THE SILKWORM. 



799 



extends its head towards the point of the 

 cone, butts with its eyes, which are rough, 

 against the lining of its cell, wears it away, 

 and at last pushes forward, through a passage 

 which is small at first, but which enlarges as 

 the animal increases its efforts for emancipa- 

 tion; while the tattered remnants ofitsaurelia 

 skin lie in confusion within the cone, like a 

 bundle of dirty linen. 



The animal, when thus set free from its 

 double confinement, appears exhausted with 

 fatigue, and seems produced for no other 

 purpose but to transmit a future brood. It 

 neither flies nor eats ; the male only seeking 

 the female, whose eggs he impregnates ; and 

 their union continues for four days, without 

 interruption. The male dies immediately 

 after separation from his mate ; and she sur- 

 vives him only till she has laid her eggs, 

 which are not hatched into worms till the 

 ensuing spring. 



However, there are few of these animals 

 suffered to come to a state of maturity ; for 

 as their bursting through the cone destroys 

 the silk, the manufacturers take care to kill 

 the aurelia, by exposing it to the sun, before 

 the moth cotnes to perfection. This done, 

 they take off the floss, and throw the cones 

 into warm water, stirring them till the first 

 thread offers them a clue for winding all off! 

 They generally take eight of the silken 

 threads together; the cones being still kept 

 under water, till a proper quantity of the silk 

 is wound off: however, they do not take all ; 

 for the latter parts grow weak, and are of a 

 bad colour. As to the paper-like substance 

 which remains, some stain it with a variety 

 of colours, to make artificial flowers; others 

 let it lie in the water, till the glutinous matter 

 which cements it is all dissolved : it is then 

 carded like wool, spun with a wheel, and 

 converted into silk stuffs of an inferior kind. 



