The morning call., 1894-10-16
Do NOT FAVOR 1T.
Merchants DenOunCe the
Fruit Auction.
1T DEMORALIZES BUSINESS.
Fruit Sold at Slaughter Prices
Last Year.
MERCHANTS TURNED PEDDLERs.
The Growers Received Very Little
Over Freight Charges and Costs
of Packing.


published in last Sundays CALL The
DISPOSITION Of the dealers toward the pro-
iect is almost unanimously against the
auction and the methods that prevailed
last season. This opposition has grown
from sentiment to action and what Is
more, the commission men are supported
in their views by many fruit growers in
the southern part of the State who are
members of the fruit exchanges in their
respective localities.
On the other hand, a few commission
men who are forwarding the scheme. and
who expect to constitute the auction CON-
pany, assert that the auction is the only
rational and practical business method by
which the growers can obtain the best re-
turns and all the dealers can have an equal
chance at the orange and lemon crops of
the South
but it forces commission merchants to
become mere peddlers," said A. j. B. In
mel yesterday. land utterly demoraliZss
the market Besides. the fruit growers
finally get the worst of it,"
W. W. Jones, who conducted the auc-
tion last year, was questioned on the sub
ject, but seemed disinclined to talk.
Nothing definite has been settled upon
as yet," he said, "and therefore l don't
care to discuss the matter. The executive
committee of all the Southern California
fruit exchanges will meet in Los Angeles
on the 18th. The matter of the auction
will be settled then, one way or the other.
can tell you nothing as to who are the
men that will compose the company.
Most likely it will be some of those who
had the auction il hand last year."
How much fruit do you think would
be shipped here and disposed of during
the seasons"
''That's hard,to tell-probably 500 car
loads, more or less. The invoices, sales
and shipments of last year form no cri-
terion, because much of the fruit crop was
damaged by frosts al Riverside and other
points. This caused serious irregularity
in the range of prices. However, whether
the crop is good or bad. the auction is the
best means for distributing the fruit-best
for producers. dealers and consumers"
But most of the commission merch ants
tell different tale. Quite a number of
them were seen and interviewed on the
subject yesterday. and their expressions
were clear and emphatic against the auc-
ton scheme. All who were questioned
on the subject said that they do not want
TO become partners in the auction COM
pany. cannot patronize il. and will not
further the perpetuation of the auction IN
any way if they can help it.
John G. Wetmore OF the firm of Wet
more Bros, 413 and All Washington street,
said:
81 am opposed to the auction scheme
because it was a rank failure from begin
ming to end last year. 1t did incalcuable
harm to growers, dealers and consumers
alike. / think the growers got little the
worst of it all around. Good fruit and bad
fruit was slaughtered. Nearly all of II
was sold at prices lower than were asked
ON board the cars at the shipping point.
The auction undersOld everybody and
everything-a course which was ruinous
and demoraliZng to all concerned. Large
quantities of good fruit were sold at 90
cents box. The freight was about % cents,
and the cost of boxes, packing and auction
commissions would run up to at least %
cents more-total so cents. Result. 10 cents
for the growers. The latter simply
worked for the railroad company and the
box factories. There were sales of
oranges, and not a few Of them, at 35
cents box. 1t would be much better for
the growers to bury their fruit than to dis
pose of it in that manner. AS to oranges
from the northern part Of the State, they
had no chance at all after the auction
started. The fruit from Butte and Placer
counties comes in little earlier than the
southern crop. but after the latter is on
the market the products of the northern
citrus belt is generally crowded out.
"There was very little fruit bought from
the outside after the auction started" Mr..
Wetmore continued. "The reason for this
was the ruinous prices at which the south
ern crop was sold. Noon could compete
with such q slaughter. Large quantities
of good oranges were sold at from 35 cents
to 40 cents box, and were marked bad
order on the auction lists. The auction
scheme is no good"
George w. Tindal had no good words to
say for the auction scheme. ITS simply
demoraizlng and Tuinous to everybody
except the auction men," he said. per
s0nally, am disinterested party. / sell
fruits and produce and | buy what l sell.
/ have nothing to do with commissions.
Yet feel that 1 cannot do an honest bust
ness and at the same time compete with
the auciinn racket if it is to be run as it
was last year"
1.-THE auction is a nuisance and a dam
gerous one," said A. J. 3. Immel Eyery-
BODY except the auctioneer gets the worst
OF it. 1t makes tie entire fruit market a
crazy trust and thing very much like
game of chance. So far as | am able to
Judge, the fru1t-gr0wers suffer most from
these sales on call. 1t is a hard rub on
the commission merchants, too, whc arc
practically forced to become peddlers.
There is no doubt that If the southern
fruit exchanges would limit their ship
ments and sell their crops through the safe
and healthy competition of The commission
houses the returns would be double what
they have been and will be by the auction
plan.
81 know as a matter of fact" he went
ON. that the growers suffered great loss
last year, and will suffer far greater losses
this year if they adopt the auction scheme.
For my part l want nothing to do with it,
either one wav or the other. / wouldn't
buy any fruit in that way unless | could
get it al about half its value, and nearly
all the commission men feel the same
about it. The auction company tried to
corral the whole fruit business and
thereby force us to buy, but they were
disappointed on that proposition. 1t is no
secret that one of the men who was 1t
the head of the concern last year is Bit