The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1885-03-27
BEWARE OF RASH CAUTION

EDITOR BuLLETIN:-Whcn ] began
reading your yesterdays editorial,
accusing me of rash cautiousness { y,
l thought you were going to pull me
to pieces, and was already wonder
ing what great crime my letter had
been guilty of to justify such an
unkind attack from you-a fellow
partisan of sericulture-when was
only wishing to give sound and cau-
tious advice to the public on ques-
ton of public Importance. But to
my great comfort, l found that after
firing your first shot, you gradually
turned round to side with me and
concluded by giving the very same
advice of caution and moderation as
it was my intention of conveying in
my letter. However, to avoid any
misunderstanding, l wish to state
distinctly that l have every hope
nay am certain-that silk culture
will be success here, # property
managed, and that hope all those
who can, will take their share in the
orperimentationS, and Miss Rossiter
herself could not do more here.
Further, after reading my letter
over, l deny its being "replete with
discouraging argument against the
silk culture being profitable here. "
All that | tried was to advise peo-
pie who know nothing about silk
growing, and to prevent them from
rushing (on the faith of articles
written in newspapers by people who
perhaps themselves know practically
nothing about the matter) into
delicate enterprise, requiring good
deal of practical tact, as l know by
personal practice. And | was
specially actuated by the fear that
the failures of incompetent pioneers
might ruin the future prospects of
the industry by discouraging more
competent essays; if you do not
want your dog to be killed, you
don't expose him to the danger of
being called mad. | never said that
the mulberry tree would not grow
here, but | simply asked-and do
ask you now again-how many times
it would support the picking of its
leaves year, and how it would be
necessary to prune it. l also said
that mulberry trees do not grow like
water-melons, but that they must be
at least three or four years old be-
fore their leaves are abundant enough
and l shall now add before the
foliage is nutritious enough-to feed
the worms. You say that they do
grow vigorously here-I never said
the contrary; though they may not
thrive everywhere equally we'll, and
you add that they produce an abun-
dance of fruit. This last fact would
be more inconvcnient than other.
wise, for the silk-grower needs moro
leaves than fruit and these must be
carefully picked away before the
leaves are given to the worms. l
shall further say, for the edification
of people (yourself perhaps) who
do not know what n large amount of
leaves is necessary for silk-worms,
that for one ounce of eggs, contain
ing between $4,000 and 100000
(according to the race)-and which,
after occupying (for picking, clean
ing leaves and attending to worms),
two persons for day and many nights
during nearly two months, is
expected to yield between 90 and
$50 lbs. of cocoons-it requires from
l,6OO to over 1900 lbs. of leaves
some races being more voracious
than others. For the common
European race, it is calculated thai
from 25 lbs. of leaves may be OBJ
tanned 360 cocoons, weighing abou
one pound and a half. Now cal
you tell me how many pounds O.
leaves tree will give here, and how
long it will take for them to grow
again? This information would b,
a real advance to the solution of th
problem in which l am just as mucl
interested as yourself. l shall b.
thankful for the insertion Of thi
note, and also hope that anothe
time you will kindly not make IN
say things / never said nor intende'
to say, for the pleasure of refutin
| them MARoJEs