384 The Principles of Fruit-growing 



itself would not be considered to be first class if placed 

 amongst fruits either very much larger or very much 

 smaller. In other words, there is a great difference 

 between a perfect specimen and a first-class parcel. 



Perhaps it will answer all requirements to define first- 

 class fruit as a quantity of sufficient amount to be quoted 

 in the market (as one box, basket or barrel), that is thor- 

 oughly well packed and of one variety, and in which the 

 individual specimens are very nearly uniform in size, 

 shape and degree of ripeness, are possessed of full-length 

 stems (in stem-bearing fruits), are free from bruises and 

 injuries and all insect and fungous blemishes, are fully 

 characteristic of the variety, and are in that stage of 

 maturity that the market demands at the time of their 

 exposure for sale. 



The grading. 



The more personal and local the market, the more 

 exacting that market is; and therefore the greater the atten- 

 tion to be paid to the details of sorting and grading. 



The proper grading of fruit is greatly facilitated by 

 thinning the fruits on the trees, a subject that has received 

 specific treatment in Chapter VII. Recently, useful 

 mechanical graders have been devised, and used even 

 for the softer tree fruits. They are to be considered 

 when different sizes are to be made in the same grade. 

 The recent laws to regulate grades and packages will 

 necessarily demand more attention to the sizes in the 

 pack. 



It is evident, therefore, that if fruit is sorted, two 

 grades will result, — the first-class grade and the remainder. 

 In small-fruits, these two grades — known as the firsts 

 and the seconds — usually comprise the entire crop, and 



