740 = 474 
Fmit Cultivation. 
Counties, apples and pears were principally grown for cid 
and perry, lor local consumption. Each farm had orchard-lai 
enough to supply its own labourers w ith cider, which they drar (I 
and still drink, in enormous quantities. Since then more atte ^ 
tion has been paid to the management of the orchards, large ad( H 
tions have been made to the acreage, and more care has be |i 
taken in the selection of good sorts of apples and pears that ; k 
handsome, and well flavoured for eating and cooking, to supj k 
the large demand for fruit in the manufacturing towns. Mu ll! 
improvement has also taken place in the manufacture of cider a ii 
perry, which has now an extensive sale in many parts of Englai ■ 
Apples for cider are laid in heaps for some days to ma » 
them quite ripe or " mellow," and to cause chemical chant w 
necessary to ensure good cider, especially the decrease of ve< |- 
table gluten, the presence of which causes undue fermentatir j 
When mellow, the apples are crushed by stone rollers, the pi | ^ 
is put into a press in horsehair bags, and the juice is squeei I' 
out and put into casks, where it is fermented and racked off t 
lees into other casks in due time. For making sweet cider 
cider for bottling, the pulp is not squeezed until several hoi k 
after it has been ground, fermentation is carefully watched, a P 
racking frequently done. Coarse brown sugar is sometin 'i 
added, and the colour is heightened, according to fancy, s 
the addition of extract of logwood. The average price of ci( '•■ 
is about 2,1. 5s. per hogshead, and the average return of cider ] • 's 
acre may be put at 8 hogsheads. Perry is made in the sa ■ £: 
manner as cider, only that the fruit is pressed as soon as it cor i • 
from the trees. ji 
Apple-orchar.ls Coming next to Devonshire and Somersetshire, with th"|i 
form the chkf large acreages of fruit-land, it will be found that applc-orcha > <ii 
part of the £ chief part of it, and that the remarks that have bi i e 
tnut-land of . i tt /- i i • • i 11 l IT 
Devonshire and made With regard to Hereiordshire apply generally to thJilii 
Somersetshire, counties. Cider is largely made, and is sent to all parts of ^ » 
kingdom.* Eating-apples are grown in the best orchards, an i 
great improvement has recently taken place in tlie managem t ,5 
of the land. Orchards in Devonshire are situated for the m t n 
part in the southern division of the county, upon the Old 1 1 :i 
Sandstone formation, in the South Hams district, and in ^ jj 
fertile valleys by the rivers Dart and Erme. In Somersets! ' [(« 
the principal fruit-area is in the northern part of the coui , a 
under the Mendip range of hills, and in the centre, in the r 1 to 
vale of the Tone. The rent of land varies from 3/. 10*-. to . U 
per acre, and 9 hogsheads of cider per acre represents the aver 
* Devonshire cider is considered the l)est that is made in England, 
bottled to a large extent and sent to all i)arts of the country. 
