8i2 Joiinial of Agriculture , Victoria. [ii Dec, 191 i. 



the fruit may be left 6 hours without withdrawal and without inspection. 

 The fire should be moderate enough to prevent the thermometer rising above 

 131° F. After 6 hours the truck is taken out for an hour. 



Seconding. — While the fruit is exposed to the outside air, the fire is 

 tended so as to raise the temperature to 176°- 194°. The truck is once 

 more wheeled in; juice will not run, if care is taken to fully open the two 

 air entries, so as to evacuate the abundant steam which is given off. The 

 fruit may once more be left in this state for another 6 hours at a tempera- 

 ture of 140° to 149° F. At the commencement of the sixth hour it is 

 raised to 158°. During the six hours the . door is openea once or twice 

 to see if the prunes acquire a good brown colour and gloss. If there is no 

 gloss the temperature is too low, the fire should be forced. At the close 

 of the 6 hours the prunes commence to wrinkle ; the truck is taken out 

 again, and once more left for an hour in the open air. 



Finishing.- — As soon as the truck is removed, the air entrances are 

 closed and the temperature is raised to 212° F. The truck is again 

 introduced and the temperature falls to 140°; the air entrances remain 

 closed during about an hour, until the thermometer pane shows slight 

 moisture. The air entrances are then opened to carry off the excess 

 of steam. For 6 hours heating is continued, sO' as to- gradually reach 

 167° towards the fifth hour. The air entrances are constantly open during 

 the last period of finishing, so that moisture may not soften the prune, 

 which would cause delay and reduce quality. Towards the sixth hour 

 the door is opened and the fruit is sometimes left for another hour in 

 the oven so as to obtain complete drying. 



The following additional particulars as to the first prize machine are 

 interesting. Its price, exclusive of brick-work, was ^2^1 3. During the 

 trial it was twice charged with fresh fruit, the weight of the two charges 

 totalling 1,119 lbs. This dried down to 437 lbs., or 35.7 per cent, of the 

 weight of the fresh, fruit j this was a low yield as, owing to the exceedingly 

 wet season, the fruit was gorged with water and poor in dry matter. At the 

 1879 trial percentages varied from 36 to^ 46 per cent, of the weight of 

 fresh fruit. The quantity of wood burnt was 1,054 lbs., or 241 lbs. per 

 100 lbs. of finished prunes, and 135 lbs. per 100 lbs. of water evaporated. 

 The wet season was again at fault here, the wood being wet and of poor 

 heating power; at the 1879 trial, the best machine only required 100 lbs. 

 of wood to evaporate 100 lbs. water. The two charges took 49 hours 

 37 minutes to dry, or, if working continuously, at the rate of 2ii| lbs. of 

 finished prunes in 24 hours. 



As proper cooking is much more important than the other technical 

 points in connexion with drying, it was necessary to intrust a special 

 jury, composed of growers and merchants, with the examination of the 

 products prepared at the trial. Their award was based on the following 

 points : — 



1. Colour and gloss of the skin. 



2. General evenness of cooking of each batch of fruit. 



3. Resistance and dryness of skin to the touch. 



4. Degree of cooking of pulp and kernel. 



5. Number of fruit to the pound.' 



6. Flavour of the fruit. 



A further examination of the dried fruit was made some two months 

 later, in order to test the keeping powers of samples dried by different 

 machines. The results did not altogether tally with those of the first 

 sampling. The first three machines were again at the top of the list 

 though not in the same order. 



