Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-09-28
ABOUT SILK CULTURE.
SOMETHING WHICH ATTRACTS THE
ATTENTION OF THE FAIR SEX.

a enab with the Lady at the SILK Aseei. |
The Worms yoracious Appetite-Eggs |
and Cocoons-Ignorance of the General |
PubIie-Profits.
Rambling through the exposition the other |
day, was particularly interested in the silk |
weaving department, and stopped to talk.
Now, here is profitable, easy, home employ
ment, which is just beginning TO obtain the
attention it deserves among women and girls;
something desirable, too, for delicate women
who find little to do that their strength per-
mits.
The placard, "Women's Silk Culture Asso-
citation of the United States" is a little stag
gering, but the whole thing is very interest
ing. 1t was Only eight years ago that few
philanthropic rich women of Philadelphia
incorporated it to assist in affording a new
industry They succeeded in obtaining from
congress 5000 to help the thing on. The
association now furnishes mulberry trees free
of charge in numbers not less than twenty
five nor exceeding 100, to those intending to
begin cocoon raising A queer thing about
mulberry trees is that no other insect feeds
upon them They will thrive wherever corn
will.
The association at Philadelphia now has
twelve auxiharies in various states, mainly
IN the south, all formed for the purpose of
giving American women chance to catch
the thousands OF dollars which annually roll
into Italy and other countries for our i'm
ported raw silk. Why in Italy, many fam
lilies almost move ont of their own houses
| during part of the Summer to use every
available room for the worms that spin them
their years support
EGGS, WORMS AND coCooNs
| got to talking with the lady at the reel
about it. YES she said, Its very nice
thing for a lady to do. You see an ounce of
| eggs is enough to begin with. There are
10000 eggs in an ounce, and the whole out
| lay is only about $50, racks and all. You
| take good, big, airy room, and spread the
eggs around it or paper. You keep the eggs
| in an ice box till you want them to hatch.
| The rooms about 10 dogs, and you take it
to about so degs for the eggs to hatch.
| Then You begin TO feed them fine cut leaves;
next small twigs, and so on, Silk worms
have bigger appetites than schoolboys, They
eat much more than their own weight every
day"
When the worms are ready to spin their
winding sheets they creep up on the racks.
| When the cocoon is finished the beforetime
worm is stifled by being put into the sun,
otherwise he'd eat his way through the end,
cutting all the threads, and, the emblem of
immortality, issue from his grave gorgeous
moth. The cocoons LOOK like peanuts "Peo-
Pile come here every day and ask for pea
nuts" Mrs. Irving laughed. Il think this
must be the funniest corner of the expos-
ton. People show an ignorance of the whole
subject which is extremely amusing. The
other day the Hennepin county teachers came
here. They got some circulars and cococns
and samples of silk, and are going TO do
something among their pupils Most of them
seemed posted, but one of them-a man, by
the way" and she laughed, asked where the
cocoons were grown. told him those were
raised in Philadelphia. He seemed a little
surprised, but asked if it didn't take a pretty
rich soil for them"
SOME BEAUTIFUL SPECIMENS
We were standing near the counter where
are displayed the different shades of raw silk,
which shades, she said, are produced by the
different feeds The best silk is the white.
from the worm fed on the English mulberry.
somewhat resemble hair As we were talk
ing two ladies were evidently arguing near.
One of them turned with Isn't that wigr
pointing to one of the specimens. As they
moved off the reeler SAID, "Oh. that's moth
ing; the other day well dressed lady asked
me if bought hair there, as she had some
she'd like to dispose of She must have
thought had decided preference for canary
and blonde hair"
Yes said she, there's steady demand
for cocoons. There are never enough. They
bring 81 Is a pound usually, and we like
them fresh, they spin better then. That re
minds me as was 'reeGng' the other day {
gentleman came along and thought it was
burning shame those things were being
roasted alive You see the coconns wer,
bobbing up and down in the water W,
have to put them in to soften the silk Sool
after a couple of intelligent looking ladie
came along. One of them said, Is she boil
ing those worms to kill theInF No said tn
other, shes Matching them; don't you see
Why, if you'd sit beside me an hour and hea
the comments, | warrant you couldn't keel
your face straight.
But here; I'm telling you nonsense insteat
of giving information. We buy the cocoon
at the association in Philadelphia in an,
small quantities, from women all over tn
country. OLE it's great thing, and be
coming more popular every year. Som
, city ladies are very successful in raisin
cocoons They buy the mulberry leave
from leaf markets, where they are brough
by farmers. The farmers plant them 70
: hedges. We have large room in Fairmoun
' park, where the association grows tn
: cocoons. What do we do with those we buy
Well, the association employs six reelers VIII
spin the silk, as l am doing now, into skeir
/ of raw silk, and they are sold to the varior
silk manufactures of the country. IA. f
y H. in st. Paul Pioneer Press.
o The following is recommended as cure fl
neuralgia headache: Squeeze the juice Of
IS lemon into g small cup of strong coffee. TIL
/ will usually afford immediate relief in ne
ral-ir headarha Toe ordinarily ircrnos