The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-11-18
APPLE PACKING BY EXPRESS.
The Way in Which 1t Is Dome i'm CAL
ifOrnta.


From the San Francisco Chronicle.
Thirty years ago ranchers from 100 miles
to the south journeyed to Watsonville to
lay in, at fabulous prices, their scanty
winter supplies of Eastern dried apples
To-day, to quote a local paper, fruit buy
ers are thicker than commercial tourists"
The fruit they have come to buy is apples
apples mainly of two varieties, the belle
f1eur (Amerieanized as bellfower) and the
yellow Newtown pippin. The bellflower
juicy, luscious, is the standard fall apple;
the Newtown, crisp and aromatic, is the
winter apple of the civilized world
In most localities these peculiar apples
cannot be prcfitably grown. They are
shy bearers or unthrifty growers. But in
Southern Santa Cruz and Northern Mon
terey, where puris the pictured Pajaro.
nature has provided soil and conditions ex-
actly suited to the special needs. The SAN
dy sediments, where water is found a few
feet from the surface, is the home of the
bellfiower; the heavier lands prove best
for the Newtown. In Santa Cruz county
alone are 100000 apple trees, of which
100000 are now bearing; while Monterey
county is credited with 10000 acres in
orchard. This seasons crop Is estimated
at 1,500 car loads, which will find con-
sumers not only in nearly every state of
the Union but also in Europe, Asia, and
Australasia All the civilized world ap-
preciates a good apple.
The picking packing, and shipping of
this immense output have grown into a
special industry of large proportions.
Strange to say, 1t has fallen entirely into
the hands of foreigners. The name of the
owner of almost every packing house ends
in Itch" NLettunich, Pullsovich, Opusch,
Niovich, strazovich, Scurich, Stollich
Viuvich, Balovch, Marinovich, etc, all
evidently belonging to families of Slav
origin and these are all surnames of
jacksonville apple packers.
OF these a single house has contracted
for the product of thirty-five orchards
and expects to handle 300 carloads of green
fruit, sbesfsies drying about 100 carloads
of culls A carload" consists of 100 boxes
of pippins or $50 boxes of bellhowers. Az
erage it at 700 boxes, and you have to-
tai of 10000 boxes shipped from this one
warehouse These boxes vary a little in
size to accommodate fruit of different
shape and grade. The boxes were made
formerly of Santa Cruz redwood but the
best markets now demand a white wood
box, so Northern pine or spruce is used.
Forty car loads of these white wood
"shooks" are NEEDED to supply this single
ESTABLISHMENTS. 1dHiOfutd APpleS Is
printed in large blue letters on the side
of the box, for the name of California as
an apple producer has gone out to all the
world
jacksonville claims the biggest thing on
earth in the shape of an apple-packins
house. 1t covers an area of q 600 superb
cial feet. One end of the huge shed abuts
on ths9 Southern Pacific track, while the
other furnishes facilities for the rapid UNI
loading of the capacious spring wagons
specially built for this trade, with long
fat beds. and strong springs, to carry 100
boxes or more loosely filled with fruit
packed in the orchard.
The plant" required IN the business of
apple packing is primitive and inexpensive.
The shed, Is simply a fooriess she'll spa
cious and lofty. In this tracks are ranged
longitudinaliy to receive small four
wheeled fiat cars, which make easy the
work of unloading wagons and loading
cars. The rest of the ground space is ira
Versed by pieces of scantling, on which
are ranged the boxes of apples, ten tiers
high. Benches for boxmakers and tables
fitted with iron clamps, operated by foot
pressure. for gently pressing down the lot
toms Of the fun packed boxes ready for the
naiier, constitutes the equipment inside
the shed Outside are two huge V-shaped
hoppers, built of lumber, into which the
refuse apples are thrown, to yield up their
juice for cider and vinegar. A store of this
vinegar sharpening in the suns rays. fills
many barrels, whose bungholes are stopped
with wine bottles inverted.
The process Of packing calls for consd-
cradle digital 4iexterity. In packing for
the California market one of the fret
things needful is to put a good face on
things. So the boxmaker nails on the top
of the box first and this temporarily be-
comes the bottom. on this. with the
brightest colored cheek downward, are
ranged the showlest fruit Of the grade that
Is being handled. These must be selected
and fitted with not a little nicely so as,
when gently pressed, to exactly fiji the
area Of the box, but they must not be
roughly squeezed, for a few bruised apples
spoil the appearance and sale Of the box;
and the bell flower Is especially tender.
To facilitate this arranging Of the fruit,
the packer tits the box 20 a considerable
angle 50 that each apple remains where
il is placed, instead OF rolling about, ss