552 Agricultural Journal of Victoria. 



can always be taken of changes in the weather to select a cool 

 morning to gather the fruit, on no account should fruit be gathered 

 on a hot afternoon, as the fruit then never thoroughly cools down 

 before being packed. Fruit packed in a heated state never carries 

 well, and is generally landed in bad order. 



There is a good deal to be said in favor of putting the fruit in a 

 cool chamber before being packed, but so far it has not carried well, 

 owing to being placed in the ship's cool chamber with uncooled fruit. 

 Where the whole of the fruit in the ship's cool chamber has been 

 treated in this way it is very satisfactory, but as in the case of our 

 mail boats, the great bulk of the fruit in the cool chamber is from 

 Tasmania, which has been packed in the orchard, and is, therefore, 

 of much higher temperature, the case is different. This is because 

 the cold air is driven in at a very low temperature in order to cool the 

 bulk of the fruit, consquently the cooled fruit placed in the same 

 chamber suffers, and is never landed in such good condition as the 

 uncooled portion of the cargo. The remedy lies in the whole 

 of the fruit intended for the one chamber being cooled down to the 

 same temperature before being placed on board. 



During the past two or three years some of our shippers have had 

 their consignments cooled prior to shipment, but these consignments 

 have not turned out in such good condition as was expected, and, 

 according to the sale catalogues, only realised moderate prices. 



