The record-union. [volume] (Sacramento, Calif.) 1891-1903, 1898-02-03

partmentN no complaint has ever been
before made against the character of
American fresh fruits There was
some complaint a few years ago from
Hamburg and Cologne against certain
importation of dried fruits. on the
ground that they contained traces OF
zinc, taken up from the trays on which
they were dried, but there has never
been an attack upon the fresh fruit.
The reports of the United States con-
su.s show that the imports of the latter
have found great favor in German
cities, and the universal testimony of
our conSulS is that our apples are so
superior in everys respect that there is
hardly market for the German apples
in their vicinity.
The officials of the Agricultural De-
partment have as yet received no in
formation on the subject They are
disposed to believe the explanation that
importatio of fresh fruit Will be pro-
hibited because of danger from vermin
is not sincere one, but that Germany,
having in mind the recent legislation Of
the American Government imposing a
duty on bounty sugar, has taken this
action as a sort of retaliation.
G. b. Bracket chief of the Pomolo-
gical Division of the Department, III
discussing the dispatch said:
1T is surprising that any charge
should be made that California fruit is
infested With pests. The fruit from that
State is the freeSt from verlnin of any
in the whole world. She has stringent
laws against the introduction of insect
pests and diseases, and has a corps of
inspectors who examine all nursery
stock before it is permitted to
be imported. There is little or no
ground for the assertion that American
fruit shipped abroad is unsanitary.
The pests from which American APP
pies suffer are the larvae of the Goblin
moth, which is believed to pass into a
worm, and also apple maggots. The
possibility OF. any harm from these
pests in apples shipped abroad is, how
ever, very remote. especially in the case
with Germany. because very few OF
our apples which have been shipped to
Europe for the past twenty-five years
go to that country. Our fruit is not
inspected before it is exported, though
the natural assumption is that dealers
pick out the choicest before sending it
away, in order that the reputation may
be kept up. Apples are the only fresh
fruits which are shipped to Europe
at this time of the year. Peaches and
oranges have been sent mostly as an
experiment, and they go mainly to
England. The growth of the shipment
of apples abroad has been enormous in
the past sixteen years. In 1SS0-S1 the
shipments amounted to 1,32S.S 800 bar
rels, while in 1861 they aggregated
2,919, $40 barrels. OF this aggregate
III 900 barrels, valued at S213. 49,, were
to Hamburg, the remaining number,
with the exception of approximately
100000 barrels, going to English ports.
''Of course, it is likely that some of
the fruit which is sent to England
reaches Germany indirectly, though
there are no statistics on hand to tell
the amount On the basis of above in
Dictated shipments to Hamburg. it is
evident that the loss to America by the
prohibition of the Importation, as stat
ed, would not be as great as if this
prohibition should apply to all Europe.
The fact of this whole matter is that
we are the ones who should be protect
ed, for nearly all the insects in our
fruits have been imported from foreign
countries"