Los Angeles herald., 1890-07-14
SUMMER FRUIT.
California Will Have to Take the Place
of New Jersey and Delaware.

The almost total failure of the fruit
crop of Delaware, New Jersey and New
York has been earnestly discussed
among the fruit-dealers Of the city.
Delaware and Maryland will have no
crop at all for export, it is thought.
The great peach-growing section OF New
Jersey, through which the Delaware and
Lackawanna and the New Jersey Central
pass, will bear only about one-quarter
of its usual product. In Warren and
Hunterdon counties, which have pro-
duced vast quantities OF peaches in the
last five years, only half crop is looked
for, and discouraging reports have been
received from the peach-growing coun-
try between Philadelphia and Georgia
and from the peach belts of Illinois and
Michigan. The outlook for Bartlett
pears in Maryland, Delaware, New Jer-
sey and the Hudson-river valley is
hardly more encouraging than for
peaches.
Cherries and plums will be just as
much of failure in this region" said
E. w. Goodsell, of 103 Park place, "as
peaches and pears. Grapes and apples
may be fairly plenty. Most of the fruit
buds were killed by the cold snap late
in March. Last year New Jersey and
Delaware sent 100000 baskets of
peaches to New York. This year they
may send 100000 baskets, although
probably not so many. The demand for
peaches, cherries, plums and pears will
have to be supplied from California. Many
canning establishments have already
been transferred from the east to Cali
fornia in anticipation of the approach
ing scarcity of eastern fruit. The re-
manning consumers will buy the shipped
fruit. Last year 800 carloads of Cali
fornia fruit were brought here. This
year we shall get at least 600 carloads,
each of which will contain between 500
and 1000 packages. California fruit
will be the only fruit used by New York
ers, because there will be no other kind
in the market. Peaches which were one
dollar half bushel basket at wholesale
last year will cost twice as much this
season. Plums will sell for about
twenty cents quart, twice the price of
last summer. Cherries, too. will bring
as much again as they brought.
Nevertheless, the big California ship
pers have combined to bring down the
transportation rates and have done it.
Today carload, on which 81 200 freight
charges from California to New York
were collected, pays but $400. Further
lowering of the rates and the increase
of the California product, at present
hardly one-third of the states capacity,
will give monopoly OF the eastern mar
ket to the fruit-growers OF the Pacific
slope. The movement of capital west
ward is also feature of the situation
this year. Two million five hundred
thousand dollars, which usually went to
the New Jersey and Delaware peach
growers, will now go to Cali
fornia, to say nothing OF the rail
way transportation profits. The agricul-
ture of Delaware will, 1 believe, be
revolutionized by this change in the To-
cation of the supply. The 10000 men
once employed in picking, packing and
shipping Delaware peaches will have
to find something else to do. The same
holds good of the men engaged in pre-
pairing eastern cherries, plums and
Bartlett pears for the market. ."-[New
York Sun.