62 



Ouen-de-Thouberville, a short distance from Rouen. This establish- 

 ment, built and operated upon a cooperative plan, is a model in its 

 mechanical appointments, and the technique of its operations seemed 

 to leave little to be desired. The general manager is Monsieur Gus- 

 tave Power, the noted authority on pomology, whose books have been ^ 

 oflScially adopted by the minister of agriculture for use in the schools 

 of France. The writer was most courteously received by this cultured 

 gentleman, and given every facility to examine and study the details 

 and methods of the establishment, which is, perhaps, representative of 

 the best type in France. 



The ground plan of the main factory is shown in figure 12. In total 

 dimensions, the building is approximately 800 feet long by 100 feet 

 wide. A study of the vertical longitudinal section (fig. 11) will help 

 to give a clear idea of the plan and w^orkings of this factory. It will 

 be seen that to the rear of the main operating room of the ground floor 

 one can step up a few feet into the main fermenting room, or down a 

 few feet into a half-cellar used for the finishing processes of fermen- 

 tation and for storage. The surface of the ground slopes from the 

 front to the rear of the building, so that this lower room ends at ground 

 level. This gives an important advantage in the ease with which the 

 finished product can be loaded on trucks for transport. 



The operation of this factory will be better understood b}^ following 

 the usual course of the fruit and must as the}^ pass through the sev- 

 eral processes to the finished product. The carts laden with apples in 

 sacks enter the shed in front of the factory, and ])y a hoist, operated 

 from the main shaft within, the fruit is lifted to the second floor, 

 where it is weighed and put in bins according to varieties and qualit3^ 

 These bins cover nearly all of the second floor, and are only 18 inches 

 deep, strict rules as to methods of storage being observed. With the 

 fruit thus distributed, it is possible to observe critically its condition 

 and to grind as it comes to proper maturity; also the careful distribu- 

 tion in accordance with the quality makes it easy to blend the fruit so 

 as to "produce desired grades of must. 



When ready to grind, the fruit is measured to the machine in proper 

 proportions. The grinder stands at the floor level of this storeroom. 

 Formerly the fruit was washed, but now this is only resorted to in 

 case of necessity. The fruit is, however, run over a slatted ''way" or 

 chute in its progress to the cylinders and much trash is screened out, 

 an attendant watching that foreign substances likely to damage the 

 grinders do not pass. From the grinders the pulp drops into a 

 chute, which delivers it at the pleasure of the operator into one or 

 another of the several pomace vats. The custom is to fill one after 

 another of the vats, the pulp being allowed to remain for some hours 

 before pressing. This maceration of the pulp in its own juice is 

 thought to aid in extracting the sugar content and to give better color 

 to the must throus-h certain chemical changes caused bv the action of 



