The daily journal. (Salem, Or.) 1899-1903, 1900-05-14
THE FRUIT MARKET
Movements Of Green Fruits TO the EasI
From California.
Reports Of Pacific Coast Fruit Sales and
Shipment.

ay Associated Press fs the Journal
SACRAMENTO, May IL The rains hay,
made no great difference in the cherrl
shipments, except that they have beer
retarded. Ripe fruit has, Of course
suffered from the wet, as in that con
dition II has a tendency 10 split. But th,
bulk OF the crop is not yet ripe, even IL
the earlier districts. With warm, drJ
weather, from this time on, the cherry
crop will mature rapidly and shipments
will fast increase. Now about a car q
day is going forward. The earlier ship.
Inents have been made up from different
districts, no one locality ripening sufIi
C lent fruit at one time to fill a car. But
nov local carload shipments are In or.
der, and the first full carload from
Placer County, is on its was East. The
Railroad Company does not allow cars
10 be opened after starting from the
original shipping point, for the purpose
of completing the load. Up to the pre-.
sent time about fifteen carloads ol
/ cherries, from all sources, have been
shipped this season, making no account
Of express shipments.
! To July lst, the minimum carload will
be "a 600 pounds, as il was last season.
| This Is for the accommodation OF ship
pers, as in the earlier months OF the
season II Is often difficult 10 make up a
larger quantity from one locality After
July LIST, the regular minimum Of 20 600
pounds will be In force. Experience last
year showed the advance OF the mini.
mum from 24,OO0 to 5000 pounds to be
disadvantageous TO growers and ship
pers, in various ways, but there is no
prospect of any change this season.
THE outlook Ia not quite 30 favorable
for Cali ornia fruit in the East this year
as II was last season., says Mr.. Day.
"The Eastern fruit crop bids fair to be
much better than II was in 1899, and
this Of course affects the market for the
California fruit. This is especially the
case with peaches, which last year were
in scanty supply from Eastern orchards.
Georgia will have, at a conservative es-
innate, 5000 carloads. Estimates have
run as high as 5000 or 1000, but such
figures are extravagant. Even the ex.
pectation OF 5000 care may be greatly
cut down by unfayorable weather. But
Georgia will be an important factor in
the fruit situation this season, and her
peach industry is one Of much promise,
despite some disaster in the past. She
may be regarded as Calfornia's most
formidable competitor in peach produc-
ton early In the season. In Delaware
and New Jersey the peach Is declining
through disease and the exhaustion Of
orchards.
"ln general way, Eastern fruit pros
poets may be called good for the com.
ing season, though IL 10 yet too early to
know just what 10 expect.
zone thing that cuts considerable fig
ttr Ia fH.ltf,..... Ia
concerned, IL the importation Of tropical
fruit, especially bananas. Few people
reaize what an enormous quantity Of
bananas Is consumed in this country. |
The average OF the annual imports OF |
bananas II 100000 punches. This |
business In IN the hands OF the Banana
Trust, which owns plantations aud |
controls transportation. Eastern dealers |
are now fighting IL. The Trust has put
up the price and reduced importations. |
The fruit used 10 sell a, low as 80 to IS |
cents bunch, but has lately been more
than three times that price, owing
to the operations OF the trust.
In regard TO packing and the quality |
OF the fruit shipped TO the East, the only |
suggestion | can make is TO send the |
best and pack il in the best possible |
way. There Is not much need OF DWELL |
ing on this point, as California growers
aud shippers pretty generally understand |
the Importance Of keeping inferior fruit !
aud badly packed fruit out 0i theEastern |
market. More or less poor fruit, or good /
fruit improperly packed, finds its way |
East, but while IL is an evil the injury
from this source, am pleased to say, is
not very great, so far as my observation
goes.
"lf you are not familiar with the fig
ures OF apple production in the East |
you may be surprised 10 learn the ex-
tent OF the crop OF this fruit. II is about
40 600, 600 barrels year, aud barrel,
roughly speaking, is equal to three of
your boxes uf apples. All apples In the
East are sold by the barrel. aud the box
Is there unknown for this description OF
fruit And yet Of the G0,OOOOO6 barrels
of Eastern apples, never more than
I, 3,OOO,Ot are exported.
There are many varieties OF the APP
Pile superior in my opinion, TO the New
town pippin. as table fruit, but as a
general proposition il will not pay TO
grow tLe'e others in California for ship
ment to the East, the freight being too
great 10 allow profit. Aud there are
some varieties such AS the Spitzenberg,
pl superior quality, but yet 50 uncerta N
In their yield that growers cannot be-
recommended 10 plant them. could
dispose OF 10000 barrels Of Spitzenbergs
Al good prices but the fruit is not to be
had This variety is little grown any.
where.
MIR, Day has Just received advices
rom New York TO the effect that frost
has done great damage To growing fruits
n the Catskill district, on the Hudson
liver, about fifty miles above New York.
cherries, apples, Bartlett
nears, and plums, which are largely
grown IN this district, have been seri.
'usly affected. The Temperature is no.
lortea TO have gone as low as ~ degrees.
While other Eastern districts yet report
lo injury, the damage done on the
Hudson will toa certain extent affect
avorably later ON the market Tor Calf
'rnia fruit In New York City.