AMERICAN-GKOWN PAPRIKA. 
19 
wire. After the wire has been tacked on, a board 6 inches wide is 
nailed to the end of the four sides of the frame, thereby making a 
container 5 inches in depth. These wire crates are supported in the 
barn by timbers 2 by 4 inches nailed across from one side to the 
other. The crate should rest on three of these, one being at each 
end and one at the center. The first layer of these crates is about 6 
feet above the floor of the barn. An opening 4 feet wide is left the 
entire width of the barn and extends to the top. On each side of 
this opening the crates are placed, four to each level and four tiers 
high. Between each 
two crates a space is 
left, and the crates on 
the next tier above 
are not placed directly 
over those below, but 
alternate with the open 
spaces. This gives 
room for 16 crates to 
each side, with an open 
space through the cen- 
ter of the barn. About 
4 bushels of the fresh- 
ly picked pods can be 
placed in each of these 
crates, making a total 
of 128 bushels to each 
curing. 
After the crates are 
placed in position and 
filled the heat may be 
started. This is done 
by building a fire in 
the furnaces outside. 
The heat is advanced 
directly to between 135° and 150° F. and held at that point for about 
72 hours, the time required to complete the process. The peppers are 
then taken out and placed in containers in some good storage house 
until through the absorption of a slight amount of water from the air 
the pods become somewhat flexible. 
STORAGE. 
After the peppers are taken from the drying barn they should be 
placed in a good dry storage house and left in the containers until 
they become flexible. They should then be worked over, taking out all 
<. &0-0- sj 
^ca/e o-f fee/-. 
/ O / e 3 <* S 6 
Fig. 9. — End view of a paprika curing house, showing- 
furnaces, smoke pipes, and the arrangement of the 
interior framework to support the crates. 
