_Stemming and Assorting._--It must be understood that all the mechanical
appliances and tools mentioned above should now be on hand ready for
use and properly placed. The several different operations in packing,
stemming, assorting, etc., of both loose and layers, will at times be
carried on in different parts of the packing establishment at the same
time, so as to meet the requirements of mixed lots or orders, the
general shipments being of that nature. Loose and layer raisins are
produced more or less from almost every sweatbox brought into the
packing-house, and the only delay to their being immediately disposed of
is because the layer raisins must be sweated or equalized before they
are ready for use. The loose raisins, provided they are properly or
sufficiently dried, are ready to be handled as soon as brought from the
vineyard. A loose raisin, or a bunch from which loose raisins are to be
made, must be overdried rather than underdried; at any rate, it must be
so dry, that no juice will come out of it when the raisin is squeezed
heavily or even torn. But a matter of greater importance even is that
the stems should be brittle or sufficiently dry to break off readily. If
they do not break, the raisins cannot be easily separated from the stem.
The stems, instead of breaking off, will tear off, and the raisins will
be open to the entrance of air, which will cause them to undergo a
chemical change, to sugar and deteriorate.
As soon as a perfectly dried sweatbox of third-grade or loose raisins
enters the packing-house, it should be taken to the stemmer. Any delay
in this is injurious to the raisins, as they will rapidly undergo a
sweating or equalizing, causing the stems to soften and to lose their
brittleness. It will, therefore, be seen that loose raisins must on no
account be sweated or equalized before they have been stemmed. Besides,
if the raisins are in any way moist, they will not shed the dust and
dirt when being passed through the stemmer. It is therefore to every
raisin-grower’s interest to so hasten the drying of the loose raisins
that as many of them as possible can be out of the way when the layers,
which take longer to dry, come in. This, as we have shown before, can
only be done by assorting the raisins while green, and at the moment
they are being picked from the vines. The different size bunches dry at
different times, and the loose can then be partially disposed of when
the layers are ready. The stemmer and grader should separate the raisins
in at least three grades: Number one, large loose; number two, smaller
loose; number three, smallest seedless, to which may be added a number
four, or rubbish. The large loose bring always a good price, and great
care should be taken with them. After having passed through the stemmer
and assorter once, they should be passed through a second or third time,
in order that all the inferior or smaller raisins may be eliminated. In
this way, a fine, large number one is had, which is sure to give
satisfaction. Number two loose may be passed through a second time if
the stemmer has not done its full duty, and the same may also be done
with number three seedless. It always pays to do a thing well, and this
holds good with raisins as with everything else. Colonel Forsyth, who
has acquired a high reputation for his loose raisins, advocates and
practices this repeated assorting, especially of the number one grade,
in order that it may be entirely uniform. Too many poor raisins are
generally found among the small seedless, and if they are to be made to
partially replace the seedless Sultanas or the Currants in the same
manner as the number two is expected to replace the imported Valencias,
they must be made clean from all rubbish. Only by producing a superior
article can we hope to replace the imported dipped raisins by our loose
Muscatels.
_Packing and Cleaning._--The number one and two loose are always put up
in whole boxes of twenty pounds each, never in quarter boxes, but
sometimes in cartoons, to be used as samples or as holiday gifts. In
packing whole boxes, they may either be faced or not. If not faced, the
work is very simple. The raisins are first brought to a large separate
table with a guard all around its edges, so as to prevent the raisins
from falling to the floor. On each such table are one or more small
scales. The workmen gather the raisins with small shovels, and place
them in quantities of twenty pounds each in tin trays, with the guards
slanting at one end, in order that the raisins may fall out readily.
These trays are then immediately carried by other hands to the
packing-table close by. Here the proper papers are being placed in
regular whole raisin boxes, the loose raisins are poured in from the
trays, and from time to time looked over and cleaned. All poor or
inferior raisins should be carefully eliminated, and only good ones
allowed to be boxed. Finally the paper leaves are folded over, and the
boxes are taken away to be nailed up. Number two undergoes the very same
process when packed in boxes.
[Illustration: Raisin Truck for Packing-house.]
_Sacking._--A very large trade is springing up in sacked raisins, and
the demand for them is increasing every year. Both numbers two and three
grades loose are now exported this way either in cotton sacks, or in
jute sacks lined inside with paper. The jute sacks are by many preferred
on account of their showing the dirt less, the cotton sacks generally
arriving soiled at their destination. If cotton sacks are used for
shipment East, they should be first placed in common burlap sacks, in
order to arrive clean and attractive. The extra expense is not great, as
the cheapest kind can be used for this purpose.
_Facing, Top-up Method._--The facing is quickly done with the aid of
White’s facing-plate, but it can also be accomplished without it if the
packer may so desire. The facing-plate, however, is greatly to be
preferred, as we shall show directly. If no plate is used, the operation
is as follows: At the filling table, fifteen pounds of loose raisins are
weighed off directly in the twenty-pound boxes. Then five pounds loose
are weighed separately in a tin tray. The whole boxes are taken to the
packing-table and placed close to the press, one on top of the other,
the smaller trays, with five pounds each, are brought to the facer, who
now takes one of the loose wooden frames with a sliding bottom and
places in it the necessary papers. He then fills in the five pounds of
loose raisins, smooths and spreads them out, and sees that no bad
berries are among the good ones. This operation may also be performed by
different hands, so as to divide up the work. This is probably the best
and most economical way. The next step is to take the tray to the press
and subject it to a certain pressure, so as to get a smooth upper
surface on which to face or place the raisins in rows. When this is done
the tray is taken to the facer. The facer now has in front of him a tray
filled with the ornamental papers and the five pounds of raisins. The
surface of the raisins is smooth and even. The next operation is to
place large raisins in rows on the top surface. A small box with loose,
large raisins should be at the side of the facer, who in taking each one
of them at first presses it towards the table with the thumb of either
hand, thus flattening out the raisin in order to make it appear large.
When the tray is faced, it may again be subjected to slight pressure,
but generally this is not needed. The contents of the tray are now
transferred to the twenty-pound box, which already contains fifteen
pounds of loose. These loose raisins, which will be on the bottom of the
box, are not generally wrapped in paper, although such would very much
improve their appearance. The box is now ready for nailing. This top-up
method is very inferior to the top-down method, as will be described
further on. In packing with this method, only the wooden frame with the
sliding bottom is used. The drop-bottom frame is only used for the
top-down method.
_Facing, Top-down Method._--In using this method, the top layer is
finished first, and the bottom last. The packing is done as follows: In
the bottom of a tin or galvanized-iron tray, previously described, is
placed one of White’s facing-plates. As will be remembered, the frame
has a loose drop-bottom, which falls out as soon as the tray is turned
over. The facing-plate is placed either directly on this loose bottom,
or on the flange supporting it, and always with the facing-cups upward.
The facer now places loose selected raisins, one in each hollow, presses
his finger on the raisin and works it in the hollow until it becomes
flattened. When all the cavities are filled, loose raisins are carefully
filled in until the tray is full, when but a gentle pressure is required
to steady the raisins and make them keep their places. In the meantime,
fifteen pounds of raisins have been put in twenty-pound boxes and
_gently_ pressed. Some packers of choice raisins use a wrapper and label
for every layer of five pounds, which greatly improves the general
appearance of the box. After all is ready, a loose zinc plate is placed
over the filled frame or tray, the latter is reversed and placed
directly over the raisin box, in which has already been placed the
required paper wrapper. The zinc plate, which only served to steady the
raisins while the frame was being turned, is now quickly withdrawn, and
the five-pound faced layer falls down in the box entirely undisturbed,
kept so by the facing-plate which here acted as follower. The box is now
ready for nailing, after a label and wax paper have first been placed on
top of the plate. Without the facing-plate, a skilled facer can face
some forty boxes a day, while from twenty to thirty boxes is a low
average. With the facing-plate, the facing can be accomplished with more
speed and accuracy.
_Comparative Value of the Two Methods._--The top-up method has several
disadvantages. It requires a heavy pressure of the raisins to create a
smooth, flat surface on which to face. But even if no facing is done,
the top layer will always be more or less uneven, and requires heavy
pressure to make it smooth, and appear well and to advantage. This heavy
pressure always bursts many of the raisins, and causes them to sugar and
spoil. It has also another disadvantage, that the facing of the top
layer can only be done with the fancy paper previously placed in the
box. In facing and manipulating the raisins, this paper becomes more or
less soiled and wet. In using the top-down method, the paper is placed
in the box at the last moment, just before the final five-pound layer is
emptied from the tray upon the fifteen-pound layer below. I consider
these advantages so essential that I must strongly indorse the top-down
method, and I believe that, in course of time, it will be generally
adopted by all packers who care for the keeping qualities of their
raisins. As to the time and expense required by these two methods, there
is but very little difference. The top-down method is possibly a little
slower and more expensive, but it is by far the better, and the
difference in expense of packing is not great enough to be taken into
consideration.