[ 175 ] 146 



the uniformity in the size of the thread, the following practice is 

 adopted in the Cevennes, a famous silk district of France.* 



" In preparing fine silk, the cocoons are not wound off entirely, so 

 as to leave the pellicle of the chrysalis hare, for two reasons: first, be- 

 cause the additional fibres required to be added, when the first and 

 strong part of the fibre is observed to be spent, might make the com- 

 pound thread too stout, and would thus cause a waste of silk; secondly, 

 because the fibre of a cocoon, which has been entirely wound off, be- 

 sides being weak, also abounds in knots, which would cause it to break 

 in winding, and injure its uniformity, in which the goodness of the 

 thread mainly consists. Therefore, in winding fine silk, when the co- 

 coon has given off three-fourths and a half of silk,t it must be replaced 

 by another cocoon ; the remainder of the first cocoons are to be set 

 aside, and their silk added to that of an inferior quality. When the 

 first parcel of cocoons is nearly finished, take out, with a ladle, all 

 those on which some silk has been left; let them be opened, the chrys- 

 alides taken out, and the shells put in a basket, with the coarse fibres 

 first pulled off with the hands from the cocoons, which were ordered 

 to be laid aside. These cocoons, which are partly wound off, must on 

 no account be permitted to remain in the basin: for they will obscure 

 and thicken the water, and injure the color and lustre of the silk, 

 which can then be used only for dark colors: besides this, the consist- 

 ence of the silk is injured, and waste ensues in the winding.''^ The 

 shells are to be buried, to prevent them from becoming offensive ; or 

 they may be added to the manure heap. As a general rule, the water 

 must be changed when it is discolored. 



When the spent cocoons leap up, and adhere to the iron plate, they 

 must be immediately taken away, else, by choking the passage, they 

 will endanger the breaking of the thread. 



When the reel has remained any time idle, the thread between the 

 basin and the wires or rampins, must be wet, to cause the thread to run 

 easily. Keep also the teeth of the wheels, and the mortises, in which 

 the traversing bar plays, wet, to ensure regularity and ease in their 

 movements. In winding the good cocoons, some defective ones will 

 be found among them, which will not wind off, or are full of knobs; 

 these must be taken out of the copper, and kept by themselves; they 

 are called bassinats, and are to be wound apart as coarse as possible; 

 they make a foul silk. 



The breaking of the fibres is principally owing either to bad cocoons, 

 viz: being ill formed, (as they will be when the worms were disturbed 

 and interrupted during their spinning,) or the fibres may break by an 



*This appearsto be a preferable mode, as regards ease of performance, and the 

 preservation of a uniformity in the thread, to tlie old plan of inci-easing- the number of 

 fibres from fresh cocoons, to add to others which may be nearly spent. 



t Beynaud says, p. 237, that a cocoon will presen-e a uniform fibre for 300 feet. 

 A Frencli foot is equal to 13 American inclies. 



T De Vers a Sole etde leur Education, selon la pratique des Cevennes: par M. Eey- 

 naud, p. 234, Paris, 1824. 



In Ita'y, the pellicle or shell is used to make artificial flowers, which are said to 

 surpass those from any other material. Essai surHistoire, &.c. par Delong-charaps, 

 p. 7i. 



