1839] 



FARMERS' REGISTER. 



303 



cal directions to cuiturists here, still, though indi- 1 

 rectly, his statements are highly instructing as I 

 well as interesling. M. Bonafous requested this I 

 account from his correspondent, doubtless because ' 

 of the unusual cost of the plantation, and because 

 the items of expense had been so accurately noted. 

 And if the facts exhibited serve to prove to those, 

 in France, who might be forced to incur such 

 heavy expenditures, that the profits would yet 

 greatly surpass the cost, then still higher profits 

 do those same facts indirectly offer to American 

 planters, who can obtain as large products in less 

 than one-lburth of the time, or at less than one- 

 fourth of the cost in money, time, and labor com- 

 bined. It is principally with the view of impres- 

 Bing this unavoidable inference, and the important 

 though indirect instruction which it conveys to 

 American cuiturists, that we now shall condense, 

 and ofTer to the readers of the Farmers' Register, 

 the more important parts of this long French 

 article, accompanied by our own remarks on the 

 whole. 



It should be premised that, on account of the 

 manner in which silk-culture is generally con- 

 ducted in Europe, M. Carrier's estimates of cost 

 and profit, (which have already been, or are now 

 to be exhibited,) could well be, and doubtless were, 

 made with much precision and correctness. In that 

 country, it is most usually the case, that the mul- 

 berry leaves are bought from the owner of the trees 

 by another person who owns and feeds the silk- 

 worms. Thus, the market price of leaves, for every 

 day and year, is as well known in France, as the 

 prices of grain or hay in this country. Add to this 

 that the quantities of leaves furnished by parti- 

 cular trees, or plantations, must be ascertained 

 every year, because sold by weight, and there 

 can be left but small room for error in estimating 

 in advance the products of any known lot of trees. 

 Therefore, when, in his preceding letters, M. Car- 

 rier charged his silk with the value of the leaves 

 used for feeding, and when he estimates (in the 

 letter now under consideration,) the money price 

 of the products of his trees, there is no ground for 

 uncertainly, except so far as he may have erred in 

 estimating the quantities of leaves produced by 

 trees of certain degrees of size and vigor; and 

 even in this, he could not err greatly, having as 

 guides the general estimates and long experience 

 of the growers of France and Italy. 



There is another important lesson which the 

 American culturist may learn from this account. 

 This is the fact which may be inferred — and which 

 would at first seem incredible to those who have 

 made no estimate— that a plantation of white mul- 

 berry trees, though the two-year old grafted stocks 

 may be bought at 12 to 15 cents, costs more in 



France than a multicaulis plantation would cost 

 here, even if trees of equal size had been bought at 

 $1.50 each, which was about the price last winter. 

 Starding as may be this assertion, its truth will be 

 made manifest to any one who will calculate the 

 product of any certain sum, (whether $10 or 

 $1000,) laid out in both kinds, and the stock of 

 each propagated and nursed in the most approved 

 and usual manner for each, for the 8 years' time, 

 which must elapse before the white mulberry trees 

 are fit for use. Cost in time and labor alone may 

 be as heavy as any amount of price in money; and 

 the price of multicaulis trees, extravagant as it 

 was in this country, could not amount to as much 

 as the great labor and long postponed returns of 

 M. Carrier's white mulberry trees. If his plant- 

 ings had been of the former instead of the latter 

 kind, he might have gathered the leaves on the 

 second year, and have had the benefit of six years' 

 crops, before he ventured to take the first from his 

 white mulberry trees. This is in addition to all 

 the superiority of value, and greater facility in- ga- 

 thering the leaves of^ the morus multicaulis, com- 

 pared to the morus alba, even when the plantations 

 of both have reached their most productive state. 

 But it is proper to suspend further remark and 

 comparison, until M. Carrier's facts and estimates 

 I are presented. 



Sanguine as was this experimenter, when com- 

 mencing silk culture in the almost untried region 

 of Aveyron, and zealous as he proved himself, in 

 I the prosecution of his successive trials, he never- 

 ' theless proceeded at first with hesitation and much 

 i caution. He then stood on similar ground to that 

 ! of many persons in this country who have be- 

 I lieved that silk culture would be profitable here, but 

 ! whose confidence was not so entire as to make 

 them throw aside all doubts and fears, and boldly 

 to commence the business. His progress, there" 

 fore, was slow. 



His first attempt was made in 1819, when every 

 thing was new, and every requisite was wanting. 

 Besides losing a considerable number, he saved 166 

 lbs. of cocoons of very good quality, which were 

 sold for 319 francs. The total expense was 282 

 francs leaving 37 of clear profit. This small result 

 was satisfactory, under the existing circumstances 

 of disadvantage. All the expenses had been ex- 

 traordinary, because of the newness of the busi- 

 ness; and the leaves consumed cost the very high 

 price of 8^ francs the quintal (or 100 lbs.) 



In 1820, he obtained 92 lbs. of cocoons from the 

 ounce of eggs, and S7 lbs. in 1821 ; which last pro- 

 duct, small as it is, compared to such as ought to 

 be reached, is yet, says M. Carrier, "superior to 

 that obtained habitually in the countries where 

 this industry prospers." 



