St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1890-12-06
THE SlLK-WORM.


was Aote000co0 IN EorOp0 - oo1-
Its valse to CeD0eecs
what IL Z sts-
This little creature, whose labors arc
OF such incalculablc value to mankind,
is supposed to have been indigenous to
China. In that country. at least tho
discovery was first made that the prod
uct Of the silk-worm's operations could
DO elaborated into articles of human At
tire, richer and moro beautiful than
any to bo derived from other sources.
At an early period, considerable
commerce was established in silk bc.
tween Eastcrn and western Asia. from
which latter quarter it WAS conveyed to
Europe; but not until the sixth century
OF the Christian era was IL distinctly
known by Europeans that the splendid
tissues. which they had worn for
moro than . thousand years and
which they had even partially
manufactured from the raw transported
material. wcrc the product originally Of
o scorm. Tho first silk-worms seen In
Europe were brought from China in tho
year 6se monks who
had gonc thithcr as Christian mission
aries, and who contrivod to secrete .
number OF tho silk-worms' eggs In .
cane. and to escape with them to Con-
stantinoplc. From these few eggs havc
sprung all tho successive generations Of
silk-worms which havc supplied silk to
Europe from that period to tho present
time.
Tho valuable insect whose history has
been thus briefly detailed receives from
naturalists the appcllation OF bontyx 1t
is Of tho caterpillar tribe, and, like its
congencrs. passes through . number Of
istencc. Its FIRST state Is that OF tho
larva or caterpillar. which Il enters into
on leaving the egg: its second state II
that Of tho pupa or cksysahs; and its
third state is that Of the Image or moth.
The silk-worm moth Is Of considerable
sIze ana is0f = AOayfsh<o1asThe fe-
male moth deposits its eggs ON the mu!-
berry tree, the leaves Of which, as will
bc afterwards explained. form the solo
subsistence Of tho silk-worm. This de-
posit. when the creatures are not under
artificial management II made about
the middle Of summer. and the cggs of
one moth usually amount in number to
three or four hupdred. They are about
the sixo of mustard-secds, and. 1t nrst
yellow in color. but afterwards assume
. bluish-gray cast
Being fastened BY q sort Of glue to
the spot. tho egH Of tho silk-worm ne
tains Its position, In spite OF wind and
rain. until the period for the hatching
of the young caterpillar. After autumn
and winter are passed, the egg opens in
May, and tho worm which issues is
about . quarter Of an inch in length.
thin In body. and Of blackish tint 1t
soon shows sdesirc for food, and begins
to feed on the mulberry leaves, though
without exhtbitiag-any inclination to
roam from tho spot where it first came
to Lie. For eight days 1t continues to
cat with avidity, and increases to near
ly twice its original magnitude. At the
end OF this time It falls into what is
called It's first sickness. and leaves of
eating for thrcc days. when 1t casts its
first skin. This molting is repeated
four times. 1t regular intervals, before
the worm attains the complete cater
pillar state. which commonly takes
place about . month after tho Matching
Of the worm. Tho reason OF these sue
cessivc moltings is to be sought for in
the rapid growth OF tho worm, which
increases its bulk many thousand-fold
during these changes. Tho original
skin. when once become hardened,
could scarcely be distendcd at q rate
sufficient to accommodate tho augment
ing size OF tho creature, and therefore .
number OF coverings have been pro-
vidcd in embryo to obviatc tho diff
Guilty. The plan which tho worm takes
TO get ont Of its skin is to fastcn the
latter to the leaf Ly sort Of silky glue,
which holds it fast, until the inmate
rubs its head against tho leaf, breaks
on tho scales. and finally drags through
its whole body.
Ton days after its fourth moltine.
the worm attains its complete cater
pillar state. and is then about two and
. halt inches long, with twelve parallel
and cqut-distant mcmbranous rings
round its green body, and sixteen legs
arranged in pairA Of which tho i've
posterior onas arc movable, and tho |
three anterior pairs scaly and immov-
able. serving. seemingly, for supports
only. The caterpillar has fourteen
eyes. seven on each side of the head,
and along tho body are eighteen holes
Tor the crcature's breathing, each hole
boing connected with some kind OF res
piratory organ. The mouth il placed
vertically. and the Jaws are indented
like the teeth Of saw. Immediately
bcneath tho mouth are two small holes.
placed close to each other, and through
which proceeds tho silk which the
creatnre spins These holes are con-
uecesd with two bags or tubes in the |
interior Of the body. in which Il secret |
Cd the yellow. gumuy substance which |
constitutes the silk. These tubes or |
baRs are Of great length. in comparison |
with tho animals body, being each |
sboat TN inches long They arc wound |
rouo4 = portion Of the intestines, e on |
= spindle. and do not Communicate di- |
Ecctly with the external holes, but by |!
means Of sort Of CRATER. pierced With |
osny openings, through which the silk !
gsn = drssn out in many nlamcnts.