are more comfortable, and we need the wool to make our
clothes for the next winter.
1
Harriet G. Brown
The Story of Cotton
The cotton and flax are two plants. <...> Did you ever see the
seed pod of the cotton plant? <...> This looks very much
like the wool on the backs of the sheep. <...> So some people have
called it vegetable wool. <...> If you look at a thread of silk, and one each of wool and
cotton, they will look just alike to you. <...> But if you put them
under a microscope you will find that they are quite different. <...> The thread, or fibre, of the silk is round and solid. <...> The
fibre of the wool seems to be made of little scales, overlapping
each other, as shingles do on a roof. <...> But the cotton fibre is more
or less twisted like a ribbon. <...> These twists lock and intertwine
with each other, and are very helpful in making a long thread,
when the cotton is being spun. <...> Cotton is, next to wheat, the most valuable crop raised
in our country. <...> For hundreds of years men have cultivated cotton,
because a large proportion of their clothes were made from it. <...> Don't you think that cotton is an important plant? <...> Let us begin with the seed, and watch the plant grow. <...> It will not grow North, unless planted
under glass. <...> If we want it to be <...>
The_story_of_cotton.pdf
INSTRUCTOR LITERATURE SERIES.
The Story of Cotton.
BY
Harriet G. Brown.
F. A. OWEN PUBLISHING COMPANY,
DANSVILLE, N. Y.
Стр.1
Cotton Boll
THE STORY OF COTTON.
Have you ever wondered how clothes grow?
"Why," you say, "clothes don't grow! We buythem or
make them from cloth."
Yes; but what is the cloth made from? Allcloths are
made from silk, wool, cotton, or flax.
The silk comes from the silk worm. The caterpillar
spins a cocoon of fine silken thread. We unravel this thread and
weave it into all sorts of silk goods. Sometimes we weave it
with linen, or even cotton; but the cloth is best when all the
threads are of silk.
The wool comes from the sheep. It is their winter
overcoat. When the warm summer weather comes and they do
not need their heavy coats, we shear offthe thick wool. The
sheep are more comfortable, and we need the wool to make our
clothes for the next winter.
1
Стр.2
Harriet G. Brown
The Story of Cotton
The cotton and flax are two plants. Did you ever see the
seed pod of the cotton plant? It is full — so full that it bursts
open — of a soft white bunch of cotton. This looks very much
like the wool on the backs of the sheep. So some people have
called it vegetable wool.
If you look at a thread of silk, and one each of wool and
cotton, they will look just alike to you. But if you put them
under a microscope you will find that they are quite different.
The thread, or fibre, of the silk is round and solid. The
fibre of the wool seems to be made of little scales, overlapping
each other, as shingles do on a roof. But the cotton fibre is more
or less twisted like a ribbon. These twists lock and intertwine
with each other, and are very helpful in making a long thread,
when the cotton is being spun.
Cotton is, next to wheat, the most valuable crop raised
in our country. The cotton industry employs more people, and
uses more capital, than any other industry in the United States.
For hundreds of years men have cultivated cotton,
because a large proportion of their clothes were made from it.
Pliny, a Roman writer, speaks of cotton awnings being used in
Rome in 63 B. C. In the time of Caesar cotton was used for
making tents, sails, and fancy coverlets. In 1519, Cortez, while
in Mexico, was so pleased with the beauty of the cotton goods
made there, that he sent to the Emperor Charles V. a present of
some cotton mantles.
Don't you think that cotton is an important plant?
Wouldn't you like to know it better?
Let us begin with the seed, and watch the plant grow.
First, where shall we plant the seed? In the Northland,
or in the sunny South? It will not grow North, unless planted
under glass. It is sometimes grown in a hothouse for a curiosity.
If we want it to be at home, and if we wish to see a beautiful
field of it, we must plant it in the Southern part of our country.
Can you find on the map the states where cotton
grows? These states are:
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Стр.3