THE SILKWOEM-DISEASE. 133 



foolish remedies were proposed, as quite infallible 

 from flowers of sulphur, cinders, and soot spread over 

 the worms, or over the leaves of the mulberry, to 

 gaseous fumigations of chlorine, of tar, and of sul- 

 phurous acid. Wine, rum, absinthe, were prescribed 

 for the worms, and after the absinthe it was advised 

 to try creosote and nitrate of silver. In 1863 the 

 Minister of Agriculture signed an agreement with an 

 Italian who had offered for purchase a process destined 

 to combat the disease of the silkworms, by which 

 he (the Minister) engaged himself, in case the efficacy 

 of the remedy was established, to pay 500,000 francs 

 as an indemnity to the Italian silk cultivator. Ex- 

 periments were instituted in twelve departments, but 

 without any favourable result. In 1865 the weight 

 of the cocoons had fallen to four million kilogrammes. 

 This entailed a loss of 100,000,000 francs. 



The Senate was assailed by a despairing petition 

 signed by 3,600 mayors, municipal councillors, and 

 capitalists of the silk-cultivating departments. The 

 great scientific authority of M. Dumas, his knowledge 

 of silk husbandry, his sympathy for one of the depart- 

 ments most severely smitten, the Gard, his own native 

 place, all contributed to cause him to be nominated 

 Reporter of the Commission. While drawing up his 

 report the idea occurred to him of trying to persuade 

 Pasteur to undertake researches as to the best means 

 of combating the epidemic. 



