In 1561, queen Elizabeth, or as she was more 

 familiarly termed, the good queen Bess, re- 

 ceived a present of a pair of black silk stock- 

 ings, with which it is stated she was so well 

 pleased that she never afterwards wore any 

 of another material. 



In 1608, James I, who had several times 

 recommended the manufacture from the throne, 

 addressed a long letter upon the subject, writ- 

 ten with his own hand, to the Lord Lieuten- 

 ants of every county in the kingdom, to whom 

 Mulberry seeds and plants were sent for dis- 

 tribution, together with a book of instructions ; 

 but notwithstanding his earnest wishes on the 

 subject, it was not until the latter part of his 

 reign that he had the pleasure of seeing the 

 business permanently established. Since then 

 to the present, the manufacture of silk has 

 been carried on extensively in England ; but 

 owing to the humidity of the climate, she nev- 

 er has been, and never can become, extensive- 

 ly or profitably engaged in the culture of the 

 Mulberry and the management of the worms, 

 and of necessity is compelled to seek the raw 

 material in France and other silk raising 

 countries. The ultimate success of the silk 

 manufacture in England, arose chiefly from 

 an act of religious persecution in France in 

 1685, when by the revocation of the edict of 

 Nantes, all the Protestants were driven from 

 France, and settled in England, where they 

 commenced the silk business. The introduc- 

 tion oF'the silk throwing mill by Sir Thomas 

 Lombe, of Derby, in the year 1719, greatly 

 promoted the manufacture by the increased 

 rapidity imparted to the process of preparing 

 the raw material. 



Having thus incidentally named Sir Thom- 

 as Lomhe, it may not be uninteresting to men- 

 tion a fact connected with the family, which 

 will go far to shew the difficulties with which 

 the introduction of this business was first in- 

 troduced into England, and how jealous were 

 the Italians of permitting all knowledge con- 

 nected with the manufacture of silk from es- 

 caping from their country. There were three 

 brothers, Thomas, Henry, and John Lombe, 

 the first who was sheriff of London on the oc- 

 casioa of the coronation of George the II., in 

 1727, was knighted. About this time, the Ital- 

 ians had introduced great improvement in the 

 art of throwing silk, and rendered it impossible 

 for the Lombes, who were engaged in the silk 

 throwing business at London, to bring their 

 goods into the market upon any thing like terms 

 of equality with the Italian. The younger 

 brother was a lad at the time, and by the laws> 



of the Italians it was made death for any one 

 to discover any thing connected with the silk 

 manufacture: with this addition, the forfeiture of 

 their goods, and their person and name to be 

 painted on the outside of the' prison walls, 

 hanging to the gallows by one foot, with an 

 inscription to remain as a perpetual mark of in- 

 famy. These severe and degrading penalties 

 would, one would think, have been a barrier 

 to the curiosity of almost any one; but it 

 had no dreads for young Lombe. He proceed- 

 ed to Italy, and after various ineffectual at- 

 tempts to procure drawings and an insight in- 

 to the business, he at last ingratiated himself 

 into the good opinion of a priest, who confess- 

 ed the family to whom the silk factory belong- 

 ed ; through his interest he obtained employ- 

 ment in the mill as a fillatoe-boy to superin- 

 tend a spinning engine. Whilst others slept 

 he was awake and diligently employed in his 

 arduous and dangerous undertaking. He had 

 possessed himself of a dark lantern, tinder 

 box, wax-candles and a case of mathematical 

 instruments. In the day time, these were se- 

 creted in the hole under the stairs where he 

 used to sleep, and no person ever indicated 

 the least curiosity to ascertain the extent of 

 the possessions of young Lombe, who had so 

 far disguised himself as to present the appear- 

 ance of a most wretched being. By this 

 means he obtained drawings of every part of 

 the machinery, and through means of his 

 friend the priest, he conveyed them to Eng- 

 land in piece meal, in bales of silk. These 

 originals are still preserved in the Derby mills. 

 After Lombe had completed his drawings he 

 waited until an English ship was on the point of 

 sailing for England, when he left the works. and 

 hastened on board. His absence excited sus- 

 picion, and an Italian brig was despatched in 

 pursuit ; but the English vessel, being the bet- 

 ter sailer of the two, escaped. 



There are other mills more recently erect- 

 ed at Derby on similar principles, which 

 greatly surpass those of the Messrs. Lombe, 

 in grandeur and efficiency, but the old mill 

 continues to be regarded as the chief object 

 of interest, being the first established of the 

 kind, and associated with so romantic an in- 

 cident in the life of one of its first proprie- 

 tors. 



This brings us to that part of the history of 

 the culture which relates more immediately 

 to our own country. 



The culture of silk in America first com- 

 menced in the state of Virginia, the attention 

 of the settlers being called to it by the British 



