548 
■Ghc RURAL NEW-YORKER 
liidily siuvessful, jind oiir members .nil agree lliat 
nuch of tliat snecess lias been clue to: Good orgaiii- 
j;ation wliieh was perfected tbrougli tbe help of the 
l^ureaii of Markets of the State Department of Agri¬ 
culture; strict government inspection of all stock; 
selling through unusual channels, mostly direct to 
groujis of consumers willing to pay well for the 
lest work; and. most important of all, the dally 
rcirsonal interest taken by all the members in all 
th<> work of Ihe association. eabt.e dieati'sh. 
Canning Apples and Pineapples 
Part TI. 
'I'en years .ago iiiueapjde canning was a largo and 
profitable industry in the Pniled States and gave 
employment to thousands of workers in Baltimore, 
wliere the greater jiart of the industry was centered. 
The pines were shipiied from southern points to 
Baltimore, from Florida and the Bahamas, in schoon- 
♦•;rs and other siiiling vessels. The fruit was ship])ed 
green and by the time it arrived at the Baltimore 
•canneries it was ripe and ready for canning, but it 
was ripened after being gathered. Some years ago 
the Ifawaiian Islands entered the pineapple indus¬ 
try, and from that time canning of pineapples in the 
TJnited States has gradually diminished, due to the 
fact that the Hawaiian pineapples, being canned on 
the plantations, where the fimit ripens before being 
gathered, arc so very sujierior In flavor to the Balti¬ 
more canned products that the consumers have grad¬ 
ually s”wung to the Pacific canned product. The 
process of pineapjile canning, in bi-ief, is this: The 
jiines come to the factory and at once have the tuft 
removed by a twisting motion. Then the apple is 
“eyed” by having the eyes or depressions removed 
by a little circular pipe-like knife, then ])eeled either 
by a straight hand knife or by a revolving circular 
knife which is like a small circular saw on the end 
of a flexible shaft, something like the arrangement 
of the cutter on the end of a horse clipping machine, 
or the drilling machines the dentists use. After be¬ 
ing peeled, the pines are placed in a “sizer,” which is 
a machine that peels or grates the outside of the 
apple down to the size of the can in which it is to be 
placed. Before leaving this machine the pine is 
sliced so that when it leaves the machine, although 
being, to .all ai)peai’ances, an entire a])ple just the 
size of the can in which it is to be jfiaced, it really 
is a series of i-ings which, when duinj)ed from the 
can, fall a])a)‘t in slices, fi^he gratings or waste from 
this process .are canned separately for soda fountain 
use. Sometimes, inste.ad of being peeled and “eyed” 
by hand, the apple is phfced directly in the sizer, 
ihe wastes being used for a cheaper trade than the 
other method. After being placed in the can a suit¬ 
able syru]> is added, this syrup many times being 
made from the “gratings,” which are pi-essed and 
<‘onc(mtrated. 'Then the top is “seamed” on and the 
cans i)rocessed ami labeled jeady for market. 
The fruit preserves busii*ess is distinct from the 
canning business, being to a great extent a M inter 
proposition. 1 do not know of any place whei’e a 
person can go to learn the canning or pi’cseiwing 
business. If a person enters the employ of a large 
f.actory he will see only that pai’t of the 
work which he is to do, and will never get a chance 
to learn anything else. 'The in'opiietors are too busy 
to Itother wlUi him, and nobody else cares. 'The best 
way, according to my manner of thinking, is t<j start 
at home with a small outfit and learn the business 
as one goes along. Canning and preserving is a busi¬ 
ness that should be located on the farm, carried on 
by farmers and run for the benefit of the farming 
community. wARroim. 
New York. 
Why Plum Trees Fail to Fruit 
[This vear we have had many questions like the fol¬ 
lowing:- ‘“Mv plum trees bloom each yeai;^but I rarely 
find a ripe fruit. What is the reason?’ The following 
statement from F. S. Black covers most of the ground.] 
Y oU have conpfiaiiits from people about their 
plum trees not bearing. They appear healthy 
and strong, bloom freely, 5 "et rarely produce a plum, 
jiiid ask me to give you my reasons why these plum 
ii-ees will not bear fruit. There being nothing spe- 
lific in this proposition on which to base an oiunion, 
it is rather dilficult for me to give a reason. I 
must know what varieties or groups of idums com¬ 
plaints were made about, whether European, .Tapan 
or American varieties, all of which, as well as the 
soil in which they are planted, are very important 
facts to have on which to base an intelligent analysis 
of the trouble or cause for the trees failing to pro- 
tluce fruit after blooming freely. The European 
varieties require .a heavy soil and a clay subsoil to 
fill their requirements to produce good crops of fruit. 
I have found that in such soil tliey generally do 
well, while on light loam or sjindy soil, especially 
sainly subsoils, they do not fruit so well. Then a 
sandy soil furnishes the conditions for early bloom¬ 
ing, and late frosts injure the blooms. When it does 
not kill it entirely it injures the pollen and there¬ 
fore does away wfith every chance of a set of fruit. 
.Son30 years ago I had a Lincoln plum tree planted in 
good light loam, with ii loose sandy subsoil, and it 
did not grow well, nor did it fruity although it 
bloomed every Spring. T removed it to a pl.ace in 
a trial orchard that I had. planted it in loamy *:op 
soil with a heavy yellow clay subsoil, and it made 
a vigorous growth, and for years l)ore heavy annual 
crops. The introducer of the Lincoln plum planted 
several Inindred trees of this one variety on a light 
•sandy soil, and they never produced a crop of fruit. 
I have found the same conditions control tlu^ .lapan- 
ese varieties, except when the peach is used for a 
stock, wlien tliey, like tlie peach, require a dry, light 
soil to pi'i'fect them. 
For many years I had trial orchards, jilanting from 
one to five trees of a kind in rows eight feet apart, 
and trees six to eiglit feet apart in the row.s. In 
these orchards I planted European, .lapanese, natives 
and hybrid sorts promiscuously, and at different 
times, as reason for trying out a variety occurred. 
Scores of varieties Avere in this plot, and uever did 
any variety fail to bloom or to produce a crop of 
fruit. In this trial orchard I had Chabot from dif¬ 
ferent sources under six or more different names. 
It produced annually large crops of fine fruit and I 
was so iileased with it I planted 200 or more of 
this variety iu a .solid block 20 feet apart each way, 
and while the trees grew vigorously and bloomed 
every year, fhey uever bore a crop of fruit. A 
Introducing B. Porker, Esq., to the A udience. Fig. 27S 
'firiigedy pj-une in this trial orchai-d, planted in a 
poor spot of yellow clay land, produced annual crops 
of fine fruit. 1 have a tree of this same variety 
grown from grafts taken from the trial orchard tree 
that is standing alone, planted 12 years ago, bloom¬ 
ing every year, and has only set and matured three 
fruits iu tlie 12 years since it was planted. The 
soil in which this trial orchard was planted was a 
medium loam with an under stratum of clay gravel 
and theu a stiff yellow clay to a depth of four or 
more feet. Hens were allowed their freedom in it 
and they furnished all the fertilizer and cultivation 
that was ever given it. 
From many years’ exptu-ienee with plums I have 
concluded that it is not safe to plant them in solid 
blocks or even a single ti-ee of one variety, as my 
observation leads me to believe that there are few 
varieties but what are self-sterile, also that locality 
has a great influence in the quantity and quality 
of pollen produced. Weather conditions at blooming 
time are another important factor. Proper and. con¬ 
genial environment is indispensable for the self- 
pollination of some varieties, while others are self- 
fertile under less favorable conditions?. All varieties 
are hopelessly' self-sterile when protracted rainfall 
or cold, blighting winds prevail at blooming time. 
When single trees do not bear fruit after blooming, 
then plant a few more trees of different varieties 
that bloom approximately at the same time, near it. 
Where tliere are blocks of trees of one variety toi> 
graft some of them in different parts of the block 
with other varieties or plant other varieties among 
them or near them. If they have been thoroughly 
cultivated and fertilized, change to a mulch system. 
Gultivation encourages early blooming ajid early 
bloom is generally injured by late frosts. 
New .lersey. ic. s. iu,.\( k. 
The Wandering Hen; What Remedy? 
I have a small farm of 18 aore.s, and have a neighbor 
who lets hi.s hens run wherever their fancy takes them. 
Last Spring, before planting time, I asked him if he 
would )»lease keep his chickens shut in during the 
April 13, 1918 
Summer (as I had had a similar case the year be¬ 
fore) and he replied “I alw.ay.s keep my hens shut in 
during the Summer.” So I plantwl about four acres 
of vegetables of all kinds necessary to keep us through 
the Winter. Ilis hens were never closed in for one 
day. I had IfiO tomato plants, and .all the fruit we 
got from them was what we picked green and placed 
out of the hens’ roach to ripeii. I ahso run a .suburban 
auto express, and many Avere the evenings Avhen 1 
came home late, and had to go out and plant in beets, 
onions, and many other vegetables Avhich were sti’c-wn 
about the ground, the result of a frolicsome day for 
the hens. _ u. A. R. 
Connecticut. 
Wo have had this question up a good many times, 
and our people have given their oxiAcrience. In one 
case a minister was so annoyed by the raids of a 
neighbor’s hens that he felt himself hardly fit for 
the pulpit. A trespassing lien is the same at law 
as a stray horse or coav except that no court Avould 
expect you to maintain a fence high enougii to 
restrain iioultry. You can sue the OAAUier for 
damage done by the hens, hut this is not .satisfac¬ 
tory, for it is hard to tell just what the damage 
is. Some peojile entice the hens into a yard or 
hou.se and keep them, but in these days of high 
food prices that is not popular. Rome keep one or 
more smart, little dogs trained to chase the hens 
as they appear. This works, but in Noav York State, 
under our dog laAV, you might bo pi-osecuted. The 
great majority of our readers seem to take a shot¬ 
gun and shoot into the flock—after giving fail- 
notice. The dead hens are throAvn over the line 
upon tlie owner’s property. He can sue for the 
A-alue of the hens and you can sue him for damage. 
It seems like an uncivilized and Avicked plan to 
settle .sucli troubles Avith a gun, hut hundreds of 
our readers will testify that there is no other Avay. 
q'he man Avho persists in letting hi.s hens run at 
large so that they become a nuisance to his neighbor 
needs some sort (.if a shock to wake him up. 
Home Preservation of Eggs 
P.4RT II. 
METHODS OF FHESl-lBVINO.—Eggs are pro- 
seiwed in two AA-ays; by j(lacing them in cold stor.ige 
or by using some liquid or paste preserA’ative. The 
former method is employt'd iiy the commission men 
of the larger cities Avhere there are cold-storage 
hoii.ses, the eggs being put in storage iu April .7nd 
rcmioved in late August, September, and early Oc¬ 
tober, r(*snlting in a more ('qiial distribution of tlie 
egg suiiply throughout the year. This pi’actioe ad¬ 
mits of somewhat lower prices in late Summer and 
early Fall for eggs Avhich .are laairly as good as 
fresh eggs.. The latter method is employed by the 
housewife or individual consuim'i*. 'This is iiroh.ahly 
(he better Av.ay of jireserving eggs, as the consumer 
can t<dl just Avhat kind of eggs is laaiig preserved, 
and the foAV cents profit ]K'r dozen of tlie commission 
Hiaii—in the cold sixirage method—is saved. 
THE VASELINE ME'niDD.—The otiier method 
Viy Avliich eggs can be preserved for home use is by 
means of coating the surface of the egg Avith some 
]iusty substance, such as a high melting ixdnt A’ase- 
line. A good piaaservatiA'C, Avhich can he made at 
home Avith comparatively small cost, is one composed 
of twm parts of white vaseline and one part of paraf¬ 
fin. Heat these substances until they are in liquid 
form, then mix them thoroughly. Allow to cool 
and your preservative is ready for use. There are 
scA^eral commercial preservatiA’es of this nature on 
the market which are good and at the same time 
inexpensive. A small portion of the preservative 
is rubbed between the hands until they are sticky. 
Each egg is then rubbed betAveen the hands until 
the surface is well coated Avith the paste. The egg 
should theu be wrapped in a small piece of soft paper 
and placed either iu an ordinary egg crate or iu 
an egg carton. The crate or carton should tlien be 
set away in a cool, dry, dark, place. This method 
involves more labor but is equally as efficient as 
the Avater glass. Both imdhods are ine.xpensive. 
costing only a cent or a c(‘nt and a half a dozen to 
preserA^e the eggs. 
COOKING I’KESEIIVICD lOGGS.—Eggs Avhich 
have been preserved by the methods described above 
can be used for nearly any jmi-pose. 'To he sure, 
they Avill not stand up (piite as well as fi’esh eggs, 
making it a trifle dilficult to separate the yolks 
from the Avhites. When it is desired to boil eggs 
thus pre.served, a iiin-hole should be pricked in the 
large end of the egg to prevent cracking the egg¬ 
shell. Eggs thus preserved Avill keep from nine to 
11 months; as a rule, hoAveA’ei*, they should only he 
kejit from the Spi’iug months to the late Fall 
months: that is, from the time the “egg cro)) comes 
in” until the period Avhmi eggs are svarc(‘. A little 
extra labor and a few cents Will save anywhere 
from 15 to 20 cents a dozen; quite an item in a 
family Avhere a large number of eggs are used. Is 
it worth it? kalston b. ii annas. 
