Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1872-12-26
VIII Apples be Scarce

Never in the history of the country
WAS there SO universally large crop of
apples as this season. They have been
a glut in all fruit districts, and the prices
have been such in our principal markets
that, freights, packages and commissions
being taken out, it has left but little
margin to the producer. In conse-
quence, there is likely to be fruit fam
inc before spring There is not large
stock in Chicago, and fruit buyers are
already beginning to ship south, and it
is said that the Alton district, the st.
Louis market and South will soon he
large buyers.
Late-keeping apples must always be
supplied from ATTITUDES relatively far
north, say that of Michigan, North ILL.
nois, Iowa, Wisconsin and Southern
Minnesota; and this for all time in the
future. To do this properly, fruitgr
ers, however plenty or cheap the product
may be in the fall, should not therefore
waste, much less allow the fruit to be
destroyed. On the contrary, the great
est care should be used to save and care
fully sort all sound and fair apples; for
it will always occur that in seasons of
extraordinary plenty low prices for per-
ishable commodities will invariably be
followed by one of corresponding search
ty; for in consequence of this plenty
fruit is always allowed to 90 to waste, or
is fed too literally to stock.
We have heretofore given advice in
this direction, and now reiterate: Save
every sound apple; keep them in a cool
| place-the barn or out-houses, if no
regular fruit-house is at hand-so late
in the fall as there may be no danger of
freezing; and thereafter in cool, dry
cellar, where the temperature may be
just above the freezing point.
When they were picked they should
have been sorted into three grades. II
this wa not done, it should be attended
to at once, handling the fruit with the
greatest care; never allowing it to lie in
heaps, but placing it Immediately in
barrels at packing time. When finally
headed up for transportation, the heads
OF the barrels should be pressed down
upon and into the top layer of apples,
so as to preclude all danger of one apple
being moved on another during the
rough handling they will undergo in
transportation. If this is attended to.
and the fruit carefully sorted, so that
the purchaser knows Just what he is
paying for, the seller may be assured of
not only getting the highest market
price, but even this bountiful season a
remuneratlve one, and this before Feb
ruary.
If we always remember that it costs
no more to transport carload of apples
worth four or five dollars per barrel a
given distance than it does those worth
two dollars, our large cities would cease
to be glutted with inferior fruit that
hardly pays the cost of transportation.
he buyer would be satisfied, and fruit
growers would have less cause to COM
? ain OF unsatisfactory returns from
commission merchants. 1t is with fruit
as with any other commodity, whether
II be rejected" and "no grade" grain,
bury and dirty wool, inferior vegetables
al d garden fruits, or ill-sorted and
scaoby apples. To bring large profits
to the producer, somebody must be
cheated; but frst-class commodities, OF
whatever, kind, usually bring remuner-
alive returns Western Rural. So
ONE OF the gentlemen who are now
engaged IN lnstructing the public how
TO prevent great confagrations maintains
that" IT blanket had been stepped in
water and hung up in front of the hot
test hire IN Boston or Chicago, and kept
thoroughly drenched by the engines, it
would have remained unscorched to the
last" He enforces his theory by a
statement that !" if any one will take a
piece. Of paper, and shaping it like a
cup, hlling it whitewater, the paper thus
nlied may be held closesover gaslight
ana an egg boiled in the water, and the
water itself pass off in steam, yet the
paper will remain unscorched so long
as the water shall be supplied to it."