Capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1893-1895, 1895-08-09
HoPs REApY 10 PIck

Ane Eop rlckrrE scz-l0 = Alo-l - H.
and already bop-Picksrs are beng sOughi ior
far and Eide 10 hzrTest The crop. Bate
Vile county. vhich Is II. great hoP district in
Oregon, Eill. il IS estimated. re9site az least
1000 Pieksrs this yesr. Tbs Is 600 more
han5s ihzn vas necessary to hzrvest The crop
last year. The average yisld per acre tins
sszsoa dos not, however. promise TO Be 50
nah heavier thza last year, the increase BE-
ing rather due to the BsE yzris. Bat the
quality IS better. and hops will he picked
much cleaner. hop men having PrO6ied By eH-
perisDes.
PickeIs Do Dot premise to be any too plenii
fal. and hop districts that had arranged TO pay
the picksrs 20 cents 4 bon Of nine bushels
~iIl be obliged to pay g cents Il they want to
get their crop harvested in good tine. The
Butteville Hop Association vas the one that
had set the figure at 80 cents 4 box, the rate
Of last year, bat the nsighbo-ing association,
having agreed to pay s. cents box, the as
-sociation has called meeting foE next Sztur-
day FOR the purpose Of fixing its rate ai55
cents.
All sorts Of nztionalities will pick hops
this year. even japanese and Chinese, bat the
the whites Eill Be largely IN the majority, and
the Chinese will probably not number more
than O1e II 6fy among the Pickers. Two
years ago the presence Of Chinese Pickers in
the hop yards, when there was not enough
work for all caused trouble. and disappointed
whites who had expected io-piek, drove the
Chinese from the field; bat this season, there
will Be enough for all.
The whites picker averge FIVE boxes day
Of nine bushels each, and IS cents box they
will, during the two weeks season average
daily sI.75. They can get board for as low
as $z.SO a week, and the work IS light and
pleasant. Some Pickers bring their families
with them, and father, mother and children
all pick. and frequently they fll altogether as
many as eight boxes in the course Of day.
But the s;ezdies; Of the Piokers is the Chinese,
who goes quietly along, paying attention
to nothing bat hops that he picks from sunrise
TO nighrfall, and when the is over, he geneT-
ally has filed some SIX boxes
a man who has supplied Pickers for the
yards for some years in conversation ye =
terdzy said.
There will be scarcity Of pickers tbs
year, and the hop men will gladly tai E
pickers Of all nztionalities; bu. the feeling
among them is strongly in favor of familir :,
as the young men are then more under control,
and no, 50 unruly. Hops will he picked more
cleanly this year. Heretofore i. has been
| that pickers have allowed leaves and stem, TO
get into the box among the hops, and the to1
would be passed. But when a bail Of this
kind is sampled BY the buyer it means much
lower figure for the hop man than if he had
insisted on clean picking.
'HoPs this year will probably bring from
to 10 cents, which is better price than last
season, when the highest price was seven
cents, But great many Of the English
brewers took advantage Of last years low
prices to buy heavily, and from 10000 to Co.,
900 more bales than usual went to England
So you see the brewers are pretty well stocked
up, and unless the price is low enough to
suit them, they will not be obliged to buy
heavily.
''Some of the yards this season, owing
partly tothe scarcity of poles, have strung
wires from pole to pole, along which the hops
are allowed to grow, but it was merely
measure Of exPediency, and scarcely one-ifth
Of the yards are wired. One thing tina,
great many hop men have leaned,
which will be of value this season, is the
importance Of having an expert dryer. Last
year some Of the men who were harvesting
their first crop attempted to dry the hops
themselves but it was not a complete success.
and they are considerably wiser this year.
HOP CONTRACTS FILED.
Six contracts were filed with the county
clerk yesterday by agent for Elkins & Co. Of
Philadelphia.
C. D. and H. Hartman, of Scots Mills.
agree to deliver 10000 pounds of this years
growth at cents per pound.
Thos. Hunt and J. w, McGrath Of Geryais
sells 6Ooo Pouads at s cents
NJ. and II. Christensen, of Silverton. 1000
pounds at s cents.
James Down of Downs station, 10000
pounds at cents
For s "a. cents pound Thos. and Tobn
Kirk of St. Paul agree to deliver 10000
pounds.
At 711cents John and J. W. McGnlh Of
Gervais will place 1000 pounds.
All get cents advance per pound.