Wateemelon Oultuee. 147 



be packed into the car in smooth, snug layers so that they 

 will not shift' or roll about, and should be four or five lay- 

 ers deep, which is the usual method according to the size ; 

 if the melons' are 30 pounds or larger, four layers in 36- 

 foot cars will make a car load ; if the melons are small or 

 the cars short five layers should be put in the door-way. 



All cars should be heavily bedded with straw or hay 

 and in packing the melons a handfuU of straw should be 

 placed between each melon and the side and end of the 

 car. This of course only applies to the outside tiers. 

 Cars that are well ventilated should be selected, especially 

 should 'cars have vents in the end at the bottom and all 

 shippers should be careful to see that the bottom vents are 

 open and that the doors are well ventilated. 



The door-ways in the cars' should be boarded up as high 

 as the melons are packed leaving cracks between these 

 boards so as not to interfere with the circulation of the air 

 through the ventilator doors. 



No melons should be loaded in ears that have contained 

 bulk acid phosphate, lime or salt unless- such cars are well 

 lined with heavy furniture or carpet paper so as to pre- 

 vent the melons from coming in contact with lime, salt or 

 phosphate. Unless the precautions are adhered to the 

 melons are apt to prove a total loss as they will rot fear- 

 fully under such conditions. 



I had 38 acres in Triumph melons this year and I 

 shipped 19 cars; about half these cars were loaded with 

 melons that averaged 45 pounds eadi and the other half 

 averaged from 30 to 35 pounds each. I could have shipped 

 five or six more cars of melons that would have averaged 

 25 pounds but the market was in such shape that it would 



