The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-01-27
REMARKABLE EVOLUTION.
The First Vegetables and Fruits Ever
Shipped From The South.

Products OF the South Atlantic States
Sent to New York Have Increased to
Vast Proportions-some Very Inter
esting Transportation History.
The following facts. reported in the
Fruit and Dairy Produce Record were
stated by Mr.. Townsend. freight agent
Of the Pennsylvania railroad. were stated
in an address at a recent banquet He
said: Being in charge OF the New York
staten OF the Penn5y Iylaia railroad at
/ the wedding of the southern market
trade. and the "all-rail" interest in 1885,
ana stiil allied to the transportation part
of the traffic. my remarks must nat
uraIly attach themselves to transporta-
ton. as the resurrection. the develop
meut and the existence of the southern
truck trade; the moving Of the product
as between producer and consumer OF the
| commission merchant.
The agricultural and industrial pur-
suits of the people of the United States.
covering a widely separated range Of the
country. presents to the transportation
interests a necessary subdivision of it's
business, as grain. coal. manufactures.
dairy. market truck. and an almost num-
berless list Of other commodities; each
division of particular trade interest de-
handing a special intelligent transporta-
ton, car equipment and terminal facility
Tonight, transportation is illustrated
in touch with an interest that is prob
abl.- OF the most re ,ent dcvclomont-
the southern truck gardening.
In my reference. l directly allude TO
the output of the states of Virginia,
North Carolina South Carolina, Georgia
| and Florida-or rather reverse the state
order as the season begins with Flor
| ida-confining my remarks to an outline
| sketch of the incipiency the progress,
/ and the present status of the evolution
| Of transportation. so far as 1t relates
| to it's being a factor in southern garden
| truck, as between the far south ana the
city of New York.
1t was during the winter season of
1Si7, sometime in February the follow
| ing incident is located
No. IA fire engine Of New York had its
| headquarters on Church street between
! Fulton and Vesey. Fire engines in those
early days were manned by citizen fire.
men. II I mistake not ms" main support
were the commission men. Next door to
| the engine house 1.-THE boys rented
| "loahng parlor, where they fdled the even
ing hours with games Of different kinds
and it goes without mentioning that
| toddies and other stiff mixtures were
| always in season. Outsiders, when intro
| duced were welcomed clerk on one of
the Charleston boats, which then landed
at Pier A. North river, foot Of Morris
street was a guest, and while taking
| something" remarked the drink was
nothing compared with the mint Julep
- IN. -. arsa as 4
DAYS ago" The "boys" received the ref
| erence as yarn, for where could mint
be gotten in the middle Of winter, they
| having no personal experience OF other
| climate than that of New ork. Inc
clerk promised to prove his statement
upon his next trip north. He LETT the
"boyslio acqompgnted by n commission
! merchant and in later conversation added
that he'd bring mot only mint, but let
| tuce, radishes and strawberries At this
/ the merchant was doubly doubtful ana
/ challenged the statement with treat.
| Upon the return of the steamer, he
| clerk proved the truth of his assertion
In a secondhand champaign basket ne
| brought lettuce, radishes, mint, ana
within an inner basket were two quarts
| of strawberries. The mint went 10 the
engine house, the lettuce and radlshes
were distributed, and the strawberrles-
| the first ever seen in New York IN the
winter time-were placed in the store
| window as a curiosity, where they were
/ visited and examined by hundreds. Among
! the visitors was n customer OF the com+
| mission merchant, the proprietor OF
/ Broadway hotel think II was Taylor
| hotel formerly located on the northwest
| ern corner of Broadway and Franklin
street He made purchase of the berries
| and placed them on exhibition in his res
| taurant.
with this necessarily detailed statement
| gentlemen, you have a record OF the
first regular consignment to commits
| sion merchant, OF the garden product OF
the far south
The return trip of the steamer brought
two barrels of vegetables and thence by
very slight increase with the round
of the season. Charleston therefore was
the first southern city to send out mar
| ket truck to New York. Her regular
steamer line was established in 1885, and
consistedof the steamers "Northerner'
and "Southerner;" they making the trip
north in 80 hours as compared with the
! present run of i8 hours. The first market
| frcsght out of Charleston Of any magni-
| tude. that is as trade, was not until
| 1866. the business of that season being
| 1900 packages. The first strawberry ship
ment came also from Charleston. 1t was
| in 1871 and slowed in refrigeratorsTbu built
in the steamers. .r
! Norfolk. Va, was the next city in the
/ yield, being assisted Dy the new 1OIA
/ and Virginia steamship Company, whose
successor was the "old Dominion Steam
ship Company Of the present. They had
in service two steamers, the Roanoke"
| and the jamestown" not the boats of
| similar name in service to-day. The first
consignment of market truck from Nor
| folk was in 1854. and consisted Of 200 bar
rels brought up by the Roanoke and
| landed at Pier 10 North river.
Cargoes Of subsequent trips finally
reached as high as 400 packages per steam
err, the acreage not being of great enough
extent to produce more, in fact If it had
| the steamers could not have moved It,
ventilation was then a greater necessity
than now, owing TO the length of time in
| transit so that it obligated a loading con-
| fined entirely TO the upper deck, eonse-
! quently space being limited, tonnage or
| packages were restricted in numbers. A.
| early green stuff was an out-of-season ar
I ticle in New York there was an enliveued
| demand, and consequent eagerness on
/ the part of the receivers to get possession
Of all that could be had. Limiting the sup
| ply to 400 packages did not suffice, and
/ the captains were appealed to by the