Thinning, Gathering, Keeping, and Marketing. 131 



of decaying specimens, the boxes are taken down one at a time, 

 and replaced in a new pile. It will obviate the necessity of dis- 

 turbing or turning over the fruit for examination, if the boxes are 

 quite shallow or only three or four inches deep, so as to contain 

 only a single layer of specimens. They should have slatted bot- 

 toms, to admit the circulation of the cool air. If the lumber of 

 which they are made is sawed of the right width, they are rapidly 

 constructed by nailing together. A convenient size for the boxes 

 is twenty by twenty-four inches, with slats at the bottom two inches 

 wide and three-fourths of an inch apart. They will be cheaper for 

 the same contents if six inches deep ; but the fruit is more easily 

 picked over when in a single layer with a depth of only three 

 inches. 



If the boxes are well made they will fit closely together in the 

 piles, and, if desired, give nearly the same advantages of protec- 

 tion from currents of air and changes of temperature as when 

 packed in barrels, while the fruit may be examined at any time for 

 the removal of decaying specimens, without being disturbed from 

 the moment it is placed in the boxes in the orchard until taken out 

 for use. This mode admits the storing of large amount of fruit 

 within a small space. 



In conclusion, the following rules may be presented for strict 

 observance in keeping fruit : 



1. Let the temperature be kept as near the freezing point as 

 practicable. 



2. Keep the temperature as uniform as possible, as an occasional 

 warm draught hastens decay. 



3. Exclude air-currents of any kind not required to maintain a 

 uniform degree of cold ; hence drawers or covered boxes are bet- 

 ter than open shelves. 



4. Keep all odors away from the fruit, especially such odors as 

 come from badly kept cellars. 



