Silk is supplied by various parts of the world, including China, the East Indies, Turkey, &c., where the silk-worm has been found to thrive. The attempts that have been hitherto made to cultivate it in this country have proved unsuccessful. At Rome, in the time of Tiberius, a law passed the senate which, as well as prohibiting the wearing of massive gold jewels, also forbade the men to debase themselves by wearing silk. There was a time when silk was of the same value as gold--weight for weight--and it was thought to grow upon trees. It is recorded that silk mantles were worn by some noble ladies at a ball at Kenilworth Castle, 1286. It was first manufactured in England in 1604. In the reign of Elizabeth, the manufacture of silk in England made rapid strides. In 1666, there were 40,000 persons engaged in the silk trade. The silk throwsters of the metropolis were enrolled in a fellowship in 1562, and were incorporated in 1629. In 1685, a considerable impetus was given to the English silk manufactures. Louis the Fourteenth of France revoked the edict of Nantes. The edict of Nantes was promulgated by Henry the Fourth of France in 1598. It gave to the Protestants of France the free exercise of their religion. Louis the Fourteenth revoked this edict in 1685, and thereby drove the Protestants as refugees to England, Holland, and parts of Germany, where they established various manufactures. Many of these French refugees settled in Spitalfields, and there founded extensive manufactories, which soon rivalled those of their own country; and thus the intolerance of the king was justly punished. What important facts we see connected with the simple thread of the silk-worm! 1201. _What is wool?_ Wool is a kind of soft hair or coarse down, produced by various animals, but chiefly by sheep.