Wichita eagle., 1889-02-24
TEE SILK INDUSTRY.
Its Importance What It Is and What It
May Be Made.

To the Editor OF the Eagle:
A boy at gathering leaves is better
than girl, but in Keeling silk girl is
superior. Nearly all the silk reeled in
the world is done by women and girls,
and the greater part of it on simple,
old-fashioned hand reel You are all
doubtless aware that the power required
to run reel and unwind the silk cocoons
| floating in water does not exceed the
snap of your finger, and with small
| electric motor ten reels can be run,
which will make it even more profitable
| for girls than ten crops Of silk raised by
| boys.
Two-thirds of pound of reeled silk,
an average product of girls days la
Dor with raw cocoons, at $1.20 a pound,
and $3.50 pound for reeled requiring
| three and one-thifd pounds of dry CO.
coons to pound of reeled silk, would
make but q cents day; but with ten
reels it would amount to $2.70, and with
the premium that Messrs. Bedding
Bros. & Co. pay for Kansas
reeled silk would make $500
Even this divided by two would make
profitable employment for Kansas girls.
Common Japan reeled silk is worth in
New York $3.50 to $4.25 pound. The
best filature silk $4.35 to $3.50 a pound
for Japans. and for Italians s.. so to 81. so.
and for Piedmont $3.50 to 81. 60 pound.
The question is often asked me what
are the future prospects for silk culture:
l cannot do better than quote what Pres
ident Harrison said few months ago:
"Our party stands unequivocally and
without evasion or qualification for the
doctrine that the American market shall
be preserved for American producers. :"
What more can we ask? Hon. P. b.
Plumb wrote me only February Is that
Il believe there ought to be reasonable
protection on the production of cocoons. J"
The worlds crop of raw silk last year
was short 10 per cent and has since JAM
uary advanced in price Is per cent,
partly on account of the deficiency and
partly on account of the capital employ
ed in handling it, which must remain
with it, and with the new uses to which
silk is converted and the new markets
opening for it its future prospects are
very bright for many years to come.
Had protection been given us years
ago cocoons would be worth today $3.50
a pound, and reeled silk So, and Kansas
would be large producer Of silk.
1t is fact that there is not enough
money in the United States today. If
you take the last dollar, public
and private capital, to pay
for all the silk we have imported
into America from foreign lands,
every dollars worth of which could have
been grown, reeled and manufactured
in these United States, and we would not
only have had So in cash today for every
dollar in the country but an industry
furnishing light. pleasant and profitable
labor to upwards of 100000 people,
supplying US with all the silk we need
and more to sell to the rest of the world.
What may it yet be if we encourage the
boys to grow the silk and the girls to
reel it?
1t lacks but III years of 5000 when
God created Adam and gave him Eve
for a helpmate, who begun the first pro-
tective industry, that of sewing leaves
together for a garment. Had home in
dustries been encouraged and preserved
since then instead of free trade and
plumber, the dark ages would never have
fallen on mankind and devastating wars
would have been unknown: the mil
lenium would have been ever present
and, unlike it is today, in the future.
H. IL. BIDWELL,