Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-11-17
THE ORANGE TRADE.

- AaAA2 &Aa 49,
Fruit Selling at
Ruinous Prices-OutIOOk for a Heavy
Crop.
The orange trade in Savannah is al
present in a badly demoralized condition.
The fruit dealers complain greatly OF the
unavoidable state OF the business, ana
some OF them take a gloomy view oil the
outlook. The season is rather late. some
Of the dealers state that it Is a
late. It has been open since the middle
Of October, but business did not get brisk
until about Nov. 1. Since the opening Of
the season the growers in Florida
have taken a new departure
in the matter Of shipments
~ Savannah. which has had a disas-
trous effect upon the trade, and which
will make the growers suffer rs severely
as the commission men. Many Of the
growers owe large bills 70 various busi-
ness houses in the city. Some Of their
creditors are dry goods men, others are
tobacco dealers, and still others are
grOcers and provision men. Few OF them
are il the fruit trade or know anything
about the orange market. To these houses,
instead Of sending money, the growers
have been shipping their oranges, and the
parties receiving them, not familiar with
this branch Of trade, and not having &C
cess TO the market, hav been dispOsing Of
them at ruinOus prices. In many In
stances oranges have been sold at 81 30 a
box. and some good fruit has gone
even lower han that. Having sold
at 81 80 "A box here, that is the price
established in Savannah. Being unable
to handle all the fruit sent TO them, and
having broken down the market, the
oranges which they could not sell have
been turned over to the commission men.
A leading orange dealer stated TO a
MORNING NEWS reporter yesterday that
/ oranges which he gave 81 30 for he had
| been compelled to sell for the same figure,
/ and that the trade was thus at the outset
.sall broken up" Conversations with
nearly all the dealers showed this state OF
affairs to be general.
aFruit which 1 got 81 % and 81 % for
this time last year." said MI. L. Z. Bond,
i am now selling for 81 80. The dealers
in Florida are TO blame. such a price is
not paying them. If they would unite
and ship only to orange dealers some
thing could be done. / have TO ship many
of the oranges sent to me to other places
in order 10 get anything like a fair price.
Other dealers have also broken the prices.
If the W would not split their con-
signments and would sen to orange deal
ears. they would realize more, n a So
luton 10 the question Of paying their H.
debtedness to creditors in other branches
of trade would be the giving of a draft to
them upon the commission men. Our re-
ports from Florida are that the crop Will
be a very large one and the fruit will be
Of good quality. 1t has rot been very good
vet. Up to Nov. 1 the fruit was poor, and
consisted largely OF drops or prematures.
l suppose 10000 boxes of oranges are
sold here in a season, and the sales this
wear will hardly reach that figure. The
nnnnrn rnamEnW ETVnnNFaE AnTTh
Carolina. the towns along the lines Of the
Central Railroad and savannah, Florida
and Western Railway and Alabama, and
some of the fruit is shipped North from
here. The bulk of the best Florida or
anges are shipped North direct from the
grOves.'
". ID. Simpkins said that the season
had opened badly owing TO the growers
shipping to houses in other lines OF busl-
ness, which had resulted in the establish
ment of a ruinOus price. "The effect is
said he. ''tO break the market n TO
take the trade from the commission men.
1t is true that those parties
to whom the growers owe money do no
charge them commission, neither do they
want the oranges shipped to them. They
would be better satisfied if the fruit came
TO US and al order was given to them
upon us fO- the proceeds of the sales. The
growers are standing in their own light.
I suppose that $4,000 boxes or more will
be sold in Savannah this year."
At the house of Joseph b. Reedy it was
stated that the fruit arriving was poor in
quality so far; that the growers were anX-
ions to get the fruit on the market, which
had caused it TO be O~vers.Ocked,
and that the prices were ruinOus.
The business has been ruined for the
present by the shippers sending fruit TO
firms in other lines Of business, who turn
il over TO them to sell. Prices range at
present from 81 90 to s. a box. Last year
at this time, as now, oranges were a drug
on the market. but eve then sold for
from So to So % a box. In December the
price picked up wonderfully. In October,
1883. Mr.. Reedy was paying from 81 70
81 p a box. Now more han are wanted
can be bought at 81 30. This firm now
has on hand % barrels Of Jamaica or
anges. which they cannot sell for So a bar
rel. This is about 81 % per box"
Growers and dealers alike unite in the
opinion that the orange yield in Florida
this year will be an enormous one. The
season. while it has been slightly back
ward, has been very favorable, and more
oranges have been plucked from the trees
before they were ripe in order TO prevent
the limbs from being broken down than
ever before. One gentleman in this city,
who has been through Florida, reports
ELLAn@ q 1AAAAA N@[ L-@
would be at least 10000 to the tree. The
trees were forty years old and still good
bearing condition. Many new groves are
/ coming in bearing this year. The fruit
promises to be Of an unusually hne quail
ity. Some people in the fruit business in
| Savannah think that the sales OF the Flor
ida staple here, if the market RECEIVERS,
VIII reach $1,000 or 10000 boxes
In New York the season for Florida
oranges is just opening, and the small
quantity of fruit which has just reached
/ thai port is of excellent quality. An ex-
! teusiYe dealer in New York is quoted as
saying:
MY advices from the best growers in-
dictate a very fine and large CROP may
say much finer and larger than last year.
Prices from 81 TO 50 a box, 50 to 80
being paid for good stock. l cannot pre-
dict the course of the market, as this will
depend upon how the crop is gathered and
shipped. The acreage Of the orange groves
is rapidly increasing, but not as rapidly
as the demand for Florida fruit, as there
IS a large and growing class who will eat