If the supply of fruit is greater than the family needs, it may be made a source of income by sending the fresh fruit to the market, if there is one near enough, or by preserving, canning, and making jelly for sale. To make such an enterprise a success the fruit and work must be first class. There is magic in the word "Homemade," when the product appeals to the eye and the palate; but many careless and incompetent people have found to their sorrow that this word has not magic enough to float inferior goods on the market. As a rule large canning and preserving establishments are clean and have the best appliances, and they employ chemists and skilled labor. The home product must be very good to compete with the attractive goods that are sent out from such establishments. Yet for first-class homemade products there is a market in all large cities. All first-class grocers have customers who purchase such goods.
To secure a market get the names of several first-class grocers in some of the large towns. Write to them asking if they would be willing to try a sample of your goods. If the answer is favorable, send samples of the articles you wish to sell. In the box with the fruit inclose a list of the articles sent and the price. Write your name and address clearly. Mail a note and a duplicate list at the time you send the box.
Fixing the price of the goods is important. Make it high enough to cover all expenses and give you a fair return for your labor. The expenses will be the fruit, sugar, fuel, jars, glasses, boxes, packing material, wear and tear of utensils, etc., transportation, and commission. The commission will probably be 20 per cent of the selling price. It may be that a merchant will find that your prices are too high or too low for his trade, or he may wish to purchase the goods outright. In any case it is essential that you estimate the full cost of the product and the value that you place on your labor. You will then be in a position to decide if the prices offered will compensate you for the labor and expense. Do not be tempted, for the sake of a little money, to deprive your family of the fruit necessary to health and pleasure.
PACKING AND SHIPPING.
Each jar or jelly glass must be wrapped in several thicknesses of soft paper (newspapers will answer). Make pads of excelsior or hay by spreading a thick layer between the folds of newspapers. Line the bottom and sides of the box with these pads. Pack the fruit in the padded box. Fill all the spaces between the jars with the packing material. If the box is deep and a second layer of fruit is to go in, put thick pasteboard or thin boards over the first layer and set the wrapped jars on this. Fill all the spaces and cover the top with the packing material. Nail on the cover and mark clearly: GLASS. THIS SIDE UP.
The great secret in packing is to fill every particle of space so that nothing can move.
PRINCIPLES OF CANNING AND PRESERVING.
In the preservation of foods by canning, preserving, etc., the most essential things in the processes are the sterilization of the food and all the utensils and the sealing of the sterilized food to exclude all germs.
BACTERIA, YEASTS, AND FERMENTATION.
Over one hundred years ago François Appert was the first to make practical application of the method of preserving food by putting it in cans or bottles, which he hermetically sealed. He then put the full bottles or cans in water and boiled them for more or less time, depending upon the kinds of food.