Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1902-02-06
BIG BUSINESS.
Aroostook County Ships $780,
600 Bushels Potatoes.
Large Gains Made Over Shipments
Of Previous Year.
Crop Will Reach Mere Than Four
Millions Bushels.

These are prosperous happy days
with the Aroostook potato growers and
buyers, for the shipment of the 1907
crop of tubeIs out of the county 20 the
markets Is going on merrily day after
day, while in return the good dollars o!
the land are pouring into the pockets
, of the farmers. traders and the ship
pers in a way that cannot fail 70 please
IN man. The roads from the farms "a
the railroad stations are lined with
teams heavily loaded with the potatoes
bound for 81! parts of the country.
| Since in the early part OF last July il
has been well known that the crop Of
1901 was the largest that Aroostook
had ever raised and the total number
OF bushels has been frequently esti-
mated upon; 50 frequently that IL
would bc useless to again mention ii
here. especially as no two lof the esti-
majors have ever agreed As TO the
amount nf potatoes that will be
shipped that is another matter. for the
men who make these estimates have
some basis to work up They have
some knowledge Of the amount that has
! already been shipped away and also
what was shipped in the preceding
year and. so by comparison, they can
, make very good estimate of what the
shipments will be.
The shipping season began on August
LIST and from that date to January 31st.
inclusive. there was shipped from
Bangor & Aroostook points 2,590,0S2
bushels. From August LIST, 1900, to
January 31st, 1901. inclusive, there was
shipped from the same points 1.6G3.S37
bushels. This shows a gain of 9S6, 40
bushels for the present shipping season
to date over the same period of the
preceding shipping season.
In the month Of January. just closed
til ire was shipped from these points
52S.62S bushels. against 333.119 bushels
il, January. 1901, a gain Of 100, 449 bush
tls.
Even with these large shipments
there is no shortage in the stock in the
county and the oldest veteran in the
potato raising and shipping business
dare not predict what the total output
OF the crop of 1901. will be, when IL is
completely figured. Aps,
The transportation companies, who
nave carefully canvassed the situation
and. undoubtedly understand it much
better than do any others are not SO
fearful and predict that the total ship
ments out Of the county will be about
four and half million bushels.
In view of the fact that the total out
put Of the crop of 190l which was the
largest IN the history of the county up
10 that time. was about three million
bushels, and that very nearly that
amount has already been shipped, and
that es vet there is. no shortage in the
visible supply. 1t seems reasonable to
think that their prediction viii be very
close to the mark. i%ar
Prices have been uniformly good
throughout the season, notwithstand-
ing the fact that large quantities OF
potatoes have been imported into. this
country from Germany. Prince Edward
Island and other countries.
The shipping rates from all these
places have been very low and have
brought the potatoes more into COM
petition with the Aroostcok product
than ever before. 1t is reported that
steamers have brought them from Ger
many at SO low a price as II to Is cents
Ter hundredweight. Taking them In
many cases at almost any price in or
der to save the cost Of ballast, as with
out them they would have to cross
the ocean light.
The southern seed trade to the Caro-
inas, Florida and other Southern states
has been good and, probably. in excess
Of that Of previous years.
But the shipments to Texas have
fallen off. This is due to the high prices
prevailing in AroOstook county. which
have forced the Texas buyers to so to
Michigan and Colorado for their sup
ply.
Few Of those who read the figures
giving the total amount of the ship
Inents out of the county up to the pres
nnt time this season will stop to think
what they indicate or how much labor
The transportation of so vast an
amount of one single article envolves.
The average load Of a box car is $50
bushels Of potatoes. This means that
there was required TO transport the
e,5?c.0s2 bushels Of potatoes that have
been shipped ont of Aroostook county
this seasoD. about 1872 freight cars.
These freight cars average about 81
ieet IN length and the 1872 cars
stretched out in single train would
cover a distance of 31A miles