Silkworm from Japan. 389 
June 9th. Ninety are now alive; changed food; examined the 
eggs which had not emerged. Lot No. 1, the eggs contained fully 
formed larvee in various stages of decomposition, a few eggs con- 
tained dried serum; No. 2, contained dried-up worms undergoing 
decomposition ; No. 3, contained worms either dried up or decom- 
posing, brown, soft, shapeless; No. 4, the most mouldy ones 
contained generally dried-up serum, or else larve highly decom- 
posed ; the other eggs contained larvae shrunken but formed, soft, 
and decomposing ; several eggs, which had cracks or holes made 
by the larve in their shells, were examined and found to contain 
larvae brown and drying up; one was mouldy. 
On the 13th June, eighty-three larvae were counted. At every 
change of food I was sorry to find that some larvee were dead, 
and I am by no means sure that some were not nipped by their 
comrades. I noticed this day that one larva, after moulting for 
the third time, seemed flabby, inert, torpid, and soft as if dying. 
This larva was also very wet, either from water which had fallen 
upon it during syringing, which was done daily, or from having 
fallen into a little pool of water. The larva was removed, the 
water dried up, and a free circulation of air encouraged. After 
an hour or two the skin began to dry, the muscles acquired firm- 
ness, and the larva subsequently recovered entirely. 
‘June 19th, there were only seventy-three larve. 
June 23rd. Seventy. I then noted that the larvae were not 
looking well, but had a muddy look. ‘The temperature now was 
much higher—about 70° during the day. 
June 26th. Found three or four larvae dead, and many others 
showing black dusky specks over their bodies, just beneath their 
skin; colour pale, the transparency changed to an opacity; they 
seemed weaker; the temperature was now very high, 70° at 
night, 75° during day, 90° in sunshine. I recognized the formid- 
able malady described by French anthors,* which had frustrated 
the hope of success so many times in different regions, the first 
symptoms being an opacity of colour, and a number of minute 
dusky specks. In accordance with the advice given by French 
writers, who attribute this disease partly to insufficient ventilation 
and partly to rearing the larvee on boughs kept fresh by means of 
inserting their ends in water, I determined, first, to wash them 
* This, according to Mons. Guérin-Méneville, is analogous to the disease 
among the mulberry worms called “des flats,’’ or “ vaches.”— Revue de 
Sériciculture, 1864, p. 197. 
