Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1889-10-31
THE CRANBERRY Boos.
How the Tart Assistant to Thanks
giving Turkey is Harvested.

How the Tart Assistant to Thanks
giving Turkey is Harvested.
The beginning of the cranberry har-
vest in southern and western New DER
sey is the terror OF elderly housewives
and the JOY of the younger generation.
Unless restrained by an iron-bound
contract, domestics break away from
their temporary homes and hasten TO
join the small armies OF cranberry
pickers that gather on the various
plantations. In tho western part of
the state Italians often harvest the
crops. They arrive from Philadelphia
and adjacent cities in largo numbers
and live in tents and shanties during
the six weeks they are employed as
pickers. But in Ocean county, which
contains more acres of cranberry land
than any other county in the state by
large area, the picking is done en-
tirely by native New Jersey young
mon and women, girls and boys. Here
and there an entire family assemblies
at the boys during the first week in
September, and under an overseer pro-
coed TO gather the pink and Grid fruit,
without which the Thanksgiving tur-
key would be esteemed very ordinary
bird.
The price for harvesting varies from
forty to fifty cents IA bushel, says the
n. Y. Sun, the larger sum generally
prevailing. A larger sum is paid
where the crops are more difficult 10 be
harvested because OF their more
springy and Doggy condition.
AS the berries yield politically and
grow not unlike grapes, except that
the clusters are upon single stem.
the pickers earn considerable money.
The heads of families put it aside fof
their winter groceries, the girls for
their finery, and the boys for horses
and buggies to treat their sweethearts
to frequent rides and for go-to- meetin'
clothing. A good cranberry picker
easily earns 81 day, and So is not un,
frequently within the reach Of the most
nimble fingers. The yield is rarely be-
low 100 bushels TO the acre, and a few
years ago over 400 bushels were
harvested from single acre on tho
Bunker Hill bog, four miles from this
village.
On almost eyery cranberry farm the
owners of the boys is5us tickets to
their employees, the tic.;cts represent
ing quarts, peckS, ant bushels. These
otis OF pasteboard are intrusted to the
foreman, whose place is what is known
as the cranberry house, where each
picker must carry the berries as fast
as they are gathered. There they are
dumped from us,ally peck box or
basket into q bushel crate, and a ticket
for four quarts is issued 30 each picker
as the berries are turned in. Some
notion OF the magnitude OF this indus
try in Ocean county rSy be gathered
from the fact that eX-Sherjif Holman,
one Of the largest growers there, re-
CURES 10000 tickets TO conduct his
business with the pickers during har-
vest time.
The scene on a cranberry plantation
in the picking season is picturesque.
Down upon their knees in long zig.
gag line stretching from one side OF
the bog TO the other girls dressed in
calicOes and ginghams, and with long
sun-bounets concealing many pretty
faces, pick berries next to bright-eyed
boys. The pickers chatter all the day
through The setting of the sun is the
oiS idl W. a. oOhS lh a. Niiol 10 NiClo
every voice is mingled, and The Old
Folks at Home" or some other familiar
plantation song rings out clear, strong
and sonorous, waking The echoes OF
the hills around.
When the plantation is stripped Of
its fruit there is dance in the long
two-story cranberry storage house.
The girls, showering in ringlcts about
their faces or streaming in long, dark
tresses over their plain-cut gowns; and
the boys, beardless and moustached
congregate and await the pleasure OF
the floor manager TO give the signal
"get your partners for plain quad.
rifle" The fiddlers Cat least two, often
three Of them), high above the hoar
upon a platform of packing crates, ara
ready to begin the music. Away with
a rush go twenty sets Of merry makers,
in and out through the figures of tha
old-fashioned dance. The only inter-
mission in the nights fun is the enc
joyment of the supper, spread on lonS
tables in the second story of the build
ing.