1810.] On Projects respecting Silk-worms, and Wine.and Honey. 221 
the rich hills and extensive plains of this 
country, blessed as it is with a luxuriant 
soil, and a comparatively healthy cli- 
mate? 
= 
For the Monthly Magazine. 
SILK WORMS—WINE—HONEY, 
T must necessarily happen, in the 
vast revolving series of the affairs of 
a nation, that failures in every concern 
must be forgotten, together with even 
their records; and that thence the desire 
of this or that improvement should 
periodically burst forth, stimulating the 
enterprising to new attempts. My re- 
collection, which now extends to uearly 
half a century, has furnished me witha 
variety of instances of this nature; and 
with many, particularly im the medical 
department, in which old pretended in- 
fallible remedies have been re-produced 
as new discoveries, in order to the 
honours of a second, third, or fourth, re- 
petition of failure. Amongst a thousand 
other projects of late years, that of grow- 
ing silk in England has been eminently 
pushed forw ard. [twas ia course out of 
memory, and, until lately, out of the 
common “Aes of reading, that, in or 
about the year 172%, the silk mania be- 
came epidemic in this country ; and that 
amoung a great number of inferior extent, 
an attempt upon a considerable scale 
was made, to breed and feed silk-worms 
in the duke of Wharton’s park at Chel- 
sea, taken expressly for that purpose, 
and under the sanction of a_ patent. 
Whether the silk manufactories at Green- 
wich, established about the same time, 
were of the same connection, I have 
really forgotten, but I conjecture they 
were. I have also forgotten the par- 
ticular cause of failure in breeding the 
silk-worms at that period, but [ have 
repeatedly, and at different periods of 
my life, experienced such failure, both 
in my own attempts, and those of other 
persons ; insomuch, that I. have many 
years since made up my mind on the 
real impossibility of ever growing silk to 
advantage in this country. Such has 
also been the case In various parts of 
France. Nevertheless, silk-worms have, 
during acentury, and stil] are kept and 
bred for the amusement of young misses 
and masters, and a breeding stock inay, 
at any season, be purchased in Covent- 
garden market, together with mulberry 
_leaves, at two-pence per dozen, where- 
with to feed them. 
The clunate of this country is by no 
_ Means inimical to the silk-worm, which 
is most prolific here; and 1 have even 
had axntumnal broods of them, from 
keeping the eggs of the moth too warms 
The sole bar of which I am apprised to 
success in breeding them, is the ime 
possibility of obtaining mulberry leaves 
sufficiently early in the spring for 
the worms, or a healthy substitute, 
until the foliage of the mulberry be 
ready. I have tried every plant 
within my reach, whilst walilng the tar dy 
progress of the inulberry-tree, but could 
find none on which the worms would 
feed, excepting the lettuce; and that ine 
variably injured, after the first day or 
two, by scouring and weakening them, 
until finally they “burst the greater part.of 
them, with a species ef hydropic rot, 
like that of sheep. Lettuce dried, 
proved too harsh for their mouths. In 
the mean time, their stench was insuf- 
ferable ; rendering the atmosphere of the 
chamber in which they were kept, abe 
solutely morbific. Many of them began 
to spin; but from debility, their labour was 
imperfect, and they died with their web 
incomplete, producing no chrysolite, the 
dead worm being apparent through. the 
web, which is otherwise impervioys 
to the sight. Some silk indeed was, and 
generally will-be obtained; but the quane 
tity insufhicient, and the quality weak 
and inferior. The most healthy worms 
produced the strongest and yellowest 
silk, following the rule of vegetable roots, 
in which the yellow colour is generally 
the harbinger of superior quality. Tn 
conclusion, we never need regret the 
want of silk culture in this country, not 
only because our lands may be pian 
more advantageously occupied, but also 
because were such an undertaking de- 
sirable, colonies enow might be found in 
the world, with every requisite of climate 
and food for the purpose. Moreover, it 
is universally desizable in the view of 
necessary human commerce, that one 
country should depend upon another for 
its peculiar indigenous commodity. I 
am yet prejudiced in one respect, and 
loath to depend on other countries for a 
supply of wine, more especially asthere 
is good reason to conclude, that real 
wine was made in this country some 
centuries back, and that the introduction, 
with commerce, of superior wines, Occa- 
sioned the discontinuance of our home 
manufacture, and, in_a considerable de- 
gree, of the vine culture. Our cydery 
balderdash from currants, gooseberries, 
and other fruits, T will not consent to 
honour with the name of wine; nor can 
I agree 
