470 The Principles of Fruit-growing. 



cars. Each line, of course, claims to have the best cars; and 

 for difficult service there would certainly be considerable choice 

 between them, but with the numerous re-icing stations that are 

 now available, any of them will give satisfactory service, if 

 properly loaded and handled. 



"The main points to consider in selecting a refrigerator car 

 for transporting produce are first, its ice capacity, and second, 

 its insulation. The ice tanks should hold at least five tons of 

 ice, and six tons is even better. The position of the tanks, 

 whether overhead or at the ends, is a question .of minor im- 

 portance. The car should be tightly built, with double walls 

 and roof, with the space between them filled in with some non- 

 conducting material, or by numerous linings of building paper, 

 with dead air spaces between them. The doors should be built 

 like the walls, and be of the same thickness; and they should 

 fit as nearly air-tight as possible. Of course the car should be 

 sweet and clean. 



"It is usual for the refrigerator companies to furnish their 

 own men for loading the cars, for proper loading is a point of 

 so much importance that they do not care to trust the repu- 

 tation of their cars to inexperienced men. The important points 

 to secure in loading are first, that the packages be so spaced 

 that the cold air has immediate access to all sides of them, and 

 second, that they be so secured that the load cannot shift by 

 the bumping of the cars while in transit. These points are 

 usually secured by piling the crates or other packages one 

 above another in tiers or ranks, from three to six inches 

 apart, and with lath or strips between each layer. Strips are 

 placed upright against the end of the car, and a row of 

 packages is placed on the floor, with the ends set snugly 

 against these strips, and carefully spaced. Light half-inch 

 strips, as long as the width of the car, are placed across 

 the ends of the packages; and the front one is nailed down 

 with a light nail to the head of each package, to prevent 

 side shifting. Another row of packages is placed on these 

 strips, each one directly above one in the lower row. These 

 are again stripped and nailed, and BO en to the top. Th< 



