REARING SILKWORMS. . 81 



Note 8. 



Many unreliable statements are made by a 

 great variety of writers in regard to the profits 

 to be derived from the silk industry; also, con- 

 cerning the nature, care, feeding, size, length of 

 life, etc. I give below an example of this exag- 

 gerated style of writing, from the Student's 

 Cyclopedia, page 1203: 



" . . . Silkworms are one quarter of an inch 

 at first, and three inches when ready to spin, 

 which is about eight weeks. . . . One ounce of 

 eggs will produce one hundred pounds of cocoons, 

 which will yield one pound of silk. About 

 twenty-two million pounds of silk is produced 

 in the world annually." 



Actual experience shows that, as a rule, silk- 

 worms are not more than one eighth to three 

 eighths of an inch when first hatched from the 

 shells. Some especially fine worms may be 

 three eighths of an inch. When ready to spin, 

 unless they have been very sadly neglected as to 

 food, they are 3j to 4 inches long, and the life- 

 time is from 25 to 32 days. 



Statistics on textile production show that more 

 than thirty-five million pounds of raw silk are 

 produced in the world annually. 



One ounce of eggs will yield from 35,000 to 



