26 REPORT OX THE DISEASES OF SILKWORMS IN INDIA 



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-t. In nursery stock reared in villages there is relatively very 

 little disease. 



These are the results of our census and they are, I think, very 

 encouraging. They prove several things, but first and foremost that 

 in sericulture in India, as elsewhere, reasonably disease-free seedgives 

 disease-free worms and moths. The method of seed examination in 

 most of the nurseries in Bengal is not really good : the microscopic 

 preparations are much too thick to enable one to see with any accu- 

 racy if spores are present in small numbers. While this may be so, 

 it is doubtless much better now than it was a few years ago. But 

 when all is said and done,the Bengal nurseries have not merited all the 

 criticisms thrown at them. They are at present producing seed which 

 is infinitely superior to ordinary village seed, and they have demons- 

 trated that reasonably disease-free seed can be produced in the 

 plains of India. In view of these facts I cannot altogether agree 

 with Professor Lefroy when he states in his report that " For thirty 

 years disease-free seed has been issued, but no disease-free race 

 exists at present even. The scheme has manifestly failed." Some- 

 thing has been done, even if a condition of perfection has not been 

 reached — this indeed was hardly to be expected. It is probable that 

 improvement has only recently made itself evident, but improve- 

 ment there is, and what is more important, it has been demonstrated 

 that, even with imperfect means, progress is possible. All praise 

 is due to Mr. A. C. Ghose, late Superintendent of Sericulture, Bengal, 

 for what he has been able to accomplish in the Government nurseries. 

 Much more remains to be done and it can be done better than it 

 has been done, but pioneer work, such as he did, is always difficult, 

 and credit for what has been accomplished must be given. 



Infinitely more important, however, than any partial, vindication 

 of the Government nurseries in Bengal, is the demonstration that 

 disease-free seed can be produced in India despite all drawbacks 

 and that such seed when reared in villages picks up but little disease 

 during one generation at least. 



Such are the results of our examination of moths in the census. 

 Let us now see what the general opinion of professional rearers is 

 about disease. Naturally the statements of these men are rather 

 vague and their experiences differ, but the following generalizations 

 from the answers of the fifty odd men roughly represent, I believe, 

 the experience of the rearers. Losses from disease have always 

 occurred, about two bunds failing out of ten, but things seem to be 

 improving on the whole, only one man — No. 6, Appendix II A — 

 thinking that things, at all events cocoons, were worse now than 

 previously, and in Appendix II C seven out of 20 rearers say pebrine 

 is getting more common. Other diseases are, however, complained 

 about. 



