The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1895-08-29
HOP news UP TO date
Buyers Are Here In Plenty But Are Not
Bidding.
CONTRACT HOPS BEARING The MARKET
Late Estimates Place the Yield at
Eight Thousand Bales and the
Amount OF Harvesting Money at
FIFTY Thousand Dollars.


There is one thing certain. and that is
the hop is not king this year-but rather
a thing Of shreds and patches. Not long
or back than 1913 the most subservient
homage was paid by greedy buyers to the
royal lupulIne; but now the meanest Of
them, when in the presence Of growers.
are like statues awaiting life from the
touch of Prometheus. The buyers are
here-snd here in plenty but they either
refuse to treat or their offers are OF char.
acter which mean q direct loss to the pro-
Queer. The result is that yards are being
neglected, and even the previous low es-
Inmates OF the yield are being revised and
ruthlessly cut down. Last year low val
uations greatly reduced the possible yield,
aud yet there were 6,363 bales harvested.
Estimates Of this week made by the best
informed and most conservative growers
as well as buyers, place the yield at not
to exceed 5000 bales, and say it may not
reach this figure by considerable unless
market conditions improve sufficiently to
warrant more general picking of yards
than is now contemplated. In 1894 $780,
600 was expended in harvesting the hop
crop OF Yakima county. This year with
the reduced crop, inability to obtain pick
ing money, and cut OF % percent on the
price OF picking, not over $50, 1000 will be
distributed for harvesting purposes.
While the buyers are inactive as to
bidding, they watch each other with the
eyes of a hawk, but their principal dis
quietude is caused by those who are So
Letting for consignments. They claim
that the advances of A or cents pound
for picking money is all the consignees
will ever get and point with the finger OF
scorn to the record of last year. When
asked about Hansen & Co., of Milwau-
kee, whose representative Mr.. Charles
Carpenter has been operating here for
years past and always lived up to his
agreements, they acknowledge that there
should be no cause for complaint against
this house; but for the others they cite
the experiences of Dan Sinclair, T. II.
Shannon and many others. Some of the
contracts are so drawn that the copsign-
ors are obligated to pay to the consignees
the difference between the price adj
vanced, plus l cent per pound commits
sion, and the price realized from the sale
of the hops, should that figure not be
sufficient to cover the advances. 1t GER
tainly is hard game for the consignor,
as he is liable to receive only the actual
cost of picking and still be on the wrong
side Of the ledger after the sale. Buyers
say that consignees do not figure to pro-
tect the interests of the consignors, but
often break the market by forcing sales
at inopportune times. d. W. Simmons,
who was commissioned to contract for
600 bales at an advance OF 5 cents per
pound, says the system is very bad one,
and while as an agent he has made ad-
vances on 800 bales he is opposed to con-
signments as against the interests of the
producer. Many others talk in the same
strain and say it would be much better
to let the hops rot on the vines than to
consign, as the grower as rule makes
nothing, but helps to break the market
for his neighbor and handicap the pros
pect for better prices the following year.
| Hop buyers who fail to buy, are here
in plenty, among the last to arrive being
Louis Lachmund, Julius Pincus and Mr..
Fearl. The best offer 80 far made for
this years hops was cents to DIR. Hill.
This was refused as the doctor says offers
of ten and twelve cents are being made
in Portland and there is no reason they
should not rule as high here. Mr.. Chas.
Carpenter has contracted several small
lots for five years at ten cents, he repre-
senting the Pabst Brewing company of
Milwaukee. His total contracts amount
to 400 bales year and among those who
have awaited themselves of these terms
are the Wileys, B. F. Ward, Thomas
Harvey and A. d. Eglin. Mr.. Eglin
says he would be willing to contract a
larger portion portion OF his crop at the
same figures for he estimates with the
help OF his boys he can place his hops
in the bale for cents per pound which
would admit of his netting upwards of
500 per acre.
There is no question but the quality of
the Yakima hop will be better this year
than for several seasons past although
the yield will not be SO heavy even In the
yards which have been we'll cared for.
Some of the yards never looked better
and among those most favorably spoken
of are the yards OF DIR. G. ]. Hill, A. B..
Weed, ID. A. Mcdonald and ]. F. Foster.
Mr.. Humphrey, one of the buyers. says
he has visited II yards this season but
that of Mr.. Foster is the best he has seen.
There is some contention just now over
the price to be paid to pickers. The as
sociation members are not standing to
gether and while many maintain that
70 cents per box is all the conditions will
warrant others assert that they will not
be able to secure pickers at that price
and are preparing to pay dollar.
TUE HFRAID in in receipt of the follow