The weekly North-Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 186?-1869, 1866-08-08
Tropical Fruits.

Tropical Fruits.
Pineapple, Bananas, Oranges, Lemons, etc.--
Where they come from, the quantity brought,
and solters they go to-
The market is now glutted with tropical
fruits of all kinds A visit to either one of
the large markets lying upon the river will
prove Of interest to anyone who desires in
formation upon the traffic carried on in
foreign fruits. Piles of pine-apples, quantities
OF bananas, boxes of oranges and lemons, lie
about the docks at those points, without re-
gard to regularity or ownership all awaiting
transportation. The amount of money in
vested in this trade is immense, yet it is car
ried on in such loose, detached manner as
almost to preclude the possibility of arriving
at any satisfactory statistics IN referenceto it.
The men engaged in the business are not of
the class one would suspect of conducting
great enterprises, or of directing capital to
successful results. One of the largest dealers
in tropical fruits is the proprietor of a mod
est stand in Fulton Market, where only a few
specimens of his fruit are to be seen, but I'M
der whose direction fully one-half the impor-
tations and shipments are made. He owns
several vessels which are employed in this
trade exclusively, and has in addition cargo
upon cargo consigned to him to be disposed
of. He has. as have several other dealers,
accumulated fortune in the trade, yet no
one of these individuals is able to give an
approximate idea of the amount of capital
invested in the business, its extent. nor any
statistics which the curious would like to
know. From various sources we succeeded
in obtaining few facts, which we present
Pine-apples are mostly obtained from the
West India Islands They are brought here
principally by English vessels, which, at
other seasons, are transformed into wreckers
and coasters among the islands Large plan
tations there are given up almost exclusively
to the cultivation Of this luscious fruit, and
are produced in such quantities that it is at
times almost impossible to give them away.
The masters Of these vagabond schooners,
failing in speculat1ons elsewhere, touch at
these various ports and load with this fruit,
which they purchase from the planters at
from 25 to so cents per dozen, in gold. The
| few American schoeners engaged in the trade
have arrangements made with particular
| planters for their cargoes, and often take out
in payment cargoes of sugar, flour, tea and
rum. Large numbers of pine-apples are lost
on the voyage from rot, to prevent which
the schooner's crew is usually kept busy in
sorting over the fruit The loss, however, on
all cargoes will average about 10 per cent.
| from the time it is taken on board until it is
| disposed of to retailers Purchased there at
| so cents per dozen, in gold, they retail here
| at the present time for SIS per dozen-yet
| the dealers claim that but little profit is
made, on account of the great number which
| spoil. The pineapple season lasts from the
1 - Al. l., &c I'll
| arrived at this port this season about fifty
cargoes of this fruit, each cargo averaging
about 4,500 pine-apples. From here they
are shipped to all parts of the country, in
such quantities as may be desired. This sea-
son the fruit has been of good quality, and
the market well supplied. Last year there
was but little over half crop, owing to a
| three months drouth, and what was saved
was of an inferior quality.
Bananas are obtained principally from
Baracoa at the eastern extremity of the Is
land of Cuba, and are brought here by the
same vessels which bring the pine-apples,
the cargo, generally embracing quantity of
each, 1000 punches of bananas are about the
everage amount brought by each schooner
This season there have been about 100000
punches in market. They are purchased for
| about half a dollar in gold per bunch, and
sell here at from one to two dollars per
bunch. The percentage of loss is about the
same as with pineapples. Bananas are in
season from March till the last of July. While
many of those we receive are of natural
growth the finest are cultivated expressly for
this market.
Oranges and lemons are obtained from
several different places, and are constantly
arriving fresh The West India Islands
furnish us our Winter supply, the islands of
the Mediterranean those required in Spring,
while the Mention fruit fills up the interim.
The largest supply OF oranges and lemons is
| obtained from the ports of Palermo and
Messina, in the Island of Sicily. They are
now in season, and are usually considered
the finest brought to this market. About so
cargoes of oranges and lemons have arrived
| this year, averaging 5000 boxes to tue cargo.
They cost, where purchased. from 81 to 81
per box and sell here at from 81 to Sc. The
fruit brought early in the season requires no
handling before delivery to retailers, but that
arriving now has all to be sorted over
Fully 10 per cent. of all arriving during the
Summer months is spoiled. Havana oranges
are considered excellent, but the supply is
limited. Lines come with the oranges and
lemons; large quantities being disposed OF
in the large cities, ...,.4 80
! Cocoanuts are brought from Baracoa Rua-
tan, Brazil and several other places. The
supply is regular and the demand steady
All fruit-yessels bring cocoanuts in greater
or lesser quantities, and many are also
brought in regular merchant vessels. 1t is
impossible to approach, an estimate of the
4 quantity brought to market, IN consequence
of this irregularity in their arrival. The
fruit schooners, however, bring hundreds o.
thousands of them every season. They ART
used principally by confectioners in thu
manufacturure of candy, and by pastry
/ cooks, who use large quantities in the max
ing Of pies. g p II. le'.- ~ LINK -.
Watermelons, although not specially
tropical fruit, are brought here from tn
South in great numbers. There is scarcel,
vessel arriving here from Charleston o
; Savannah at this season Of the year tina
does not have on board hundreds of water
melons. The markets are now full of them
and hundreds OF people stop at the yariou
stands to deyour huge sections of them. a
they are brought out cool and refreshin
from the ice-boxes. Our early melons al
come from the South, and the first of tn
season bring from two to three dollars apiec,
Large nice ones can now be had for one do
lar and half In about month New Jerse
wil1enter the field with her hundreds Of acre
of melons, and them all competitors mus
yield to her the foremost place. JERSEY me
, | ons, of all kinds, are the best produced
The farmers there cultivate acres of then
and in the height of the season the mark,
is SO glutted that thousands rot at the stand
and the best may be had for few cents
} They are brought across the river by Wagon
9 loads, and after the regular dealers are, SUI
..l;oa aro hauIrad ahont tho ct roofc - /