REPORT OP THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 215 



tied. Throughout these latter States the Mennonites have planted 

 largjo uumbers of the Eussian mulberry {Moms tartarica), which makes 

 an excellent wind-break and is so hardy as to stand the winters of Da- 

 kota. The wood is excellent, being largely used for fence posts, and 

 the foliage makes, so far as our present experience goes, a good silk- 

 worm food. In view of all these facts the distribution of mulberry 

 plants has not been pushed, and we have thought it wiser to allow peo- 

 ple to set out their own plantations and reserve our means for helping 

 tliom in other directions. 



DISTEEBUTION OF EGGS. 



The eggs distributed last year were purchased in France from relia- 

 ble dealers. They were all of a yellow annual race, usually called 

 French. In regard to this designation of races a few words of explana- 

 tion are required. Prior to the silk- worm plague of twenty years ago 

 in Europe, there was a certain degree of exactness in the lines drawn 

 between the races raised in diflerent provinces. Then, however, the 

 indigenous races were to a large extent blotted out, and e^g mer- 

 chants went first to Turkey, then to Asia Minor and Syria, and finally 

 to China and Japan in search of eggs that should be free from " the 

 maladj'." Thus it was that there were brought into France and Italy 

 a large number of races foreign to those countries. These were crossed 

 together and, after the researches of Pasteur had made the resuscita- 

 tion of the native rr.ces possible, they were crossed with these as well. 

 Thus the identity of the old .varieties became lost and the same new 

 stock appeared in different sections under different names. Samples 

 of French and Italian yellow cocoons sent us last summer appear to be 

 identical, and to be again very like some called " Turkish salmon." 



H01VrE-B,AISED VS. TMrORTED EGGS. 



A good deal of feeling was exhibited by American silk-raisers on ac- 

 count of this purcluise of eggs abroad, as they considered the produc- 

 tion of eggs a part of the industry which should be fostered in the 

 United States. With this feeling we do not entirely sympathize. In 

 the first iilace, the Department can distribute but a comparatively small 

 q;iantity of silk-wonn eggs each year, and they can be produced by a 

 very small number of ]iersons. The production of these eggs requires 

 great care and extended experience in this branch of the art. There are 

 ir.any precautions with wliich it is necessary to surround the work, and 

 wp consider them of such moment that we have set them forth at length 

 in nnother portion of this report. The experience thus required is 

 soinowhat liard to tlnd among the silk-raisers of this country. Tho.-e 

 who have already produced eggs for sale have relied more upon the 

 freedom of this continent from the germs of disease than upon scientilic 

 7nethod8 for its preveutiou, and while sericultural Europe was plague- 

 stricken, several American silk-raisers seized the opportunity' to pro- 

 duce eggs for the European market and succeeded in realizing consid- 

 erable jirofits. But the day for such work is past. Europe to-day can 

 produce eggs of sufficient purity for her purposes and "the malady" 

 itself has crept into the United States with imported eggs. Silk-raisers 

 have attempted to reproduce from this stock, but knowing nothing of the 

 necessary precautions of which we have already spoken, have produced 

 but a poor class of eggs, whicli in many cases have been highly dis- 

 es^od with the jpebrine. While patriotic motives would induce us to 



