74 



THE CANADIAN IIORT'CULTURIST. 



for use. In the matter of transport- 

 ation a great saving is effected also, for 

 the water which constitutes so large a 

 part, both of the bulk and weight, is 

 driven off in the process of evaporation, 

 and hence it is that this fruit is finding 

 its way so rapidly to the front, follow- 

 ing close after the pioneers of our new 

 settlements, and becoming an item of 

 daily consumption as much as other 

 articles of food. Besides, this evapor- 

 ated fruit can be kept for an indefinite 

 length of time, so that the risk of decay 

 is wholly removed. For all of these 

 reasons, and because of its healthfulness 

 as an article of diet it is becoming a 

 regular part of ship stores, more es- 

 pecially for long voyages. It is also 

 finding its way into the cities of conti- 

 nental Europe, where it is being gradu- 

 ally introduced upon the tables of those 

 who feel that the fresh fruit is too 

 expensive an article to be often enjoyed. 

 Thus it is that this invention is 

 extending the use and thereby increas- 

 ing the demand for apples. But there 

 is yet another cause working continu- 

 ously to enlarge the demand for apples, 

 as indeed for fruit of every kind, and 

 that is the growth of our towns and cities. 

 These must ever be non-fruit producing, 

 and in proportion to their size and 

 wealth, fruit consuming centres, and the 

 more abundantly they are supplied the 

 greater in the end will be the demand 

 for fruit. Hence whatever tends to 

 enlarge our manufacturing and trading 

 centres and build up and increase the 

 population of our towns and cities, also 

 tends to increase the demand for our 

 fi'uits, and of none more than of apples. 



It is within the memory of the writer 

 when our towns were few in number, 

 and our cities nothing more than small 

 towns, that apples were accounted of 

 little value, to be had by the waggon 

 load for the gathering. 



And now we have to add another 

 factor in this matter of apple produc- 

 tion and consumption. The settlement 

 of Manitoba and the opening up of the 

 great North-west is rapidly creating 

 another market for our apples, in one 

 form or the other or both. It will be 

 a long time before that country will be 

 able to supply its own population with 

 fruit, and much less with apples. But 

 very few apple trees have been found 

 to be sufficiently hardy to endure the 

 cold of that climate. If human beings 

 do not feel the cold, as we are constant- 

 ly and credibly told they dj not, yet it 

 is certain that most of the apple trees 

 that have been planted there do feel it 

 as much as it is possible for a vegetable 

 to feel anything, at least they sufter so 

 severely from the cold that they perish. 

 They have first to clothe that country 

 with forest trees that shall break the 

 sweep of their fierce winds, and then 

 seek out those varieties of apple that 

 will endure the climate of Siberia where 

 the mercury becomes solid, before they 

 can begin to sup])ly themselves. But 

 the country is being largely settled by 

 people who have been in the habit of 

 using apples freely, and they will be 

 eager to have them in their new homes, 

 even if they have to be procured at 

 some cost. 



Hence we believe that a new and 

 large market for our apples is being 



