1841.] the Pundeelah River. 5 1 1 



The principal manufacture throughout this district is the tusser 

 or jungle silk. The tusser breeders are a class quite distinct from the 

 weavers, and are either Telongoos of low caste or Goands ; the former 

 reside principally at Chilpore, Madapore, and Chinnore. At Madapore, 

 which may be regarded as the centre and head quarters of the tusser- 

 breeders, there are at least seventy families. 



The tusser-breeder never thinks of keeping up the breed of the 

 insect throughout the year. When the leaf is off the tree, about the 

 middle of March, he deems his occupation gone, and he leaves the 

 object of his former excessive care to shift for itself, thinking of 

 nothing but his present ease, which may be summed up in a few words, 

 — sloth, a bare subsistence, and an occasional debauch in his nectar, 

 palm toddy. But with the rains returns his toil, and some little difficulty 

 is experienced in procuring insects for a fresh campaign. If he 

 can gather a dozen of promising cocoons, which his experience tells 

 him are of females, he is quite satified. Carefully does he watch the 

 bursting of the cocoon, and much care does he take of its winged 

 inmate, having previously prepared for it a house of teak leaves dried. 

 The male is not tardy in approaching. 



Impregnation takes place, the male dies, and in four days after 

 laying her eggs, the female also. The eggs are in number about sixty, of 

 these one-half prove abortive, while the others are hatched in ten 

 days. The small insect is fed on the tender leaves of the Careya sphaerica, 

 and in six weeks spins its cocoon ; the first brood are spared and 

 allowed to burst their cocoons to supply a sufficient quantity of ova for 

 the first tusser harvest ; the same process as described is again gone 

 through, with this exception, that the young worms are this time 

 fed on the leaves of the pentaptera tomentosa, as those of the Careya 

 sphserica are, by the period of the season, supposed to have acquired 

 some influence noxious to the insect. It is during the progress of 

 the worm, from the egg to the formation of the cocoon, that every 

 energy of the tusser-breeder is called into action for the preservation 

 of his charge. Every animal, footed, winged, and creeping, is said 

 to be the enemy of the tusser grub. Ants destroy them, kites and crows 

 prey on them, snakes devour them, and squirrels are said to make 

 a repast of them. To protect them first from their insect enemies, the 

 tusser-breeder ascends the Muddy tree, (Pentaptera tomentosa,) the 



