The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1902-09-14
DeCOster & Clark Co., SIS jackson St.
St. Paula Fruit Center

GLOW much am I offered for this
car Of golden beauties? Not a bad
peach in the lot and every one seller
Speak quickly, gentlemen. One dollar
did you say? Dollar five did l hear
Well there yours and you've got 'en
dirt cheap"
Just little scene that is enacted
daily in little stuffy room Of the main
entrance Of the Milwaukee depot. but
to the dozen or more quick-eyed men
seated on the rough deal tables that 1t
contains, this harangue of the auc-
tioneer means much.
1t means that where year ago every
dealer along commission row had to
go to Minneapolis to buy his stock OF
fruit, the lucious, golden products OF
the West and Northwest are now
dumped at his very door and all he has
to do is to take his pick, pay his money
and the fragrant beauties are rolled
directly into his cellar.
City Now Fruit Center.
st. Paul no longer depends on the
Mill City for its fruits. 1t no Longer
recognizes Minneapolis as the fruit
center of the Northwest, for times have
changed and the cars that arrive daily
from the West instead of being switch
ed off into the yards of that city now
come direct to st. Paul. It Is this fact
that results in the daily scene just de-
scribed and which for nearly year
has been in active operation.
According to j. e. Mulroney, one OF
the largest dealers in fancy fruits along
commission row, nearly 800 cars OF
California and Western fruit have been
auctioned off in the st. Paul railroad
yards since the season opened and the
number is increasing. The daily sales
I, Eel half %. q n
some days that figure is greatly ex-
ceeded.
A year ago local fruit men in attend
ing these sales had to go to Mime
apolis, reship if the lot was broken
one and suffer other Inconvenience,
often resulting in loss. The sales are
conducted by the Twin City Auction
company and are held daily in the
yards of the Milwaukee and Omaha
Railroad companies.
Every fruit dealer along commission
row attends them and when the de-
mand is brisk and the offerings few the
scene is an interesting and a spirited
one.
Scene Lively One.
With every state in the Union pour
ing in it's offerings of garden and or
chard products, commission row along
Third street is busy spot just now.
Barrels and crates of every description
line it's sidewalks and the air is redo
lent with the odors their contents send
forth.
Peaches, apples, grapes are now the
principal article Of commerce with the
commission men, that is those whose
business is exclusively the handling of
fruit. The vegetable man is also in
evidence, but he is combining his at
tention to potatoes and garden pro-
ducts in season.
The peach naturally heads the list,
for this is the time of the year Cali
fornia and Washington begin to turn
in their harvest. The fruit is Of excel
lent quality and brings the dealer from
81 to $110 a case. Next week st. Paul
will be samplfng the fruit Of the
Colorado peach orchards, the finest
fruit sold in this section. 1t is an ex-
tremely fine, solid fruit and whole
sales about double the price of the
California product.
Lovers of apples will probably rejoice
in the announcement that there Is a
big crop of apples this year, in Canada
especially. The price, however, has by
no means slumped, for the North this
time must contribute to the South,
where the crop in some respects Is
failure. In Iowa and Wisconsin the
orchards are full of this fruit, and 1t