Aug. 1, 1903,] 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 87 
SILKWORMS AND SILKWORM REARING. 
In the West Ead parks of London, and also in one 
two of the fashionable squares, are to be seen a few 
average specimens of the Aikutus tree, which does 
not, on the whole, suffer fi-oni ti.e couditions that 
vegetable life has to submit to within the metropoli- 
tan district. The glossy leaves might suggest to ua 
some associatibn between the tree and a silktjn pro- 
duct, the Ailantus beicg, in fac:, the special food of 
one of the silkworms, Bombj'x or Attacus Cynthia. 
The silk span by this species, A. Cynthia is to be 
recognised by its great softness, also both fabric 
aiid skeins, as obtained in China, indicate that the 
thread is reeled or wound by the desietous natives- 
From the circumstance that this particular bind of 
silk has taken it-: name from the tree on which the 
worms feed soma have called Aiiantionlture the 
nurturiog and breeding of these worms, which is 
scarcely an appropriate term being more applicable 
-to the cultivation of the tree. Experiments have 
proved that the Isrvse of Attacus Cynthia will eat, 
and even do toler ibly well, upon Lilac, Cherry, or 
Laburnum, but it is desirable to obtain for them a 
supply of the leaves of their favourite food 
plant. 
The moth of Attacus Cyothia surpasses in appear- 
ance the better kaown insect Bombyx Mori, and has 
a greater expansion of wing. This is one of the 
silkworms in which the winter is passed within the 
cocoon, from which the moth emerges some time 
in May or June. Eggs being then laid young worms 
come.forth at the end of July or August, living seven or 
eight weeks. — Journal of Horticulture and Cottage 
Gardener, 
^ 
NOTE ON SIMPLE MACHINES 
FOR EXTB, ACTING PLANTAIN 
FIBRE. 
The objects of the present " Note " * are (1) to again 
draw attention to the common plantain as a latent 
source of an immense quantity of fibre which has 
hitherto been practically wasted and which might be 
turned to account by the Indian ryots ; and (2) to 
furnish some informatioa about the two types of pri- 
mitive machines which are believed to be in common 
nse by the peasants in the Philippine Islands for ex- 
tracting the fibre of MusateUilis (which is the plantain 
largely grown there for the production of the fibre 
known in commerce as " Manilla Hemp "), as they are 
equally well suited for extracting the fibre from the 
common plantain. 
* In the preparation of this Note, the following 
works have been consulted : — Fibrous Plants of India 
by Dr. Forbes Royle (pages 61-90): Selections from 
the Becords of the Madras Government, No. XXItl, 
Reports on the fibres of Southern India ; .Journal of 
the Agricultural and Horticultural Society of India ; 
Report on Indian fibres and fibrous substances by 
Cross, Bevan, King Joynson and Watt ; Tropical 
Agriculturist ; Dictionary of the Economic Pro- 
ducts of India (Volume V. pages 296-307) ; Kew 
Bulletin. 
The labours of the leading scientific men and laymen 
who have interested themselves in this subject are 
recorded, quoted, or referred to in the works mentioned 
above. Besides these works, there are numerous 
valuable articles which have been written about 
plantain fibre and which are embodied in the records 
of the Government of India, and in the Proceedings 
of the Agri-Horticultmral Society Madras. 
Although " Manilla Hemp" is yielded by a species 
of plautain, the fibre is altogether superior to that 
yielded bv the varieties of plantain which are culti- 
vated ill India primarily for the sake of their edible 
fruits. S J valuable is the fibre of J/«si2 tctxilia th.9,t \b 
practically rules the mai ket in white fibres ; while tha 
fibre obtainable from varieties of tha edible plantain is, 
as a rule, valued at very little more than half the price 
of " Manilla Hemp." 
The existence of fibre in the common plantain has 
probably bt;en known in India from ancient times, and 
its value und utility have been brought prominently 
to public notice at intervals from time to time. In 
the etirly pirt, and in the middle, of the last century, 
the subject oaiiae under the notice of many eminent 
men in India, foremost among whom was Dr. Forbes 
Koyle, who, in his " Fibrous Plants of India," pages 
61-90, has given a great deal of valuable standard in- 
formition about plantains and bananas and their 
products; while in this presidency, Dr. Hunter, 
among others, seems to have taken a keen ianterest in 
the subject. At that time owing to the temporary 
suspension of the supplies of Russian hemp to the 
English market by tlie occurrence of the Crimean 
■war, the Government instituted an inquiry as to the 
different kinds and relative values of fibres obtainable 
in this presidency. The informatioa obtained was 
interesting and valuable at that time; and it will be 
found embodied in " Selections from the Records of 
the Madras Government.' No. XXIII, Reports on 
the fibres of Southern India published in 1856 wherein 
the more important references to plantain fibre are 
quoted at foot.* On page 158, it is stated : The fibre 
is easily cleaned, but some sioipie machinery is, 
requisite of the description invented by Mr. Under- 
v/ood or by Major Maitlaud, both of which appliances 
have been found on trial to ba efficient. I have not 
yet seen any detailed description or plans of either of 
these simple machines, but so far as I am aware 
they are not now in use by the ryots in any part of 
this presidency. 
Coming down to the present time, it would appear 
that main reasons why the ryots do not yet make 
use of the fibre contained in the stemsf of the common 
plantain are: (1) their general ignorance of its exis- 
tence ; (2) the comparative abundance of other species 
of fibre-yielding plants which cin be easily and pro- 
flfebly grown by them and with whose fibres and with 
the means of extracting them they have long been 
familiar, and (3j the want of soma simple, but effi- 
oient machine or appliance, suited to their maans, 
for extracting the fibre. 
The patterns of the two simple machines shown in 
the following diagrams (Nos. 1 and 2) have been made 
from the descriptions given in the " Kew Bulletin," 
additional Series, II, I — Vegetable Fibres ; and in 
Volume IX Part I, New Series, 1891, pages 57-62 of the 
" Journal of the Agri-Horticulfcural Society of India." 
I especially desire to acknowledge my indebtedness 
to Ml-. A. Brown's "Sketch of a Knife used by the 
Natives at Gubat, Philippine Islands, for extracting 
the Fibre from Musa textilis " on page 62 of the 
journal referred to. The essential principles in Mr. 
Brown's sketch and in my sketch of machine No. 1 
are the same, although it will be observed that the 
fittings are slightly different in my sketch. 
* Page 11, para. 2 ; page 31 para. 9; page 62, para. 
4 ; page 92, para. 15 ; pages 93, 91 ; page 122 ; 131-134, 
pira. 3, 6 and 9; pages 139, 140 ; pages 148, 149, page 
1S8. 
f The word stems is used here for the sake of 
simplicity. Morphologically, the so-called stem of the 
plantain is not a true stsm, but i-s really compoaei of 
the broad, imbricate!, clasping, leaf stalks. 
