660 
THE TROPICAL AGRiCULTURlST. [April i, 1902. 
the gum drops down and disapi^ears in the soil, 
■ while the farmer can very readily observe any 
evidence of decay in the roots, so as to remove the 
affected parts. This clearing of the roots has 
effectively remedied the evil, and the exposed roots 
rapidly accommodate themselves to the atmosphere, 
while the improvement in the health of the trees 
has been most apparent. Within the last few 
years it has been found neces.sary to apply to the 
roots of every thirty trees some 70 kilos, or about 
100 lbs, of artificial manure annually, mostly super- 
phosphates, but very little natural manure 
being available. This, unfortunately, has been 
found to cause a deterioration in the flavour of the 
fruit, an evil that must increase as the time goes 
on, for another decade at least. The species of 
trees found there are by no means as large as those 
of Jamaica, but this may be accounted for, in 
some measure, by the vigilant pruning and the 
removal of both tops and branches which are 
likely to interfere with the development of the 
fruit. 
Plucking. — As to the method of picking the 
oranges. In no instance are they plucked, but with 
a short pair of clippers, resembling wire cutting 
pliers, they are snipped from the stem, three or 
four oranges being received by the left hand at a 
time. Before placing the oranges in the basket 
the portion of stem remaining on the fruit is cut 
close ; boys with baskets slung from their shoulders 
being employed to climb for the fruit beyond the 
teach of the men. The fruit is in no case thrown 
into heaps as with us, but when twenty or thirty 
baskets are filled the cart comes along and carries 
them off to the packing houses ; the first layer of 
baskets being placed in a swinging shelf under- 
neath the cart, the second on the bottom, and 
the third on a layer of boards forming an upper 
tier, so that there is little or no pressure put on 
the oranges up to this stage of handling. I would re- 
mark that, mules and horses are utilised for reaching 
portions of the orchard inaccessible to carts. They 
carry about six or eight baskets on wooden orates 
slung across the backs of the animals, and on 
arrival at the packing house the fruit is emptied 
on the floor to the depth of not more than twelve 
to eighteen inches; sand and straw being freely 
distributed to receive them. A typical packing 
house has a floor space of about 70 ft. by 120 ft., 
evade the necessity for shelves in laying out the fruit, 
the shelf system being deprecated by the packers 
as causing unnecessary handling of the fruit, and 
being more inaccessible to the sorter. There are 
. no sizing machines in use, as they save nothing in 
time and labour, each orange requiring to be in- 
dividually culled with or without them; but then 
the Spanish women are experts at this business. 
The buildings are divided into four distinct depart- 
ments, viz : — sorting, wrapping, box-making, and 
packing. The sorting is the most important portion 
of the work and is generally accomplished by elderly 
women of long experience. The oranges are sorted", 
first, that damaged or imperfect fruit, or fruit with 
a blemish, such as a worm hole, a depression from 
contact with a branch while growing, or for any 
other reason that the sorters may consider them as 
unfit for shipment, may be laid aside. Under this 
head 20 per cent, of the harvest is rejected and 
finds its way to local markets. 
GlahsiI'^ication. — Much care and study has been 
l)Cstowed upon the classification of the oranges ; for 
wo find thnt thoy arc packed into boxes, of some 
ijiiVvn diUwont lii^os.' Blood oranges, for example, 
are packed into cases of 200 each. Then under the 
heading of " 410," which are the largest oranges, 
we have four sizes : " Ordinary," " Large," " Extra 
Large," and " Extra, Extra Large " ; these names 
being printed upon the respective boxes, and iiidi- 
cate a variation of three or four inches in the size 
of the box. Cases containing 714 are usually of one 
size only, as also are boxes of 1064, which contain 
the smallest oranges of the crop. Each box is divided 
into three compartments by two partitions, the centre 
space being sorter than the outer two. It is thought 
that these boxes would be much too large for our 
fruit. This may be so, although the reasons given 
are not very convincing so far. There is a possibility 
of going too far in the opposite direction, and- 
certainly the boxes that prevail here at present do 
not permit of as ready success of air through the 
fruit, seeing that the openings are only at the cor- 
ners, the sides, top and bottom generally being each 
of one piece, while the Spanish box is made up of 
narrow laths forming practically a crate, but experi- 
ence will shortly demonstrate to us whether oars or 
the Spanish box will best serve the purpose. In 
any case the barrel must go. The variety of classes 
accounts for the large number of baskets required in 
a well-equipped packing house, as separate baskets 
are required to receive from the hands of the sorter 
the particular size of fruit intended for the above 
grades. It will thus be seen that the basket plays an 
important part in the orange business, and facili- 
tates the handling of the fruit to such an extent that 
I cannot understand why it has never been adopted 
in Jamaica. They are of two sorts — shallow and 
wide, so that the orange may not have too far to 
drop during the operations of sorting and wrapping, 
and deep and narrow, so that they can be easily 
carried upon the shoulders. I shipped a sample 
order of 200 in the hope that our planters might see 
the wisdom of adopting them. They are woven from 
Esparto grass and with ordinary use will last many 
seasons. To minimise still further the possibility 
of the fruit being bruised or injured the packers of 
Valencia line them throughout with sacking. 
Wbapping. — Between the sorters and the packers 
are the wrappers sitting in groups around heaps of the 
fruit, each heap of a certain class, and being supplied 
by the men who take them from the sorters, here 
again they are subject to further inspection, and 
blemished fruit which may have escaped the scrutiny 
of the sorters is thrown aside. I have here some 
samples of the paper used for wrapping, please ob- 
serve that each bear the stamp or trade-marK of the 
packer, a guarantee of the quality of his fruit, andhe 
is proud enough of his brand to stand by the conse- 
quence attached to carelessness on the part of his 
employees. No oranges are shipped from Spain 
which do not bear on each end of the case a sten- 
cilled trade-mark or brand of the packer, also num- 
ber of oranges contained in the box. The brand 
also indicates whether the fruit is of good quality, or 
finest or superior quality. The wrapper has a pile 
of cut papers in her lap, and dexterously placing an 
orange at one end rolls it from her, gathering the 
ends in a tight twist at each side, which holds the 
paper in place prettily and perfectly, An ordinary 
hand can do 20 to 25 per minute. The wrapping 
paper is of a very fine, soft, silky quality, made in 
Spain. The cost there for enough to wrap an 
average of 240 boxes is 80 pesetas, or about £2 7s 6d 
according to rate of exchange ; stamping, 20 pesetas 
or lis. 7d. The wrapped fruit is then carried to 
that portion of the house where they are packed in 
their respective boxes according to giae and olaES, 
