The history of the culture of cotton, and of its application to the uses of man, forms an almost romantic episode in the annals of agriculture, commerce, and manufactures. We have already mentioned the extraordinary impetus given to its production, sale, and use by the introduction of Whitney's saw-gin, for separating the seeds from the wool, in the years 1793 and 1794. Since that time the progress of the demand and consumption has been no less wonderful.

In 1794 the export rose from 187,000 lbs., the sum total for the previous year, to 1,601,760 lbs. The next year it was over 6,000,000 lbs. In 1800 it had advanced to about 18,000,000 lbs., and in 1810 to upwards of 93,000,000 lbs. The last returns before us are for 1852, when the export of the short staple variety alone exceeded one thousand one hundred millions of pounds! To this aggregate we suppose about one hundred millions of pounds may be added for the sea-island and other long-fibred cottons.

It may well be doubted whether among all the fabrics into which this enormous amount of raw material is converted there is one more valuable than sewing-cotton. We think if the question were put to the ladies to-morrow, whether the textile fabrics produced from cotton, or cotton sewing-thread, were the most indispensable to their comfort and convenience, every thimbled hand would be held up in favor of the latter. Sewing-silk is too expensive for ordinary exigencies, and linen thread cannot be spun of the same smooth and even fibre as cotton thread; and besides, being liable to knot and twist, is apt to cut the lighter and more fragile products of the loom. Abolish sewing-cotton, and you abolish muslin embroidery and innumerable delicate and fairy-like embellishments of female loveliness, which taste and fashion have endorsed.

Every lady is by habit a connoisseur in the article. She examines the spools with a critical eye; she tries the strength of the thread; she passes it through her fingers to test its evenness and compactness, and when seated at her work, detects in a moment any defects which may have been overlooked by the manufacturer.

To this ordeal the six-cord cotton-thread of Dick & Sons is cheerfully submitted. It challenges inspection and comparison. There is little necessity, however, for an appeal to the ladies in relation to its good qualities, for they have them already at their fingers' ends.