320 



which checks digestion and causes headaches. Ten to fifteen minutes 

 is quite long enough. Sulphured fruit is prohibited from sale in 

 several European countries. 



Drying. This is effected either through direct exposure to the 

 rays of the sun, or where the sun's rays are not potent enough, 

 through the artificial heat of specially-constructed kilns. 



At times the grapes are first half dried in the sun, and finished 

 off in the kiln. 



In Western Australia, where a dry, sunny autumn may be 

 relied upon with a fair amount of certainty, grapes, apricots, prunes, 

 and such like fruit can be sun-dried without trouble, and without 

 entailing the extra cost of kiln drying. 



Late-picked fruit, however, especially in the cooler districts of 

 the State, might, in particularly early rainy seasons, be damaged 

 when sun-dried ; but, as a rule, all fruit ripening not later than the 

 end of March may with safety be sun-dried. 



Around Malaga and the other famous raisin-producing districts 

 of Spain, the raisins are exposed to dry on drying terraces, built on 

 a slope, facing the hot south. These terraces consist of brick- wall 

 quadrangles, filled in with earth, over which is spread several inches 

 of clean small gravel, on which the grapes are laid ; on these they 

 dry evenly, whereas if laid on the bare hard earth, one side is often 

 dry, whilst the other remains moist. 



The drying ground is, however, cumbersome and antiquated, 

 and can with advantage be superseded by the drying tray. These 

 trays are made of diiferent sizes, but for the sake of convenient 

 handling, trays 36 inches long and 24 inches wide are to be 

 recommended. 



They are either made of four 6in. matchboards, 3ft. long, 

 held together by nailing head pieces of 2|in. x lin. and 2ft. long at 

 each end, or instead of matchboards, on which in damp weather the 

 fruit mildews more than on lath trays, or of broad Oregon laths, 

 set close, side by side, and which allow a free circulation of air. On 

 the upper side a fin. rim is nailed all round the tray, and keeps the 

 fruit from slipping off when turning it. 



Over these trays the fruit is placed and exposed to the sun. 

 When half dry they are turned. This is done by placing an empty 

 tray upside down over the first tray to be turned, and swinging the 

 lot over. The tray which had the fruit is then empty and ready for 

 use in turning over the next tray in the row, and so on until they 

 have all been turned over. 



If grapes or other fruit get wet whilst drying, they turn dark- 

 brown, and are discoloured, and to prevent this, in case of rain or 

 heavy dew at night, the trays are piled over one another to a 

 height of three or four feet, and securely covered with a tarpaulin 

 or roofing iron. When thus stacked, the thickness of the end cross- 



