PROCEEDINGS OF THE FARMERS' CLUB. 251 



FRUIT HOUSES. 



Mr. Carpenter read a letter from Col. Wilder in relation to fruit 

 houses^ and how to preserve the tender sorts, by the use of ice. 

 He had kept strawberries in his over a month. 



Solon Robinson. — The plan is the same as that in use in this 

 city by many butchers for the preservation of meat. The ice is 

 placed- about the room used, so as to create a temperature even 

 and dry, at about 40" Fahrenheit. 



PEARS AND POULTRY. 



Solon Robinson. — There appears to be a connection between 

 pears and poultry, which is worth enquiring about. Messrs. B. & 

 S. Beatty of Aurora, New York, have a very large poultry estab- 

 lishment — they fatten and prepare tons of poultry for market 

 every year. Of course they have a good deal of the very best 

 manure — the feathers forming no mean portion of it. They grow, 

 probably in consequence of using this manure, as fine pears as 

 ever need be eaten. Here is a sample out of a box they sent me 

 of the poorest I could select. The richness of them is the most 

 remarkable thing, though some of the Seckels were of great size. 

 Of these they say : 



" The Seckels are a fair sample of many grown on two trees, 

 standing near a stone ash house, and consequently get plenty of 

 alkalies. They are also dug around and manured. They grow 

 on standard trees." 



Does the keeping of large numbers of fowls have a tendency to 

 lessen the ravages of the curculio ? That is a question worth 

 thinking about. 



Dr. Trimble. — I can confirm this statement about superior fruit 

 from Western New York. I had some pears the other day from 

 Yates county, and I never saw such Seckel pears before. The 

 Seckels were as fine as this. 



Mr. Carpenter. — A person who grows pears some distance from 

 this city had a quantity of Louis Bon de Jersey, which is only a 

 second-rate pear, and he put them up in such a neat manner, one 

 dozen in a box, which sold at $5 to $7 a hundred. This shows 

 how important it is to know how to put up fruit for market. 



QUESTIONS FOR THE NEXT MEETING. 



Cattle, fall fruits, and flowers were the questions adopted for 

 discussion at the next meeting. Mr. Carpenter hoped that the 

 subject of milch cows would be particularly attended to. 



Adjourned. HENRY MEIGS, Secretary. 



[Am. Inst.] Q 



