Miscellaneous. 193 



boxes were obtained from the Division of Pomology of the United States 

 Department of Agriculture, and are as follows : White pine heads 11% in. 

 by 9 in. by f in., dressed on both sides. Sides one piece 19^ in. by 9 in. 

 by ^ in., smooth-sawed and dressed on one side. Top and bottom, each 

 in two pieces, 19I in. by 5I in. by ^ in., smooth-sawed and dressed on 

 one side. Two cleats for putting on top 12 in. by f in. by f in. For 

 express shipments, where the boxes would not be cleated in, as they are 

 in car lots, I would advise using f in., instead of f in., for heads, and f in. 

 instead of ^ in. stuff for sides, bottoms and tops. Pears, being somewhat 

 softer than apples, are pretty generally handled in the box packages. 



Peaches were formerly shipped in what was generally known as 

 the Delaware basket. Now the best peaches go to market in the six- 

 basket carrier. This is a neat, slat carrier, somewhat like a berry crate, 

 containing six veneer baskets, Itolding about a half peck each. This 

 package carries the tenderest peaches to market in good condition, and 

 as they look well on arrival, generally sell for the top price. This pack- 

 age is to be recommended for shipping all first-class fruit. It is too 

 expensive a package to be used for any but the first grade of fruit. All 

 general-crop stuff is best handled in the round peach basket. The large 

 bushel basket is not a suitable package and the large bulk crushes the 

 tender fruit and renders it unsightly. 



Berries are, of course, picked in the veneer, quart basket, but there 

 has been considerable variation in time past as to the size of crates 

 used. Before the advent of the gift packages it was the practice of the 

 express companies to return the crates free, and large crates were then 

 used that would hold 48 and 60 quarts. Now the market wants only the 

 24-quart basket carrier, and whenever a large crate is used, it seldom 

 brings first-class returns to the shipper. Besides not carrying the berries 

 well the large crate often holds too large a quantity of perishable fruit 

 for a retail grocer to handle, while in the season he might handle many 

 of the 24-quart carriers. 



IMPORTANCE OF BRANDS. 



The best goods in commercial lines are sold under brands containing 

 the name, location and trade-mark of the maker. It is a business principle 

 that the buying public soon come to understand. They know that if a 

 man puts his name and address on his product he is not ashamed of its 

 quality, and it is a safe thing to buy. The best growers and shippers 

 of fruit today are making use of this business principle. They are grow- 

 ing a good class of fruit, grading it honestly and putting their names 

 on the packages, and thereby guaranteeing the contents, A neat, attractive 



H — 13 



