PROCEEDINGS OF THE FARMERS' CLUB. 399 



Addition work done on farm by same hands, viz : 



170 rods of good board fence $24 CO 



Breaking four acres prairie 16 00 



Planting trees, raising vegetables, drawing and spreading 



manure, &c. 



From the above, seed, harvesting, threshing and blacksmith's 

 bills would have to be deducted. I have' passed my seventieth 

 year, and cannot be expected to do a young man's work. 



Canning Fruit. 

 Mrs. Lot Cornelius, Locust Valley, Queens county, L. I.: Li 

 answer to an inquiry as to the best method of canning peaches, I 

 give one that has proved successful for several years j)ast. I pre- 

 fer the Millville quart glass jar, Whitall's patent. For as many 

 jars as the vessel will hold in which I boil them, I prepare bags 

 of quilt just large enough to slip them in easily; across the tops 

 sow strong straps to be used as hand'es to lift them from the boil- 

 ing water. Should the vessel be considerably higher than the 

 jars, let the straps be long enough for a rod to pass through them 

 and rest on the top of the vessel. Let the fruit be fully ripe, 

 pare, and take out the pit with a fork, drop them, in the jar the 

 cut half down, until you have as many jars filled as you boil at 

 one time; slip them in the bags, lay the covers lightly on the top, 

 place them in the vessel filled with cold water nearly to the tops 

 of the jars, and put them over the fire to boil. Prepare a sirup of 

 half a pint of water to a pound of sugar (three pounds of sugar 

 and a pint and a half of water will fill four jars if the fruit be mel- 

 low and the jars closely filled). When the water boils around the 

 jars, have your sirup also boiling hot, with which fill the jars, and 

 let them boil ten minutes, after that lift them out in a pan, place 

 the .rubbers in the groove, press the glass covers down firmly 

 with the hand, put on the clamp, screw it down just tight enough 

 to prevent leaking — which can be ascertained by laying them on 

 the side. Slip them from the bags, lay them on the side, on a 

 piece of quilt or thick blanket, and cover them closel}'' till cold, 

 place them in a dark closet or wrap each jar in thick dark paper 

 to exclude the lijjht. Fruit thus canned will remain jjood for 

 years. The quilted bags are to prevent the jars from hitting 

 each other or the sides of the vessel while boiling. The quilt or 

 blanket and covering are to prevent them from cracking l)y cool- 

 ing too rapidly. 



