Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1917-08-24
CocooN5 AND CMERPLLARs FEEDING

N%SOObNO <lNL A%fNl In
they viii also increase In food-furnish-
ing capacity A three-year-old tree
will furnish between fifty and seventy
five pounds of leaves; a five-year-old
tree will make eighty-fve to a hun
dred pounds. The product of ten
year-old tree will be proportionateIy
larger.
BY increased attention and addition
al help during the last period of feed
ing the worms, the crop can be prac-
tically doubled from six ounces of eggs
and two acres Of land. Two acres of
one or two-year-old trees win produce
$3.50 to $500, representing the income
from the first crop; but since the rails
ing of six crops Is possible in one
year, $500 to $1,000 may be safely ex-
pected of the mulberry trees. This
involves very little trouble; indeed,
all that Is needed to keep the trees In
good condition is to keep them well
trimmed and clear of weeds.
Silk culture originated In China, the
land of gorgeously embroidered cloth
and tapestry. AS far back as 500 B.
O., efforts were made by outsiders to
learn the secret of the industry and
to obtain some of the eggs, but, with
true Oriental cunning, the yellow men
defied the robbers and remained snug
| ~ and safely within their walls. In
! 200 A. D., the Armenian king sent
monks to the empire in the capacity
of teachers, supposedly, whose real
motive was the acquisition of eggs and
! silkworms. After some time two Of
the monks managed to escape to Con-
stantinople with their precious booty.
Here they sold a few eggs at a fabu-
loAs price, but for lack of knowledge
and proper care on the part of the
owners, these specimens died. In Ar
menia, under the care of the two
monks, a successful farm was started.
From this nucleus the industry spread
to include principally Japan and
France. It's Introduction into Texas
was the result Of the efforts of Mr..
Walter E. Long of the Austin chamber
of commerce.
Silkworm eggs my be kept in cold
storage at a temperature of 80 to 80
degrees for a period of ten to twenty
years. When desired for Matching
they are placed In plain wooden boxes
with an even temperature of 80 to rs
degrees. After eight days a tiny, ugly
and ravenously hungry worm appears.
He has eight eyes, six short feet and
eight sprawling hind ones. Sometimes
he is banded or otherwise character
lied by racial marks. He grows slow
~ until about ten days old, and he
sheds his skin every six or seven days.
At the age of ten days the worm sud
denly seems to realize his insig-
nificance, for from that time IN
til he is full grown he devours
at swift pace the tender mulberry
leaves which are most conveniently
placed In front of his greedy nose, cut
ting into the tissues with a semicircu-
lar swath. He attains full growth like
the miraculous beanstalk, since, when
twenty-eight days old. he is $4,000
times his size at Matching.
The grown worm Is now ready to be-
gin his envelope. Carefully he noses
tie JUN pAd(C0 III AAOlt
of him until an advantageous spot is
found. This Is usually at the fork Of
two small branches, where he can cas-
lily fasten his gelatinous framework
He works sluggishly at first. gluing to-
gether in his mouth the two threads
of silk that come from the large glands
on either side of the body, and weav-
scarcely discernible threads, In three
days the worm Is hidden in a thick en-
velope of soft threads. AS the cocoon
grows, the worm diminishes, so that
Mt the completion of the web he is one
third of his original size. The finished
cocoon is a silky, delicate, oblong
structure, whose natural color is