INSECTS. ,.- 



before the rainy season sets in, branches of the cactus covered with females 

 are cut oft" and taken under shelter. These form what might be called the 

 'seed' for the next year's crop. Then in October, when the rain is over 

 the plantation is stocked again with insects, by placing several of these 

 insects on each plant. There they rapidly multiply, each female produc- 

 ing over a thousand eggs. After the resulting progeny becomes full gr< >wn, 

 the insects are carefully picked off by hand, there being several pickings 

 before the return of the rainy season. The picking is very slow and 

 tedious, and an Indian can pick in a day only enough to make two ounces 

 of dried cochineal. According to the way in which the insects are killed, 

 the cochineal varies in appearance, though there is not much difference in 

 the quality of the carmine. If they are boiled, they have a brownish red 

 color, and lose most of their down; these are the 'foxy' insects. If baked 

 in a hot oven, they retain the down, and are then known in the trade as 

 1 silver grains ' ; while if heated on plates of hot iron, they turn black, and 

 are then ' black grains.' It is said that it takes some seventy thousand 

 insects to make a pound of dried cochineal ; and when we consider that all 

 these must be picked by hand, we see that the temptation to adulterate 

 must be great. Adulteration is most easily practised with the silver 

 grains, by rolling them in powdered talc or white lead, which sticks to 

 their bodies to a certain extent, and very materially alters their weight. 



From the cochineal comes a long series of carmine colors, the prepara- 

 tion of which is a matter of considerable complexity, and need not be 

 described here. It consists of making an infusion of the dried insects 

 in water, mixing this with salts of alumina, and allowing the color to be 

 precipitated. The finest qualities can be prepared only on bright sun- 

 shiny days ; and it is related that an English manufacturer paid a tin >u- 

 sand pounds to learn that the reason why he could not make as good a 

 quality of carmine as the French, was on account of the lack of bright 

 days in England. 



In America, the great centre of the cochineal industry is in the prov- 

 ince of Oaxaca. In 1844 the French introduced the nopal cactus and the 

 cochineal into Algiers, and the Duch, at a later date, into Java, and now 

 these countries produce considerable amounts, that of Algiers being said to 

 excel that of Mexico. 



The insect which produces the manna of the shops is another allied 

 species, but it hardly needs to be said that this manna does not correspond 

 to the description of the miraculous food which supported the Israelites in 

 their long journey through the small Sinaitic peninsula. It is rather to 

 be classed with the lac mentioned above, as it is an exudation from the 

 tamarix-tree. The Arabs collect the resulting grains, boil and purify 



