102 STATE POMOLOGICAL SOf"TE;TY. 



I will give you a short account of what one woman has done 

 in the city, and certainly a woman on a farm where so much of 

 the material practically costs so little, can do far better. This 

 account was sent me by a lady well acquainted with the person 

 who did it. She was a physician's wife in Worcester. Her 

 husband died very suddenly, leaving- her with two small chil- 

 dren looking to her for their support. It occurred to her one 

 day as she heard a friend remark that she was going away for 

 the summer and she "did wish she knew of some one that could 

 put up her fruit and make her jelly 'and pickles for her" — why 

 could she not undertake it? 



The lady was delighted with the prospect and the work was 

 engaged. If she could do for one, why not for many? As 

 soon as it became known that she would do the work, orders 

 came from far and near. She went to a commission house and 

 purchased the very best fruit at wholesale prices, also her sugar 

 in lOO-pound sacks. Her jelly tumblers and jars she bought 

 at wholesale, so she was able to make enough on her jars when 

 the fruit was sold to pay for the breakage. 



With material bargained for she was ready for business. 

 Taking the fruits in order, strawberries, currant jelly, spiced 

 currants, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, cherries, crab- 

 apples, plums, pears, grapes, and so on through the list of fruits 

 she worked until pickling time ; then came pickled pears, tomato 

 pickles of all kinds, mixed and plain, cucumber pickles, canned 

 ripe tomatoes, chili sauce, catsup and everything that could be 

 thought of that would sell. 



Unaided by any one, with the care of two babies, from early 

 season till fall, on a gas stove, that brave little woman put up 

 one thousand tumblers of jelly, which she sold for $3 a dozen ; 

 ninety-five dozen quart jars of fruit, which of course varied in 

 price according to the fruit and the way it was canned. 



She kept her books with the same care as any business, so 

 at the end of the season she could tell within a cent where she 

 stood. Her expenses for her business including fruits, tum- 

 blers, jars, sugar and fuel, amounted to seven hundred and fifty 

 dollars ; her net profit for her work was five hundred dollars. 



There were slight losses from breakage and now and then 

 a jar of fruit would be lost. On almost all her fruit she doubled 

 her money, and that is, I believe, the rule for such things. In 



