Empire Cotton Growing Corporation

THE director of the Empire Cotton Growing Corporation, Sir James Currie, stated at the meeting of the Administration Council on July 26 that it has been decided to ask all the experiment stations in the Union of South Africa and in Southern and Northern Rhodesia to co-operate in a common plan of campaign for an intensive attack on the problems of insect pest control. A first step is to be the recording of the activities throughout the whole season of the different insects that damage cotton crops. A reliable technique for this has been worked out at the Barberton Station. It was also announced that it is intended to hold a conference of workers on cotton-growing problems in London next summer, similar to that which was held at the Shirley Institute in 1930. Mr. H. Niblett, one of the members of the Oversea Mechanical Transport Directing Committee, gave a short description of the work of that Committee. In 1927 the Corporation suggested to the Colonial Office Conference that the problem of motor transport in the cotton fields is so important that the investigations should be extended and the work financed by the Empire governments concerned. The Oversea Mechanical Transport Council and Directing Committee were appointed as a result, and are now testing two motor transport units, each consisting of an 8-wheeled tractor and two 8-wheeled trailers capable of handling a useful load of 15 tons. The report of the Executive Council has recently been published (Empire Cotton Growing Corporation, Millbank House, 2 Wood Street, Millbank, London, S.W.I.)