STORAGE OF CALIFORNIA TABLE GRAPES. 23 
notes on the different brands offered, and at the sales, which are held 
later, bids are made from these notes. The different lots are kept 
separate at the auction, so that each brand establishes a reputation 
of its own, and in time the reputation of a brand, based on the 
holding quality of the fruit and its behavior on the market, will 
largely influence the price which buyers are willing to pay. 
The handling of grapes packed in drums will necessitate some 
changes in the manner of selling the California product in eastern 
markets. In general, the methods which have been adopted at the 
auction sales are the same as those used in selling the imported 
Almeria grapes. In the case of the latter, however, the different 
lots are emptied on an elevator platform, which is run up to the center 
of the auction room where the grapes are inspected and sold. The 
bidding on the different lots is generally very rapid, and the business 
consumes only a minute or two. In this way large numbers of barrels 
are quickly sold, frequently 10,000 to 20,000 being disposed of at a 
single sale. 
REFRIGERATION OR VENTILATION IN TRANSIT. 
A test of the possibility of shipping sawdust-packed grapes 
without refrigeration was made during the past season. One car- 
load of grapes in drums, composed of shipments from the F, G, 
D, and B vineyards, was forwarded from Las Palmas on November 
5, the car being handled under ventilation while en route. The 
fruit arrived in Jersey City on November 17 and went into cold 
storage on November 21, the condition on arrival being generally 
good. The drums were placed on end in the storehouse and an 
average temperature of 32° F. maintained. An examination made 
of the stock showed the fruit from shipper B to be of good quality, 
well bunched, and in good condition. The D-vineyard fruit had fair- 
sized bunches, with medium-sized berries, but the barrels were rather 
light as to weight of fruit. The Emperors from shipper G showed 
irregular quality, some berries being small and others large; and the 
F-vineyard fruit was of irregular size, some of it being very small 
and straggling. Examination of the fruit after it had been held 
in cold storage for 10 days showed that it was deteriorating very 
rapidly, and for this reason it was disposed of as quickly as pos- 
sible. Most of the shipper-B fruit was sold at private sale, but 
the bulk of the carload was sold at auction in small lots on Decem- 
ber 10, 12, 17, and 19. The average prices realized on this fruit 
ranged from $1.17 per drum for the G-vineyarcl fruit, one lot of 
70 drums of this brand selling for 95 cents a drum, to $2.81 per 
drum for the shipper-B fruit, the average carload price being $2.13 
per drum. These returns were considerably below those received 
