Polk County observer. (Monmouth, Polk County, Or.) 1888-1927, 1915-09-14
HOP INDUSTRY IS GREAT
RIVER BOTTOM DISTRICT PRE-.
SENTS SCENES OF ACTIVITY.
Picking Machines Operating in Horst
Company's Yard-Wigrich Ranch
a Model-0her Fields.

0 l4UuOR--VAAOA oSAs<os
The hopyards Of the Independence
district have attracted the attention
of hundreds of visitors during the
past week, many coming from a con.
siderable distance to view the manner
in which the harvest of this vast croT
is made. The hop-picking machine in
the E. Clement Horst company's
yards has this year made an added at
traction, and automobiles from vari-
GUS sections Of the valley, loaded with
the curious, are to be seen daily wcnd-
ing their way through tho extensive
acres of the company to the location of
this modern wonder, produced by the
inventive ingenuity Of Mr.. Horst him
self, and similar patterns of which
are doing all the picking,in the Cali
fornia yards Of his company this sea-
son, thus wholly eliminating hand
pickers. Contrary to general opinion
the machine is not used in the field,
but is housed conveniently to the
yards and the hop vines hauled to it
by teams, dozens of teams being thus
employed in order to keep it supplied.
The vines are laid one way on a
platform wagon in order that they
may be handled by the feeders rapid
ly and without rearranging. The vines
pass over large cylinders making six
ty revolutions per minute, the teeth
of which separate the hop from the
vine. Mr.. J. G. Virgins, Califor-
nian in charge Of the plant at the
Horst yard, in explaining the ma
chimes entrusted to his care, told a
representative of The Observer that
each vine was struck by 5000 teeth
in the picking process, thus making
it practically impossible for waste to
occur. Following the picking by means
of these cylinders, the hops are sep
arated from the leaves and twigs by
passing through revolving screens, the
openings in which are of graduated
dimensions in order to permit the ref
use to waste away and leave the
cleaned product. This, however, is
not the process in its entirety, and
neither could it be given in the
amount of space at command. There
are two of these machines, besides
which are two arm picking machines,
which separate the hops from the
arms of the vines, and two overflow
machines, the capacity of which is
approximately 10000 pounds, or close
to 1000 sacks of hops, daily.
But these machines, notwithstand-
ing their enormous capacity as COM
pared with hand picking, are insult
ficient to gather the harvest from the
more than 600 acres planted to hops
by this company, and in addition
about 1,500 men, women and children
are there employed throughout the
season, many of the pickers compris-
ing large families known to the COM
pany and who are annual workers in
the yards. The camps are sanitary,
special provisions having been made
with this important feature in view.
Mr.. H. N. Ord, the superintendent of
this, the most extensive hop yard in
the world, expects an average of ten
bales to the acre. In one small tract
thirteen bales to the acre has been
harvested, but this is an exceptionally
good yield under most favorable con-
ditions.
The Horst company probably has
the only hot air blast system for dry
ing hops in the state, and 2,300 boxes
of hops are turned off daily by the
employment Of this modern method.
Not only are practically twice as
many hops cared for during the twen-
ty-four hours as by the old plan, but
the danger of damaging the product
is entirely eliminated, while it is
claimed that hops dried by the pro-
cess are better value. III. Landon, the
engineer, piloted The Observer party
through the dryer during the tempor-
ary absence of William Buffman, who
is the real thing about the plant, first
visiting the sulphur burning room, the
fumes from which reach the hops on
the dryers by forced draft, and then
on through the various departments.
Between 100 and 40 degrees of heat
only is necessary to cure the crop by
this process, which is considerably
less than under the old system.
The Wigrich Ranch.
"Is Major Rose about the prem
ises 2" inquired the manipulation of the
festive faber as he approached a
young Englishman at the Office on the
Wigrich ranch of 800 acres, located
four and a half miles southeast of
Independence. "'E is, sir; who shall
Hi announce, sir7" After having
paved the way the scribe was ushered
into the presence of Major W. Lewis
Rose, a typical Englishman of per-
haps fifty-fve. who was ensconsed in
a huge easy chair of English pattern
ENJOYING his afterlunch siesta in the
quiet of his attractive den. The greet |
ing was cordial. the information vol
uble and decidedly interesting. not
Snly reference being made 10 the
ranch. which most interests Major
Rose. but to various other themes, in
eluding the present unpleasantness
across the deep blue. which is follow
ed closely from day TO day by the