Show THE KANSAS SILK STATION dry goods chronicle af X r Y kansas boasts an unique institution in her ber state silk station at peabody marion county it is a veritable novelty and kansans kansana are proud of its existence this station has been established about eghi ye dearmand arsand armand legislative enactment provides that it be main bained by biennial appropriations from the commonwealth thus far nearly have been expended upon it at the present time the treasury of this institution la 18 in healthy condition and indications point to a continued prosperous situation dr buck la Is the superintendent now BOW in charge of the industry he has filled this office during the past six yeara regarding Begard ioK the modus operandi operand he be writes as an foll follows the station consists cons leia of ton ten acres of lano land on which are raised mulberry trees and various other plant and a two twe story building about 40 x 80 feet feets equipped with boiler engine and ton ten reel from four to ton tea hands bands are employed in the station throughout as an great a portion of the year as Is in necessary to work up all the cocoons that are purchased the primary work of the station is to raise silkworm eggs for free distribution to such K kansas ansas residents aswill as will make an h honest t eff effort or t to grow worms from 50 to ounces of eggs are produced each year which means vast numbers of worms worm two years ago ounces were sent out to forty eight counties and a large quantity of cocoons cocoon was purchased after the cocoons have been raised by those to whom the eggs are furnished the station buys them at the rate of 1 per pound and reels them selling the commercial silk this reeling process is a very tedious one and constitutes the bulk of the work done at the station there has been absolutely no improvement in silk milk reeling devices during the past years and the machines are crude in the extreme the inefficiency of these reels real and the necessity of paying much higher wages for feelers than in other silk producing countries militates against the financial success of this branch of the tha station girls are paid from rom to 4 per week whereas in france according to a statement made recently to me by the french silk commissioner 50 cents a week is the common price the consequence of this is that it costs costa per pound to reel silk at Pt peabody against only 20 cents in prance france the silkworm eggs are furnished to applicants in april and the work of hatching batching and raising the worms worm is done during the latter part of april and may only about six weeks are required to raise the worms and that is the only portion of the tb e year that can be employed in the business bu bus luese reeling me silk can be carried on throughout the season as an the cocoons are not perishable la no grout great amount of silk is required in the successful growth of the be worms but great care following easily owl y u instructions Is fa eisenthal eisent laL the a work consists confine mainly in supplying the veracious worms with something to eat arst and way may be performed by women and children I 1 claim that an ordinary family of children ildren ob can produce pounds of during the six weeks season those these cocoons aze aie any tough rough building pro bided vided it has bag a good roof I 1 is adapted to the business of worm raising to produce pounds of cocoons requires fully as huoh room as an is i contained in lour four ordinary living rooms Ru buestan Buea estan ian mulberry leaves leavea are the abe food employed at the station but out siders who grow worms use osage orange leaves almost exclusively the latter are as good as mulberry leaves the silk bilk produced at the peabody station Is of exceptionally fine bus quality A prominent firm in now new Yorka York among the largest silk bilk match merchants ants of the united states have just written me to the effect that kansas silk milk was the best they ever had the peabody product always commands from 50 cents to 1 a pound more than ordinary commercial silk milk the price varies widely ranging from to per pound an effort is being made to have the government take hold of the peabody wIth some show of success bequests tor for eggs and instructions are frequently received from neighboring states and it is thought no more than just the scope of the experimental work be extended beyond the limits ot of kansas by making it ft a government institution As it is in now residents outside of kansas have no easily avail able means of obtaining eggs and no DO market for their oo cocoons coons as there Is no other silk filature than the one at pea body in the country J |