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practice of the country, it is placed in heaps of ten 

 inches or a foot thick, and exposed to the sun and 

 air, and rain ; not being ever covered except in very- 

 severe frosts. The strength and flavour of the future 

 liquor are, however, increased by keeping the fruit 

 under cover some time before it is ground ; but unless 

 a situation can be afforded it, in which it is exposed 

 to a free current of air, and where it can be spread 

 very thin, it is apt to contract an unpleasant smell, 

 which will much affect the cider produced from it. 

 Few farms are provided with proper buildings for this 

 purpose on a large scale, and the improvement of the 

 liquor will not nearly pay the expense of erecting 

 them. It may reasonably be supposed that much 

 water is absorbed by the fruit in a rainy season, but 

 the quantity of juice yielded by any given quantity of 

 fruit will be found to diminish, as the fruit becomes 

 more mellow, even in very wet weather, provided it 

 be ground when thoroughly dry ; and we are not quite 

 satisfied that the apple does not receive benefit from 

 the sun and light, subsequently to its being taken 

 from the tree. The advantages therefore of covering 

 the fruit will, probably, be much less than may at 

 first sight be expected. No criterion appears to be 

 known by which the most proper point of maturity in 

 the fruit can be ascertained with accuracy, but we have 

 good reason to believe that it improves, as long as it 

 continues to acquire a deeper shade of yellow, without 



