Heavy Loading of Northwestern Apples 1 1 



Careless carloading of apples is responsible for the annual breakage 

 of thousands of boxes. Often but a car strip on one end of a box is 

 used on the third and top layers and these are lightly nailed. While 

 broken boxes are coopered at destination and sold, the cost of cooper- 

 ing, the low prices received, and the resulting decay of the apples 

 from bruises aggregate a tremendous annual loss. 



Fifty-six of the eighty loads inspected in New York had shifted, 

 51 because of poor or insufficient stripping, the others because of poor 

 bracing. Shifting as a result of poor stripping is to one side of the 

 car, causing a gap into which the loosened boxes tumble, effecting a 

 jumbled load and broken boxes. Car strips running full length across 

 the car do not possess great advantage over lath used as strips, if 

 the latter are used in sufficient quantity and are well nailed in proper 

 position. 



BROKEN BOXES 



NEW YORK CITY INSPECTIONS 



NUMBER BROKEN PER CAR 



IN 



BOX 



CARS 59 1 



IN 



REFRIGERATOR 

 CARS 48 1 



IN 



HEAVY _., 



LOADS 54| 



IN 



LIGHT 

 LOADS 



Fio. 5. Average number of broken boxes found in eighty carloads 

 of apples from the Pacific Coast upon arrival in New York City. 



The continual weaving movement of the car in motion has a 

 twisting effect upon the boxes beneath the strips. Several days of 

 this action, combined with vertical vibration, or "jumping," together 

 with sudden end-thrusts, when stopping or shunting, work the nails 

 out of the top strips. With the top layer released, the lower strips 

 also work loose, whereupon the whole load shifts to one side or the 

 other. By tight squeezing and bracing, and by secure stripping, this 

 movement of the boxes may be decreased so that the heavier nails 

 recommended in the top stripping will stay in place sufficiently long 

 to allow delivery of the car without shifting of the load. 



