importing of cotton goods and later the manufacturing of them, but
this law was repealed on account of the great demand for cotton
materials.

Columbus found cotton garments worn by the natives of the West Indies.
Later Cortez found that cotton was used in Mexico; hence, cotton is
indigenous to America. In 1519 Cortez made the first recorded export
of cotton from America to Europe.

In 1734 cotton was planted in Georgia. Bales of cotton were sent to
England, and the manufacturing of cloth was soon under way. While the
colonies were trying to gain independence, England imposed a fine on
anyone sending cotton machinery to America, and restrictions were put
on manufacturing and imports of any kind. After the War of
Independence many of the southern states began to raise cotton in
larger quantities.

The invention of the cotton-gin by Eli Whitney was one of the great
inventions of the age. While only two pounds of cotton could be seeded
by hand by one person in a day, the gin made it possible to do several
hundred pounds. At the time of the Civil War the greater part of the
cotton used by English manufacturers was imported from the southern
states. The closing of the southern ports during the war affected the
cotton industry throughout the world. Large mills in England were
closed, and thousands of people were out of employment. Steps were
then taken to encourage people of India, Egypt, Central and South
America to increase their production of cotton, and from that time on,
cotton from these countries has been found in the general market.
Cotton is now cultivated in nearly all countries within the limits
45 deg. north and 35 deg. south of the equator.

At the present time the United States ranks first in the production
and export of cotton. Of all the states, Texas and Georgia produce the
largest amount. About one-third of the entire crop is used in our own
mills; $250,000,000 worth of cotton is annually exported, principally
through New Orleans, New York, Savannah, and Galveston. Three-fifths
of this quantity goes to mills in England; Germany, France, and
Switzerland take a large part of the remainder.

The value of cotton is shown by the fact that about one-half the
people of the earth wear clothing made entirely of cotton, and the
other half (with the exception of some savage tribes) use it in part
of the dress.

=Linen.= Linen has always been held in great esteem. The garments of
the Egyptian, Hebrew, Greek, an