National Republican., 1885-09-05

Inc curse OI tnc garden Tor EYES tnulScfC-
tion seems to have descended now to these
creatures; for while the males
are left to disport themselves undisturbcd,
the females are picked of with a blunt
knife and killed by dipping into boiling
water, or baking them in heated ovens or
In plates Of hot iron.
The first crop is gathered about the mid
die Of December, and subsequently sew
cral more Of as many successive genera
tions. An expert laborer can pick only
about two ounces Of cOcbncal In a day,
and they lose at least two-thrds of their
weight In the process of drying. As II re-
quircs not less than
SEVENTY TuousASD OF THEM
l., ,,o,,,h a ,,o,,nd o,,d d. ,,.ora,,o ro,,it
nri"c ~ tba cnmmn%i,v % is oniw IN ccnis
i,ar noupd' n will ho soon ,bat tho cocbi-
hoo, Lnsiuoss is hy mo n,oons ave- W" si,ccurc
n,nasInnnii,, L., tl,,,,. ~. ,',,;
ond Io,,asi,tas n,,,,ra ,,iaI'n,,o,s ns q,
Gma,on,oin foa, - p'"n,,o''o ar,a ,.ho, ,hn
ba"iondaIos ,yoro oi,j%ad ,n oioor ont tho
niI stnoi, roo, and ,rano,, W. '''", ",,d III bogin
anew The cocc,,s aro oisn S,d ,non hv
Iris mica and tho iarvaa ~ o,hsr insncts
the i,st.nemad dnstrov"rs sn"ling nnt tho
hoJy a,,d Ioa,jnc, oil, yho o,,,,t, ims A
interior anaIity ~ insects ln9,y,, ym', as svi.
vastre vIich u indl"nnous tn a snocies of
Wild cactmS ia sometimes sold for tbe bcttcr
variotv. and n moi infreouontiv Lonnons
tbat ~. JjSTorant snanjas ~ hari iida hn.
com, miyad nm ,ho samo ostn,o wi,bnut
dcsigu nm Tho mart of tho n,ynor
When Tho liviny insocts Lay. hoou i'm.
mersed I'm boilino water tbov turn tn n rnd-
dish brown. LOSING mncb Of ibe white now.
der with which nature has londeJ Tho trans.
worse wrinLles an their tinv hodjos When
driod In an oven thev rot3in this nowdor
baked nm hot iron thov bncSmc hlnck This
accounts for the so-cai,eJ stvaric,iesi; of thc
same hug. known IN The markets ne Usilycr
grains - ublack grains - and Ufoxy,,-the
latter Those kiIle, In boiiing wotcy) being
much nrofnrrcd
Tho roloriny nrincin,c which ,.,usns huys
In imnori n crimson Inc ,n wotcrv inf,,sinns
has hncn s"nnratcd hv chcmists iyhn ,rivn n
thc name dC rnchiniIinr Ry ,ncnns If Tho
chloride and nitrate nf fin aided to nrc-
cini,ntrs nf cnchiniliur Tho Lascs nf thr
snle,did crimson and scnrlnt dycs nrc OH
taincd In which thc grnot vaIuc of cnchi-
neal is chiefly duc Tho host nf thnse Mo
ments called WIakes', orc made Inv intro
ducinp freshly nrcnored pelntinous 9lumina
into t6e docoction of coehincni The high
nrice 0T this cnlnriny mnttor hns lod IN lilo
Substitution of other articles for dying. lnc.
moddcr. and ouiline HAVING s,,ncrscded the
cocrus tn n great extent VnrioiIs articles
orc uscJ IN Tho od,,itnrn,io, nt cochincaI
and "''" :" '"' "'''''''" '"'''' VI ''"'''"''
"rur TRICKS or THE TRADE"
rival thn Ynnkcc nine ham. saw dust. riu-
,,nr ,nL wnn,inn ni,in,o,, imdn.trv pn,yI
icrrd lac ar rnrInnntc ~ lead lid in n hny
and shaken with the inscris' ndhrrcs tS
their wrinL led hndics and greatly increases
ihcir wcight Grains nf y subsistence n,c.
nornl from ,l,v nr coIoroJ dn,,,,b Iinvo
hnnn man,,f.c,,irod hv c,,toru,;sin~ Ercnch.
mon tn nrcciscIv initiate cncn,,s n,d n,Ime,l
nfJ ,,nnn nn ,,m:,smcctin1 nnIIic NIillinns
of nn,Inds nf candv and hpn.hpns nrn nm.
nunllv colorcd with these nnwdcrcd insect.
n ,;nt vcrv annnti,inCr thn,,ol,t ,vlnm thc
facts arc cnSsiirrcd '"''7'' N' '''0
Ernn, tI,n rn,,atost ,,,,.i,,d, az ,,,,i,,uit,
h,rl, lic, have yiod wi,h iLc Lncc;,,,,n n,,r.
,,I,rn ~ jmuor,ol Tyr, In nITorjin,, not, a,
fnr Tho dynr Ths onrinmt IJnhTows ,,s"d
homintoraus ipsects ms diI also III" E%vn'
tians and other eastern nations pliny tclI.
ms that Tho coccIs ami thn haccinum n,;rnrro
wore snmo,jmos IJondoJ and cnmnnntatnr
nroro ~ h,, tbo ,,asso,yo ;m Eyn,i"s. 49,
IF thc bli,o and nurnIc and scarIc, ihc,
made clothes of scrvica to Io sorvicc In III
holy nlace, md made tho most hnlv oar
me4ts for aaron md n girilIo of fine tyyistcf
linen anI bluc nnI nIr,ln and scorlot n,
nnn1ln work thn | npI IA,
Moses ~
Thn o,ccus ilic;s t. s,;, o,l,i,,to1 +, ,,,,
Icvant. Greece Palestine. and Persia /,
thn Orirnt thov oro CROWN nnnn n snncios M
nol ms before thc limo Of Moses, and n Ia mo-
imnrobahle that Tho eastern noiJ"ns nc 10
Iay ORC ottirinr ,bomsolyas In tho som,
%oyoeons buos nroInnod hv siniIar ,,o",,S
as those worn bv
Tnr p,rGuTrps or r,,r p,t,po,us
II has hecn known for centuries hv thc
name of kermes, so called by the Arabs
the word signifying ''red dye"
The name cochineal, being derived from
the Spanish coecus, properly belongs only
to that species of colorinG insects whici
came to the notice of Europeans soon afte
the conquest of Mexico The Spanard
found It In high estimation among tn,
A2tecs, who-as narrated by that stout OLE
chrOnicler, Bernal Diaz-"took inflnt,
pains to rear the insects on plantations o
cactus, and II formed one of the staple trb
utaries to the Indian emperOrs,m ~ as IL after
ward became tributary to. the crown of tn,
conqueror. The Mexican coccus was in
troduced into Europe soon after the Span
| ish conquest, where its superior oualit,
soon displaced the kermes. Even the liv
ing insects were imported, and plantation,
| of Mexican cacti were carefully cultivated
|
| precautions to prpNput the removal of th
cOccus from their newly-acouired terrific
rics. So highly was II appreciated that a
one time the English government offered
reward OF 81, 900 to any one who would in
tr0duce IL INTO lnula.
In the year $3.50 coehincal was first cult
waited In the Canary islands, and after tn
failure OF the grape crop, tweenty years Later
became the principal article OF export, II
1870 no less than
SIX MILLION POUNDS OF COCHlNEAL,
valued on the spot at $3,200,00O, wcr
shipped from these islands to England.
About forty years ago the Dutch sue
ceeded In establishing coccus plantations |
Algeria, and to-day the production Of tina
country is said to equal the best of Centra
America. The Dutch also have raised greu
quantities of 1t in Java.
A variety of cochincal is found IN Cal
fornia, which has all the properties Of thu
grown farther south, the only diircrcnc
being that the California insect produces
| bpaIItiful rosp-rolor instcnl of tho viyi