STATE POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 129 



SULPHURING IN FRUIT DRYING. 



Sulphurous gas, which is formed when sulphur is burnei, is well 

 known, and constantly used as a disinfecting, bleaching and deo lor- 

 izing agent, second in virtue only to chlorine. The fact that it is 

 the agent officially used in the disinfection of infected houses, ships 

 and individuals is conclusive on these points. It is, therefore, idle 

 to pretend that sulphuring does not diminish the flavor of fruit or 

 of anything else touched by it. It is perfectly certain that it does 

 so ; and the only debatable question is the extent to which it may 

 be used for bleaching fruit without any material detriment to the 

 flavor. 



It is in evidence that a reasonable amount of bleaching can be 

 done by applying the gas to the freshly cut fruit without injuring the 

 flavor to a material degree, since the flavor will penetrate Irom the 

 inside outward to a sufficient extent to compeasate for the loss of 

 what naturally belongs to the bleached exterior portion. 



The limit, however, is a narrow one, and it is so frequently ex(!eeded 

 in practice (whether intentionall}' to secure "extra light" color to 

 attract the unwary purchaser or, more commonly, by unskillful or 

 negligent workmen in charge of the sulphuring boxes) as to put 

 upon the market a good deal of fruit that is the reverse of credita- 

 ble to the State that produces it, and ill calculated to insure a peimi- 

 nent demand. This is especially true of the thinly sliced apples and 

 pears, which are quickly penetrated b}' the gas and assume a 

 greenish- white tint that, while it may be inviting to equally "green" 

 purchasers, assures the expert that the natural flavor is practically 

 gone. The producer himself declines to put th(^ra on his table, but 

 the dealer and the public, as at present informed, are willing to pay 

 an extra price for it. This demand for unnatirall}' light-colored 

 dried fruit is a "fad" like many others, which will have its day but 

 will inevitably give way, in the course of time, to a preference for 

 the better flavored product having the tint which insures its being so. 

 So long as the "fad" lasts, so long will producers or dealers sulphur 

 the fruit to suit the e3'e rather than the palate of the consumer. It 

 certainly seems desirable to hasten the advent of a more rational 

 state of the public mind on this point ; quite apart from the sanitary 

 consideration, which, if not of primary importance as regards most 



9 



