ORANGES AND LEMONS IN PALERMO. 515 



PACKING AND SHIPPING. 



When oranges and lemons are picked they are carefully selected and 

 wrapped in tissue-paper, packed in open boxes, and placed in the ware- 

 house. Again, before shipping, they are carefully selected, newly 

 wrapped, and packed. 



Generally speaking lemons can be divided into two categories, viz, 

 normal lemons and abnormal or anomalous lemons. The normal are 

 those that bloom in the months of April and May, and the abnormal 

 or anomalous those derived from the blossoms of February, March, 

 June, July, and other successive months, and which depend on water- 

 falls, to a more or less degree, during warm weather, for irrigation. 



The normal lemons arrive at maturity in about nine months that is, 

 from May to January, inclusive the picking thereof being commonly 

 made in three successive periods, viz, from November onward. The 

 lemons picked in the first period are green, and those picked in the 

 third period more mature. They are picked according to the require- 

 ments of the purchasers. The first and third pickings are more valua- 

 ble than those of the second, consequent upon fruits being more abun- 

 dant during the latter period. 



The fruit under consideration is believed to be" the best, and by gar- 

 deners is classified as first class fruit and sold at very high prices. 



The fruit picked at other times is called anomalous. 



Lemons are picked by men who, if the trees are too high to permit 

 their doing so from the ground, climb up and detach them, taking care 

 to leave a piece of stem, placing them in baskets lined with linen, on 

 the handle of which is a wooden hook tied in order that the baskets- 

 may be hung on the branches. So soon as a basket is full it is lowered 

 from the tree by means of a rope, provided with a knot, and exchanged 

 for an empty one by a boy known as "panieraio," or, literally, " basket- 

 maker," whose duty it is also to empty the baskets in the place desig- 

 nated by the "tagliapiedi" (peduncle cutter). This is an expert work- 

 man in his line, who performs two offices at the same time, viz, cuts 

 the peduncle of the lemons close to the crown, and afterwards sep- 

 arates the good from the bad lemons, depositing them in two separate 

 heaps. Small lemons, although they may seem to be good, if of less 

 weight than 80 grammes are, as a rule, not exported. 



It is estimated that out of the total lemon crop about two-thirds are 

 considered fit for export, the remaining third being utilized in the man- 

 ufacture of acid, essences, etc. 



The " taglia piet^i n (peduncle cutter) places the lemons on a straw 

 bed, in order to protect them, during the voyage, from damage. 



When lemons are classified, girls place them in baskets lined with 

 linen. Each girl places in her basket 208 lemons, 4 lemons at a time, 

 thus making 52 operations or movements, and when completed places 

 the baskets on her head and conveys it to the warehouse. 



