The ranch. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1902-1914, 1905-11-01
HORTICULTURAL NOTES
by f. WALDEN

L
thousand times during the Lewis and
Clarke fair if this standard box did
not hold less than a bushel and as
many times told the inquirer that 1t
holds twenty-one cubic inches more.
The bushel commonly used in the
United States is the Winchester bushel
of the English people and contains
2150.42 cubic inches. Now it is easily
to be seen by multiplying the length,
breadth and depth of the standard box
together that it contains 2173,5 cubic
inches, or 81 cubic inches more than
the commonly used bushel. In the
state of New York the law requires the
use of the English imperial bushel
which contains 2218.192 cubic inches.
Our box would be scant in New YORK
but flush in the other states. The Call
fornia box is ten inches deep, eleven
inches wide and twenty inches long in
the clear, hence holds 1900 cubic inches,
of 265 more cubic inches than the
standard. Some fruit growers think
that they can do better packing by
using both these boxes. There is not
much in this. With the California box
more four tier apples can be packed as
it is neither so deep or so wide as the
standard. This is something in it's
favor.
While on this box question it might
be well to say that in Colorado and
Arizona a much larger box is used.
The apple buyers from Chicago and
other points where we come into COM
retition with this larger box have re-
70 oil dc Of
of them dishonest-to get us back to
this big box, which was once used in
the northwest, but they have generally
failed and have in most cases given
up the fight There is no kind of sense,
unless we call it nonsense, in using
box and calling it bushel box when it
contains nearly 400 cubic inches more
than the standard bushel The fruit
growers owe much to the Northwest
Fruit Growers Association in kill
ing this big misnamed box. Let us
not be wheedled by buyers into re-
turn to this mOnstrOsity l say to
buyers: You can take my apples In
the box we have adopted and which is
an honest box, or you can go, elsewhere
to buy. We ought to do something to
convince our neighbors in Colorado
and Arizona that they are being fooled
out of thousands Of dollars by using
a box containing nearly $500 cubic
inches and at the same time calling
it a bushel box.
There is a widespread misconception
about the awards made at the Lewis
and Clark fair. The wonder is eX-
pressed that so many counties could
get the same award. This is owing to
the fact that the award of medals and
diplomas were not competitive. Ger
tain degrees of excellence were estab-
lished and all exhibits reaching the
same degree got the same award. For
illustration: A certain degree of ex-
cellence was awarded a gold medal.
This was the highest award and all
exhibits coming up to that degree
were awarded the gold medal. 1t is
similar to granting certificates to
teachers. All who come up to GER
tain per cent get first grade certln-
cate, while those who reach a lower
per cent are granted second grade.
The gold medal corresponds to the first
grade certificate, the silver medal to
the second, and so on.
In the last issue of The Ranch
made mention of the fact that owing to
my being so engaged at the Lewis and
Clark fair | had not kept up my usual
reports on the condition of the fruit
crop for this year. | little thought
what this might mean to some of our
readers. A Mr.. Macarthur, of Entiat,
Chelan county, Wash, called at our
booth in the Washington building and
said that this omission had cost him
$500 this year. He and others did not
know that the apple crop was so re-
markably short. An apple buyer came
lnnn and offered them what seemed