In dipping, the figs should first be placed in a perforated bucket and rinsed in cold water, to free them from dust. They should then be transferred to a kettle containing boiling lye, made of 1 pound of potash to 10 gallons of water. An immersion of from one-fourth minute to one minute suffices; the time being regulated according to the size of the figs and the pliability and thickness of the skin. Boiling salt water may be substituted for the lye water for the dipping of some figs, different varieties requiring different solutions to secure the desired result. After dipping, the figs are dried without rinsing. If salt or saltpeter is used instead of lye, 1½ pounds of either to 50 gallons of water is a proper quantity. Lye is generally used, but the writer prefers salt or saltpeter, either of which gives good results as regards pliability of skin, while the salty taste generally improves the flavor. DRYING ON TRAYS. For convenience in handling, wooden or paper trays are commonly used for drying figs in the Western States. By their use the fruit can easily be stacked and sheltered in wet weather. The trays are of various sizes, but a small size, such as 2½ feet by 3½ feet, or 3½ feet by 4 feet, is preferable, as when filled with fruit it can easily be handled by one man, while a larger size requires two men. The drying ground should be a clean space outside the orchard, where the trays may be exposed to the uninterrupted rays of the sun. The figs require all the sunshine obtainable, and the drying ground must therefore be free from the shade of trees or buildings. The drying floor may consist simply of beds of soil elevated a foot above the general level. A drying floor 4 feet wide may be raised 8 inches additionally along one side. The slope toward the sun thus given will insure greater heat. Trays may be placed on strips of wood or scantlings supported by low sawhorses. The sawhorses should be long enough to support two rows of trays abreast. Three scantlings or strips will be required for each pair of sawhorses. They should be of even lengths, as long as obtainable, and the middle one should be larger than the outside ones; 2 by 4 inches for the middle one and 2 by 3 inches for the side scantlings will be found convenient sizes. The figs should be placed singly on the tray, with their eyes all toward one side, and this side of the tray should be slightly raised in order to prevent the contents of very juicy figs from running out during the process of drying. The raising of the trays is the most easily accomplished by placing the 2 by 4 inch supporting strip in the middle of the sawhorses and the 2 by 3 inch strips on either side. Immediately after sulphuring, if that is practiced, or after dipping, the fruit should be spread and the trays distributed on the racks where they will have the full benefit of the hottest sun. This distribution of the trays