10 BULLETIN 235, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



of this method. A fiber-board carton was then selected which could 

 be sealed, or in which had been placed an inner seal, to prevent the 

 entrance of insects. Such a package to be successful should stand 

 the same shipping conditions as a wooden box and should not, when 

 sealed, greatly exceed the latter in cost. A carton of the following 

 specifications was tested to determine its shipping qualities: 



Certificate of box maker. — This box is made of three-ply or more, fiber board or pulp 

 board, outer ply waterproofed. 



Each ply inch. . 0. 016 



Thickness not less than combined board do 080 



Resistance (Mullen test), combined board pounds per square inch. . 200 



Dimension limit, length, width, and depth added inches. . 65 



Gross weight limit pounds . . 65 



SHIPPING TESTS OF FIBER-BOARD PACKAGES. 



Three 25-pound boxes (PI. Ill) made according to the foregoing 

 specifications were filled with 25 pounds of dried peaches, sealed, and 

 given the following shipping tests: 



Box No. 1 was shipped by express from Sacramento, Cal., to Port- 

 land, Me., and back, or about 6,000 miles, during which trip it was 

 handled by at least 18 men. This box arrived in Sacramento in good 

 condition and is shown in Plate III, figure 3. 



Box No. 2 was shipped from Sacramento, Cal., to Fargo, N. Dak., 

 as one of the bottom boxes in a car of 25-pound boxes of dried fruit. 

 Except for one place where the sharp edge of a wooden box had worked 

 up the edge, this box arrived at its destination in fine condition, as 

 illustrated in Plate III, figure 3. This rubbing would not occur in a 

 carload of fiber-board boxes. 



Box No. 3 was sent to San Francisco by Parcels Post, where it was 

 trucked around the wharves, given a thorough test, and examined 

 by several packers and by the agent of one steamship company. It 

 arrived hi Sacramento in good condition, after having stood the test 

 and having been pronounced a good shipping package for dried 

 fruit. (PL III, fig. 3.) 



The foregoing tests proved that the 25-pound package of dried fruit 

 could be shipped long distances, and its shipping qualities compared 

 very well with the wooden box. 



These fiber-board boxes (PI. Ill) weigh much less than the wooden 

 box, and the saving on the freight would be considerable. In the 

 case of the 25-pound box the saving per car on the basis of $1.10 

 per 100 (freight rate) is about $23. It was estimated that the adop- 

 tion of this style of package would save one company approximately 

 $40,000 annually. 



