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Mr. Hewitt, in a letter to me dated 19th February 1881, 

 gives me the following particulars regarding the price, &c. 

 of Tusser cocoons : — 



" The price of Tusser cocoons, as ascertained by me at 

 Chaibassa in December, the cheapest time of the year, was 

 8 annas (according to the present rates of exchange, about 

 lOd.) per 80 cocoons. Cocoons vary in weight from 50 to 

 the lb. of the newest to 70 to the lb. of the oldest. 1,280 

 cocoons, not selected according to weight, are calculated to 

 yield about 2 lbs. 6 oz. avoirdupois of silk thread made of 

 from four to five strands, that number of cocoons being all 

 reeled together. This will sell in the bazaar for about 

 10 rs. 12^ annas, or about 17s. according to present rates 

 of exchange." 



Captain Brooke says : — 



" In Chanda and Sunboolpoor, Central Provinces, while 

 the cocoon crop is gathered, Koshtas, a weaving caste, visit 

 the villages and buy them from the rearers. They are 

 then, as soon as practicable, boiled in a lye made from the 

 ashes of Jungni stalks, a plant grown for the oil expressed 

 from its seed. . This process effectually kills the chrysalis, 

 at the same time dissolving the mucilage of the cocoon. 

 The cocoons are then stored for use. The method of 

 reeling is primitive in the extreme, and to its imperfections 

 I solely attribute the scant attention this valuable and 

 very beautiful silk has hitherto received. A descrip- 

 tion of the. process is as follows: — The spinner, always a 

 woman, sits on the ground ; on her left is an earthen 

 vessel, with a thickish rim, about six inches in diameter 

 and three inches deep. The saucer is three parts filled 

 with a mixture of potash and ashes patted down to a level 

 surface, and kept damp with water. Upon this the 

 cocoons to be spun are placed, the outer portion, of inferior 

 and nearly useless silk, having been first removed. The 

 thread in ordinary use among the weavers is spun from 

 seven cocoons ; these are all placed at the same time in the 

 earthen saucer ; a filament is then taken up from each 

 cocoon, and, being brought together, are rolled between 

 the hand and left thigh of the spinner, which are kept 

 damp by an acid solution of tamarind and water." 



In Bengal the cocoons are put into boiling water to kill 

 the pup?e ; in some districts, when intended for sale, they 

 are put in boiling water and dried in the sun. In the 

 Nizam's country the cocoons are loaded with dhobee's 

 earth and alkaline ashes to make them reel. In the Mid- 



