Part 22

_Packing Frames or Packing Trays._--These are of two kinds, according to the method of packing. For the top-up method, wooden frames large enough to hold five pounds of raisins are used. In length and width these frames correspond with the raisin box, but in height they are only one-third of a whole box, or about one and one-half inches. The bottom is a sliding one, and can be pulled out broadwise. The frame is first lined on the inside with the necessary paper, and then five pounds of raisins are placed in the paper. A follower or block of wood, large enough to fill the form or frame, is then placed on top, the frame is placed over an empty box, the sliding bottom quickly withdrawn, and the whole contents fall in the box below undisturbed. For the top-down method, frames of galvanized iron are used, slightly deeper than the former, but the bottom is a drop-bottom, resting on a flange, instead of a sliding bottom, as in the former tray. A loose plate of zinc is placed on top of the frame, the latter is inverted and placed over the box, and the zinc plate quickly withdrawn, when the contents covered by the loose drop-bottom (or by the facing-plate) fall into the raisin box.

_Facing-plate._--This useful tool was invented by T. C. White. It consists of a brass plate large enough to fit readily into the bottom of the raisin box. In this plate are arranged small cavities, each one wide enough to hold a large raisin. For large boxes the plate is made to contain eleven raisins the short way and eighteen the long way. The plate is first placed in the bottom of the iron frame in place of the loose bottom. A raisin is placed in each cavity and lightly pressed, and loose raisins are carefully filled in on the top. When this frame is afterwards reversed and the raisins and the plate as follower are received in the box, it will be found that the top layer has retained its arrangement and is regularly faced. This facing-plate enables the packer to face quickly and cheaply, but it can only be used when the top-down method of packing is used. The standard plate is nine inches by eighteen inches, and the plate for cartoons is five inches by ten inches, both made of heavy brass.

_Scales._--For weighing the quantity of raisins necessary for every layer, scales must be found on every weighing table. Any ordinary grocery scales which work with springs may be used. Generally one pair of such scales are used at each end of the assorting table.

_Labeling Press._--Of late every large packer labels his boxes before they are nailed together. This is done by passing the shooks through a labeling press, which prints under pressure the required label on each side or top, the name, etc., appearing in concave type on their face. These presses are run by machinery and work very rapidly.

_Tables._--In the packing-house are tables of various kinds; they are generally long and narrow, and about four feet wide. The assorting tables should be furnished with square holes at intervals of five or six feet, so that the loose raisins may be scraped through them into boxes below. The assorting and weighing tables are furnished with a low flange or guard all around, to prevent any raisins falling on the floor.

_Bags and Bag-holders._--Two kinds of bags are used,--cotton sacks or jute sacks. The former are white like flower sacks, the latter coarser and brownish. In the former no paper linings are used, but in the latter a paper bag is stitched, in order that the air may not penetrate and dry the raisins. Both kinds of bags are used to an equal extent. The cotton sacks contain either thirty or sixty pounds, while the jute sacks are made to contain an average of eighty pounds each. Patented bag-holders are used everywhere for holding the bags open while they are being filled.

_Trucks._--For inside work, trucks very similar to those used in the vineyard are now generally adopted. They are handled with ease, and for moving boxes of various kinds are absolutely indispensable in the modern raisin packing-house.

_Trays for Weighing._--These are small, shallow boxes, made of zinc or tin, and large enough to hold five pounds of raisins each. One short side of the tray should be slanting outward in order that the raisins may fall out readily. They are only used in weighing the raisins which are to go in each five-pound layer in the whole boxes.

_Followers._--These are wooden blocks of the size of a quarter box of raisins, inside measurement. They should be lined with zinc on the flat sides, in order that they may be washed readily, and also to prevent the sugar of the raisins from adhering to them. They should be large enough to just fit inside a box or frame, and are used to keep the raisins steady while being changed from the frame to the box. They are also placed on top of the raisin frames when they are being pressed.

_Paper._--Several kinds of paper are used in the raisin business. Heavy yellow manilla paper is used to place in the sweatboxes, one sheet between every two layers of raisins. The paper should be heavy, and cut to fit the box. Many growers use too short paper, which always has the inconvenience of causing the raisins to mix and become entangled. Only one whole sheet of paper should be used at a time; two short sheets will not answer, as, in lifting out a layer of raisins, the assorter takes hold of the four corners of the paper, and thus readily lifts out the raisin block. Lighter paper for lining the raisin boxes is used, both for layers and loose. The paper generally used is common book paper twenty-one by twenty-eight inches, and forty, fifty or sixty pounds to the ream in quality. Previous to being used, this paper is cut to fit the tray, a square piece being cut out of every corner. When placed in the tray, the central part of the paper fits the bottom of the tray, while the sides of the paper extend sufficiently over the sides of the tray to meet on top when folded over the raisins. Waxed tissue paper should always be placed on the top of the raisins in order to prevent the moisture from the raisins injuring the colored and artistic labels.

Colored lithographs or chromos of various designs and qualities are used for all raisins packed in boxes. When bought they come in three sizes. The central label should be nearly the size of the face of the box. The top labels are shorter pieces, almost as wide as the box, but only a few inches long. They are previously pasted to the top flaps of the lining. The side labels are twice as long as the face of the box, but not quite half as wide; they are similarly pasted on the long side flaps of the lining. There is a great variety of designs used, some of which are not appropriate. Whatever designs we use, it will be to the advantage of every country not to imitate, but to use labels characteristic of the country and locality where the raisins are made.

_Tin Boxes._--For packing raisins for tropical countries, boxes made of tin should be used. The dampness in those countries causes raisins packed the common way to mold and spoil. No box should contain more than ten pounds of raisins, and the top should be so soldered on that it can be removed without cutting or injuring the box. The French system of soldering on by means of a narrow strip of tin, which can be wound up, is admirable, and could hardly be improved upon. Five ten-pound boxes should be packed in a _light_ case made of light timber, and the whole package when closed should not weigh over sixty pounds. Four such cases will make one mule-load, and two such cases can be conveniently carried by one man.

LOOSE RAISINS.

_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.

_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.

LAYER RAISINS.

_Sweating or Equalizing._--This is a process by which the overdried raisins are made to attract sufficient moisture from the underdried raisins in the same box or bunch, and whereby the overdried raisins are made moister, while the underdried ones become drier. Equalizing also moistens the stems sufficiently to prevent them from breaking when being handled. In our California climate, where the air is so dry, this equalizing process is an absolute necessity, and no first-class raisin pack can be produced without the raisins having first been equalized. The word “equalizing” is to be preferred to “sweating,” as the latter word may be misunderstood as meaning that a certain amount of heat is developed by storing the raisins. Heat is indeed necessary, but it should come from the outside air, not from the inside or from the raisins. If from the latter the raisins will be in a fair way to become spoiled. In the foregoing I have described the construction and workings of the sweathouse. It may be suggested that, if there is no sweathouse on the vineyard, a large sail or canvas may be used as a substitute. The latter is simply thrown over the boxes where they are piled out-of-doors, and answers to some degree in keeping the raisins moist. But as this is only a substitute, I shall not dwell longer on its usefulness. It may, however, be said in favor of this appliance, that it is used by one of our largest packers, and by him considered as of equal value if not superior even to a regularly constructed equalizing house.

The raisins which are to be sweated are only the clusters or layers, and not the loose, which as we have seen should at once be taken from the field to the stemmer, while the stems are yet crisp and dry. It is therefore of importance that the bunches or layers should be separated from the loose already in the field, or, which is much preferable, before they are dried, at the time when they are picked from the vines. If the latter is done properly, there will be only a small quantity of loose which will go in the sweating-house with the layers. The layers should at any rate be placed at once in sweatboxes when taken from the trays, and between every two layers of bunches there should be a stout sheet of manilla paper, in order that the bunches may not become mixed. When taken to the sweathouse the boxes should be so placed that air can enter every one. It will not do to place one box on top of another so as to cover up the top entirely, as the raisins are then apt to ferment in a very short time, and, before the raisin-packer is aware, whole piles may be absolutely spoiled. It is not necessary to place the boxes crosswise, as it is enough to allow the short side of each box to overlap the underlying box a little; sufficient air will then enter. In very dry weather the floor of the sweathouse may be sprinkled with water, but this is generally not needed, as the underdried raisins will give out moisture enough to soften those that are too dry, as well as the stems. Every day the sweathouse should be aired, and it is a mistake to believe that all air should be excluded. If air is not daily admitted, the raisins will mold and spoil, and it is even advisable to keep a circulation of air constantly through the house during the daytime. The attentive packer will soon learn to regulate this, and nothing but actual experience with his particular sweathouse will enable him to decide how much air should be let in and to what extent the doors should be closed.

At the end of from ten days to three weeks, the equalizing process should be over, and the layers ready for further packing. When the boxes are removed, it will be found that the majority of those raisins which had been too moist or underdried have dried sufficiently, while on the contrary the overdried raisins, as well as the formerly brittle stems, will have acquired sufficient moisture to enable the packer to manipulate them without risk of breaking the bunches. The raisins should be pliable, and stand moderate pressure without cracking or breaking. But while equalizing is an important operation, and one which we cannot dispense with, it is always to the grower’s interest to so dry his raisins previously that they will require as little equalizing as possible, as even the most carefully sweated raisins which have once been overdried will never afterwards equal those which were at once properly dried in the field. The overdried raisins will always have a tougher skin and be inferior in color; but on the other hand they will keep better than raisins which have been dried less.