[ 175 ] 100 



cleaned thoroughly. This operation, although tedious, is easy enough, 

 with the aid of the portable trays. 



These portable trays cannot now be put on the hurdles, because the 

 cabins placed round them prevent it; however, they may be support- 

 ed against the trays, so as to be able to use them within. When they 

 are placed near the trays, the ripe worms must be carefully put upon 

 them. Two or three portable trays should be filled. This done, the 

 litter should be emptied from the sheets of paper into baskets. 



When one portion of the hurdles has been cleaned, the paper is to 

 be replaced, and the worms gently slided down upon it by slanting 

 the tray. Upon a small scale, the fully ripe worms may be picked one 

 by one, and placed on the cabins, when they will immediately mount. 

 Mr. Stephenson directs to place them at first in the middle of the ca- 

 bin ; if the sides are begun with, or the outer ends of the cabins, it 

 will be difficult to supply the middle with worms, without disturbing, 

 and even destroying some of those which are mounting on the sides, in 

 reaching in with the hand towards the middle. 



They should, strictly, only be given the quantity of food they may 

 want, and that very sparingly. When the baskets are filled with 

 litter, they must be directly carried out of the laboratory. In this 

 manner, several persons may clean the hurdles in a few hours. The 

 silkworms, when put on the portable trays, should be handled with 

 the greatest gentleness and ease, leaving them on the twigs or bits 

 of leaves to which they are fastened, not to hurt them in tearing 

 them off. The slightest injury, at this age, is particularly hurtful to 

 them, because the vital action is much diminished. 



In sliding the silkworms upon the hurdles, they should be placed 

 in squares of about two feet, beginning on the side upon which the es- 

 palier or hedge is already placed, and forming the squares close to 

 them, so that the silkworm may find no difficulty in rising: a distance 

 pf eight or ten inches must be left between the squares. 



In the centre of these squares should be fixed bunches of small dry 

 boughs. This operation may be performed by eight persons in eight 

 hours. 



During tl)c time of this operation, the exterior air should be freely 

 admitted on all sides, and may be drawn in by lighting a blazing light 

 fire in the chimneys. 



All the ventilators should be open, as well as the doors and win- 

 dows, if there be no wind, and if the weather be not much below the 

 6Sth degree of temperature, which is the prescribed heat of the labo- 

 ratory. Although, generally, the air at this time of the year is nei- 

 ther cold nor windy enough to be obliged to shut up the laboratory, it 

 becomes necessary to take great precaution in admitting air. In such 

 cases, a part only of the ventilators should be opened at once. The 

 fumigating bottle should also be passed once or twice through the la- 

 boratory, and the hygrometer will show whether the air is grown suf- 

 ficiently dry. 



During this time the worms continue to rise and climb, and thus 

 it is indispensable to finish the hedge, and to fill the hurdles with rows 



