Cotton Serving the Nation.--J. Lester Crain in Manufacturers Record, Vol.
x I2, No. 7, states that it is difficult for the average citizen to visualize the myriad items in which cotton is the principal raw material. A literal translation of "myriad" would not make the above statement an exaggeration, for the Army alone uses approximately II,OOO different items made of cotton. In addition to the usual articles of clothing and shelter, cotton is pinch-hitting for such unrelated critical materials as leather, aluminum and jute--to name a few of the many substances from which articles that are very scarce, yet necessary, are made. Many of these new uses of cotton products are interesting because they are unusual applications of the ordinary cotton fabrics. Others hold the interest of not only the cotton industry, but those industrial engineers engaged in the manufacture of automobiles, airplanes, ships, shoes, luggage--and home builders as well--since these new developments are the results of scientific research and possess built-in properties for specific uses. Some of the articles of clothing worn by our troops are so foreign to our old ideas of cotton as a summertime fabric that an entirely new field may be opened to cotton. The Quartermaster Corps has developed clothing for our forces in the Arctic regions which consists of soft, light layers of insulating material, covered with a wind-resistant cotton fabric. For the ski and snowshoe troops, it has designed a parka made of two water repellent, windresistant cotton poplins sewn together. Jungle sleeping equipment is an example of the ingenious manner in which cotton's all-round usefulness is being employed. A comfortable hammock, which can be suspended between two trees, is virtually a small room. It contains a mattress pad, a netting to keep out insects, a sling for the soldier's rifle, and a waterproof covering all made from cotton. Rapid strides have been made in the past few years in the development of finishes to render cotton fabrics resistant to fire, water, and mildew. Cotton boots, washable and rot proof against soil chemicals and micro-organisms, are furnished our jungle troops. Made of 90 per cent. cotton and havir~g rubber soles, they out-wear three to five pairs of good G.I. shoes. All cotton supply parachutes are used to deliver food and ammunition to marooned troops, and cotton duck is the base fabric in rubberized lifeboats that are furnished plane crews. R. H. O.