The herald., 1897-10-21
Southern California Fruit
Growers
COOPERATION Is NECESSARY
SECRETARY FILCHER ON PROS
PECTs OF FOREIGN TRADE
All-Day Convention Yesterday-A
Large Attendance of Represent
ative Men

ifornia deciduous fruit growers, which
opened yesterday morning at 10 o'clock
in the chamber of commerce, there was
not seat vacant in the assembly, nall,
and the gathering was representative
as we'll as large.
Most of the prominent fruit growers
of this section of the state were present,
and the convention, which lasted all day,
promises to be the germ of powerful
and prominent organization that shall
exert an influence both good and far
reaching for the deciduous fruit inter-
ests of Southern California.
Charles Forman, president OF the
chamber of commerce, opened the meet
ing, called A. r. Sprague of Fairmount
to the chair and H. D. Briggs to act as
secretary. BY reclamation both gentle
men were elected. Mr.. Sprague in few
words explained that the convention had
been called to consider the advisability
of forming a permanent organization or
association for the purpose of furthering,
by cooperation, the mutual advantage
of the growers and the ultimate good of
the section; and he invited full and free
discussion of the question from any one
concerned.
l.. j. Rose, the first speaker, thought
that it was essential to cooperate and
have an agent in the different market
oenters, that the mistakes or misfor-
tunes of the past season might not be re-
peated. Mr.. Rose cited as an instance,
that peaches had sold here for $14 to SIS
a ton when the market price in San
Francisco was $50 to $45 ton; and he
further advocated a cooperative can
merry
John F. Humphreys said too little at
teEtion was paid to horticulture by gen.
tlemen farmers. whose attention was too
apt to be concentrated upon race track
agriculture. He thought that the future
of the country depends on the fruit
growers, but that they needed to know
what to raise and how to market their
production. Mr.. Humphreys asked the
convention to discuss the pros and coris
OF permanent organization Of the
growers that should meet often; them he
touched on foreign trade and said that
there should be demand created for
dried fruit instead of allowing 1t to be
drug on the market.
j. A. Filcher Of San Francisco, secra-
tary of the state board of trade, was
then introduced and requested to give
his opinion on the prospects of trade
with Germany. Mr.. Ficher, who had
made the journey expressly for the pur-
pose of addressing the convention, said
he felt like the Englishman who had
crossed the continent and then gone
home and written book about America
He said, however, that his positionin re-
gard to the California exhibit at the
Hamburg exposition had brought him
very closely in touch with the trades
people, and he had been able to observe
the conditions of trade intimately.
Then Mr.. Filcher spoke Of the class of
products we raise here. 1--WE plow, and
pick and pack" said he, with cheerful
ALTERATION, "but after knowing the how
to do we must have the what to do and
where to put what we produce. The Ger
mans say we are smart, energetic, in
ventive, bold and independents; and We
are, but the latter is our rawback; we
have big, rich, extensive and produc-
tive country; we raise all kinds of things
and. then we say come and get them
1--WE are rich and We buy what we
want. If we go islto any country ard
press a demand for what we have to
cell, we can make trade with it. But
every other country gives credit in
trade; our system Is three Gays sight,
with the documents attached.
'Our products attracted more atten-
tion I'm Hamburg than any Others in the
place, and 1t was not only from the
masses, but from the trade. answered
questions from early morning till late
at night on the subject of opening up
trade, prices, etc. Hamburg is big
place, her trade last year amounted to
81, 900, ,000, 900. There is tremendous cap
ital invested in the importing ard ex-
porting business. When we went there
with our samples and displayed them.
we had no trouble in getting orders.
"California's business with Hamburg
Is already three times what it was a
year ago. We have just knocked, al the
door of Europe with our products, and
when we talk of market for our prod
ucts we do ourselves an injustice if we
speak of less than the whole world.
"Since the Fuerst Bismarck ARID the
other fast ocean steamers have reduced
the time across, Europe is just one half
as far commercially, and the world is
twice as SMALL In France they sell our
canned fruit. but they sell 1t under a
French name on the menu cards, but
when you show you know that 1t is Call
ifornia fruit they acknowledge it."
Mr.. Filcher then took up the question
of what to do to extend trade and place
1t on more secure foundation. He re-
cited the recent f1uctuation in prices by
the large fruit crop here, and the dearth
In other places. He suggested organiza-
tfpn and then getting in every country in
Europe; to make exhibits in Buda-Pesth
and Vienna and Copenhagen and Brus-
esls. and every other large city in any
country. He said the dried fruit crop
this year had amounted to 140,000,000
pounds, exclusive of raisins, and that
with raisins the crop had been 250,000-
900.
The speaker strenuously advocated
organizing for. two purposes-to raise
the means for extended trade and to fix
. stable market price. and he gave the
history of the wine men as an exam
pie. "Organize in every section where
fruit Is grown, and set the price at a
good, fair price to the grower be-
ueve California could fix the price of
the staple fruit products of the world
Py fixing 1t on fair basis and then fol-
Owing 1t up by efforts to sell, exploiting
the products all over Europe and it's
tributaries, and Asia too. This will be