The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1896-07-22
WANTS RATE WEST
Ike DEAN TALKS CONCERNING
FRUIT INTERESTS.

de Visits Colorado and Finds There a Mar
ket for Every Bushel of Kansas Fruit,
But Says That the Freight Discrfmina-
ton Virtually shuts This Country Out
of STR Natural Benefits and the Missouri
River Has a Rate Less Than One-Haif
,f Wichita's-He Claims wIchita's Rate
"a In Conflict to U. S Court Decision.
what will be done with the fruit crop
Of Sedgwick county, is a question which
Is staring the fruit growers in the face
md its solution is of interest to every
citizen Of the county.
Never in the history of the country
was there such fruit crop as this year
and In the absence of a canning factory
anless some outlet is opened for the
! crop the greater portion of it will de-
( cay in the orchards.
For the purpose of handling the
grape crop Of Sedgwick county the
Grape Growers association was organ
tied two years ago and 1. VI. Dean, one
Of the largest fruit growers in the state.
was elected president, dld by and
through the efforts this association a
large portion of the crop was placed up
On the market and the benefits of CO.
operation was fully augmented.
The Grape Growers association win
hold a meeting in this city on Saturday
and steps will probably be taken look
Ing to the extension of the organization
30 as to include other fruits as well.
Mr.. Dean, president of the associa-
ton, made a trip last week to Denver
and the mountains, taking with him
two car loads of apples which he readily
sold on the Denver market at an adj
vance of SO cents per barrel over and
above the price allowed for Missouri
apples and if this portion of the coun-
try could receive rates on fruit as are
given the Missouri river points, which
are 225 miles farther from the Denver
market, Mr.. Dean declares that Colo
RADIO would furnish a market for every
bushel or fruit that this county has to
spare.
While In Denver, Mr.. Dean called up
On one of the largest packing firms of
fruit in Denver, and which had handled
$4,000 barrels Of fruit last year, and
Showed them the samples of Sedgwick
county'S fruit and asked them to estaib-
liSh shipping point at Wichita. say
Ing he would garantee them a, fun sup
ply of fruit
The manager. Mr.. Thompson, said
that he was fully convinced of the SUI
periority OF the fruit OF the Arkansas
valley, and that he would gladly estab-
lish a packing house here provided he
could get anything like Missouri river
r. c from Wichita, but that while he
&c / get q, rate from the Missouri river
at 20 cents per hundred that from Wfctl-
ita-225 miles nearer TO Denver-he was
forced to pay AZ cents per hundred and
that the freight rate was the only thing
that kept fruit buyers out of the mar
ket.
Mr.. Dean visited other Colorado
points and found them all anxious to
do business with this section of the
country but the some obstacle was rails
ed, which virtually shuts out the fruit
OF this part of the country and will
cause thousands of bushels to rot upon
the ground unless the railroads grant
and equitable rate. Mr.. Dean was met
at his headquarters on Market street
and asked with reference to the outlook
OF shipping fruit and in answer to Ques-
tions said:
Yes, the Commercial club Of Wichita,
should make a vigorous protest against
the unjustice and discrimination
against Wichita If the fruit can be
marketed it viii increase the market
here. l am glad that the grain rate has
been secured temporarily at least, and
If move was made L believe the rail-
roads would adjust their rates. / find
the local men all anxious to do all in
cheir power but the order must come
from above.
81 was the first man TO ship peaches
out Of Wichita, and it was an expensive
experience / can assure you. / shipped
two car loads to Minnesota, and lost a
little over $500 on the two loads. I got
enough of shipping fruit north and
then tried the territory, and 1 found
that they could ship fruit cheaper from
Kansas City right through my orchard
to Oklahoma than / could notwith-
standing the fact that l was 230 miles |
nearer TO Okla horna than what they
were In fact l found they could ship
fruit from 800 miles the other side of |
Kansas City and get upon the Okla !
homa market at a less rate than |
could, and / was forced to quit the |
south market.
This spring I resolved to try the |
west and want TO say that there I |
found a market after my own heart. |
The people there want our fruit and |
want 1t bad. We have the fruit to SPARE |
and want to sell it and the only thing |
that stands in our way IS the freight |
rates.
NOW. am not lawyer, but think
the supreme court of the United States |
sustained the decree of The Interstate |
commerce commission when they de- |
cided in the Lehmann-Higginson sugar |
case, that higher rate should not be
charged for intermediate than terminal |
points. The decision was fully sus-
tained in the JohSOn-I-arimer case and |
the fruit shipped from Wichita to eth
er the mountains or to the south come
directly within the scope of this de-
cision. And, another thing which |
have in my wool is that in the fruit
business there is no chance for the rail
roads to dodge the issue as they did in
the shipments from the south
"Wichita is an intermediate point.
and If the railroads can give a rate OF
90 cents per hunderd from the Missouri
river they can De compelled 30 do the
same thing for Wichita. The import
enoeof am organization like the Com
merciai club OF Wichita can now be
made manifest and there Is certainly
grand opportunity for railroad COM
raittees to do some grand work. While
this is true il is just as necessary for
the farmers to tand together and aid
the Commercial club in the work.
hope that Saturday when the Grape
Grower association meets that a COM
mittee from the Commercial club will
be present to make suggestions
There is 8 better feeling now among
Awarded