J 26 



Sl)c jTaimcr's iitoniiilij Visitor. 



thdiilil liisi', 1111(1 (or my iiiuao I I'oiiiid tljiil is easi- 

 ci- t*ai(l lliiiii ildiit"; iiikI in ciiiicliisiDii, 1 have |)UI 

 llie slocking into licr li.niils where, it l)i.'f;iiis to 

 gain ill wiMiilit, and am firmly resolved not a^raiii 

 to liny cliuap and Sfll dear witlinni her coiisi-nt. 



Tlieri; arc |ilciiiy of'yoiiiif,' women here in this 

 and the neii;hliorin^' touiis that would equal 

 Delioiuh in n|i|)lii'alion, iiidnsiry and prudence, 

 niid none need wish to excel her. 



SAMUEL * » * 



Francesloun, loih July, 1843. 



Hard Times— Thf. Cure for Them.— Indus- 

 try and frLinality — work harder and spend less. 

 Never conliiimd pconomy, which is a virtue, with 

 stinginess, which isa vice and ol'leii the very op- 

 jmsite of "conomy. Make your money lieforo 

 yon .spend it, and doirt Imy a thin;; hecan.^e it is 

 cli'Nip; nor imagine for a moment, that extrava- 

 paiiee and geiitilily have any necessary, or sen- 

 sih.e connexion. We have loo many yonniinieii 

 ainonast lis, who seem to think idleness a hadge 

 of hi;rh lilW, and the hest mark of finished man- 

 ners to loaf ill soda shops aiid hilliard roMiis, 

 spending their inheritance on frivolities, or more, 

 vinming up dehis they are never going to pay, 

 for alight depends on thorn. If these would re- 

 niemher thai lahor in this coimtry is honor, and 

 idleness disgrace, and only spend on their hranis 

 one half they waste on then- backs, the times 

 would be as easy ai'ain as they are, and, society 

 be stocked will, valuable men to fill iis high pla- 

 ces, and Incralive employments: whereas but 

 too many we see bartering iheir reputations (or 

 perishable dross, and melting their suhslance 

 away by keeping up a blaze of gentility to the 

 world, which a little puff of scorn will soon ex- 

 tinguish, leaving nolhing of them but an unsav- 

 ory snuffi if we might advise them, it would be 

 in those lines of Ben Jolinsim, w hieli we should 

 like to see stuck up at every popular lounge and 

 fiishinnable corner i>t' the whole town. 

 " I'll hav(; you sober, and contain ynnrself, 

 Niii tliat ymir stiil be bigger tlinn ymir bnnt ; — 

 But ni'Klernte yciur expenses, now at first, 

 A.-i vou iniv lljc s;inift proportion still ; 

 Nor Btnnil so much on your uontihty. 

 Whicb IS nu airy and mere borrowed tiling 

 From dead men's dust and bones, and none of yours 

 Except you mafia or hold it." 



[Charlestown Mercury. 



Report on Silk. 



h\ Inolcing over some old rnaunscript.s, with 

 w Inch our onr office is literally y/oof/crf, we came 

 across the snlijoiiied report of John Searle, Esi]., 

 Chairman of the Commillee on Silk, made at the 



annual meeiing of the i\!eriimack C iiy A;;ri- 



culliiral Society at Fraiil>liii last Oclolier. It had 

 been handed in at our oftice and by some means 

 become mis-laid. The report, alliiongh written 

 nearly one year since, does not read any the 

 worse for age. Mr. Searle will we iriisl, accept 

 our exciisiHiir having delau-d ihe publication of 

 his excellent report iinlil this late day, and con- 

 tiiine to (iivor iiswilh his correspondence in fu- 

 ture. Oilier corres|)ondents whose articles may, 

 perchance, have Iummi omilieil, will readily attri- 

 linle the imiissinn In ilie right cause and not des- 

 pair of beiii'i properly alleiiilcd to in future. We 

 give Mr. Searle's Report below : 



Mr. Preside.nt;— It appears ihat silk, and the 

 silkworm were first known in aiicicLUt rfer, or 

 Serica in Ohir.a. It was there liisl discovered in 

 its own n.uive mulberry I'oresls. The ciiltivalir.n 

 of silk coinmehced in China 700 years before 

 .Vbraham, ami '37(.0 before ihc birlh of Christ.— 

 'I'he emperor of ihe Earth, Iloimg-ty, who reign- 

 ed over Chiiiii more than IPO years, and wliosi; 

 name is renderi-d imuiorlal liir his noble and 

 useful deeds — \ni who tauglil the Chinese to 

 construct ships, mill.s, cai ts and other vvm-ks of 

 usefulness, he also persuaded hisfiist consort, Si- 

 liiiL'-chi to bestow her alleiilioii on the silkwm-m, 

 it being bis earnest desire that his empress like- 

 wise, might conlribnte tothi> welfare of the em- 

 pire. Allied thereline, by tlie women of her house- 

 hold, Si-ling-i-hi gaihered the silkworiiss from the 

 trees, and innodiiced tlieni lo ihe imperial apart- 

 ments. Tims slielieied and protecied, tiny vvere 

 abimdanily supplied wiili leaves, and yielded 

 silk superior in i]Uality to that produced in the 

 forest. She also taught them its manufacture 

 and embroidery, which cimtinued lo be the oc- 

 cupation of her successors, apartments being es- 

 pecially approjiriated to this purpose in the im- 



perial palace. From beini; the occupation of 

 ihe highest rank of females, it becuine that of all 

 ranks in China; from China it was exported to 

 India, Persia, Arabia and indeed to the whole of 

 Asia. 



The caravans of Sericaperformed long jour- 

 neys of 243 days from China to Syria. .At Rome 

 as late as A. D. 270, a silk attire of purple was 

 accounted by an emperor as a luxury too expen- 

 sive even fir an empress,and that eiii|iress his wite 

 Sevira, its value being equal to that of gold by 

 weight. In the sixth century, two monks arrived 

 at the court of the emperor Justinian at Constan- 

 tinople from a missionary expedition to China 

 and brought with them the seed of the mulberry, 

 commuiiicatins to him also the discovery of the 

 mode of rearing the silk worm, and although 

 the exportation of the insects from China was 

 forbidden on pain of death , yet by the liberal 

 promises and persuasions of Justinian they un- 

 dertook a new expedition, and at length relnrned 

 through Bnnkhara and Persia to Constantinople 

 in .5.55, w ith eggs of the precious insect conceal- 

 ed in the hollow- of their canes or pilgrim staves 

 w hich they had obtained in that far distant land. 

 In Greece, the ciillnre and mannfuctnre of silk 

 soon overspread the country, the noblest ladies 

 themselves aiding by their example. 



From Greece, the cultivation of silk was in- 

 troduced to Sicily and Naplesin 1148; but on 

 account of the ignorance of I lie age, it long re- 

 mained neglected, and it was not till 1540 that 

 it li.id extended to Piedmont, and indeed lo all 

 Ilaly. So exlensive is its cultivation at the pres- 

 ent day throughout Ilaly, that according toConut 

 Danilolo's staiement, two thirds of their w hole 

 exports cou.-i>l of silk. Also, to a late,aud anlheii- 

 tie wwkon ihe silk trade, England imported of 

 raw silk from the year 1821 to 1828, 24,157,568 

 pounds, wnrili .f 121,787,580. Of this amount 

 i>59,88 1 ,'.'83 worth came from Italy alone. It ap- 

 pears fioin a commercial report of our U. S. 

 Treasury, that we imporled in the year 1839, 

 silks fi'om other places than India, — the great 

 silk mart of ihe world, to the ainoiiut of §!8.277,- 

 705. In the late act of Congress n larifFis inclos- 

 ed, averaging from 50 ceiils to •'J2,.50 per pound 

 on silks. This is the first lime that Congress 

 has allemplcd to encourage the silk business by 

 protection duties. In tile revision of the tariff 

 in 1810, 23, 25, and 28, silks were allowed to 

 come duty free, or at most, subject to a merely 

 nominal duty. This bill has been enacted in 

 view of the actual results from making silk in all 

 the Slates of the llnioii. 



These residis for a series of years, have dem- 

 onslraled the entire feasibility of the silk enter- 

 prise succeeding in this country, and have also 

 shown that we have a climate aud soil eminently 

 suited to the silk culture. 



In etfect, ii proclaimed the recorded opinion 

 of Congress, that our country can now grow 

 and maiudaclure its own silks, as well as its col- 

 tons and woollens. The other provisions of the 

 new tariff encountered more or less sectional 

 (eeliug; hnt all parts of the coiinlry are alike in- 

 teresled ill the silk business, so that this measure 

 it is believed will excite no opposition (i-oni any 

 rpiarler. In this state of the case we have 

 ground for the fullest confidence that the |ioficy 

 now eslahlislied will stand imdistinhed — ihe 

 country is decreed to be a silk growing and 

 mamifaclnring one, and that, we opine, settles 

 the matter. Onr farmers anil others now see 

 that they will have a ready and full demand lor 

 cocoons aud raw silk as (ast as they can be fur- 

 nished : everything at present promises the ex- 

 tension of the silk business. Since 1830, it has 

 been gr.idually increasing — within that time a 

 vast nmoiint of praciical knowledge has been 

 gained and dilfiised. Thirieeii of the States [lay 

 a bounty, and it is to be hoped that the other 

 Slates "ill at once adopt the same measure. 



Gideon R. Smith of Ballimore, Mil. — and none 

 ask heller aulliorily — spe;ikiiig of the Stale homi- 

 ly ol' Tennessee, says it is equivalent to 333 per 

 cent, addeil to iis v:;lue and will about pay ihe 

 whole expense of jirodnclion — thi.s, you will re- 

 collect, is less ihaii some of the Stales pay. Mr. 

 Gridley, the superintendaiit of the silk business 

 in the Slale Prison at .'\ubiirii, N. Y., in a letter 

 to Will, R. Prince, Flushing, Long Island, says 

 they employ the poorest labor, such as cripples, 

 boys and negroes, whose labor heretofore was 

 worth only 15 cents per day, now earn more 



than 31 cents when engaged in this business. 

 Mr. Coleman, late agricultural commissioner of 

 Mass., ill his finirth report, says, a Miss Barton 

 in that State, who accurately noted all the de- 

 tails, hatched 2i ounces of eggs in a vacant corn 

 house, the fixtures of which were merely tempo- 

 lary shelves of rough boards with a few hurdles 

 lo contain the worms during their three first 

 ages. The worms spun in 28 or 29 days, anil 

 produced 248 lbs. of cocoons, which made 20 

 lbs. of reeled silk, valued at the low price of 

 .S5 per pound, amounting to .SIOO — deduct from 

 Ihi.-i, the young lady's time and bo.ird for one 

 mouth, .$18. Also, 2500 lbs. leaves at 5 cents per J 

 100 lbs., gathering cocoons, camphor for curinif, ^ 

 .'S2,50, reeling it at 75 cents per lb., interest on 

 leel, $1,00— total, $49 — leaving as yoti perceive 

 a balance of $51 net profit. Add lo this the 

 State bounty, which is on cocoons 15 cents per 

 111., together with 50 cents per lb. (or reeling, and 

 yon have ,$98,20 for one month's labor, with a 

 large amount of eggs in possession. 



According to the .Marshals' returns for 1839, 

 there were 200,683 lbs. cocoons produced in the 

 r. S. in that year, of which amount N. H. pro- 

 duced only 692 lbs., Vermont 5684 lbs. aud Conn. 

 135 times as great a quantity as the former 

 State. Mr. G. B. Smith, to whom I have already 

 refiirred, say.s, that the large and small pea-nut 

 varieties are the very best — the small pea-nut 

 generally coniaiiis fiom 3.500 to 4500 cocoons to 

 a bushel, yielding from 20 to 23 ounces of reeled 

 silk of the finest and best quality; whilst the 

 egg shaped contains only fiom 2500 to 3500 

 cocoons, yielding from 12 to 16 ounces. Here- 

 marks also, that killing the chrysalis with cam- 

 phor vajior has been found an excellent and 

 economical mode 



Mr. A. B.Jones of Hartford, Co., Conn., exhibi- 

 ted at last year's fiiir of the .\inerican Institute, ii 

 newly conslrncled machine for reeling, with its 

 samples of sewing silk, which obtained silver 

 medals. Mi.ss S.irah C. Greenongli of Canter- 

 bury, pre.seiitcd for exhihilion, tuo splendid spe- 

 cimens of wrought silk, viz: a cape and work 

 bag, which received a premiuin. At the same 

 fair also, was presented — by John Lancaster of 

 Franklin, N. H. — a magnificent card of sewing 

 silk, most beantifully variegated, manufactured 

 by Amos Gleason, Jr., of Newport, N. H. 



It is a coniinou report in Conn., that famous 

 land of steady habits, wooden clocks and other 

 '■ Vankeo Notions" — that young ladies imagine a 

 young man does not promise to prove a good 

 husband unless he is possessed of siifiicient inge- 

 nuity to have obtained at least two or three patents. 

 The bachelors in their turn require as an impor- 

 tant essential lowards their "bean ideal" of an 

 agreeable and prudent wife, that she should ap- 

 pear on her bridal d.iy in a silk dress of her own 

 manufactiue. If these opinions should [n'evail 

 in .Merrimack county, your commillee anticipate 

 a much larger show next year. 



Respectfully for the Commille, 



Yours, &c., 

 JOHN SEARLE. 



Friinklin, .V. H., 

 mh Oct.. 1842 



H 



Diversity of Climate a.nd SEASONS.^Thii 



.\lbany Argus, alier collecting many instances of 

 the weather in different parts of Ihe Union, ill, 

 regard to dryness and moislnre, remarks : — "Ac- 

 cording to Ihe usual l.-iws of nature, it is impos- 

 sible fiir a drought to pervade our w hole coimtrv. 

 Neilher can we have a fuiuine as long as the cul- 

 tivation of the soil is attended to. Local aud 

 partial scarcity may prevail, but what is the loss 

 of one section is liequently the gain of soino 

 more fortunate section. When the North is 

 parched wiili dronghi, the Wert or the South is 

 rejoicing in ferlilizing rains. When the sum- 

 mer is coiil in .\ew York aud New England, it 

 is fiequenlly the warmer and more genial in 

 Michigan, Wibcoiisiii or Ohio; and even u 

 drought which would burn all vegetation to a 

 crisp here, does not exhaust the crop-grn\i ing 

 energies of the black nnick of the Western 

 prairies or the woodlands. Their new and vir- 

 gin soil is comp.iralively more independent of 

 the dews and rains of heaven. This is the chief 

 reason why the Great West presents so inviiiiii' 

 a field to the ihrifly, calculating and iuihistrioiis 

 (iiriner. He can place more reliance upon the 

 intrinsic qualities of the soil and upon his own 



