PRACTICAL FARMER. 



115 



It 13 thoujrht that the leaves would he bitter and 

 hard, and tliat the worms would refuse them. A 

 haiid-hoeing la now given, and a fortnight after- 

 Ward, the leaves are ready for use. The plant is 

 Ihen cut down a little above the root, and the silk 

 worms are fed with the leaves ; the field is weeded, 

 if necessary, and another crop is obtained in June, 

 and a third iu July ; but the leaves of this last 

 •croj) only are gathered without cutting the stem, 

 because' that operation at so late a season, would, 

 it is apprehended, injure the plant. The field is 

 again weeded, and a fourth crop is ready in Sep- 

 tember; after gathering it, the ground is ploughed 

 several times, and levelled with the implement 

 above mentioned. In November, a hand-hoeing 

 assists vegetation, and accelenites the best crop, 

 which is cut in December; this is followed by a 

 hand-hoeing and weeding, and is succeeded by 

 another crop in March. The same course recom- 

 mences, and the field, if sufficiently attended and 

 cultivated, will continue productive during many 

 years.'' 



The Silk Worms of Tusseh and Arrindy. — 

 "" There are two other kinds of worms, which pro- 

 duce silk in Bengal, viz, the Tusseh and Arrindy 

 worms ; the former are found in such abundance, 

 over many parts of Bengal, and the adjoining pro- 

 vinces, as to have afforded to the natives, from 

 time immemorial, a considerable supply of a most 

 ■durable, coarse, darlc-colored silk, commonly 

 called Tusseh silk, which is woven into a kind of 

 «loth, called Tusseh -doolies, much worn by Bra- 

 ™ins, and other sects of Hindoos, This substance 

 would, no doubt, be highly useful to the inhabi- 

 tants of many parts of America, and the south of 

 Europe, where cheap, light, cool, durable dress, 

 such as this silk makes, is much wanted. This 

 species cannot be domesticated." 



" The AiTindy silkworm is peculiar to the inte- 

 rior parts of Bengal, in th>? districts of Dinagepore, 

 and Rang[)ore, where the natives rear and breed it, 

 in a domestic state, as they do the sikworm. The 

 food of this kind consists of the leaves of the com- 

 mon iJicinMi, or Pa/ma CArtV/i plant, which the na- 

 tives of these districts call Arrindy, and is abun- 

 dantly reared in all parts of India, on accountof the 

 oil obtained from the seed. Feeding .these cater- 

 pillars with these leaves, will therefore make it 

 doubly valuable, where they know how to spin 

 and manufacture the silk. Their cocoons are 

 remarkably soft, and white, or yellowish ; aiid the 

 filament so exceedingly delicate, as to render it 

 impracticable to wind oiFthe silk; it is therefore 

 spun like cotton. The yarn thus manufactured, 

 is wove into a coarse kind of white cloth, of a 

 seemingly loose texture, but ofincredible durabil- 

 ity, its uses are for clothing, for both men and 

 women ; and it will wear constantly ten, fifteen, 



or twenty years. The merchants, also, use it for 

 packing fine cloths, silks and shawls. It must, 

 however, be always' washed in cold water; if put 

 into boiling water, it makes it tear like old rotten 

 cloth." 



Kinds and (Qualities of Raw SUk. — '< Bengal 

 raw silk, is divided into two classes; the reeled 

 according to the old method, commonly called 

 country wound, and that reeled according to the 

 new, or Italian method. The places where the 

 former is manufactured, are ComercoUy, Jungy- 

 pore, Rungpore, and Banleah ; and those where the 

 latter is prepared, are ComercoUy, Malda, Radna- 

 gore, Jungypore, Rutigpore, Banleah, Cassimbu- 

 zar and Gonatea, 



The leading point which determines the value 

 of Bengal raw silk, in cleanness, or, being free 

 from knibs, or knots, known amongst the manu- 

 facturers, by the appellation of "foul f^ evenness 

 of thread is also most essential. 



To judge if silk be clean, the best mode is to 

 open the skein, and stand with your back to a 

 window, so that you look down the extended silk 

 in the same direction that t'le light falls; by this 

 means yoii will easily perceive any foidness that 

 exists, and a very little practice, will enable any 

 person by a mere coup d'oeiL to judge accurately 

 upon this most essential quality of Bengal raw 

 silk. 



The different degrees of fineness and coarse- 

 ness, are denoted by the letters A. B. C. Silk of 

 4 — 5cocoons, is called A. No. 1 ; of 6 — 8 cocoons, 

 A. No. 2; of 8 — 10 cocoons, B. No. 1; of iO — 12 

 cocoons, B. No. 2 ; of 12 — 14 cocoons, and 16 — IS 

 cocoons, B. No. 3 ; of 18 — 20 cocoons, C. No. 1 ; 

 of20 — 22 cocoons, C. No. 2; and 22 — 24 cocoons, 

 &e., C No. 3. All filature silk, or that which is 

 reeled in factories, is included within the above 

 named lettei-s and numbers; but silk which the 

 natives reel by hand, is much coarser, and is 

 marked by the letters A. B. C. D. E. 



The Banleah filature si k, is inferior in fineness 

 to Radnagore, or Cas*;imbuzar filature silk of cor- 

 resjionding ktters, and ComercoUy filature si;k 

 exceeds tliese." 



ROBERT'S SILK MAJVUAI.. 



We have been favored by the author, with a 

 copy of a work entitled "A Manual, containing 

 directions for sowing, transplanting and raising of 

 Ihe mulberry tree together with proper directions for 

 propagating the same by cuttings, layers, ^c. Sfc. 

 As also instructions for the cultrue of silk : To 

 which is added calculations shewing the produce 

 and probable expense of cultivation of from one 

 to ten acres, as tested by actual experience, by 



