Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1902-02-12
SILK CULTURE.

|
eca, and Miss Kelly, Of Charleston, in
the introduction Of silk culture into
.Oconee and adjoining counties, 1t be-
ing a matter Of definite satisfaction
that the soil and climate are entirely
favorable to the industry.
Since the recent introduction Of the
subject, it has developed that silk cul-
ture is not new thing even in this To-
cality. Experiments were made along
this line in Yorkville more than sixty
years ago, and although they were new
er developed into commercial import
ance, it was demonstrated beyond q
peradventure that there are no soil or
climatic obstacles in the way.
Captain L. M. Grist, of the firm OF
L. M. Grist & Sons, remembers very
well the excitement that existed on the
subject when he was a boy. It was
along about the year 1s4O-possibly q
year or two previous to that date; but
not later. Speaking Of the mater day
or two ago, he gave his recollections
as follows:
Some fellow came through the coun-
try Offering scIons of morus multicalis
the species of white mulberry that Is
most esteemed for the feeding Of silk
worms. It has larger leaf than the
common white mulberry. The fellow
had a smooth tongue and he painted
glowing pictures Of the wealth that
was to be realized from the silk indus
try, representing that there were mil
lions in it, All that was necessary
was to set out the mulberry trees, let
them grow, and at the proper time to
get the silk worms, which would pro-
duce the silk with but little trouble or
attention. He offered his mulberry
shoots at S. each, except where the
purchaser agreed to take them in
quantity, when the price was lower
Quite a number of people became
interested in the representations Of the
stranger, and several purchased null
berry twigs for cultivation. Among
them I remember the late James JEFF
ferys, General John A. Alston, and per-
haps others. Both General Aston and
Mr.. Jefferys planted out the trees in
their gardens. The trees grew all right
and weIe multiplied considerably.
General Alston did not follow up the
experiments; but Mr.. Jefferys procur-
ed some silk worm eggs and went on
with the test. He made a pound or
two of sewing silk, and within a year
or two abandoned the undertaking as
not promising sufficient income to war
rant the expense, time and trouble.
1.-The late DR.. S. j. Shrewsbury and
my father, the late John E. Grist
made some experiments along about
the same time. It Is my impression
that DIR. Shrewsbury secured more ex-
tensive results than did any of the
other experimenters, obtaining as much
as five or six pounds Of sewing thread;
but because I was closer to them the
experiments Of my father made more
vivid impression upon me than did
those Of any Of the other individuals
mentioned.
| my fathers experiments were made
in the printing office which then occu-
pied a frame building which stood on
the spot now occupied by Law Range,
just to the rear Of the court house.
The eggs Of the silk worm having been
procured previously, were kept in a
cool place until the mulberry leaves be-
gan to mature. Then the eggs were
subjected to warm temperature
when they Matched. They began to
feed on the leaves Immediately after
Matching, and they grew quite rapidly,
At first a few leaves were sufficient to
feed several hundred worms. Gradu-
ally, however, as the worms increased
in size, they began to require consid-
cradle quantities each day. The feed
ing was done by laying leaves on top
Of the worms. The worms matured in
about 80 days, shedding their skins
some three or four times in the mean
time. At first they were black; but
each time they shed their skins they
took on a more transparent color. At
the end Of about a month they began to
| spin their silk and weave it into CO.
coons. The cocoon, when completed,
enveloped the worms completely.
They were Of yellowish white color.
The next operation was to subject the
| coccoons to sufficient heat to kill the
worms inside. Then the thread, as fine
as spider web, was ready to unwind.
The whole cocoon was composed Of a
single thread and If it had not been
damaged Mn any way, the unwinding
operation was not interrupted from start
to finish. One or more cocoons were
unwound at the same operation, ac-
cording to desired strength Of the
thread to be made. I think my faith
er secured two pounds Of sewing silk
in this way"
WAS there ever an effort to market
any Of the products of these expert
ments?"
Not that I know. AS we'll as I re-
member, my father sold some of the
silk to Mr.. w. P. McFadden, who was
merchandising in Yorkville at the time,
and used some Of the thread that
resulted from his experiments in
making fish lines. What the others
did with theirs I do not know, except
that I remember very well that all be-
came discouraged and let the prospec-
tive ipdustrv fall thrOIph
What about the morus multicalis