The morning call., 1891-12-28
THE DEADL0Ck N RA1sINs.

The situation of the rasn industry de-
serves, as it is receiving, very serious
thought among merchants and producers.
1t seems likely that the crop this year will
exceed 100000 boxes; seme expect that
Fresno's crop alone will foot up million,
and the output of San Bernardino Santa
Barbara and Butte will likewise show an
increase over last year. But owing 10 va
riuus causes, which may be explained later
on. the price of raisins is so low that pro-
ducera Will make little or no money, and
some of them will not meettheir expenses.
1t is hard to say what raisins are worth al
present. There is absolutely 10 market for
them. Dealers talk OF 81 20 for three crown
Tendon layers. The Spanish growers, I'M
willing to sacrifice their goods, have stopped
shipping to New York. The imports to
date are S,0O0, 900 boxes, as against d, co., 600
TO same date last year. Valencia and
Malaga are taking their chances in Euro
pean markets.
At first blush the situation seems an i'm
annually 100000 pounds of raisins, one
year with another. They must be got
somewhere. Ii Spain will not furnish them
California should, and the price should
stffen fIOm the withdrawal of competition.
But there is no article of production which
ct the present time is so depressed and I'M
salable as rasins. 1t is not easy TO ex-
plain a condition which appears to be at
variance with all the factors that should
govern il.
The simple truth is that the raisin market
Is suffering from a reaction from specu-
latiYe movement undertaken over year ago
by people without adequate capital and
without business knowledge. In the fall Of
1890 number of middlemen believed that
there was money in laSins and bought in
train lOts-bOught all grades of raisins at
all sorts of prices. When they shipped their
goods East they found the market unpre-
pared TO absorb unusual supplies. The de-
mand was slow. The middlemen, having
no capital wherewith to hold on, were COM
PEELED to realize at any cost, and they had
not mercantile experience enough to COM
bine. Every one sold his goods as fast as he
could, Where he could, and for such money
as he could get The consequence was a
panic, in which raiSns ceased TO be property.
It is from that panic that the market is
suffering now.
In word, our ralsin industry Is laborIng
under tue same drawback as our wine in
dustry-want of capital. Theraisin-grower,
like the wine-maker, runs into debt to pro-
duce his crop, ard when it is marketable he
must sell it. He sells to local middlemen,
who have not the capital to pay for their
purchases, and are under the same npces-
sity of realizing in order to meet their
freight bills and their notes in the hands of
producers. Accordingly they make their
appearance simultaneously in New York
and Chicago, and go round imploring the
attention of buyers. Their straits are
pniplyjU nnTPaivp6 hy-x hpl 10
have both capital and business experience.
They hold off and buy from hand to mouth.
in order to break prices down. They have
pursued this policy so effectively this year
that very fair fruit has been sold in Chicago
for just enough to pay the freight bills;
and quite number of growers in this State
have not realized a dollar out Of their crops.
The evil VIII cure itself in time. At
present prices raisins of good grade, and
carefully packed, are cheap, and judicious
purchases will probably pay a profit.
H0usekeepers are not going to stop making
ralsin cake because there is panic in the
raisln market On the contrary, low prices
are sure to stimulate consumption. And
after lesson or two of this kind, raisin-
growers will learn that 1t Is fatal to their
industry to get too deeply into debt, OF to
conSign their goods to houses which
are too deeply in debt. 1t is better
to produce 10000 boxes of raisins, and to
have little money LETT to carry them
WITH than to produce 100000 boxes, and be
compelled to sell forthwith in order to meet
the payroll on the vineyard. 1t is child's
business, too. to go to expense and put in a
years labor to produce crop, If. when it is
marketable, it is sold to parties who cannot
possibly pay for it. unless they can resell it
at an advance before their notes mature.
There are houses which have very little
capital, and yet which buy thousands Of
boxes of raisins at the vineyards, and trust
to Providence to bring them out whole
That Is gambling with other peoples
money