The Topeka state journal., 1902-11-27
THE CRANBERRY CROP.
Where the Sauce for Thanksgiving
Dinners Comes From.

AS Thanksgiving is an American IN
stitution, so Thanksgiving sauce IS un-
popular, if not unknown on the other
side of the Atlantic. An attempt was
made several years ago to introduce the
cranberry into Europe but the attempt
proved failure. number of cram
berry growers formed club. furnished
the berries, employed agents to COOK
them right before the eyes of the public
in different market places of England,
but the people only tasted of the bright
red sauce, and shook their heads.
The cranberry trade, which Will reacn
main big until after New Years. is at
the present time pretty evenly divided
between half dozen large cities includ-
ing New York, Philadelphia. Chicago.
Minneapolis, st. Louis and Kansas City
A few years ago Philadelphia was the
center. On the Pacific coast Los An
geles consumes the most cranberry
sauce in proportion to it's size, for the
reason, perhaps, of the large contingent
of easternerS who have settled there
Few cranberries are shipped to the
southern cities CT the United States
Baltimore or Washington marking the
lower boundary of the trade.
The bulk of the cranberries of this
country come from the part of eastern
Massachusetts which lies near Cape Coo.
The bogs of this region afford the wet.
peaty soil which the cranberry loves.
| Wareham, on Buzzard's Bay, is the CEN
ter Of the industry. and here is the
home of A. D. Makepeace. who is called
the cranberry king" Mr.. Makepeace
towns of Wareham and Carver. He is
about 70 years old, and has spent 10
years of his life in cranberry cultiva-
t-o---
ries is George r. Briggs, brother of DR..
LIE Baron R. Briggs, dean of Harvard
university. George Briggs was himself
on the staff of instructors of Harvard
/ for many years. His bogs are situated
i mainly in the town of Plymouth.
/ The cranberry crop of Massachusetts
4 last year was estimated at 100000 barrels,
which. at the average price of $40 bar
rel. represents "A value of nearly 81, 600. 900.
This years crop will fall below that of
sand barrels. Other sources of the red
berry are in New Jersey. which in 1901
contributed 10000 barrels: Michigan and
| Wisconsin, with joint output of about
So 900 barrels: Oregon. Washington. Nova
! Scotia and a few other places. Frosts
! and pests have cut down the total crop
this year. and it is believed that cram
berries will cost a little more than last
year
Harvesting cranberries in Massa-
chusetts cranberry bog on a day late III
I September is a picturesque sight. The
work is now done chiefly by Portuguese.
They are paid at the rate of of eight
cents for six quarts, and they earn from
/ q
most part in gathering the berries, and
| they pluck the clusters from the vines
without injuring them to any practical
extent The scoops hurt the berry much
/ less than the hand would for the fruit
/ is so perishabe that it will rot if bruised
! or squeezed by the pickers fingers In
some of the bogs tramps are almost eX-
| clusively employed. and the -thobOes" say
that they find this good chance to lay
ir little green" The cranberry season
! fIlrt 1erm0rp at time of the
when sleeping on park benches is not as
Arcadian in the summer time.
Cedar swamps are usually chosen tc
convert into cranberry bogs- After thf
vines are set out. t is three four years
before they bear fruit. About one in two
years layer of fine sand is sprink3eo
over the bogs so that the trailing shoots
may take root and the number of plants
will be thus increased. 1t is only
the upright stems which bear fruit. and
consequently, it is most desirable to in
crease their number by the sand treat
ment.-New York Tribune.