The daily gazette., 1878-09-05
From Harper's Weekly, for Sep, IA.

THE PEACH CROP IN DEL A WARE
Most of the peaches that supply the
New York markets are produced whith-
In that small peninsula whose shores are
washed by the waters of the Delaware
and Chesapeake bays and the Atlantic
Ocean, comprising the so-called Eastern
Shores of Maryland and Virginia and tbe
State OF Delaware. BY far the greater
amount of these peaches is produced in
delaware, where, in the middle and
lower counties of the State, the peach
growing intere vt, with its accessories of
canning, basket-making, and so forth,
forms specially almost overshado wing
the other not unimportant agricultural
interests OF the region. Upon this the
farmers in the peach-growing districts
base their calculation for obtaining the
Injuries OF life. Toward the peach sea-
son the railroads and other iransporta-
ton companies look az to one of the
great items of business.
On page 72S we present sketch made
In one of the large peach orchards of
Delaware, showing the pickers at work
There are few more beautiful sights
than a peach orchard in full bearing,
the vistas between the parallel rows OF
trees over-arched with dark green foli-
age, the verdant roof studded with Iipe
ana ripening. fruit, suggesting the gems
OF Aladdin's cavern. Every where
throughout the orchard are seen the
figures of the "plucks," mounted on high
step-ladders, drawing down the heavily
laden branches of luscious fruit. Every
where the air is burdened with the all
prevailing fragrance of peaches. Now
and then from knot of negro laborers
comes ourst OF music in the quaint airs
OF the plantation melodies.
From the orchard Tho ,,aa ahaa a,,
carried to the sorting-house, where the
large and small peaches are separated
the conveyance being accomplished by 9
small cart hauled BY a sedate-Iookinp
mule, closely muzzled, to prevent bin
from taking sly Dlps of the verdanl
leaves as he passes between the peach
trees, SO knocking off the ripe fruit.
Ihe pickers, or, as they are generally
CALL q, the "peaeh plucks," are partly the
regular farm hands, partly an imported
product bearing very close resemblance
TO our tramps, sleeping under hedges OIL
in barns, picking few peaches here and
there-enough to gain precarious liveli.
i ENTHUSIASTICALLY, it is to be feared
threatening defenseless woman, and
generally. doing only work enough tC
supply the barest necessities. Thes,
itinerant "plucks" are mostly whites
while the regular farm hands are gener
ally negroes.
The Delaware peaches are not al
exotic growth, like the grapes of the
same Dame, but strictly local produc
ton, excelled by no other fruit of tht
| Kind in the word. The quantity O
peaches raised in the peninsula is still
constantly on the increase, as facilitie,
for transportation and the increase O.
canning establishments open ever wide
markets for their sale. The latest Stats
tics number the peach-trees OF the penin
sula at about five millions, covering fift,
thousand acres of the best and most pro
ductive land, and representing in none,
an invested capital of nearly three mil
lion dollars.
| OF the fresh fruit shipped to tn
markets of New York, Philadelphia, an,
others cities of the Middle States, Their
passed over the Delaware Railroad, il
| 1877, 4249 car-loads-over two milliol
bask kets-while at least an equal quantit,
would find its way to market by water
This years crop is much less in quantity
probably not more than half an averag
crop, owing to the untimely frosts of lat,
spriDg-a fact that has probably ALREADY
unpleasantly impressed itself upon peach
lovers by the Comparative scarcity thi
season of this most delicious and satisfy
ling fruit.