Excerpts from the report: Research in the 1959 season on modified icing for rail shipments of Bartlett pears suggested that one re-icing in transit would provide favorable temperatures for the initiation of ripening in early-season fruit. A series of shipping tests was conducted, therefore, to determine the relation of fruit maturity, initial fruit temperature, and modified icing practices to transit temperature and subsequent ripening of fruit at the market. New types of railway equipment with thermostatic temperature control required tests to determine their effectiveness in maintaining desired temperatures for Bartlett pears. Test shipments were made from the Sacramento River, Marysville, Placerville, and Lake County districts to the Chicago and New York marketing areas.