360 



THROWN SILK — SILK VILLAGES. Chap. XVII. 



quently came npon little bands of natives engaged 

 in making thrown silk. A long, narrow frame- 

 work of bamboo of considerable length was con- 

 structed, and over this the threads were laid in 

 the state in which they came from the reel. At 

 the end of the frame collections of these threads 

 were attached to a number of round brass balls 

 about the size of marbles. A rapid motion was 

 communicated to the balls by a smart stroke be- 

 tween the palms of the hands. The workmen 

 went along the line of balls with the quickness 

 of lightning, striking one after the other and 

 keeping the whole in motion at the same time, 

 until the process of twisting the silk was com- 

 pleted. 



The little silk-villages at the base of these hills 

 were all visited by me at this time, and although 

 the natives were much surprised at the presence 

 of a foreigner amongst them, yet generally they 

 were polite and hospitable. The same features of 

 wealth and comfort which I had already remarked 

 in other parts of the silk-country were apparent 

 here. The people were well dressed, had good 

 substantial houses to live in, and, judging from 

 their appearance, they were well fed. Nearly all 

 the respectable farm-houses were surrounded with 

 •high walls. In addition to keeping their families as 

 private as possible, the object of having the houses 

 constructed in this way was probably for safety to 

 their property, which is often very valuable dur- 

 ing the silk season. I am not aware that these 



