THINNESS OF SHELL: This was measured by providing a means for bringing two metal surfaces together, keeping them always parallel. The nut to be cracked was placed between these surfaces and an arrangement of scale levers provided so that the pressure exerted on the nut could be weighed. The surfaces were brought together till the nut was cracked and the pressure required was noted. This measures the thinness of the shell or more properly the strength of the shell, the weakest shell of course being the one that takes the least pressure to crack. This pressure was measured in kilograms for by doing so it was possible to utilize some stock apparatus. After the pressure required to crack has been noted a reference to the table below will tell the number of points to be awarded. We will take for an example the the same nut as taken to illustrate weight e. g. the Lutz black walnut whose average cracking pressure is 312kg and which therefore would be awarded 2 points for thinness of shell. In this connection it should be stated that this table would seem not to be made out on the plan followed heretofore by taking the thinnest shelled nut of which we know, the Alley, as the low limit of the table. While the Alley black walnut takes the least cracking pressure of any we know which we can identify as from a particular tree, one black walnut was cracked which I believe came from the Ten Eyck tree which had a cracking pressure below 80kg and hence the table was made of sufficient extent to include this. It is my intention to get additional Ten Eyck nuts this year and check the matter up. BLACK WALNUTS--THINNESS OF SHELL Weight required to crack: Thinnest, Alley 110kg; thickest, Triplett 348kg. Weight in kg. Points 50 and less than 80 10 80 and less than 110 9 110 and less than 140 8 170 and less than 200 6 200 and less than 230 5 230 and less than 260 4 260 and less than 290 3 290 and less than 320 2 320 and less than 350 1 350 and less than 380 0 +-------------------------------------------------------+ |Transcribers note: point 7 was missing in the original.| +-------------------------------------------------------+