REARING SILKWORMS. 27 



Wherever silkworms locate to spin, whether on 

 the tray, under the dry leaves, in a canopy in 

 branches (or little round coops, where they may_^ 

 be placed for closer inspection), they always 

 throw out silk threads or strands to sustain them- 

 selves while spinning their cocoons. . 



'They fix these strands back and forth to the 

 adjacent object. When they feel themselves se- 

 cure, they proceed to draw the outlines of the 

 cocoons, and then pass all round the cocoons, 

 putting on a fresh layer each time, till their store 

 of silk-fluid is all exhausted. Every thread of 

 silk is put on in a double circle, and for this rea- 

 son it never tangles in being taken off. A perfect 

 cocoon is the same thickness all round. 



The silk comes out through two little holes 

 called spinnerets, where, as before stated, the 

 silk tubes or ducts terminate. The motion that 

 the worms make with their heads in the act of 

 putting the silk on the cocoons twists these two 

 threads into^one. 



If worms are properly cared for, they will spin 

 their co'coons in two or three days. In feeding 

 bran'ches during the last three ages of the worms, 

 it is well to lay-the branches lengthwise and 

 then crosswise, so as to form a kind of lattice- 

 work of the branches. The worms crawl over 

 these branches and eat the leaves directly from 

 them. This mode of feeding allows a much 



