AMERICAN SUMAC. 



Table 3.- 



— Loss of moistiLre in 



curing 



sumac 



{collet 



ted Sept. 



28, 1916). 





Species. 



Duration 

 of drying. 



Loss of 

 moisture. 





Days. 



5 

 25 

 49 



5 

 25 



49 



6 

 25 

 49 



Per cent. 

 50.5 



White 



53.2 

 53.6 



63.9 





66.1 

 66.6 



55.5 





57.3 

 57.8 



There is reason to believe that the loss in curing on the farm is not 

 so great as the loss observed in the bureau's experiments, where the 

 sumac dried out very thoroughly. The total loss in weight of the 

 mixed leaf and stalks from gathering until it reaches the extract 

 maker probably averages very close to 60 per cent. 



PREPARATION FOR TRANSPORTATION. 



Sumac received by the dealers from the farmers usually comes in 

 bags, or is handled loose in wagonloads like hay, and in many in- 

 stances may have been hauled as far as 20 miles. Many farmers pre- 

 fer to deliver the sumac in wagonloads, as they claim that too much 

 time is consumed by putting it up in bags. Since the sumac becomes 

 very brittle when dried and the leaflets are easily broken from the 

 leaf stems, much loss occurs in handling it loose. Dealers, therefore, 

 as a rule, prefer to have the sumac delivered in bags. These bags 

 cost the dealers 8 to 9 cents each, but are usually furnished without 

 cost to the gatherers. Some gatherers, after drying the sumac, flail 

 off the leaves and pack them in bags for shipment. Seventy-five 

 pounds should be packed into' a 4-bushel bag, but the average quan- 

 tity put into them is about 40 pounds. 



From the small dealers to the extract manufacturers the sumac is 

 usually handled in bags or bales. The cost of baling is about 10. 

 cents per hundredweight. 



PRICES PAID GATHERERS AND DEALERS. 



During the seasons of 1916 and 1917 in eastern Virginia the 

 gatherers received from 90 cents to $1 per 100 pounds in trade from 

 the dealers. The extract manufacturers fiu^nished bags for use in 

 hauling and shipping the cured sumac. The dealers received from 

 the extract makers $1.10 per 100 pounds for the bagged or baled 

 material, which in this region includes the new-growth stalks as well 

 as the leaves and leaf stems. In northern West Virginia and western 

 Maryland the gatherers received in 1916 for the leaves and leaf stems 

 alone (no stalks) from 80 cents to $1 per hundred pounds in trade 

 from the dealers, who in turn received $1.10 to $1.15 from the extract 

 makers. In 1917 these prices were about 5 cents per hundred higher. 

 In this section aU varieties of sumac are mixed and well packed for 

 shipment in bags furnished free of charge by dealers. 



