| Show PREPARING PRUNES FOR FOB MARKET thu the raising of prunes has been successfully cess fully tried to la many sections of this territory and the be industry is one that promises to be so 10 remunerative an aa to suggest its ite prosecution on a more extensive scale but iu in order that the best beat results my be obtained it is necessary that methods in the handling sorting and curing of the fruit be amplo employed thus correcting an error and a neglect which in the past has baa militated to an incalculable degree against the product of the utah ch obar ardist diat it is hardly neoe eLeary aary to say eay that french prunes have a reputation exceeding all others othere und and with a view to giving local producers the proc ess by which growers in that country prepare their fruit for exportation we buote from a writer in the boston herald As an soon aa the prunes are harvested they are taken to a building called the truit ery where they remain a few days to 10 complete maturity the fruit to is then subjected to not nol less leas than three and frequently tour four distinct bookings coo kings before being pronounced fit fib for the market the first two preliminary bookings coo kings have tor for object evaporation or of water contained in the fruit the final cooking which dries the fruit imparts a certain brilliancy much sought by buyers you know that rich gloss the sun dried prunes are most delicious delici oua to the taste but the exigencies of the trade do not permit of such long preparation in several districts of france the most primitive means are practiced in curing the fruit in provence it is in plunged in pots of boiling water thun thou placed in baskets and gently shaken until cool when it is pat upon long trays exposed to thesues the suns heat to com complete the desiccation at digne the prunes are not gathered until ripe women feel the fruit with their nails to avoid injury to the soft pulp the fruit is strung on small twins twigs in such huoh fashion an aa not to touch these sticks of prunes are stuck into straw which are suspended in the sun until the prunes easily detach from the stick the pit is then removed and the same process of sun drying is gone through with and when thoroughly des sica ted packed for market the trays used in the rural districts are quaint affairs varying in form dimensions and construction according to locality the peasants make them during the winter months and the they are clumsy and cumbersome ber some and me the only excuse is the peasant cannot afford to buy and is not skilful enough to make better ones perhaps some day a little yankee skill may enter into this primitive construction which is now a frame made of hoop to which is fastened a wicket like bottom fashioned from rushes and willow twigs at least this is the method of preparing prunes in france the california fruit growers may have a better |
