The Portland daily press., 1880-02-04
About Peanuts.
A Trade That Amounts to Shucks.
PHILADELPHIA Times


Walking around this city few days ago,
your correspondent by accident entered
large peanut factory on Water street, and saw
so many nuts in bags and out of bags that the
idea at once suggested itself that some Con-
necticuts" Yank'' had invented wooden pea
nut. The modus operandi by which the nuts
are separated, cleaned and classed, is some
what as follows The third story of the building
contains thousands Of bushels OF peas in bags;
and there the continual roar of the machinery is
deafening. Each machine has duty to per-
form. First, there is large cylinder in which
all the nuts are placed in order that the dust
and dirt may be shaken off of them. They
pass from this cylinder into the brushes, where
every nut receives 10 feet OF a brushing before
it becomes free. Then they pass through
sluiceway to the floor below, whers they are
dropped on an endless belt, about two and a
half feet in width, and passing along at the
rate OF four miles an hour. On each side OF
the belt eight colored girls stand, and as the
nuts fall from the sluice on to the belt the girls
with quick motion of the hand, pick out all
the poor looking nuts, and by the time the belt
reaches the end two-thirds of the nuts are
plckeu II, dllOWlIS OulJ tuS huOSe w P"os thS
crucible. Those that do pass drop through an
other sluice and empty into bags on the floor
below When the bag is filled it is taken away
by hand. sewed up and branded as cocks,
with figure of rooster prominent on Its
sides. The peas caught up by the girls are
threwn to one side, placed in bags and carried
into another room, where they are again
picked over, the best singled out, bagged and
branded as ''ships'. These are as fine nut
as the first for eating, but in shape and color
do not compare with the cocks. Having
gone over them twice, we now come to third
grade which are called and branded as "ea-
gles." These are picked out of the cuttings of
the cocks and ''ships," but now and then
YOU will find respectabe-lookng II ut among
them. though the eyes OF the colored dalnseis
are as keen as hawks and bad nut is rarely
allowed to pass their hands "The cuttings
that are left from the eagles" are bagged.
sent through the elevator to the top story
and what little meat is in them is shaken out
by a patentSheller which is not only novel,
but as perfect piece of machinery Swas ever
invented. The nuts being sheled by this
process the meat drops In bags below, free
from dust or dirt OF any kind, and then
shipped in 800 pound sacks 10 the north, where
they are bought up by the confectoners for
the purpose of making tatfy or peanut candy.
1t may be here stated that peculiar kind of
oil is extracted from the iheat of the nut, and
in this speciality large trade is done among
the wholesale druggists There is nothing
wasted, for even the smells are IN ade useful
They are packed in sacks and sold to stable
keepers for horse bedding, and very healthy
bed they make. A days work is about 5000
bushels, which includes the labor of cleaning,
picking and packing for shipment. From all
this it can be readily seen why the prices OF
huckster going round withhis wagon can
sell cheaper than the stores, for he sells the
eagles" while the shopkeepers sell those of a
higher grade.