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The  Rural  Publishing  Co, 
333  W.  30th  Street 
New  York 
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Postpaid 
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solid  blocks  of  wood.  Boiling  was  carried  on  in 
huge  kettles  slung  over  open  fires,  the  sap  being 
dipped  from  kettle  to  kettle  down  the  line  as  it 
became  thickened  by  evaporation  until  finally  the 
finishing  or  “sugaring  off"  was  done  over  a  fire  of 
hemlock  bark  or  some  similar  fuel  that  would  give 
au  easily  controlled  heat  with  little  smoke  or  flame. 
The  resulting  syrup  or  sugar  was  strong  in  flavor 
and  dark  colored,  due  to  the  ashes  and  soot  which 
the  best  of  management  could  not  keep  out  with  the 
equipment  then  in  use. 
THE  PRIMITIVE  PRODITT.— Although  there 
was  little  invested  in  equipment  aside  from  labor — 
nearly  all  of  the  utensils  being  homemade — there 
was  little  money  to  lie  made  under  these  conditions. 
The  sugar  brought  but  a  low  price  and  due  to  the 
lack  of  labor  saving  devices  the  quantity  that  could 
be  made  in  a  single  season  by  one  man  was  small. 
Under  existing  conditions  all  this  is  changed. 
Modern  equipment  secures  a  greater  flow  of  sap 
from  the  tree,  enables  it  to  be  evaporated  more 
rapidly  and  results  in  a  greater  quantity  of  much 
better  sugar.  Due  to  the  quality  and  the  awakened 
demand,  maple  sugar  and  syrup  finds  ready  sale  at 
a  good  price,  and  the  fanner  who  has  a  "sugar 
bush"  oil  his  place  has  the  equivalent  of  a  small 
gold  mine — a  crop  that  can  be  harvested  without 
seeding. 
LABOR  ADVANTAGES. — Aside  from  the  direct 
money  return  from  the  sugar  sold,  a  sugar  hush  is 
an  advantage  in  that  it  makes  possible  a  more  even 
distribution  of  labor  throughout  the  year,  both  of 
men  and  teams.  This  is  desirable,  as  it  enables  a 
farmer  to  keep  good  help  when  once  secured,  and 
lessens  the  labor  cost  that  must  he  charged  to  other 
farm  operations.  Again  the  work  in  the  sugar 
woods  toughens  up  the  horses  and  puts  them  in 
shape  for  tlie  Spring’s  work  which  is  to  follow.  It 
furnishes  a  market  for  the  waste  wood  about  the 
farm,  and  enables  t lie  farmer  to  keep  his  waste 
picked  up  without  a  direct,  loss,  and  coming  as  it 
does  at  a  time  of  the  year  when  little  else  can  he 
done,  time  that  might  otherwise  be  wasted  is  turned 
into  profit. 
EQUIPMENT. — As  suggested  above  it  is  quality 
— the  delicate  and  indescribable  maple  flavor — that 
people  pay  for  when  they  buy  maple  syrup.  With¬ 
out  it  it  becomes  merely  a  sweetener  and  worth  no 
more  than  cane  sugar.  This  calls  for  the  use  of 
modern  equipment  and  to  secure  the  greatest  ofii- 
ciency  this  must  he  well  housed  and  arranged.  As 
all  sap  must  be  hauled  to  the  sugar  house  a  well- 
drained  location  as  easily  reached  as  possible  from 
all  parts  of  the  woods  should  be  chosen  for  its  site. 
To  permit  emptying  the  gathering  tank  into  the 
storage  tank  by  gravity  it  is  desirable  to  have  high¬ 
er  ground  nearby  where  a  driveway  can  lie  ar¬ 
ranged  and  the  storage  tank  reached  by  a  pipe  line. 
If  this  cannot  be  obtained  an  elevated  drive  can  be 
built,  hut  at  considerably  more  expense.  The  sugar- 
house  should  be  large  enough  to  store  the  buckets 
and  other  utensils  between  seasons.  16x20  feet  wi.h 
an  eight-foot  post  makes  a  size  large  enough  for 
the  average  bush.  It  should  he  well  lighted  and 
ventilated,  and  it  will  he  found  an  economy  to 
build  it  warm.  The  ventilator  should  extend 
lengthwise  of  the  roof  over  the  evaporator,  so  as 
to  carry  out  the  steam  and  vapor  as  fast  as  made. 
A  concrete  floor,  while  not  essential,  is  desirable 
and  is  not  expensive,  as  light  construction  is  suffi¬ 
cient.  To  support  the  evaporator  holes  should  he 
dug  below  the  frost  line,  and  filled  with  stone  and 
concrete  to  the  top  of  the  finished  floor  line  in  a 
position  for  the  legs  to  rest  upon.  If  put  in  in  this 
way,  after  being  once  leveled  up  the  evaporator 
will  not  be  thrown  out  of  position  by  the  frost.  If 
placed  directly  on  the  concrete  floor,  the  thawing 
beneath  the  fire  box  will  cause  settling  at  that  end. 
One  of  the  advantages  of  the  modern  evaporator 
is  shallow,  rapid  boiling — the  bottom  should  be 
covered  with  a  thin  sheet  of  sap  flowing  continu¬ 
ously  from  the  float-governed  inlet  to  the  outlet 
where  tlie  syrup  is  drawn  oil'.  To  secure  this  the 
mnchlile  must  be  set  perfectly  level. 
STORAGE  AND  GATHERING  TANKS.— The 
sugar  house  should  also  be  provided  with  a  bench 
along  one  side  and  a  soldoring  outfit.  With  this 
A  SIGN  OF  SPRING, — Tlie  first  warm  days  of 
Spring  start  a  l’ever  of  unrest  in  the  sugar- 
maker.  From  the  first  “caw”  of  the  crow  in  early 
March  until  the  cry  “Sap’s  runiiiu’ ”  in  the  latter 
pa H  of  the  same  month  announces  the  opening  of 
the  season,  every  change  of  the  weather  is  eagerly 
watched  in  tlie  hope  that  .Jack  Frost  has  really 
loosened  his  grip  a  little  and  that  “sugaring”  lias 
come.  Tlie  sugar  season  is  a  busy  and  merry  time 
on  any  farm  fortunate  enough  to  possess  a  stand 
A  Supply  of  Dry  Wood  is  Essential.  Fig.  178 
A  Modern  Gathering  Rig.  Fig.  180 
for  draining  ire  and  pouring  in  sap  without  spilling. 
It  should  be  low  to  prevent  tipping  and  to  do  away 
with  lifting  while  gathering  sap.  It  should  not 
overhang  tlie  sled  at  any  point,  as  such  construc¬ 
tion  might  bring  injury  to  it  if  it  should  happen 
to  slue  against  a  tree  or  other  obstruction.  It 
should  also  lie  easily  gotten  at  for  cleaning  and 
should  lie  provided  with  a  simple  efficient  means  of 
emptying. 
BUCKETS. — The  buckets  used  should  have  suffi¬ 
cient  flare  to  relieve  tlie  pressure  somewhat  should 
they  freeze.  At  head  around  the  top  which  prevents 
their  setting  together  tightly  enough  to  stick  is  an 
Washing  and  Drying  Sap  Buckets.  Fig.  181 
squirrels  and  birds  sip  tlie  sap  from  wounds  on 
the  trees,  the  Indians  had  learned  that  the  sap  of 
the  maple  was  sweet  and  collected  it  for  drinking 
purposes.  The  squaw  above  mentioned,  being  too 
lazy  to  go  to  the  Spring  for  water,  boiled  her  hus¬ 
band's  moose  meat  in  some  of  this  “sweet  water” 
with  the  result  that  they  had  their  first  taste  of 
in;tplo  syrup,  and  that  tliere-after  the  "sweet  water” 
lmd  a  use  other  than  drinking.  Whether  this  legend 
is  based  on  truth  or  not,  the  methods  employed  by 
the  early  settlers  were  scarcely  less  crude.  The 
trees  were  tapped  by  means  of  wooden  spouts  or 
“spiles,”  and  the  sap  caught  in  troughs  due  out  of 
advantage  in  handling.  Unless  covers  are  to  be 
used,  however,  the  top  should  not  he  too  large  as 
it  will  catch  too  much  storm  water.  An  extremely 
large  bucket  is  not  necessary  in  a  well-managed 
“hush"  as  the  sap  should  he  gathered  often  pre¬ 
venting  overflow  by  rapid  boiling  rather  than  stor¬ 
age.  Parallel  roads  laid  out  through  the  woods  are 
a  great  aid  in  gathering,  as  they  shorten  hand  car¬ 
rying  to  the  minimum.  They  also  provide  a  means 
by  which  the  gathering  can  be  systematized,  visit¬ 
ing  certain  sections  at  regular  intervals  and  keep¬ 
ing  the  sap  caught  up. 
SPOUTS  AND  TAPPING.— Much  of  the  success 
