tern of fruit production on the immense 
scale which it has now reached, was in its in¬ 
fancy. The orchards and the vineyards had 
not been planted, aud the varieties of small 
fruits now mostly grown had not been origi¬ 
nated. But within a dozen years the business 
of growing fruits for market has reached a 
great magnitude in many sections of the coun¬ 
try. And most of this fruit is intended for 
distant markets, a comparatively small 
amount being sol i in towns near the place of 
production. For instance, California exports 
to the Eastern States nearly 4,000 car-loads of 
the various fruits in a season. The Florida 
orange crop is estimated at nearly a million 
boxes annually, which is about 4.000 car-loads 
again. The quantit y of strawberries market* 
ed yearly in one of our groat markets—Chica¬ 
go—amounts to over 1.500 car-loads. New 
York probably receives a larger quantity, and 
other cities proportionate amounts. The 
peach crop of the Delaware Peninsula fills 
five or six thousand cars. And so without at¬ 
tempting to compute the apple crop, which 
we nil know reaches vast figures yearly, or the 
grape and other importrnt crops grown so 
largely for distant markets, we see something 
of the magnitude of the interests involved in 
this question. 
How many millions of dollars are invested 
in commercial fruit growing in this country, 
and how many more millions are used in hand¬ 
ling these crops every year, no one can tell; 
but it has become one of the large industries 
of the time, and the number of people who 
make their living in the production and hand¬ 
ling of the American fruit crops reaches hun¬ 
dreds of thousands. Hence anything that 
can contribute to the successful outcome of 
this industry is of importance to the country. 
Perhaps no one who is familiar with fruit 
markets will question that there is great room 
for improvement in our methods of handling 
fruits in three important particulars—in bet¬ 
ter packing, iu better packages and in better 
cars for transportation. I have heard it esti¬ 
mated by dealers that fully one half of all the 
fruits seut to market were so badly packed or 
so badly carried as to pay little if any profit 
to the grower. My own observation leads 
me to tliiuk this a moderate opinion. If this 
is correct it shows that one-half of all the 
labor and capital invested in fruit growing iu 
this country is wasted, aud this because of de¬ 
fects in our system of doing business, which 
can be cured. 
liet us look at some facts. I hare seen 
hundreds of bushels of strawberries arrive in 
one of our Northern cities, where not one 
package could he found in good sound condi¬ 
tion for use or reshipping, simply because of 
the style of package used—old-fashioned West¬ 
ern “stand of drawers,'' being wholly uusuited 
to the long carriage of delicuto fruits. The 
berries referred to were large, well grown aud 
well picked, but were practically thrown 
away in these wretched half-bushel drawers, 
nearly every berry iu every drawer arriving 
bruised aud bleeding from a journey of about 
3l)t) miles. If picked and sent iu nice quart 
boxes or baskets, they would have borne such 
a journey with little damage. And yet this 
folly of using such ruinous puekages is repeat¬ 
ed year after year, with similar results. There 
is n large district, iu this country where ber¬ 
ries are grown for distant markets on a large 
scale, where all the profit that should be pos¬ 
sible from well growu strawberry crops ap¬ 
peal’s to be thrown away iu marketing iu 
such clumsy packages. The remedy in this 
case is cheap, near at hand and “easy to take. 1 ) 
Again, a very large portion of the straw¬ 
berries grown in the South for Northern ship¬ 
ment. although put up m suitable packages, 
fails to reach the markets 1,000 miles or more 
away, not because of the distance or the time 
comsumed, but because of rough usage by 
transportation companies, or the inevitable 
heating which results from idling large 
amounts of fresh fruit in close, hot cars. In 
this ease it is the transportation that should 
be improved. Different cars are needed. 
Strawberries can be successfully shipped long 
distances—a thousand miles, even two thous¬ 
and miles if need be, for this is done every 
year. But they must be kept cool all the time. 
Strawberries will last several days in lino con¬ 
dition iu a tomperaature of 50 degrees, and 
keep well enough to be marketed when ex¬ 
posed to a higher temperature afterwards; 
while the same berries will hardly survive a 
day’s journey iu ears that subject them to our 
summer beat. The distant marketing of ber¬ 
ries requires the best of modern packages, und 
cool, or so-called refrigerator transportation. 
With the best appliances of this kind, the most 
distant markets can be safely reached, aud 
disastrous gluts measurably avoided. This 
conclusion is based upon my own experience 
running through a number of years. 
A friend of mine, an orange grower iu 
South Florida, last Winter sent the product 
of his grove to market after the freeze when 
prices were high. He got the best cars he 
could, which were common freight cars, 
packed with great care to prevent freezing up 
in transit, and awaited results. His two cars 
were detained by high water at the Ohio 
River; a cold wave came, his oranges were 
frozen solid, and before reaching market 
had thawed out and heated, and with 
the juice running from most of the boxes they 
did not pay freight. There were 82,000 tb rnwn 
away for lack of a good refrigerator car that 
would protect its load equally agaiDst cold 
and heat. Dealers tell me that so large a pro¬ 
portion of the Florida orange crop suffers from 
frost or from heat fluring the winter journey, 
that it renders the crop a treacherous one to 
handle and heavy losses are liable to occur. 
The orange is a good-keeping fruit, and with 
acid and just a suspicion of sweet, certainly 
very good. This does not agree at all with 
the description given by Mr Gibb, from Dr. 
Regel in 9th Mont. Hort. Soc.’s Rept., p. 82, 
but is more like “Rosy,” No, 274, p. 85, yet 
not agreeing in season. I make this report as 
a contribution towards fixiug the description 
and nomenclature of Russian apples, which is 
in such confusion. T. h. hoskins. 
Newport, Vt. 
ST. PETER’S APPLE. 
On August 25, Dr. T. H. Hoskins, of New¬ 
port, Vermont, sent to this office specimens of 
the above apple, and said: “The St. Peter's 
apple (shown at Fig. 383, with cross-section at 
ST. PETER'S APPLE. From Nature. Fig. 383. 
a system of handling and transportation 
adapted to its needs, it can be placed in the re¬ 
motest markets of the country with safety 
and profit to all concerned. I am told that 
there wpre many sad homes in Florida last 
Winter when the returns from Northern mar¬ 
kets were received, for crops in which all the 
hopes for a year’s living were centered, and all 
or maiuly because of the crude and imperfect 
means of transportation for this great golden 
harvest of our romantic, sub-tropical State; 
aud yet Florida oranges were not low-priced to 
the consumer last Winter. 
Space forbids any expansion of this argu¬ 
ment. Let me say, briefly, that we are not 
producing too much good fruit, but we are 
putting half of it into market in so poor a con¬ 
dition as to be unprofitable; aud we fail in our 
system of distribution. Concerning this I 
may write again. 
Cobdeu, HI, 
POPOFF’S STREAKED APPLE. 
Tnis apple (No. 247 of the Department List 
of 1870), cions of which I received from Mr. 
384) is one of the Department of Agricul¬ 
ture's importations from Russia in 1869-70, 
which is becoming very popular in the “cold 
North,” under the uame of the Russian Early 
Joe. It is an iron-clad, an early and profuse 
bearer aud a very thrifty tree. Its quality, 
when ripened on the tree, is “very good,” and 
it must rank among the dessert apples of this 
class. It is, I think, about as good as the Yel¬ 
low Transparent, aud almost exactly of the 
same season. It is, however, much smaller 
than that apple. It has the advantage in its 
red color, though the ivory white of the Trans¬ 
parent is quite pleasing enough to excite appe¬ 
tite. I am now marketing quite a large crop 
of the latter at 81 a bushel.” 
IjoiluMiltural, 
THE CRYSTAL WHITE BLACKBERRY. 
This originated in Illinois. By whom or 
when we know not. We received our plants 
from J. T. Lovett, of New Jersey, in May of 
'72. A/-Y 
ST. PETER’S APPLE. 
Cross Sectiou. 
Fig. 384. 
A, Webster, of Roxbury, Vt., a few years 
ago, has produced some fruit this season, and 
I wish to call attention to it as an apple of 
great beauty and high quality for dessert. It 
is true that, there are many other good apples 
of the same season (Sept, here), but this is so 
particularly and peculiarly good aud pretty 
that it should certainly be placed, on tho 
amateur list of iron-clads. It is of medium 
size, roundish-oblate, with small cavity and 
basin, short stem aud small, closed calyx. Iu 
ground color it is ivory -white, when ripe, but 
nearly covered with fine, rosy-carmine stripes, 
spots and splashes, without dots of any kind. 
The llcsli is as white as that of Fameuse, but 
partially stAined with the same rosy-carmine 
as the surface. Tho texture is flue, tender 
aud delicate iu the extreme, even more so 
than the best Fameuse, and the flavor not 
high, but sprightly and delicate, with a slight 
last year. They have made a strong growth 
ami have borne a few fruit this season, of 
which the illustration. Fig. 885, is as true to 
nature as our artist could make it The canes 
and leaves are of a lighter green than those of 
other kinds of blackberries, the leaflets much 
narrower, as shown, This variety is said to 
be somewhat tender and not very productive. 
The plants were not seriously injured at the 
Rural Grounds by the past Winter. As to 
productiveness, we cannot as yet speak. The 
berries are of a translucent, dull white, sweet 
and teuder. 
Why give space for an illustration and des¬ 
cription of a fruit that has so little to recom¬ 
mend itf Ob. we like curious things. They 
give the charm of variety to the country 
home; to the children; to our friends and 
visitors. Those who plant, arrange, study 
aud live ouly with an eye to profit are blind 
in the other eye and can’t see or experience 
. half of life’s pleasures. 
Keeping Butter in Brine. —Those who 
prefer freshly made butter. but cannot al- 
wavs obtain a supply, says the New England 
Farmer, have sometimes attempted to keep 
roll butter fresh by immersing it. in a strong 
brine, supposing that it would thus escape the 
disagreeable woody taste of butter packed 
solid in tubs; but in most cases such experi¬ 
ments have been anything but satisfactory. 
The difficulty still remains, because the wood 
flavor is taken up bv the brine ami imparted 
to the butter. The Live Stock Journal gives 
the following directions for preparing tubs or 
casks for keeping butter in brine: 
“Make a saturated brine of the purest salt 
von can get. using a pound of saltpetre to 
about 20 pounds of salt. Scald the brine by 
bringing it to i boiling hear. skim, and aonly 
wlieu sufficientlv cool. The casks should be 
carefully prepared, as well as the brine. If 
the gum and sap in the wood are not removed 
before the casks are used, they will work out 
into the brine and,affect the butter. To re¬ 
move the woody flavor from the casks a thor¬ 
ough steaming with a high pressure is the 
quickest and best means. If soaked before 
tne steam is applied, hot steam will cut the 
gum and woo.I v flavor nil out. in a -hort time. 
If steam is not convenient, soak in brine till 
the wood is saturated. Then fill with boiling- 
hot brine, and let it stand until it gets cold, 
when the woody flavor will be sufficiently re¬ 
moved. Bv keening the butter under the 
brine and the cask in a cool place, the butter 
will keep safely.” 
Mr. T. S. Gold, who keeps a large herd of 
cows for the sale of milk, and has a large fam¬ 
ily table to supply, has for many years made 
his surplus milk into butter and preserved it in 
four-pound rolls wrapped in cloth and im¬ 
mersed in casks of brine. He thus avoids over¬ 
crowd ing the milk market in flush periods, and 
the purchasing of butter for family use in the 
season of high prices. The wrappere should 
be well confined around the roll to prevent 
bits of butter from separating and floating on 
the surface, and the whole must be kept under 
brine constantly, for the smallest piece ex¬ 
posed would soon spoil the brine and thus all 
its contents. 
Mr Chcever approves of this method if one 
can do no better. But he has never yet seen 
any preserved butter that is quite equal to 
that which is freshly made, that is, butter not 
over one week old. 
- - - ««» 
FINALLY. 
Mr.Thomas Meehan sa vs that where he sees 
a farmer who has no love for the beautiful, for 
flowers, for home comforts, and pleasant sur¬ 
roundings, he usually finds no happiuess, and 
an unworthy member of society. He is not 
pit pared to say that such are always the inevi¬ 
table results, but the tendencies are in that 
direction... 
Mr. Gibb mentions in the last, report of the 
Montreal Hort. Society that the Yellow-wood 
(Cladrastis tinctoria. too often printed Cladas- 
tisi has thus far proven hardy with him (Ab- 
bortsford, ?. Q.. Cauada). He thinks it one 
of the finest o' the Americiu flowering trees. 
He commends tc > TV to Tree (Liriodendron 
tulipifera) for trial in sheltered city gardens. 
But it is certainly the last tree we should select 
for such a little place. It is too large for the 
street or lawu.not. to speak of a “city garden.” 
Mr. Gibb pleases us when he says that the 
lauded “Russian Mulberry” has been sold at 
au outrageous price. Our readers know that 
we planted this tree at the Rural Grounds 
when it was first talked of, and condemned it as 
not of any special value. The best kinds of the 
Russian Mulberry produce fruit inferior to the 
Downing, and are valuable only as the trees 
are hardier. These should be propagated from 
cuttings—not from seed as has been the ease 
with the kinds offered for sale. Of course, a 
large proportion are absolutely worthless, so 
far as the fruit is concerned. 
The Russian Mulberry is worth uot over 
15 cents a tree. It has been sold at prices 
varying from one to two dollars... 
Mr. Gibb says that the new Phellodendron 
Amurense js uot hardv in Canada. It is en¬ 
tirely hardy at the Rural Grounds. In gen¬ 
eral appearance it might be called an improv¬ 
ed ailanthus..... 
Mr. Gibb finds the curiously beautiful Gin¬ 
kgo Tree (Salisburia adiautifolia) nearly 
hardy with him. It is certainly worthy of a 
high place among all collections of any pre¬ 
tentions whatever....,... 
A late bulletin of the Michigan Agricul¬ 
tural College says that Clawson IVheat yielded 
18?., bushels per acre ou eight acres. It pro¬ 
duced “a heavy growth of straw which lodged 
badly and gave a shrunken, poor quality of 
grain... 
Rogers’s^A mber yielded 26}^ bushels per 
