BEARING SILKWORMS. 105 



Silk is the most valuable product of Italy, the 

 annual average being fifty million dollars' worth. 

 Lombardy is the richest province of Italy in silk- 

 production. Eleven thousand tons of cocoons 

 are produced there, valued at one thousand dol- 

 lars a ton. Italy produces about one third of the 

 silk of the world. 



In A. D. 1892, Italy produced $34,492,500 

 worth of cocoons. In A. D. 1878, Italy had 230 

 silk factories, with 2,100,000 spindles, giving em- 

 ployment to 16,000 men. There were also 120,- 

 000 women and 76,000 children employed, attend- 

 ing to silkworms. 



A Glimpse at Italian Silk-culture as it is Carried 

 on To-day, in Contrast with What It Might 

 be in This Climate and Country, as Repre- 

 sented in This Book. 



The gentleman who gave this information is a 

 native of the city of Verona, Italy, and his 

 brother and brother's son carry on the silk 

 industry as herein described. They own two 

 farms of about 350 acres, near the city of Verona, 

 in the province of Lombardy, in the northern 

 part of Italy. It is sheltered on the north and 

 east, and partly on the west, by the Alps, and 

 branches of this range of mountains. The total 

 area of the valley is about 125 by 175 miles. So 



