Year: 1875

ORANGES, BANANAS, CoCoANUTs AND


PINE APPLES HOW THEY ARE BROUGHT


TO NEW YORK AND SOLD To RETAIL


ERs.


The tropical fruit trade and how it is
conducted is at all times interesting.
Particularly is this so when our re-
tailers exhibit luscious punches OF ba-
nanas and large piles OF oranges, cocoa
nuts and pi 6 apples. Few people are
aware of the great competition that
exists in the West India trade. In New
York, at this time, trim rakish-looking
schooners lie alongside the piers dis
charging great punches of lucious ba-
nanas, one of which is a tolerably
heavy load for a man to take ashore F;
oranges so large and bright of hue that
one can easily conceive them to be the
forbidden fruit that tempted Eve; CO.
coanuts that carry one, figuratively
speaking, into the forests of the Nico-
bar and Andaman Islands, though they
come from Baracoa, Jamaica and Cen
trail and South America; and the pine
apples have to be delicately handled.


One of the great requisites for a ves-
sci engaged in the fruit trade is speed,
and her measure of success in the bust
ness will depend largely upon her abil-
ity to bring her cargo into New York
in as short a time as possible after
she has received it on board. The
necessity for this is two fold; not only
does every days delay on the ocean
entail a considerable loss of the perish
able cargo, but when, as frequently
happens, fleet of vessels loaded with
fruit leave a foreign port on the same
day, a nine or ten days regatta at once
commences; and the first arrivals in
New York, for few days at least, glut
the market with their cargOes, ,and those
coming after them are obliged to wait
before they can dispose of theirs. AT
ter leaving port the vessels soon part
company, and seldom see each other
again until they come into New York.
| Some of them have centre boerds and
others keels, and their average capacity
is about 1S9 tons. They arenearly all
schooners.


The average cost of bananas in BSGa.
Goa lie rs cents, gold, bunch, and they
are sold in New York, for between 81
and 50 bunch. AS soon as the cargoes
are in the race for New York commen-
ces, the trip occupying generally about
ten days, though some very fast schoo-
ners have accomplished it in less than
seven days. If the weather should be
very cold on their arrival, tedious de-
lay Is likely to occur. The sudden
change from scorGhing sun to freez-
ing temperature so affects the fruit
that it is difficult to handle it without
danger. Vessels are now lying at the
banana sheds, N. Y, that have been
there for ten days the cold weather in
which they arrived preventing them
from having their cargoes discharged.
The fruit, however, is easily Kept
fresh In winter, though like delay
in the hot weather would probably
result in the destruction OF the whole
cargo,


The orange trade is very much like
the business of importing bananas ;the
same large loss through the decay OF
the frnit is liable to occur, especially
during stormy passages, when the
matches have to be kept constantly
: closed to prevent the entrance of sea
water. A free passage of air 10 essen
tial to the preservation of the fruit
and when it is thus closed in fermenta
tion and decay proceed with ruinous
, fapidity. On the other hand such oil
the orange or bananas as are slowed
on deck are more than likely to be de
stroyed by the sea water. In one re-
spect oranges are even more liable to
decay on the voyage than bananas.-
/ Most other fruits are carefully picked
} from the trees by hand, but these are
knocked off the branches with sticks
or by shaking the trunk. In this way
they become bruised and begin to
rot even before they are placed on ship
board. Pineapples are also extremely
difficult of preservation, as besides en-
countering the same risk in transpor-
tation to this country as oranges and
bananas they are frequently out in the
rainy season and placed, while still
wet, in the holds of the schooners, and
decay and fermentation commence al
once. so that at the close of the voy
age two-thirds of the cargo is often iii
only to be thrown overheard.


A thousand oranges may be pur
chased in Havana for about $4.75 and
thCli NhioC hCiO ihdy w hpOut SSU
thousand, but the fruit must be SOUND
when 1t is sold, so that the profits or
it are by no means so large as might
at first be supposed. The annual loss
on imported grape fruit and shaddockl
is frequently as much as twenty pei
cent, lines fifteen per cent; and OIL
mangoes it Is impossible almost to es
innate it. 1t is fruit extremely diff
cult of preservation, and very often 6
whole cargo is destroyed on the voy
age from the West Indies.


There probably as great demand
for pine apples as for any species O.


imported fruit. Their very perishablt
nature is best shown by the enormous


profits which importers expect to real
izo on the second fruit. They cos
between $3S and $24 thousand in tn,
West Indies, and arc sold in New Y orl
for about $120 thousand. The aver
age loss on pine apples by decay OF