Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1870-06-08


consdmN - this country has be-
come enormous IN late years, and the pie
trade has become an important and flourish
ing branch of business
now PIEs ARE MADE
An extensive concern, by far the largest
in New York City, supplies customers in New
York, between nineteenth street and the
Battery, Brooklyn, Jersey City, and Ho-
bOken. Fifteen heavy pair-horse wagons are
constantly occupied in delivering their pies ;
for, on a busy day in the pie seeson, which
lasts from September till June, they seldom
receive back more than fifty or sixty pies out
of the seven or eight thousand which thew
send out. On entering the bakery, the
casual visitor would suppose that its pro-
prietors had contracted to supply the army.
liers upon tiers of pies meet his astonisbed
gaze in all directions, and yet the sixty hands
composing the staff of the business are still
hard at work, making more. In one DEPART
ment, at long table, several men are en-
gagged, from morning to night, in rolling out
the crusts as fast as the fresh dough can be
kneaded. This used to be done by machinery.
but the sensitive palate of the public prefers
richer crust than formerly and it is now
necessary to roll it by hand, as the rich
crust breaks when made by machinery. On
the other side of this long table, another
gang of men place the crust on the dishes
and hand them to the men who superintend
the huge cauldrOn of fruit, cOcoa-nut or
custard, to be filed, and when filed put on
the covering crust. In other departments
men and women are occupied in picking fruit,
grinding spices, peeling apples, and boiling
sugar to syrup. 1t has been found more
desirable to boil the sugar to a syrup and
pour it over the fruit than to sprinkle it in
Its ordinary state, the syrup soaks into
the apple, while the sugar when sprinkIed
on the top of the fruit, bakes into the crust.
The sugar for the custards, etc., which has
to be mixed by the aid of powerful lets of
steam, is forced into the cau1dron which con-
taIns the milk. By these jets of steam.
twenty e Seconds All the spices used
ground on the premises by machinery; for
in these days OF adulteratiOn the proprietor
finds 1t difhcult to buy such ground spices as
he likes to put into his pies Experience
heetaught him that the very best material
goes further, is really cheaper, and ensures
them more customers, consequently none but
the very best is used. In one part of the
bs1lding there is a most ingenious machine
for cutting up apples. A series of small
knives, arranged ike the quarterings of an
orange, are pressed by lever against the
apple, which is cut instantaneously into
tHsRty-four pieces. A small sharp tube. Of
the same movement, passes through the GEN.
IIe Vi the apps. ana cuts out the core |
shooting it into separate box. This ma,
chine does the work OF Twelve girls. The
cores of the apples are carefully put away to
be made into cider vinegar. Close by is an |
other machine-a Patent Mince Meat Cutter
capable of cutting up 10000 pounds of
meat in day, a labor which would occunv
forty men.
In another department are four enormous
baking ovens, at the mouths of which men
constantly stand taking out pies and putting
In fresh ones. Some idea Of the magnitude
of the business may be gathered from some
of the items of daily consumption, which ip
ordinary times averages: Seven barrels of
-four, thirty barrels Of apples, two hundred
pounds of peaches, two hundred pounds of
plums, one barrel of cranberries, two boxes
OF lemons, one carload of squash marrow.
one hundred and forty dozen of eggs, five
tierces of lard, three hundred pounds of
beef eight hundred quarts of milk, and /,
eight hundred pounds of sugar There are :
two items of loss in the business, which are ;
80 regular that they are not included in the :
accounts as part Ct the weekly expenditure =
though the proprietor receives thousand :
regularly every week from the factory, his =
stock Of plates never increases He has !