The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1906-07-26

Jap boys come, open the sluice boxes
and let a food of water down each row
of berries. The grower in Hood Riv.
er valley takes no account Of the rain
fall in fact, he much prefers to regu.
late the supply Of moisture himself.
And so the day wears on. The fast
or the fast pickers pick, the faster
they seem to he able to do, and in
the same ratio the unseasoned ones,
who are just beginning to find out
how many different sets of muscles
they possess, lose time, the rows
stretch out longer and lorger and the
carriers grow heavier. Still you keep
at it with a great show of enthusiasm.
If you cannot make ~ a day you are
bound to make 81, and when your
carrier il full you hike for the pack
ing house at what seems to you a
pretty good clip, but soon an expert
scoots by you, triumphantly baering
a loaded carrier, then another and
another, and before you have finally
avrriye with yours they are scooting
back with their emty ones. "This is
my thirteenth today" proclaimed q
pretty girl, looking as fresh as a
daisy as she passed me with her emp
ty carrier Hs | was going In with my
sixth. She did not wait for reply,
but she must have noticed the look of
dismay upon my face, for when the
picking was over she was kind enough
to stop and tell me not to he disoour-
aged, for on her first day she earned
only 40 cents, and then rested for two
whole days. The small children often
prove very useful in carrying the
loaded filters, leaving the older ones
TO keep on picking, and, considering
the size OF the fields, the time CON
sumed going and coming is no small
item. But il growers keep on system
atizing the berry industry IL is not at
all unlikely we shall some day see the
carriers sailing across the field on
electric wires, like the change baskets
in the dry goods stores.
We had just arrived at the state of
mind aud body where there was doubt
whether we would finish the seventh
carrier or If 1t would finish US when
we came upon stretch where the
berries we're particularly large and
grew plentifully, so that we held out
until the carrier was heaped up. For
tunately for our pride, also, the mist
that had been gathering up the valley
blow down upon us in pelting rain,
and picking had to be abandoned for
the day, for the berries were thor
oughly wet and would sour easily.
It was still early enough in the af
ternoon that after rest we all went
down in a field and gathered wild
strawberries enough for supper, How
delicious the wild berry is, and what
a rival ii would make for it's culti-
waited sister we're it not so perishable.
They grow so abundantly here that
really 1t il an easy task to gather
them. They are exceptionally large
for wild berries, too. Ii was pleas
ant, too, for ycu are not thinking of
your 9 cents per carrier, aud Gan
pause to watch the blue hills in the
distance, aud Mount Hood aud Mount
Adams, the presiding geniuses of
the valley, who, after lettering behind
their vells all day, have finally
emerged in their cleaning, snowy
vestments. We could hear the boom,
boom of the blasting over across the
Columbia ON the Washington side,
where the new railroad is being built.
There were lively times at the camp
that night, and much talk and jesting
from tent to tent After it had grown
dark pack of bowling Indians and
! yelping coyotes seemed to be bearing
down upon us through the brush, but
when they came into the open they
prove to be only the men from Bach
elors' Row. And after eyelids we're
all supposed to be closed in sleep,
and, in, fact convincing snores we're
sung from some tents, many were
I brought wide awake 10y the growing
of IA cock another cock answered,
and then the first cock CrOwed loud
er Goodness gracious Was ii time
to get up already, when the ache had
not near gone kout of the musclest
Then some one lauughed, and a
woman's voice admonished her boy
to keep quiet, and all was still, for ii
was only 10 p. m.
The next morning we sought aud
secured employment in the packing
| house, having concluded to postpone
making our record in the field for q
few days.
Packers are supplied with a frame
about foot square, over which is
/ firmly tackled piece of light muslin
"A carrier full of berries and an emp
" crate. Each box of berries is
turned gently into the frame, which
is so deep that the muslin prevents
the berries from becoming bruised
on the hard counter at which the
work is done, aud also allows dust
and grit to sift through. Then the
box is refllled, all leaves, long stems,
green and ovor-ripe berries, also all
those without the half inch stem, be.
ing discarded, for this stem, while it
keeps the berry fresh, also serves as
sort of spring and keeps the berI les
from packing down becoming bruised
while travelling. Packers get but halt
cent box, and yet they earn as
much as g and more day. Their