Sullivan republican. [volume] (Laporte, Pa.) 1883-1896, 1894-06-01
THE TOOTHSOME PEANUT.
OUR ANNUAL CROP IS ESTIMATED
AT 100000 BUSHELS.


H. the peanut supply has steadily
increased, until now the gross
amount produced and put
upon the market is estimated at 4, 000,-
600 bushels per annum.
Peanuts grow upon trailing vine,
with leaves much resembling small
four-leaved clover The small, yellow
flower it bears is shaped like the bios
som of all the pea family; indeed, the
agricultural bureau in Washington
does not recognize the peanut as nut
at all, but classes it among beans
The soil in which it is cultivated must
be light and sandy; after the flower
falls away, the fower-stalk elongates
and becomes rigid, curving in such q
way as to push the forming pod well
below the surface of the earth; if by
accident this is not done the nut never
natures.
They are planted in rows about three
feet apart, and the vines spread until
the ground is covered by them. Har-
yest1ng is done after the first frost, and
the yield is often 100 bushels to the
acre, making this a moro profitable
with the nuts clinging to them, are
torn up with pronged hoes, and allowed
to dry in the sun for day or two,
and then stacked to cure. In about
fortnight the nuts are picked off, the
empty ones, which are technically
called "pops," being rejected. This
picking is done by hand, and is slow
work, as an expert laborer can pick
only three bushels day. They come
into market in a rough, dirty state,
unassorted, and with vine tendrils
clinging to the pods.
Norfolk, Va, is called the "peanut
market of the world" This may be
somewhat exaggerated, for Africa sup
plies the demand of Europe, but it is
certainly the peanut market of the
United States. From the surround
ing countries come by sloop, by
steamer, by freight train, by wagon,
by ox-cart, into the hands of the COM
mission merchants, thousands of big,
four-bushel bags, containing the pea
nuts as they leave the hands of the
farmer.
All this, though the history of the
peanut is interesting enough, would
hardly have entitled it to be described
among our american industries.
But in 1876 what is now (mis) called
"peanut factory" for the cleaning,
grading and branding of peanuts, was
established in Norfolk. The value of
this product was at once immensely
increased, and there are now in Nor
folk and its immediate vicinity four
teen of these factories-several of
them large, five-story brick buildings,
filled with powerful and expensive
machinery, and each employing from
100 to 200 persons, both male and fe-
male, for all the picking over is done
entirely by manual labor.
But though he did not hit on ex-
actly the right name for his new es-
tablishment, Mr.. Elliot, the founder,
not only proved blessing to the
farmers, by increasing the worth of
their crop, but made his own fortune,
and standing now at the head of the
trade, is known all over the United
States as "Peanut Elliot" or the
"Peanut King" He is a fine-look-
ing, middle-aged man, with bright,
genial face and manner, and has q
cordial welcome for visitors. He con-
Quoted party of us, the other day,
over his establishment, and after ex-
planning all the various operations to
us in q charming, clear and concise
manner, he sent us away bearing each
large bag of 'first quality" peanuts,
and the most pleasant recollections of
our host and visit.
When the peanuts arrive at the
factory they are rough and earth
stained, and of all sizes and qualities,
jumbled together. The bags are first
taken up by iron arms projecting from
an endless chain to the fifth floor of
the factory. Here they are weighed
and emptied into large bins. From
these bins they fall to the next story,
into large cylinders, fourteen feet
long, which revolve rapidly, and by
friction the nuts are cleansed from the
earth which clings to them, and pol
ished so that they come out white and
glistening.
From this story the nuts fall
through shoots to the third and most
interesting floor. Imagine rows of
long, narrow tables, each divided
lengthwise into three sections by thin,
inch-high strips of wood. These strips
also surround the edge of the table.
Each of these sections is fioored with
strip of heavy white canvas, which
moves necessarily from the mouth OF
shoot TO an opening leading down
below at the further end of the table.
These slowly-moying canvas bands,
about foot wide, are called 'pick-
ing aprons" Upon the outer aprons
of each table dribbles down from the
shoot slender stream of peanuts,
and on each side of tho table, SO close
together as scarcely to have "elbow
room" stand rows OF eolorea girls aud
women, picking out the inferior pea
nuts as they pass aud throwing them
into the central section. So fast do
their hands move at this work that
one cannot see what they are doing
till they east handful of nuts into
tho middle division. by tho time 4
nut has passed the sharp eyes Of eight
on ten pickers, one may be quito Ger
tain that il Is hrst-elass article, M
for the final plunge down two stories,
into bag which presently shall be
marked, Electric Light brand, and