The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1890-06-25
SPIDERS SILK.
EFFORTS MADE TO TURN COB.
WEBS INTO CLOTH.
Difficulty of Utilizing the Threads on
Account Of Their Fragility-
Cloth of Spiders Threads
for Surgical Purposes.

NJ. Emile Gautier, a French writer,
discussed in recent article the history
of spiders from the consoler of the pris-
oner Pellisson down to the nutritive spi-
der in whom the geometrician Laplace
found the flavor of nut.
There arc also, it appears, spinning
spiders, whose web can be used to weave
serviccablc stuffs, and, according to old
documents dealing with the subject, M.
Bon, President of the Court of Accounts
of Montpelier, sent, as early as 1903,
mittens and stockings made of spiders
web to the Academy of Sciences.
He set to work in the following man
ner: Having collected large number of
spiders cocoons, he beat them so as to
dispel all dust. Then he washed them
carefully in warm water and allowed
them to boil for three hours in pot con-
taining water, soap, saltpetre and little
gum arabic. The cocoons, after being
again washed and carefully dried, were
at last carded with extremely fire combs.
This was, of course, very primitive
thread with which he was able to make
the articles before mentioned.
Fifty years later, in 1853, the Abb,
Raymond de Termayer made experiments
in America, in Spain, and in Italy. He
worked on the living spiders, whose web
he wound on bobbin as fast as it came
out. This Able was remarkably patient
and tenacious, for he carried on this op-
Grafton uninterruptedly for thirty-lour
years from 1882 to 1888, but appar-
emily all his labor was in vain, for
he only succeeded in obtaining
672 grammes of cobweb as result of
his thirty-four years work.
The question, however, seemed suffi-
ciently interesting to the Academy of
Sciences in Paris to induce them to
charge the celebrated Reaumur with the
drawing up of report on the invention
of NJ. Bon.
Reaumur arrived at conclusions very
unfavorable to the development of cob
web industry. Stuff, he said, made of
so-called spiders silk, could not be en-
ployed in the manufacture of any useful
article, on account of its fragileness.
The strength of the silk thread was
ninety times greater than that of the
other, aud it required 5000 threads of
spiders web to furnish solidity equal to
that of one siiken thread. The learned
entomologist demonstrated further that
twice as many spiders as silk worms were
needed to produce the same quantity of
thread, so that to provide one pound of
spiders silk $1,000 spiders would have
to spin. To obtain such number OF
cocoons much larger number OF spiders
would have to be kept, for only the fe-
males spin web round eggs. Then, again,
the product of the spider had less lustre
than that of the silk worm. Reaumur
added, however, that although there was
no future for the spiders of France, ex-
cept to catch bluebottlc and flies, the ex
otic kinds might repay the labor OF
study.
The idea has recently been taken up by
an Englishman named Sttil!hers. who has
made cloth of spiders web which Las
been employed. for the purpose of sur
gerry. He only uses tropical spiders,
from whom, thanks to q scientific cul-
ture, he has obtained much greater re-
turn than was foreseen by Reaumur.
The spiders which he uses are big ones
from America and Africa. They are
placed in octagonal cases, where a suffi-
cheney of insects is served to them every
day. In the room where the cases are
kept constant temperature OF sixty de-
grees (Fahrcnheit) is maintained, and n
liquid composed of chlorotorm, ether and
fusel oil is allowed slowly to eVaporate.
That is to say, spiders spin best when
they are drunk.
Mr.. stillbers keeps 5000 of these cases
in room forty metres long by twenty
wide and five high. The spiders lay
eggs of various colors, covered with CO.
coons. These are gathered up and pre-
pared by the same mechanical and chem
ical operations as the cocoon OF the
bombyx.
One cocoon yields 12O to $50 metres
of thread. The weaving process is kept
absolutely secret.
The stuff obtained is of a texture re-
sembling ordinary silk, but thick, stlff
and of dirty gray color. 1t is all the
more necessary to bleach it because the
color is by no means uniform. 1t IS
blcached by treatment with oxygenlzed
water. Then it is tanned and softened.
1t assumes a pretty yellow tint, and be-
comes brilliant and smooth. .....
To make a thread $3.50 kilometers in
length $4,000 cocoons are requisite.
This is a great advantage on Reaumur's
calculations. But still $4,000 cocoons
only supply thread of 800 French
leagues in length. The stuff obtained
must be sold at very high price in order
to obtain the merest compensation for all
this trouble and expense. Proprietors
of mulberry trees and silkworms need
not be afraid of the competition OF the
spider yet awhile.