390 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER, 



From Ihe Rochesler Telegraph. 



CULTURE OF SILK. 



To the enterprising Farmers of Monroe County. 



The importance of attending to this cultivation 

 is so great, in a national point of view, as well as 

 for your own more immediate benefit, that I pro- 1 tute 



June 26, 1829, 



those who feel interested in the subject, a beauti- 

 ful specimen of silk, (made in this village during 

 the last summer,) iji its various stages, may be 

 seen at the hall of the Franklin Institute, in the 

 Court House, any Thursday evening, or during the 

 week days by calling on any member of the Insti- 



pose laying before you a few short and plain state 

 llients, taken from well authenticated documents, 

 showing the light in wliich it is viewed in foreign 

 countries, and afterwards give the necessary direc- 

 tions for the cultivation of silk, as given by prac- 

 tical men, and recently published by ordferof our 

 government, and various public spirited individu- 

 als. This seems the more uecessary, as very few 

 practical fanners have access to works of tliis de- 

 scription, for information. 



In the first place no climate is more favorable 

 to the rearing of the silk worm, than this section 

 of ours. Tl]e white mulberry tree has become 

 perfectly naturalized, is hardy, and as easily raised 

 as an apple tree, either from the seed, or by cut- 

 tings and layers. A large white mulberry tree is 

 growing near the landing of the Genessee river ; I 

 know iiot by whom planted, but no doiht cuttings 

 enough might be obtained in the spring to form, 

 in time, several extensive orchards. There are 

 some other trees in the village of Itorhcster, and 

 soine extensive nurseries are now forujjng, from 

 which supplies can be had in a year or two. Ii will 

 be found that a white mulberry orchard will prove 

 far more valuable than an apple orchard. Six or 

 eight fidl grown trees will furnish fooil enough 

 for a sufficient number of worms, (40,000) to make 

 ten lbs. of silk, wortli when doubled and twisted, 

 $50 ; and to take care of which would require 

 the average labor and attention of a boy or girl, 

 10 or 12 years of age, about 5 weeks, the lirst 3 

 weeks of which they would not have half employ- 

 ment. Any common room would answer for the 

 purpose of rearing them ; they requiring to be 

 protected from the sun, or dampness, and wind, 

 or sudden changes of the weather. They require 

 but little room, and the trouble of them is soon 

 over. The season of rearing the worms is in the 

 months of May and June, commencing vvlien the 

 yoimg leaves first put out, to furnish them with 

 food. It is estimated, that an acre of trees will 

 furnish them food sufficient in a season to make 

 silk worth frotn 200 to 300 dollars. One tree has 



furnished food sufficient to make 4 lbs. of silk. 



Every farmer that has a family of chililren, mi-ht 



Tiie following statement is taken from the Re- 

 port of the Committee on Agriculture, in the House 

 of Representatives, in May, 1826, " showing the 

 value of .silk goods inqjorted and exported in the 

 years 1821 and 1825, inclusive. 

 Years. Imported. 



1821 $4,486,924 



1822 6,480,928 

 1S23 6,713,771 



1824 7,203,344 



1825 10,271,527 



Exported. 

 $1,557,233 

 1,016,262 

 1,512,449 

 1,816,325 

 2,565,742 



$15,388,000 

 6,799,246 

 6,417,997 



$35,156,494 $7,968,011 



What a bounty is paid by us to support the ag- 

 riculture and manufactures of other nations, on 

 articles which our country, with a few years' care, 

 might supply .' How important it is that the ag- 

 ricultiuist should turn his attention to new objects 

 of production, is very fully shown by the circum- 

 stances of the diminished and diminishing demand 

 of bread stuffs abroad. In eighteen hundred and 

 seventeen, tiie exports of the bread stuffs amount- 

 ed to $20,374,000. 

 In 1818 

 1824 

 1825 

 An importation often millions of dollars of 

 silks! an exi)ort of four millions of bread stuffs! 

 The facts speak the importance of the subject, 

 and indicate the necessity that exists of awaken- 1 

 ing the slumbejiiig agricultural resources of the i 

 country, by introducing new and profitable arti- ' 

 cles of production. " Knowledge is power" in | 

 agriculture no less than in [lolitics ; information 

 is capital and the means of valuable inquove- i 

 inent. I 



Tlie Conunittee go on to say that " a sinn-le ' 

 acre planted with mulberry, will produce from hVe j 

 liundrcd to six hundred pouiuls of raw silk, the 

 value of which to the individual, would richly j 

 compensate for the capital and labor employed, | 

 and the aggregate to the country be of great iin- ' 

 portance. 

 „•,, ., ■ ■ , a->| To show the importance wliich is attached to 



wuhout bemg a a.,y, or a tr.fliug extra expense, this culture in England and Ireland, I will briefly 

 ntake sdk enough every season to fetch hi,n ,«I00. Uate that a company has been formed with a cap- 

 Aferh.s trees are three or lour years old, they J iial of one million sterling, (*4,444,444) divided 

 wdl rio to cotnmence on. I a>n now alluding to into 20,000 shares of fifty pou.nls sterling each • 



1824, 3,993,000 pounds of raw silk in 1827 



4,209,000 pounds, worth, probably, about $15,- 

 000,000— the manufacture of which employs 

 40,000 looms, and about 80,000 persona the an- 

 nual wagesof whichamount to above $13,000,000. 

 Including children and dependants, this manu- 

 facture feeds about 400,000 persons, and the 

 manufactures are estimated to be worth above 

 $44,000,000. By the foregoing statement, and 

 which may be relied upon in all the essential par- 

 ticidurs as correct, you will perceive the innnense 

 iuq)ortance of the subject. You are conqdaimng 



of the scarcity of money, and the hard times 



Tliis will ever be the case so long as we continue 

 to send out, yearly, ten millions of dollars for an 

 article that we can with so much ease produce 

 among ourselves, and become the exporters of the 

 ten millions, instead of the purchasers. 



My next article will relate to the progress al- 

 ready made in this county, in the growing of silk 

 anil the details of the ])rocess. \V. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



BOSTON, FRIDAY, JUNE 26, 1829. 



the business as carried on in a domestic way, 

 and in a manner that om- farmers should take 

 hold of it. The first step is, to plant out an or- 

 chard of an acre or two in the maimer of plant- 

 ing the ajiple tree, and at about the same dis- 

 tance apart: or the tree will make a good hedge 

 if planted in that form. The eggs of the s'dk 

 worm can easily be bad when the trees are ready 

 for them. Many of the farmers in Coimecticut 

 have made themselves in a degree wealthy by at- 

 tending to this culture, and it is now carried on 

 extensively in some counties in this State. A gen- 

 tleman in Cayuga county made silk euousth in one 

 season, a few years back, to be worth $600. As 

 before said, it is intended, before we leave the 

 subject, to give a practical, but condensed account 

 of the mode of rearing the silkworm; and to 



several members of the adiuinistration, many no- 

 blemen and individuals of distinguished rank and 

 influence, have given support to this institution, by 

 placing their names on the list of subscribers — 

 They have already planted in England 74,000 

 young trees of the white mulberry — Ireland, 

 388,000, and in the island of Malta, 150,000 trees 

 have been set out ; and have their agents abroad 

 seeking information. This, hov.'ever, only indi- 

 cates the importance of the subject, for it may be 

 very much doubted whether the raising of the silk 

 worm will ever succeed well either in England or 

 Ireland, on account of the humidity of the climate 

 — it is not to be compared to the climate of this 

 country for this object. They, however, under- 

 stand the manufacture of silk goods to the great- 

 est perfection ; and imported into England in 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SO- 

 CIETY. 



At the two last meetings of this Society at their 

 Hall in North Market Street, the following busi- 

 ness was transacted. 



A letter was received from the Hon. John 

 Lowell, containing some valuable suggestions 

 with regard to the future operations of the Society 

 — accompanied with a donation of complete seta 

 of liigelow's American Medical Botany, Say's En- 

 to?nology, Hayward on Horticidlure, and Loudon's 

 Gardener's 3]agaziue, from the time of its com- 

 mencement in 1826, with nn order to have the 

 future immbers procmed at his expense, as fast 

 as they are |.nbhshed in London, for the Library 

 of the Society. 



A letter was received from the Hon. Johh 



I Welles, of Dorchester, inclosing a donation of 



j one hundred dollars to the funds of the Society. 



I From John Prince, Esq., a donation of seven 

 volumes of Horticultural publications for the Li- 



[ brary. 



[ From John Bartlett, Esq., of Boston, a vari- 

 ety of seeds of ornamental shrubs and plants, 

 brought by him from Cuba. 



From the Hon. Nathan Hale, of Boston, a 

 copy of his Alaj) of New England, for the Hall of 

 the Society. 



Votes of thanks to the above geiitlemen were 

 unanimously passed for their very acceptable and 

 valuable donations. 



The fiillowing persons were admitted members 

 at this ineeting— Mr Henry Newman, of Roxhu- 

 ry, and Mr James Eustis, of South Reading. 



On motion of Benj. V. French, Esq., of Bos- 

 ton, 



Voted, That the Conmiittee on Fruit Trees, &c. 

 be requested to consider the propriety of offering 

 a premium of — dollars to any person, town, or 

 |)arish, who may have planted, or set out, within 

 the five years iireceding the 4th of July, 1834, 

 such number of trees, and ill such manner, either 

 forest or fruit trees, or both, combining the useful 

 and ornamental, as shall produce the happiest ef- 

 fect. 



On motion of Z. Cook, Jr, Esq. 



Voted, That the proceedings of this Society, 



