SILK GROWER'S MANUAL. 153 



Mr. Plum, the President of the Mechanics' Institute in 

 San Francisco. He urged me strongly to exhibit at 

 their Fair ; but as I was not satisfied with the results of 

 my first exhibitions, I did not care to do so any more. 

 When their Fair was open, not seeing me coming, my 

 old friend Mr. H. F. Williams, of the same Institute, 

 came with two other gentlemen and persuaded me to go, 

 and I made there a fine exhibition of silk, silk cocoons, 

 silkworms, and silkworms' eggs ; and then for the 

 first time I had the pleasure of seeing my humble efforts 

 appreciated. The next day our leading papers had 

 fine articles on silk ; and my exhibition attracted the 

 attention of the visitors, as I had the crowd all the 

 time. A gold medal has been awarded to it. At the 

 request of their presidents, I went to the State Fair, 

 and also to Stockton ; and at both places it created as 

 much interest as in San Francisco, and gold medals 

 were also given. Besides a good many plantations 

 made before, since these exhibitions the silk culture has 

 been fairly started. 



Last year, also, Mr. Newman, a practical weaver, 

 came to see me, and from the information I gave him, 

 some time after, in connection with one of his friends, 

 Mr. W. W. Meyer, he went to the Eastern States to 

 buy all the machinery necessary for a silk manufacture. 

 He came back this year, in July, with the machinery. 

 Two looms have been put up in San Francisco, and the 

 first pieces of silk manufactured in California were 

 ready in time to be exhibited at our Fairs in September 

 last. Now, with some inducements on the part of our 



