Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 41, Number 62, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 23 April 1909 — Raisin Raising at Reedle; An Interesting California Letter. [ARTICLE]

Raisin Raising at Reedle; An Interesting California Letter.

Reedley, Cal., April 9, 1909. Mr. Editor:—As Apyil 30th has been designated as "Raisin Day” in California, please allow me space in your valuable paper to tell your readers something of one of the most useful industries of California. The county superintendent, Mr. E. W. Linsday, of Fresno, has requested each pupil attending public schools in Fresno county to write a letter to friends in the east giving them information on the raisin industry. Prof. R. M. Porter, the principal of the Reedley schools, requested me to write a letter to his old home paper, The Rensselaer Republican, and I shall try to comply with his request. I suppose your readers have often wondered how we obtain the raisin from the green grape, and I wish to give those who have never seen the raisin cured, a short description of the process of planting the vines and harvesting and curing the raisins. The first step is to prepare the land for planting and irrigation. Before any other advancement is made the soil must be thoroughly leveled and pulverized in order that the vines may be properly planted and irrigated. About the first of February vineyardists take cuttings from older vines and stick the part that bears the bud about fourteen inches down in the ground, leaving the joint that produces the root covered over with only a few inches of soil. When they are well rooted they are taken up and set in the vineyard about ten feet apart. Then they are thoroughly cultivated and carefully irrigated for about three years. The third year they bear a small crop and the fourth year they bear a very good crop, if the conditions are favorable. Perhaps your readers would like to know something about the care of these vines. They are pruned every winter in the month of January, leaving only a stump about eighteen inches high. The suckers (the canes that spring from the root) are always cut away as they rob the vine of its strength. It is often necessary to spray them with sulphur to keep the insects away. The red spider is very injurious to the vines. The grapes are harvested, as a rule, in September. They usually hire Japanese to gather them. They are placed either on paper or wooden trays, weighing, with the grapes, about twenty-one pounds. The raisins weigh only one-third as much when dried. After they are dried on one side they are turned. The length of time to dry depends entirely upon the weather, but the average time is from eighteen to twenty-four days.

After the drying is over, they are put into sweat boxes, holding one hundred and fifty pounds, and taken to the packing house. The vineyard--Ist receives about three cents for his raisins, which he considers a very good price, and he is well pleased with five cents. At the packing house they are placed in a stemmer, which removes every stem, They are then thrown into a “seeder” and the seeds are removed from them. After this they are packed in one pound cartons and are sent to the markets. Hoping you will eat some raisins on the 30th of April, I am Respectfully, HATTIE E. NEIL. Age 13 years.

Henry Evans, a farmer living a few miles southwest of Jasper, has filed 82,000 damage suit against Michael J. Scheurick, a former saloon keeper of that place, and the United Stater Fidelity and Guaranty company, of Baltimore, Md., which is security on his bond. He alleges that while drunk, by reason of unlawful sales of liquor made by Seheurick, that he received a permanent Injury.

The most favorable report ever issued by the South Bend postoffice Is that for the quarter ending April 1. The total receipts for the three months were 850,238.72. "For the same three months last year the total was 839,773.94, showing a gain for the quarter this year of 810,465.78. The village of Bethlehem, this state, has been without a saloon for the one hundred years of its history. Sixty years ago it was a larger town than it is today, for before the days of railroads it was on the water highway, whereas now it is twenty miles from a railroad and the river is still its chief means of transportation. DeWitt's Little Early Risers, the best known pills and the best pills made, are easy to take and act gently and are certain. We sell and recommend them. AM druggists.