Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-05-21
MARKET GARDENING.
The Season Backward by Reason Of
the Continuous Rains.
A NEVILLE ISLAND GARDENER
Talks Regarding Fruit and Vegetable Pros
poets in That Spot.
LEATHER AND HIDES BARELY STEADY
OFFICE OF rIrTsnuEo pIsrArcH, !

oYFicn OF PiTTsnURd DiRrATcH,
TUESDAY, MAY 20, l@0 !
The season, no far, has not been ht nll
favorable to market gardening. Steady
rains and cool weather have had the effect ol
delaying early vegetables from two to three
weeks, IN comparison with the average
season. Our nearby gardeners complain
that they have not been able 10 get more than
a couple of days In the week for the month
past In which profitable work can be done 10
the fields.
A native OF Neville Island, whose men,
ory goes back to war times in an Interview
to-day, said: II cannot remember q season 50
backward as this. Nothing in garden truck
lines is coming on as it ought TO do. In Or
binary seasons our tomatoes are set out by
the 9th of May, but the gardeners on the
island have not set out one-half their usual
quantity at this time.
"Of late years tomatoes are our biggest crop.
raise from 200 to 500 bushels in the average
season and some of my neighbors raise three
times as much as do. Neville Island is no
doubt the best soil In the country for tomatoes,
and think speak within bounds when say
that 20 600 bushels are ordinarily raised on the
island in one season. The prospect for an
average crop this year are by no means bright
The first fruits of the tomato crop are due
about the Fourth of July and our main stay
IS in the good prices generally obtained from
tine first fruits. We usually get from IS TO s6
per basket for early tomatoes but, ! fear from
present outlook that we will not have much TO
oner by July Our greatest profit is in early
stuff. But the weather all last winter and this
spring has been against u.s.
Work Much Retarded.
There has, in fact, been scarcely any time
this season when we could pillow our grounds.
Field work has been rendered almost impossl-
bic by continuous rains. i usually have my
sugar corn planted.by the last of April. The
last of May is here without having half my
usual quantity planted. Cabbage is one of the
garden crops that calls for cool, wet weather.
but even for cabbage we have had too much of
a good thing this season. In my opinion
Neville Island will not turn out half its aver
age crop of garden stuff this season. There is.
however a silver lining to our dark cloud. l
have found that when crops are light there is
more -eoney and less work to the producer.
When stuff is plenty we get little for it, and
have plenIy of work.
Year before last was one of our prolific
years; Everything in fruit and vegetable lines
was abundant My boat bill for conveying stuff
to market ran up to S35 week. and stuff was so
plenty that much of it was hard 10 give away.
That was good year to the consumer, but
not prosperous year TO the gardener. Last
year fruit and vegetables were not so plenty
and we made more money.
This year promises still lighter crops than
last, and the law of compensation will come in
to offset the shortage by better prices for what
the earth yields"
Hides md Leather.
The advance in hides and calf skins noted in
this column week ago while not followed by
a reaction as yet, is largely sustained. From
Boston, which is the head center of the light
leather industry, comes the advice to one of
our leading dealers. Markets here are hardly
as strong as they were when the advance was
made, but we see no signs of drop. The
strong feeling of last week is partially lost, but
we think the advance will be maintained"
One favorable feature of the hide trade is
that the quality of those offered is steadily
improving. The per centage of grub hides is
on the decline.
Another feature of the market which cannot
1all in time TO imDart strength. is the sharp ad-
vance In cattle. 1t will he noticed from live
stock reports that cattle have been steadily
moving upward for the past few weeks Price
Of boeyes is fully 81 per hundred above rates of
last 1all. Hides can hardly fail to share in
this upward movement.
There is a strong undertone Of confidence in
the future of the hide and leather market in
the minds OF OUT leading dealers and manu-.
facturers.