The daily journal. (Salem, Or.) 1899-1903, 1900-07-20
THE OREGON
HOP GROWERS
ARE ADVISED TO CLOSE WITH LILIENTHAI
BROS. OFFER.
Legal Opinion on Validity OF PROPOSAL Contract
Address Is issued BY President
Jones.

The officer of the o. II. q. A. are
making every effort to bring about
some definate action touching the much
discussed offer OF Lilienthal Bros.
In reply to inquiries as to the legality
Of the proposed contract, Mr.. w. w.
Cotton, Of the law firm of Cotton, Teal
q Miner, Portland writes TO Jas. Win
stanley, secretary Of the o. Fl. 6. A. in
part as follows:
at is certainly true that Messrs.
Lilienthal Bros. could agree with Mr..
Jones, for example, to pay him 10 cents
a pound for all the hops raised by him
on given piece Of gronnd, and it might
also be provided that in consideration OF
such purchase, Jones should not pick
the hops upon another piece of ground,
and that Lilienthal Bros. should have
the right, il they 80 desire, Of 80 far de-
stroying the vines as TO prevent such
such hops from being picked.
"Such a contract could undoubtedly
be made by Lilienthal Bros. with every
individual grower in the states OF Or
egon, Washington and California, and l
feel sure that il Lilienthsl Bros. or any
individual grower should undertake to
avoid any one of the particular contracts,
the fact that Lilienthal Bros. were able
10 secure similar contracts from all of the
other growers would not constitute any
manner Of defense.
"When, however, you get all the
growers Of Oregon, Washington and CAL
ifornia into one contract and spread the
whole transaction at large in one instru-
ment, and l think that there is danger
thot some court might hold that such
a contract was an unlawful restraint
OF trade. do not think, however, that
there would be very serious objection
II the con tract can be made. If as the
result of the Lilienthals'. backing, we
can get the growers to agree TO curtail
their production % per cent, then
whether Lilienthal Bros. ultimately
take the hops or not, the grower is
certainly placed in better position as
result Of the universal curtailing OF
crops than he otherwise would have
been. That much good would be ac.
complished in any event. Hops would
have TO be quite little higher than Is
cents before the grower would back ont,
and Lilienthals' would get part Of the
hops in any event, and many more than
they would under ordinary circum-
stances"
President Jones, Of the Oregon Hop
Growers Association has issued an ad-
dress to the hop growers which is given
below in full.
To the Hop Growers of the State of Ore
gon:
GENTLEMEN "A proposition has been
made guaranteeing us fifteen cents per
pound for all hops Of good quality, pro-
vided that we pick only three iourths Of
them. The parties making this propo-
sition offer to advance five cents per
pound for picking purposes which shall
be security for the guarantee and also TO
put up a sufficient bond that they will
carry out the proposition, provided that
IL is accepted by the growers.
BY the terms OF this offer il is per.
mitted the grower 10 receive the highest
price obtainable should the hops still ad.
vance beyond the fifteen cents. Certainly
this offer is made by this firm of capital
lists and hop dealers because they ex-
pect that II IL Ia carried out IL will be
profitable 10 them. But the point TO be
considered by us is whether il will be
profitable TO the hop growers or the
most profitable policy they can adopt
with the present outlook.
We do not expect that the worlds har-
vest OF hops for 1900 Will be nearly so
large as the crop of 1899. In any event
the demand for hops, always limited to
one special use, may not, even this year,
be commensurate 10 the supply of hops
now indicated by the present growth Of
vines. We therefore recommend 10 your
consideration the Importance of thor
ough organization and of so handling
the marketing of the product as not 10
destroy possibility or probability OF
getting Tenumerative prices. We have
seen how a normal supply of hops may
be forced upon normal demand so as
TO practically destroy values, We there
fore think 1t worth while to take up this
offer and consider its probable effect
upon the growers profits.
Let us suppose that we pick four bales
OF hops amounting in round numbers to
eight hundred pounds. The cost OF pick
ing eight hundred pounds at five cents
per pound is forty dollars. Some con-
tracts are now being recorded at from
eight TO ten cents. Eight hundred
ponuds at nine cents amounts 20 seven
ty-two dollars, and, deducting picking
leaves the grower thirty-two
dollars.
that considerable percentage
Of the hops were contracted we are safe
in the conclusion, judging from the past,
that the hop market would be so manip-
ulated as to depreciate values TO such an
extent that the dealers would reject a /
percentage of his contracts |
and buy in the hops at a much lower