Fruit Brevities, 415 



:sential that the house should be kept thoroughly clean and sweet 

 at all times. It is especially important that the storage-room 

 for the baskets and crates should be dry and airy, in order that 

 the baskets may not become moldy or musty; and this room 

 should also be kept darkened to prevent the baskets from color- 

 ing. Figure 126 shows a packing table in Mr. Snow's packing- 

 room. This is a circular revolving table about which the pack- 

 ers sit. The packer holds the basket in her lap and takes the 

 grapes off the table, which is turned as fresh fruit is put upon 

 it. Figure 127 shows the packing-room in Mr. Pettit's house. 

 Jn this case, the picking trays are set before the packers upon 

 an inclined table,, and the packer handles the grapes from this 

 tray into a basket which she places at her left. When the bas- 

 ket is filled, it is placed upon a fiat ledge in front of her, and is 

 taken off by an attendant w^ho places the baskets on a truck and 

 rolls them into the back room, from w^hich they are delivered 

 to the wagon. When the tray is empty, it is slid through an 

 opening just in front of the packer and underneath the fiat 

 ledge upon which she places her finished baskets. A quantity 

 of empty baskets are kept upon a shelf just above this ledge 

 and these are replenished by an attendant, as necessary. 



Another type of packing-house is shown in Figure 128, which 

 is a picture of a peach-house upon the farm of James Austin, at 

 Morton, N. Y. The illustration shows one-half of the house. In 

 the middle of the house is a driveway extending completely 

 through it, which is closed by rolling doors. The fruit from the 

 orchard is driven into this driveway, and is unloaded upon either 

 side. The two ends of the house are opened by doors which are 

 hinged at the top and the packed fruit is delivered through these 

 doors or to the wagons in the driveway. This is a very conven- 

 ient cheap type of house which may be used for peaches or apples 

 during the fruit season, and for the storage of tools and barrels 

 during the winter. 



There is the greatest difference of opinion concerning the best 

 ways of handling apples. These differences arise very largely 

 from local conditions. If the apple grower sells his crop to the 



