Cotten Mystery

Cotton Mystery

Russia grows lots of cotton (an estimated 4,300,000 bales this year), has imported practically none from the U. S. since 1935. Last October Russia suddenly bought 54,073 bales from the U. S., followed this purchase with 44,261 bales in November, 40,757 in December. Why?

From Switzerland came the answer: Russia was sending 100,000 bales a month to Germany. Whether the U. S. cotton was going to Germany or merely to replace Russia's own supplies made no difference: the Nazi war machine was getting the benefit of the U. S. shipments.

Last week Britain's Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton referred to this situation in oblique understatement: he told U. S. newsmen he was "embarrassed" by a leak in his blockade at Vladivostok. Presumably he was much more than embarrassed. According to the New York Times, Dalton's ministry believed that Germany's textile position had been critical, feared now that cotton shipments from Russia soon would have it out of danger. Washington's balancing act between aid to Britain and economic overtures to Russia (TIME, Jan. 6) had produced a new dilemma.

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