‘ 
118 REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF AGRICULTURE. 
determined by casual examination, practically the same tree as the 
japonica, which has been largely planted in this country, and the 
advantages claimed for it are its rapid growth and large, nutritious 
leaves. The trees sold by the Cattaneo Company are all seedlings, 
and their manner of cultivation is as follows; . 
The seeds are planted in the month of June in little rills, and the 
first year they attain a height of about 2 feet. The spring of the 
second year they are transplanted and set out in quincunx, the rows ~ 
being about 8 feet apart. The following spring they are cut down 
to the ground and one shoot only allowed to grow. This shoot attains ~ 
a height of about 8 feet in one year, and has leaves as large as the 
two hands springing from its whole length. The fourth spring it 
is cut off to form the crown, at about 6 feet from the ground, and but 
three or four fine buds allowed to grow into branches, the rest of the 
stem being carefully kept free from suckers, The fifth spring it is 
ready for permanent planting and, in good ground, will furnish from 
40 to 50 pounds of leaves the first year thereafter. Plate VII shows 
one of these trees eiglit years old from the seed and Plate VIII the 
same tree without its leaves. The tree from which these cuts were 
photographed was 26 feet high and 56 feet in circumference. 
EXPERIMENTAL STATIONS. 
It has been iound necessary in European sericultural countries fo 
‘constantly study the practical rearing of Silk-worms from a scientific 
~ point of view, so as to prevent the spread of false ideas and methods 
of work and eliminate such fallacies as may have found root in the 
minds of silk-growers, The Austrian Government first opened an 
experimental station for this purpose at Goritz, in 1870, The work 
of this station has been described in the report of the American min- 
ister at Vienna, which was printed in Vol. XII of the Consular Re- 
ports, page 262. The example thusset by Austria was soon followed 
by Italy in the establishment of a similar station at Padua, and by 
France, whose station is in connection with the University of Mont- 
pelier. All of these stations are in charge of mei of great eminence 
in the science to which they have devoted their lives, Haberlandt 
being director of the Goritz station, Verson of that at Padua, and 
Maillot of the French institution. If the aims of the Department in 
establishing silk culture in the United States should be successful it 
will undoubtedly be necessary for our Government to follow the ex- 
ample thus set them in Europe, and it may therefore be of interest 
to publish an account of the station at Padua, as translated from a 
recent Italian work. it may be well to add that the Italian Govern- 
ment has also established upwards of sixty observatories in different 
arts of the Kingdom, which co-operate with the central station and 
ecome valuable means of collecting sericultural statistics, dissemi- 
nating useful information, and aiding silk-raisers by the microscop- 
ical examination of eggs and other useful labors. Such observa- 
tories might ultimately be established in the United States in connec- 
tion with the recently-organized agricultural experimental stations in 
the different States. 
THE ROYAL SERICULTURAL EXPERIMENTAL STATION AT PADUA, 
During the year 1870 the Austrian Government opened an experi- 
meéntal station at Gorita with a view to studying ‘‘the malady” of 
