OF FRUIT. 



227 



apart. The cross pieces (E) attached to the uprights 

 support other cross pieces (F), both those that are 

 horizontal and oblique, the latter cut in notches fol- 

 lowing the rise of the shelves, and upon which the 

 shelves are placed. 



In the centre of the fruit-house must be a table, I, fig. 

 185, ten feet long and 40 inches wide, separated from the 

 shelves by a space of three feet. The table should be 

 surrounded by a ledge, and the space beneath occu- 

 pied by shelves placed horizontally, like the others. 



It may occur that a great part of the cost of the 

 fruit-house may be avoided. If, for instance, there is 

 an underground cave or grotto, advantage may be 

 taken of it to establish the fruit-house therein. In 

 this case there will be nothing to do but to fit it up 

 interiorly with shelves and so on, as we have just 

 described. In every case it is indispensable that the 

 cave or grotto be perfectly dry and well protected from 

 the exterior temperature. 



Care of the Fruit in the Fruit-house. — The success of 

 the preservation of fruit still depends upon the care 

 taken of it while in the fruit-house. As the fruit is 

 brought in it is placed upon the table, which should be 

 covered with a thin layer of dry moss. The fruit is 

 then sorted, and each variety set apart ; all the bruised 

 and unsound fruit should be carefully put aside ; the 

 rest of the fruit should then be left upon the table 

 for two or three days, in order to lose part of its 

 humidity. When this time has elapsed, after covering 

 the shelves with a thin layer of dry moss or cotton, 

 and wiping each fruit carefully with a small piece of 



