A GREAT INDUSTRY.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 781, 2 April 1910, Page 12

A GREAT INDUSTRY.

ABOUT FRIMLEY: PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE FRUIT AND VEGETABLES IN PERFECTION. INTERESTING CHAPTER IN HAWKE'S BAY'S HISTORY.

. Hawke's Bay.isa land of many colours—a. rainbow land of plantations, rich, undulating* pastures, and summer skies J. fleecy wool, and .tinted fruit'gardens,-which gleam in. all their many colours in the season as fantastic as those of Babylon! ■ Tho district embraces•'■. at,'once tho ideal and the practical. It is ono of the .wealthiest provinces in Now Zealand. 'It is busy and enterprising.. -No, other province can produce so much rich land; so many sheep; tq-'the .acre,..so. much wool, so .much wine, so,much fruit, arid possibly no.other province can show so happy a. blending of the joy ; of life with the business energy which' creates, material progress ;-,and ■ '/modern civilisation. Hftwko's Bay's latest ; successful indus-!'try-f-there are others coining—is fruit, jiims,. and: vegetables; .and her brightest jnwel. inthis last setting is Frimley—a name■which.to-day, is a household word among the;/many",thousands of house-.' wives over, an, area extending from North Cape.to the Bluff. : '■■ -'.;"

mines,■■.but'.in the fruit farms. -Their value now in and Frimley factory a-nd extending to Havelock North is set down at.£250,000. Thcro is no estimate as to what this industry would be worth to Now Zealand—if wo could obtain a market, such as wo have for our wool and mutton and butter and cheese. But this, so far, wo/ have been unable to-do. ; On the other hand we still import £74,000. of fruit fresh and canned other than bananas and pineapples. This means that we spend Is. sd: per head on fresh.and-canned fruit that we could produce ourselves. Wore we in turn to develop an export trade we would also improve our local trade considerably and in. this mannor wo would in timo wipe, out the foreign article. So far, however,' as. local trade is concerned, Frimley is more than keeping its. end ,up." Sis.years ago,, /when'fthere were-only •about-500 acres growing fruit trees in. the district, Hast'ings' had a. population of 3500. To-day, ■with ; 2000- acres under. the ' blossoihs, Hastings has a population of 6000. Like the. towns 'of Florida and California, which are. the; homes of fruit gardens, Hastings has nearly doubled

in the factory helps to feed many mouths. For instance, the white pine boxes with which tbe fruit and jams are packed are made at Ellis and Burnand's at Manunui on the Main Trunk lino. Last year 30,000 of these boxes were ordered, but there will be more this year, arid still more next year,' when Frimley adds further to its industry with the manufacture of lemon peel, and its one pound not weight pure jama. in their attractivelooking tins: These latter will give tho housq.vifo from t,vo to four ounces oxtra weight of tho fruit Which costs the money. (Tho usual ono pound tin of jam is-said to weigh out about 12 or 14 ounces net.) Other items which cost money for manufacture are tin, of which 2000 boxes / aro used annually. With solder, the annual bill runs into £2500. This year 750,000, labels will -be used for wrapping the tins in, or 160,000 more than last year. Glass jars for canned fruits will be an additional expense this year, but Mr. Basil Jones is determined to show tho produce in its most attractive form, and at the.samo time give the public an opportunity, of knowing beforehand what they aro really buying. . ' Tho Orchards. A visit to the Frimley orchards is instructive!' and educative to almost any individual. Ono is first struck, with the rows upon rows of .peach trees, planted ■ 33 - feet apart. Interspersed between the peach trees are pear trees, of which there are, in all, 6000. Peaches grow especially well at' Frimley, but they do not last for over. The lifo' of a peach 5 tree is usually 15 years, and when it has grown for this period it becomes unpayable, and is then nrp rooted. ■".. Tho , tree begins. to bear ■at three years. 11l the course of the noxt nino, years, the present peach trees will have become- gradually extinct, and in their- place will bo- planted other peach . trees, with the pear trees now growing on the same ground. Tear trees last practically for over. Apple trees grow to a groat age. The ground is ploughed twice a

Frlmley's Captain of Industry. : ■It'Tvasllr.-: J.; N. ; Williams.'who-first ■introduced; Frimley to-New Zealand, .but; :it washis co-pairtnerahd : manager, , Mr. B. Basil Jones, who first taught-Now Zealand to appreciate Frimley as. ono of our national gardens..' : Mr. Basil : Jones, is .an- Englishman, with Amerisan :triramings and ■ experience. Hβ 13 one. of those: nervous...energetic men of -.remarkable 'force, who do - not 'understand, the■• -meaning', df the .word ~ "can't.".; He is aman with ideas (practical "ideas), and .; he puts T them into operation with the activity of one grop- . ing for a , lost sou). ..For ; the :past six years, ; 6ince;he'lias been in charge at Frimley, Mr. BasiJ Jones has been ■;. busy,, very V.busy, 'sometimes .'sixteen V hours a. day, spreading the gospel that Hawke's Bay, near Frimley; is a good land to grow fniit and vegetables upon. ;'At the same time he has been just as . busy. persuading tho . people - of New : Zealand that these fnuts and vegetables are good to eat., In his spare moments, :,fioine time.between the eight hours :ho is supposed to sleep and eat, Mr. Basil Jones is thinking out labour-sav-ing, machinery ideas and doctrines, all

its population, in fho course, of a few years." ■ Again, so far as Calif ornian can-. ' nod fruits arocoricerried; Mr. , Basil Jones has so;pushed Frimley products before tho public that, if,, aided by a . satisfactory'import, duty, it'would end the imodrtation of the foreign-made article to "tho Dominion.. 'With the "just as good" let. us patronise) ourselves before wo patronise anybody else.' This 'season Frimley expects to get rid of 600 toils of canned fruits, and 500. tons of jam.'■;■. .' ';,-.--, : '.' . .■';■•'' ■■ '--y ",' ' ' '.■i Six Years and Its Changes. . Sii years, ago. Frimley: was a sheep run , .. :When . travelling .in .California, its owner, Mr. J. N. ■ Williams, wae struck with tho success; which attended tho 'fruit-growing there, and on his return to New Zealand. he decided to experiment; in l the :Bame ; . industry : in Hawke's Bay.' It may' he mentioned that;.- the" l Williams' , families' through-oiiu-'.'New..Zealand';!have hoen always strenuous •supporters .of local industries'. .They .have never spared their capital nor their' time to promote laudable local institutions. With tho idea of encouraging industry, Mr. J.N. Wil-

year, ' and ' the. trees altogether are usually planted 100 to .the acre. On: the land where there are the 90 miles ;6f peach 'trees,- (an , exceptionally fertile section),, the trees, however, r.re planted 140 to the aero. : Tho earlymaturing kinds-.of fruits , are grown nearest' tho factory, and the later farther, away J By these means the fruitpickers work., oil a systematic labour-saving plan, and clear the ground as they'go.'■'. Peaclies are estimated to return £1 per tree gross. In an orchard (12 acres) which adjoins Mr. J.-.'N. Williams'a private residence, and which was planted by him some .'twenty-five years ago, a Dominion representative noticed a peach tree .said .to be twentj-nvo years of age. It had evidently exceeded its.' allotted" span of 'life, as do many'human beings. _ Ono. pear tree was a' guarlei giant, . with a trunk i 8 inches through. ■' Seventysix cases of fruit were taken from this tree in ono season. : In the same' orchard were to be seen lemon, orange, limo trees, and "poor man" ..-.orange trees; on which the ladybirds were ousting . the pests.'. Plum trees were to be seen, with their' heavily-laden

tending to impart further vigour and life to Frimley and its products., For the present, tho beginning and sndiug of Sir. Basil Jones's world is Frimley. Ho talks Frimby, dreams Frimley, and ho is driving that system of industrial planets on its successful mission with an almost super-human energy and enterprise, which marks him as one ol the chief captains of industry in Now Zealand. ■■.-.. Big Things at Frimley. Big things are being dono in Frimley. . In years gone by it grew mostly pine. . Later it grow wool and sheep, and was .the land of the Golden Fleece. Now it is tho land of the Goiden Fruit, returning its growers from £60' to' £70 per acre gross, and ■t.the least £35 per aero net. It is a flat country with a sandy loam on a shingly siib-soil. It has a dry, mild climate. with : about a dozen, frosty nights in the course of a year, and .««u are finding gold there, not in

liams gradually cut up hia Frimley sheeprun, and sold it in sections to persons desirous of going in for fruit farming. Mr. Williams first planted about 100 acres with fruit trees, while tho Frimley woolshcd (80 foot by 30 feet) did duty as tho factory. This building still survives in a huge factory, the floor space alone of which covers two acres of land. In those.early days the staff numbered about 20. Now, in tho season; Frimley employs 30 people in the company's own orchards, covering over 3GO acre's; 250 in the factory, and often thero are from 100 to 200 school children picking peas. To-day in tho Kaipo orchard thero arc 90 miles alone, of peach trees, and at Frimley tliero are 40 acres under pear, orange, and peach trees; 40 acres under plums, apples, and pears, 6 acres of gooseberries, ,whilo there havo boon I ~)j acres of peas, 13 of tomatoes, and 1} of red currants. Tho wages sheet for tho factory alone runs into over £8000 per annum. The material used

Poll and Backham, Photo., Hastings.

branches hearing right down to the ground. Two rows of .these trees 'have been known to yield from six to seven tons of fruit per season. • The Secret of Success. Asked tho secret of tho success of fruit-growing, the head gardener remarked shortly "cultivation." This statement is reminiscent of tho old-timo individual who informed his sons on his dying bed that tliero was a fortune buried on his farm. When they asked him where it was located lie murmured "Dig for it," and died. Tho sons did dig, and dug, and dug again. They found no fortune in bullion, but in tho harvest which tho earth returned to them —another example of tho fact that tho man with plenty of application will often achieve success as well as the brilliant but erratic genius. Tho Krimloy orchards havo a particularly well-groomed appearance. Pruning is reduced to a science, and spraying is carried on- regularly, Heavily-laden.

prune trees are quickly stripped by the pickers, who shake tho branches, under which are placed huge canvas sheets. An example of the smartness of picking peaches is given by the fact that in ono day this season, nine men picked 500 forty-fivo pound cases, an average of over one ton per man. In the season there are 30 men constantly picking. Pears are picked green, and then ripened. They usually ripen within a week. The daily picking of poaches is from 10 to 12 tons in the busy season. Frfmley's Busy Season. Frimley's busy season commences in November and lasts till June. When a Dominion representative paid a visit last week, tho season was at its

placed in retorts, which will bold 3000 cans at a time, and which are operated at a temperatiure up to 300 degrees Fahrenheit. The time required varies, but every "cooking" ■ .is vigilantly watched over by an electric time clock, which has been set to the requisite time, and rings an alarm bell when this has expired. Fruit Pulp. Frimloy makes jam in the summer, but the operation of canning takes so much labour, and the rush of fruit is so tremendous that a great deal of ripe fruit cannot bo mado up at onco. It is therefore converted into pulp by boiling in -copper cauldrons, and stored in hermetically-sealed tins and barrels, to await tho slacker season which follows with the passing of summer and

of terraced tins, which loom everywhere, labelled and unlabelled, cased and uncased. One stack of green peas held 10,000 one pound tins. The Frimley canned green pea is an innovation of this factory, public appreciation was instantaneous, and tho output has reached enormous dimensions. The idea of having green peas at any season of tho year is cerfcninly fascinating. Mr. Basil Jones estimates that this season his green pea output will be 120,000 tins, which, if placed end on ond, would raise a monument 45,000 ft. in height, or nearly twico tho altitude of Mount Everest. The percentage of "blown" tins, that is tins containing fermented goods, is J per cent,,-'and this is proof positivo of tbo great care exorcised, because one bruised pea, O? a

greatest activity./ Cartload.after cartload of fruit was being brought in from the neighbouring farms, in addition to the returns from the company's own orchards, at the rate of' from 30 to 40 loads per, day. There were tons of igolden peaches, juicy-looking pears, plums and apples, with vegetables such as peas, carrots, and French beans. As fast as the produce was brought in, it was weighed and sorted,.and washed in clear, fresh water. Frimloy uses 17,000 gallons of fresh water daily. Tho scene was one of intense activity. In one room in the fruit court, where the consignments are first received, there could be soen scores of ■ blueunirormed women, young and old,' but mostly young, at work at the tables, some washing the fruit, others deftly peeling, coring, or packing. All had bright, cheerful, races as they bent to their work. . There was little talking, but the hum of whirring and ceaseless machinery was heard everywhere. Poa-Shelllng Extraordinary. Everywhere one looked there could bo seen almost every kind of'labour-saving device. For instance, in one corner of the room .was a pea huller for shelling peas. This machine, which absolutely ate up pens, does the work of 200 women. The peas are fed-into ono end and are delivered into a wooden trough at tho bottom of the machine, while the shells emerge ■ simultaneously from ■tho other'end. One ton ~ every ; two hours, is the record, and this season the i machine has put through 250 tons of peas, which is double the'quantity dealt ..with last year. Near by ■'is .& pea-;, cleaner,, which is also a useful device and a great labour-saver; but scarcely as wonderful as the pea huller. •' A little further on are a dozen apple-peelers, each of which will peel the apples at the rate , of sixty . a minute.; Another make of machine cores and slices at'.'an' equal pace, v'There is no i time lost at Frimley.--.-. . ' "■'.-■' ' .;,' Peaches and Circular Saws. One usually associates ; circular saws with woodwork, but at Frimley these articles have been applied to the halfing of peaches. There are three of these circular saw peach-cutting machines—Hγ. Basil Jones's own invention.' The saws travel at a high rate of speed, and each one cuts cleanly through the luscious fruit and the hard stone st the rato of over 100 peaches per .minute.. There was also in evidence a peach-stoning machine, but it is not much used. Great care is exer-cised-so that the peaches which are to be canned are absolutely clean. They are washed before peeling, and after: being peeled they are' washed twice.' They are then packed in cans or bottles' and covered'with syrup. The packing of peaches in the handsome jars entails i much care/ Each portion , has to be placed nicely in.the jar, and to do this, the staff use a short stick to ' 'tump," as it were, each section into p. proper position, so'that when the fruit is displayed for snlo its appearance will attract the eye of tho most casual ob- ■ 'server! French prunes are also packed in this manner. Amongst the varieties, of poaches used, Frimley.favours Orange Cling, Comet, Solway, Craw-, ford, Gold iiust, Globe, Kalamazoo, and Elberta, with a decided preference for the hrst-named, of which there is a limited supply. In this room, whore peaches are so much in evidence, there are employed from 100 to 140 hands. In the season this staff deals with 2000 cases of peaches each week. In other rooms (where,* by the way, there are employed 120 hands) the staff was ongaged in dealing with apples, French prunes, and pears. Here again laboursaving machinery is, very much in evidence in the shape of apple-peeling machines, which deal with the fruit as fast as it can bo fed in. Tho apples wero a splendid lot, and pears wore being dealt with largely.- A very attractivo sort, and the only one used, was the William Bon Cretion (or Bartlott), a soft, buttery pear, with a very small core, and which cooks white • and fresh. Thero is a large public demand for this kind of pear, which has a very delicious taste.

In connection with tho packing, Mr. Basil Jones makes a point of placing all dessert fruit in heavy syrup, which is cooked in enamelled tanks. Pie fruits aro in sweet water, sterilised by steam, while tomatoes are packed in salt water, with tomato pulp as a flavouring. All tins which aro utilised for packing purposes aro sterilised by steam, which is somewhat similar, but much smaller, to the appliances in use at the dairy factories. Cooking Fruit and Vegetables. From the fruit-packing courts the: visitor may oinergo to what is known as the "processing room." This place is a sort of boiling works, but "processing" means exhausting tho air from tho. fined fruit tins by. putting them through boiling water, and at the same tiino partly cooking the fruit. Tho cans aro placed in trays on an endless bolt, which is constantly travelling through the water. Tho ■ fruit goes in raw at one end of the tank aiid omorges partially cooked at tho other end. After the first cooking tho tins aro taken out and finally sealed up, and then cooked again. Other cooking machines in the pfaco are automatic. A boll rings when the fruit has been proporly boiled.' It is. promptly swung by a crane into circular tanks of cold water. There are five of these big cooking tanks at Frimley, an'd 360 tins may bo cooked in each in a few minutes' time. Vegetables, aftor tho firet eookiijg, ate

autumn. This pulping operation, like o # very other'in the factory, is attended by the most scrupulous care and cleanliness. With-the use of this pulp for jam-making purposes, Frimloy practices no deception.'. AH the jam miido is analysed, and labelled in. apcord<me) with the Pure Fo)d Act. Tn one corucr of the room, where the,jam jars are placed, is a hydraulic press for squeezing the juice out of apples when required for jam-making. Tin-Making. / It can easily he understood that tinmaking is an important industry at the factory. Something like three-quarters of a million of tins are made each season. Formerly .five or six machines

were required for the work, but practically the. wholo business is now done, by one automatic'wonder, which was installed last winter. The-tin is put into the machine in its-Hat state, and one section makes the body and ; solders it. Another section .fits the body with a top and bottom,, which are crimped on., Still.another.!seetion : solders tho

top and bottom, and .the tin is turned out tho. finished article. This machine, which will turn out all sizes, has done away with tho work ofj five other machines,' and its capacity is 10,000 tins per day. It cost £GOO. Frimloy uses up 2,240,000 sheets of- tin overy year. After tin-making comes tin-testing. Empty tins arc tested in a machine to ascertain if they are air-tight. If thoy aro not, tho machine, which is another automatic wonder, rejects thorn. This mncliino will put through 3000 tins per hour. Frlmley's Creat Stores. Frimloy's store-rooms, vnst chambers, 100 ft. by 40ft., and with 20ft. studs, give an idea of the great trado done in canned goods and jams. Tho eye is immediately struck bx the vast 'stacks

microscopic hole in any can will cause the whole of the contents to ferment. The storerooms are occupied by great stacks of from 5000 to 19,000 tins each, this season's pack, all ready for export. Of last season's goods, scarcely a tin remains. This season operations have been on so large a scale and'have occupied so much room in! the;factory that the boxrnakers had to be accommodated in two canvas-covered outbuild l ings of large size. Here the boxes are being put together, this work alone occupying lalf a dozen-men.. . . > ■' ' At Night. . ■■■■■,;' • The factory, is equippediwith a 40 h.p/ gas engine, and producer plant, and has its own dynamo.with 200 lights. This season supplies of fresh fruit were flooding the factory at the-time of the reporter's visit, and -notwithstanding, the first-class management and up-to-' date machinery it has been found neces; sary to do a great deal, of overtime work at night. Frimley at; night'is an-' other eye-opener, with its great outside arc'electric lights, : its interior-'as light as day,. the vibrating and : whirring machinery, and its crowds of neatly dressed women under whose ;deft hands huge piles of fruit are 1 prepared for the packing and cooking, which will complete the famous Frimley products'. . ' :. Well-cared-for Staff. Mr.." Basil Jones ; devotes a,' large amount of care and attention to : the well-being of his.' employees.^;:All jare well paid, and;'while mscipline', r must be strict in. order that- the. quality of Frimley goods may be kept ;at the highest level, there is no unnecessary "red tape", and regulation. Throughout the factory every attention is paid, "to the comfort of the workers, the appliances being .placed in the'best light; th* factory, well.'■ ventilated throughout, and eyery.portion of it.scrupulously;cleaned every'day. For the employees'generally there are separate dining rooms for the sexes; rThe""girls'roomi';;a spacious cheery place, has all the appurtenances of a social hall, and regularly, every month in the season concerts, dramatic entertainments, and euchre, parties are attended by .the -employees. .;•■'> In. this ■. way work ,and pleasure march hand in ; hand, contentment rules,..and Frimley has solved in.a' very "great.measure the labour troubles which handicap so many industries,! whose basic idea is that, of individualism. ;.:■■.;.". ■.'

■ For the girls who come frorii a distance the management ; has provided a cottage and a housekeeper, and for those employees who. return via '.Hastings, three,drags are,provided to take thom. to wqrk : and back (to the railway station. , >nd town.' . ; ' .-. •'■'.- '■';.■

For theiinarried workers eleven neat cottages have been built opposite tho works, provided with all modern ' conveniences, and routed at a moderate sum. A lending library of 400 books is provided by the management free of charge, and a provident fund sustained by a small percentage of wages ousures pnrtial payment during sickness, or full pay should an accident befal anyone in the factory.

"Now, Mr. Blank," said a temperance advocato to a candidate for municipal honours, "I want to ask you a question. Do you ever take alcoholic drinks?" "Before 1 answer the question," responded the wary candidate, "I want to know whether it is put as an inquiry or as an imitation 1" ' • .

Poll and Kackha'm, Photo., Hastings.

Of Cumberland's 188 parishes 40 are without tt public house. •

In the Nisi Prius Court, Dublin, Mr. Justice Wright admitted to probate the will of Joseph Fitzgerald Lynch. The action was brought by Lord Fincall, as executor, to have the will proved. The defendants were Michael Pnlles Lynch, brother of the testator, and other relatives. The will ilisnosed of property valued at over .£12,000. It was stated that the defendant, whose capacity was not questioned, was originally an ofScer on the Gold Coast, afterwards becoming a Jesuit priest. Leaving the priesthood, ho returned to West Afirca, but again resigned, inheriting his eldest brother's property. The testator spoko of Michael Palles Lynch as his successor in estate. When tho will was opened everything was found to be bequeathed to Lord Finpall. The latter was heard to say: "Who is this man Lynch who has left mo all •Hi» -jrosertyP- " . ■