132 COMPLETE INSTRUCTION IN 



were not half so many factories as there now 

 are. 



The failure of these large speculators is still 

 cited as evidence against the possibility of raising 

 silk on a large scale. Yet it is on record that in 

 Milan, or near there, Signore Susani kept three 

 thousand hands busy in his immense cocooneries 

 during the season when the millers couple, and 

 besides all these he kept 750 scientists busy ex- 

 amining the millers and eggs, to be sure they 

 were free from disease. 



Here in California, yes, even in San Diego, 

 there is ample room for many such establish- 

 ments. They would add very largely to the 

 wealth of the state and nation. 



For a few years after our own state had with- 

 drawn aid to the silk business, the Ladies 7 Society 

 received from the Agricultural Department at 

 Washington an appropriation of two thousand 

 five hundred dollars annually. But when in 1891 

 Congress refused to longer give aid to this special 

 work of development, the ladies gave up, unable 

 to bear the burden any longer. 



Since that time, several fugitive efforts have 

 been made to develop the silk business in Cali- 

 fornia, but there has been no concentrated effort 

 in the matter, and neither state nor national aid 

 has been given. The silk manufacturers are 

 accumulating millions for themselves, and sending 



