The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1901-08-02

tent. The results were quite uncer-
tain, however, and the outlook dis
couraging until about 1887, when Mr..
f. A. Thomas, of Chicago, entered the
field with Mr.. Earle and revolutionlzed
the business of fresh-fruit transpor-
tation. His plan was to provide a
thorough service from shipping point
to destination in special cars under
one management, reicing the cars IN
transit as found necessary. 1t was,
in short, the establishment of prl-
vate car line for fruit transportation,
to be operated on plan similar to that
under which sleeping cars had long
been run in the passenger service. He
commenced operations with few cars
in western Tennessee in the spring OF
1887, operating first on strawberries
destined for the Chicago markets.
Owing to the distrust of shippers in
regard to the effect or ice upon the
fruit he was compelled to buy fruit
with which to fill them for shipment.
A few tests demonstrated the pfacti-
cability of the system, however, and
the new service rapidly became popu-
lar.
Fruit forwarded in carload lots by
freight to Chicago under this plan
could be distributed to other points
in small lots by express and reach des-
tinations as remote as Minneapolis in
sound condition, while cars properly
iced and filed with fruit were found
to hold their contents in good condi-
ton for several days, thus protecting
lays in transit. In the spring of 1888
Mr.. Thomas shipped Strawberries
from Florida successfully in refrig-
orator cars.
In 1887 also some of the cars were
taken to California and after much
persuasion shippers were induced to
try them. All California deciduous
fresh fruits prior to that time had
gone forward in ventilated cars with
out ice, and solid fruit trains had for
several years been run on express
train schedules from Sacramento to
Chicago. The belief was general that
fruit shipped in iced cars would be
injured in flavor and in keeping quail
ity after removal from the cars, but
this proved not to be the case. In the
latter part of June, 1888, a carload of
ripe apricots and cherries was sue
cessfully shipped from Suisun, Cal, to
New York without reicing. The ex-
perience of the season of 1888 demon
strated beyond all question the useful
nd 1T Of ha ofr.iu
orator car when properly handled.
Development after that was rapid.
From a total of 60 cars in service in
1858 the company which Mr.. Thomas
organized increased it's facilities, I'M
til by 1891 it had in use over 600 cars.
These travelled over various railroads
as needed, being used for Florida fruit
in winter and Louisiana and Missis-
sippi Strawberries in spring, gradually
working northward as the ripening
season progressed, with long trips out
to the Pacific coast in July, August and
September. Their usefulness did not
cease with the approach of winter, for
they protected their contents against
a considerable degree of cold, and
when heated could be safely used in
severe cold weather.
The large paintings, stimulated by
the refrigerator car service, soon made
possible the loading of cars at single
shipping points or at few points
along line of road, so that small
as large shippers except in the matter
of carload rates.
In recent years the business of oper-
ating refrigerator cars has been taken
up by many lines, so that there are
now probably so or more different pri-
vate car lines in service of various
kinds, in addition to similar cars oper-
ated by many of the railroads that
traverse fruit-producing regions. The
fruit is in many sections loaded from
the packing house, where it is protect
ed from the heat of the sun, directly
into the cold refrigerator car, from
which it is not removed until it reaches
its destination, 1000, 1000 or 1900
miles away. From the important fruit
sections these cars are moved in solid
trains to the principal markets. Ca
pacious icing stations established at
intervals along the main routes of
travel permit reicing of the cars with
the utmost dispatch.
Official statistics of the number of
refrigerator cars in service are lack->
ing, owing to the failure of some of the
car lines to report the number of cars
owned and operated by them. A care
full estimate by the manager of the
Railway Equipment Register in March,
1901, indicates that there were at that
time about 10000 refrigerator cars in
service in the United States, Canada
and Mexico.
No basis exists for estimating the
total volume of produce handled BY
these cars, but it is very large. Lead
ing shippers estimate that 95 per cent.
of the California deciduous fresh
fruits are now handled in them, and
the proportion from other sections is
steadily growing. Small-fruit and
orchard areas in the more remote re-
gions adapted to fruit culture are
steadily growing under the influence
of this service, and producers are en-
abled to profitably diversity their pro-
duction as never before.
The length of time during which the
summer fruits can be safely held in 70.