68 EIGHTH REPORT OF THE 



fallen tops, bagging and carrying them to where they could be loaded on a wagon 

 or sled. The method employed varied with the individual. Some pickers put the 

 pail on the ground, pulling off the cones with one or both hands, after the fashion 

 of picking blackberries. Another method followed was to cut off the small, heavily 

 laden twigs, and thrash them over the edge of the pail until the cones had all 

 fallen into it. Probably the best way, especially for a man picking by the bushel, 

 is one that might be termed the stripping method. The pail was set on the 

 ground, under the end of a Spruce branch, or held between the legs. The picker 

 reaches back along the branch, one hand on either side, shuts his hands and pulls 

 towards him, stripping the cones off into the pail. A quart or more may often be 

 obtained in this way at a single pull. The only disadvantage is that many small 

 ends of twigs are broken off and have to be picked out later. As most of the 

 cones are covered with large globules of soft pitch, the collecting is both unpleasant 

 and slow. This difficulty, however, is easily remedied by a few drops of kerosene 

 oil, which effectually cuts the pitch and allows the cones to fall from the hand 

 into the bucket. 



The cones were drawn to the drying-house at Fulton Chain every third day, 

 or oftener. They could not be left in the sacks any longer, as they are at all 

 times apt to become heated. A reddish-brown color, a feeling of warmth, or a 

 strong, sprucy odor, are indications of heating. The topography will naturally 

 affect the expense of cutting roads and difficulty in getting the cones to the 

 drying-house. In this case the cartage amounted to ten cents per bushel, the 

 distance averaging six miles for the round trip. 



Drying- fl)e Cones. 



A room for drying the cones, so that the scales would open and loosen the 

 seeds, was rented at Fulton Chain Station. Wooden frames or racks, like the bunks 

 in a logging camp, were erected, into which the sacks were emptied and the cones 

 spread out to dry. Two stoves were put up in the room, and the drying process 

 was thus hastened by artificial heat. 



Where a considerable quantity of seed is to be gathered, the bulky volume of 

 the cones necessitates a large room with a great area of drying space. From our 

 experience in this particular part of the work it would appear that the best form 

 for the racks or bins can be obtained by using two by four scantling for uprights, 

 with cross-pieces for the support of the boards which form the bottoms of the 

 bins. As the cones are heavy, these uprights should be olaced at intervals of 

 six feet. The bins should be in tiers, one above another, four tiers high. The 



