The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1893-12-29
ABOUT ~F,NEAPPlES.
They Cos; Five Dollars Apiece In England
aud All Over Europe.

anu A. Osts hhToP's
In England and all over Europe
~pincapples. or pines" are eaten only
by the few who can afford to raise
them in lighthouses or pay the extrav-
agant prices for which they are sold.
says the Youths Companion. So rare
are they on the other side of the At
lantic that they are sometimes hired
TO impart a browning glory to ban
quets. where they may be admired and
longcd for. but not eaten.
In England a pound, or Eve dollars.
is considered a reasonable price for
the hot-housc pine" and ever in this
country as much has been paid for
choice specimens of the fruit at the
season when they are not in the
market. Until within a dozen years
nearly all the ~pincapples raised for
market were grown upon the Bahaina
islands. whence they are shipped by
swift sailing vessels TO New York or
Liverpool.
To-day the principal pineapple pro-
duci-g district Of the world is the
United States. on a group of five
email ialanCS or '!.cys" lying on the
extreme southern part Of Florida.
These Keys are Eiiio:t's, ola Ehoades,
Largo. Plantation and Upper Meta
cumba. On them less than seven hun
drcd acres arc dc+osca to the c~ultiva-
ton Of pines" but from this small
area four million five hundred thou
sand pincapplcs were shipped to New
York in one year recently.
m .1. f-Ax. 4LA Inr,ao
for the same yearwasa about two-thirds
Of this amount. while less than a mil
lion and a quarter were brought into
the United States from other West
Indies islands.
The mainland of southern Florida
has ais, begun to produce pincapples
in great numbers. On the island OF
Cuba the sugar planters are just be-
| ginning to convert their Improbable
| cancfelds into pineapple patches.
The Bahama pincapples are deterio-
rating on account of the impoverish-
ment of the soil, and the growers are
turning their attention to sisal hemp.
On the other hand. the area of pine"
lands in south Florida is being ex-
tended with each year. and such pains
are taken in gathering the crop that
Florida "pines." like Florida oranges.
now command n better price h any
others.
Pineapple plants. frequently called
trees by the growers. rarely attain a
greater height than three feet. and are
provided with stiff, sharp-pointed
leaves like those on the top or crown"
OF a pineapple. except that they are
much longer. In fact. the crown of a
pine is in itself a perfect plant. and.
il thrust into the ground under proper
conditions, will bear fruit in eighteen
months.
The pineapple has no seed, but is
proparatcd from slips or suckers. Sew
eral slips spring from the base of each
perfected fruit. while the suckers shoot
from the bottom Of the plant.
Each plant produces a single fruit
and then dies. but its suckers become
bearing plants n year later, while its
Sins. il thrust into the ground. viii
Weld fruit in eighteen months.
About ten thousand slips may be
PLANTED to the acre. and of these two
thirds will bear fruit. Thus the yield
Of pincapples is about seven thousand
TO the acre. If growers could be GER
tain of realizing one dollar per dozen
on every crop pineapplc-raising would
rank among the most lucrative OF agri-
cultural pursuits. but the present lack
Of transportation facilities and the de-
pendcncc Of the growers upon commits
sion merchants diminish the profits
greatly. ,
The pineapple is p~crishablc, and
there arc many chances against its
reaching a distant market in good con-
dition. consequently it is generally con-
sidercd best to sell the crop in the held
rnthcr liar run the risk Of shipment.