48 THE SILK WORM. 



eggs, which in number are estimated at 35 or 40,000, 

 should have space on the shelves, 



sq. feet. inches. 



In the 1 st age of - - - - 7 4 



In the 2d age of - - - 14 8 



In the 3d age of - - - - S4 10 



In the 4th age of - - - 82 6 



In the 5th age of - - - 183 4" 



A little experience and observation, however, will 

 be the best guide for the culturist with regard to 

 the space, and many other matters which cannot be 

 fully given in a general treatise. 



FEEDING. 



The Worms being .placed upon the shelves, they 

 must now be fed three times a day, and care must be 

 taken that the foliage be in good order. The leaves 

 should never be picked when they are wet with rain 

 or the morning dew, unless it be in cases of absolute 

 necessity ; and then they must be thoroughly dried 

 before they are given to the Worms. As the leaves 

 must not be wet, so neither must they be wilted, for 

 in either case they will make the Worms feeble and 

 diseased. To prevent this, care must be taken, on 

 the approach of wet weather, to lay in a supply until 

 the re-appearance of the sun. In order that the leaves 

 may be kept without wilting, they should be closed in 

 a glazed vessel, or carried into a cellar or other cool 

 place. M. D'Homergue recommends putting them 

 under cover, on a brick pavement, or graveled floor, 

 and removing them three or four times a day lest 

 they contract moisture. In this manner, he says, 

 they may be kept three or four days. 



