The Arkansaw traveler., 1889-05-04
The History of Suk.
DrY Qooaa Bullatin.

Dry Goods Bulletin.
 The Romans, in procuring silk and other goods from the extreme east ct the time of the commence ment Of the Christian era found 1t very convenient to procure sufficient amount of specie and bullion in exchange for them, for the goods could only be got for cash. Thus Plny values the amount annu- ally exported from Rome to India and China dur ing the first century at 25,000, 900 francs, which would at the present day represent something like 150 900 francs. Indeed, the producing east slowly absorbed the treasures of the masters of the world, this drain causing the value of money to appreciate more and more in the empire, hence toward the sixth century 1t became absolutely im- perative to produce the material If not at home at least nearer by.
 China meanwhile remained as silent AS a sphinx. and kept its secret Its custom house regulations prescribed that the silk trade should be confined to the couple of cities authorized to that effect All attempts to find out something about the origin of silk remained frutless till the year 552, when two Persian monks attached to the missions In northern India offered the emperor Justinian to proceed to China and there procure the necessary information relating to silk culture and manufacture. This offer he accepted, and before the year came to a close the monks had returned with silk eggs con- eeAled in their bamboo pilgrim's stafs. At the same time 1t Is asserted that early the previ ous century a king of Little Bokhara married Chinese princess, who introduced the silk worm so as to be able to wear silks produced in her adopted country. But, however this may be, the merit of the monks device alluded to is not dis puted.
 Tn 55S the first skein of silk was produced in Asia Minor, and was obtained from the culture thus introduced and thence it spread to Europe with all the grtater ease, IL was found that the mulberry tree was indigenous to Asia Minor and southern Europe. The former in particular proved to be admirably adapted to this sort of agricultural pursuit. and soon silk from the extreme east would be dispensed with While it had taken six thou sand years to introduce and accumulate silk on the shores of the Bosphorus after 1t had been discov- cred in China, 1t took another thousand years to transfer its production from the Bosphorus to the valley of the Rhone. The fact is that western Europe during the Merovingian era was too poor to dress in silk
 few pieces imported from oriental countries suffced to adorn the altars of churches and the thrones of palaces. Cathedrals in Europe have preserved of these silks. It was reserved for Mohammed and his warlike followers to popular ize silk they advanced from Arabia. h I'll Omar conquers Egypt soon after the Herian pen- insula Is invaded from Northern Africa, and only at Tours in 722 the Mussulman hordes are repelled from France by Charles Marte During the i've centuries of spreading Moorish civilization in Spain, at Bagdad and Alexandris, silk quickly attained eminence article of dress. Tn Persia and Asia Minor the Arabs bestowed special care upon its culture; colony of Syrian Arabs raised 1t to still more fourshiDg condition in Andalu- sa. where it begins to be spun and woven.
 The mulberry tree is planted on the northern coast of Africa at Soussa Gabes, and subsequently, in Sicily and Spain. The Crusades familiarized western Christian nations with silk, but they were still too poor to make extensive use of it.
 In 109S the silk captured at the storming of Antioch by the crusaders was specially laid aside to adorn atars in western Europe. In 1140 the Norman pirate prince Roger of Sicily, during war with the Greeks, brought home captives who introduced the spinning and weaving of silk after an approved method into Sicily. Thence the art is carried to Florence and Lucca in Italy but the merchants of Venice and Genoa nevertheless con- tinued importing silk goods from the Orient Only subsequent to the beginning of the fourteenth tury did silk culture penetrate into France.
 An Anecdote of the War-A soldier who had hean fa ken nrisoner had a wife and children living in