The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-04-12
AMARKET FOR FRUIT.
Northern Pacific VIII Encour-
age a Great Industry.
LARGE REDUCTION OF RATES.
Montsns to Be Opened to Washington
Growers-Treight Business Grow
inC-Change of Depot.

s. L. Moore, general freight agent and
6. 6. Fulton, assistant general freight
agent of the Northern Pacific railroad.
were in the city yesterday. having just re-
turned from the meeting of the Trans
continental Association at San Diego.
G. W. Dickinson, assistant general super
intendent. came over with them from Ia
coma to look after the affairs of the Lake
Shore road. of which he is acting manager.
Mr.. Moore talked very cheerfuliy OF the
condition of the freight business on the
road, and said:
Our business this year shows considerable
increase over that of the corresponding PERIOD
OF last year. March showing an increase OF st1,-
900 over March, 1891 Last year was good one,
and although IL did not equal in the increase OF
business the three or four years preceding, we
shall feel well satisfied If the earnings OF THIS
year are the same.
The Great Northern will do your city great
deal OF good By giving you competition we
meet 1t at thirty-five different points along our
line, and find it good neighbor. We have been
competing with it further east, and have always
succeeded in holding our own. and we have no
doubt we shall be able to do the same on the
Coast. OF course, the Great Northern is making
great many promises, but the people where u
has done business for some years find that II
does
We propose to do good deal this year to give
encouragement to the fruit-growers OF TINS
state-in fact, / am looking over the country
now with that end'in view Hitherto California
has had almost all of the business from the
Coast, and it hes not been easy for the people o.
this section to get in, because the California
people have been at the business a long time and
know Just when to pick each kind OF fruit how to
pack Il and where TO ship ii. The business IN
this state, on the other hand, is practically only
in its inception, and the shipments have been
comparatively few and small. But there is 10
reason why Washington should not supply
almost the whole OF Montana and ultimately
St. Paul and Minneapolis, which, with their
suburbs, have q combined population OF about
half million. The Sound country viii also
become great fruit-growlng section, and see
no reason why grapes should not be grown IN
these valleys. We shall begin by reducing rates
TO Montana about onethird and shall continue
the same policy as the business develops and
extends eastward. l have been thinking OF
method OF converting ordinary box cars into
fruit cars without much trouble or expense.
understand that the express companies are also
making arrangements to handle small lots OF
fruit and give special rates. With the induce-
ments we shall offer expect to see great in
crease In the acreage OF fruit land in this state.
am now on my way to attend the annual
ton of Montana, Wyoming and the Dakotas, at
Miles City. Mont, on the 10th. The stockmen
OF that section seem to have formed secret
association TO clean out tho rustlers and have
no doubt they will clean them out and hang
them. The Northern Pacific carried in the fall
of 1891 147,000 fat steers from Montana and
North Dakota to Chicago, only the latest being
shipped This year our shipments will probs-
bly, be about 100000
At the Transcontinental Association meeting
We passed on over 400 proposed changes in the
tariff. 1t would be impossible to give any idea
OF them in detail, but they were generally in the
way of reductions. The roads running to the
Northern Pacific are coming to be much more of
factor in these meetings than they were in
former years, when the country tributary
20 them was only sparsely populated. On the
basis of population the roads to which Portland
and the Sound are tributary do 40 per cent of
the business That fact makes us count for a
great deal more than formerly and expect that
in few years We shall do greater proportion
of the business of the Coast than California.
1t win not be very long before there will be five
transeontinental roads in this section.
Mr.. Fulton, who has lately been through
the Palouse country, said that the farmers
had only about 10 per cent. of last years
crop of wheat remaining in their hands.
Mr.. Moore left for Miles City last night,
and Mr.. Fulton returned to his home in
Portland.