1838] 



F A R M E R S ' R E G I S T E R 



235 



is to say, baths of the silk loonfis. The eggs thus 

 washed, produce the host silk worms. 



The worms of wliicli the engs were not wasli- 

 ed, are called Ifo-ts:an, that is to say, ardent pilk 

 worms, (they are thoee of Autumn.) They are 

 less esteemed than ihe preceding. 



In the work entitled Sang-tsan-tchi-choiic, we 

 read : 



" Those who wish the eg^s to hatch quickly, 

 often unlljld, and roll up one by one, the leaves of 

 the pa|)er where the moths have deposited their 

 egjTs. (This paper should be manufoctured of 

 cotton, or the bark of mulberry trees. According 

 to the ideas of the Chinese, they banish ilom the 

 nurseries every thing made of hemp; ibr example: 

 ropes and hempen cloth. Our European paper 

 would be. very ifijnrious to silk worms.) Those 

 who wish to retard the hatching, unfold the leaves 

 at distant intervals, and afterwards roll them in a 

 tight manner, without leaving the least empty 

 space in the centre of the roll." 



Iloang-sing-tseng, says : — The twelfth day of 

 the last moon, in December, or in January, if 

 there is one intercalary month, the eggs must be 

 soaked in salt water, and taken out the twenty- 

 fourth day. Then the silk will be much easier to 

 wind. 



Another author, says : — The eighth day of the 

 last moon, the leaves covered with eggs must be 

 dipped in water where the ashes of the mulberry 

 branches have been boiled, or the ashes of grass. 

 They must be taken out at the expiration of one 

 day. The twelfth day of the second moon, a 

 bath must be given to the errgs, on the morning of 

 the period called Thsing-ming ; then they niust 

 be wrapped up in cotton paper, and deposited in 

 the kitchen. Wait until the mulberry leaves are 

 as large as a tea-spoon, then envelop the eggs in 

 cotton : at night they must be covered with warm 

 garments which have been worn during the day; 

 in the morning they must be wrapped in blankets. 

 When the eo-gs are hatched, the worms must be 

 warmed by artificial heat ; but so long as they are 

 not out of the cgg^ they ought to be well taken 

 care of, and hatched by the heat of fire. 



When it is desirable to soak the leaves of pa- 

 per, covered with eggs, the ashes of the mulber- 

 ry tree must be used; the leaves should be moist- 

 ened, and powdered with the ashes. Afterwards 

 they must be rolled and soaked in the water where 

 a certain quantity of salt has been dissolved. If 

 it be apprehended that the rolls of paper will 

 swim, they must be kept in submersion, by placins: 

 them under a china plate. The paper ought to 

 be taken out the twenty-fourth day. 



The leaves must be washed in running water, 

 to remove the ashes, or they may be washed in a 

 basin. Afterwards they can be newly hung up in 

 the cool air, and the eggs hatched "in thelsegin- 

 ning of Spring. If part of the eggs do not hatch, 

 they must be kept in darkness, and nothing more 

 is to be feared from a useless expense of leaves. 



The twelfth day of the second moon, leaves of 

 plants called thsdi and ye-thsai, blossoms of the 

 le^ek, peach tree, and white beans, must be taken. 

 They must be crushed in water, and afterwards 

 the leaves must be bathed in it. 



When the females lay eggs, they generally 

 stop at the end of one night. In the contrary 



case, the silk worms produced by their eggs, can- 

 not all hatch together. 



Same work. — JNlany persons preserve the eggs 

 of the silk worms, in bamboo boxes, when they 

 are expo-scd to all the changes of the damp, tepid, 

 hot, or burning weather. If they are subjected, 

 suddenly, from cold to excessive heat, they are af- 

 lected by it in a laial manner. The inhabitants 

 of the province of Tchc-kiang, call that Tching- 

 pou. That expression implies, that the silk worms 

 contract a disease, when they are in the egg, (lite- 

 rally, on the linen cloth, or on the leaves of pa- 

 per.) The worms of those eggs are yellow when 

 hatched : the worms hatched of a yellow color, 

 are not worth the trouble of raising. They may 

 be compared to a child who has contracted a dis- 

 ease in the womb. At its birth, it is weak and 

 feeble. It is diflicult to cure it of this innate dis- 

 ease. In general, when one wishes to preserve 

 the eggs of the silk worms, the leaves must be 

 spread on bamboo boards, making it so as not to 

 be exposed to the wind or sun. Moreover, they 

 must be covered with a silk cloth to prevent but- 

 terflies, or insects from the cotton plant, eating 

 them. 



JMuch snow may be expected about the first 

 day of the last moon, it may be in the course of 

 the last moon. Leaves covered with eggs are 

 spread in the midst of the snow. After one day 

 they must be taken up, and newly spread on 

 bamboo boards, and covered as before with a silk 

 cloth. 



When Spring comes, the precise time when the 

 eggs are about hatching must be attentively ob- 

 served ; powdered cinnabar, must be taken, dilut- 

 ed in lukewarm water, and the eggs dipped in 

 that water. The water should be neither too cold 

 nor too warm ; it ought to be kept at the tempera- 

 ture of the human body. 



Same work. — Before the worms are hatched, 

 the eggs should be weighed, and the weight 

 written on the back of the paper to which they 

 are attached. When the silk worms are hatch- 

 ed, take care not to separate them from the paper. 

 There are many persons, who as soon as they see 

 the worms hatch, detach them from the paper, 

 with a small broom or quill ; but these little be- 

 ings, as delicate and slender as a hair, or a bit of 

 silk, cannot support the wounds given them with 

 the broom or quill. The mulberry leaves must 

 be cut into extremely fine shreds, and spread in 

 an equal manner, upon a large sheet of paper. 

 The side of the paper, on which the worms are 

 hatching, must be applied to that which is cover- 

 ed with bits of the mulberry leaves. The worms 

 liking the smell of mulberry leaves, descend them- 

 selves on the paper, destined to receive them. 



Then the paper, on which the eggs were, must 

 be newly weighed ; the quantity of hatched Avorms 

 will be known, and it can be calculated how many 

 leaves will be required to feed them. It is much 

 better to have more leaves than are wanted for 

 the number of silk worms to be raised. Then an 

 abundant nourishment will be had for the silk 

 worms, and one will not be exposed to the misfor- 

 tune caused by a scarcity of leaves. 



There ar§ many persons who do not make this 

 calculation beforehand ; but when the leaves are 

 about failing, they find themselves reduced to the 

 most painful extremities ; they pawn, or sell their 

 effects to procure them. They have the grief of 



