The herald., 1894-02-05
ABOUT THE ORANGE SITUATION
ScipiO Craig and the Growers
Association.
He Iutimates that Too Many Com
mission Shipments Are Made.
Buyers, Packers, shippers and Assoc
Citations All Trying to Cut Each
Others Throats-Other Mat
tiers of Interest.

status of the orange market is about as
thoroughly mixed as the ideas as to
what Grover Cleveland is going to do
next. An investigation of markets and
prices in San Francisco the first part Of
this week has led us irresistibly to the
conclusion that the orange buyers,
packers, shippers and associations are
all fighting to get the market, and each
one ia trying to cut the others Threats in
about as short time as possible. In
the meantime, while these parties are
all well protected, the poor orange
grower is left in the condition of the fell
low who went hunting snipe IN the
night for the fret time; or. in other
words, he holds the bag and candle.
We have seen dispatches that show
conclusively that the managers OF some
associations are, in spite of their pro-
testations to the contrary, consigning
their goods. Others are shipping to
auction houses, where the goods are
slaughtered at any price that may be
offered. We know OF Navel oranges be-
ing sold in San Francisco as low as So
cents box, which does not leave even
the end of the candle for the enipe
hunter.
Charges and coun ter-charges are made
by packers, shippers and associations,
stating each that the other is cutting
prices. From what we have seen in
regard to buyers kilograms, we have no
doubt but that this 10 true In good
many cases. II there ia any one thing
that would have been conducive to
holding up of prices to reasonable
margin OF profit to the grower, that one
thing would have been for all of our
growers to have insisted that sssocia-
tions and buyers alike should make the
same prices for fruit.
We have seen letter from one gentle
man who is In the fruit business in a
city east of here, where he distinctly
states that he bought a carload of
oranges and before that car arrived that
another carload had been sent by the
manager of fruit exchange into his
city on consignment, demoralizng the
market both for himself and for the
parties consigning The car.
1t ia this kind OF business that is
running the orange market for the state
OF California. Whenever the growers
will get experience and sense enough to
absolutely iefuse, under any possible
combination OF circumstances. to con-
sign their fruit either to shipping mer-
chants or to open auction houses, they
Will be in position where at least fair
rate of profit can be had. When (. 0. b.
sales alone will be made, there will be
buyers in the market who will buy
every pound of fruit. There is no doubt
about this, as past experience has
proved it; but go long as growers will
roffs" their fruit to be consigned, just so
except at a very low price, AM poesfcIy
the consignment of only few cars will
drive all the buyers out OF the market
and there will be no chance for anyone
to do anything except consign, and past
experience has shown that this ia
ruinous.
Prices at the present time for Red
lands fruit are very satisfactory. The
care exercised during the past two sea
sons in the careful culling of fruit and
packing in the best possible manner has
raised the reputation of Redlapds or
anges above that of any other section of
the Pacific slope. OF this there is no
question, as the prices obtained for fruit
fully warrant the assertion. We hope
that careful cullinR will continue, as the
time is coming when nothing except
first-class fruit, graded, culled and
packed in the best possible manner, will
be remunerative, and those places that
are not able to raise frst-class fruit will
go out of the orange business and sup
plant it with some other fruit.
We sincerely hope that when another
orange season rolls round. arrangements
may be made by which it will be mat
ter of impossibilitv for any person to
get pound of Redlands oranges in any
manner except by buying them out
right and paying the cash for them
upon delivery. In this manner only
can orange growing retain the brilliant
success TINT it has been in past years.