82 Fly-rods and Fly-tackle. 



consistency to the silk-bags, of which there are two in 

 each worm. The next morning the worms are taken out 

 of pickle and broken in two, cross-wise. The gut-sacs 

 are, with a little experience, easily removed. Each of the 

 sacs is taken at either end, while it is soft, and stretched 

 as far as it will go. If the pickle is strong, the gut is to 

 a certain extent shorter and thicker ; if it is weak, the 

 gut is longer and thinner. If it is too strong, the gut 

 pulls out crooked and lumpy and cracked ; if it is too 

 weak, the gut has not enough consistency to draw out. 

 When the gut is stretched out as far as it will go, it is 

 thrown on the floor, and the extreme ends almost im- 

 mediately curl up. The gut is covered with a thin fila- 

 ment called carne, or flesh. Towards the end of the day 

 the gut is washed in pure water and hung up where a 

 current of air will pass through and dry it. When it is 

 thoroughly dry the strands are tied in bundles of from 

 5000 to 10,000, and in this state it is sold by weight to 

 those who prepare it for the market." 



Mr. Imbrie expresses astonishment at the little atten- 

 tion given to the eggs while hatching, and at the lack 

 of what silk-growers elsewhere would consider ordinary 

 care in the subsequent development of the worm. Be- 

 yond "not sweeping the room where the worms are 

 without first sprinkling the floor to lay the dust, seeing 

 that the leaves are fresh and are never allowed to fer- 

 ment, not using the same baskets to bring in fresh 

 leaves as those that are used to carry out the old leaves," 

 little seems to be done except to secure good ventilation, 

 avoid excessive changes of temperature, and for the first 

 fourteen days cutting the mulberry leaves upon which 

 the worms are fed into small pieces with a sharp, and 

 not a dull knife, since a dull knife bruises the cut edges of 



