Rogue River courier. (Grants Pass, Or.) 1886-1927, 1906-08-17
FIRST SHIPMENT OF PEARS
Gra nts Pass Fruit Growers Un-
ion Send Car of Bartietts
to New York.

The Grants Pass Fruit Growers
Union made their first shipment OF
fruit this Thursday morning when a
car Of Bartlett pears was sent to New
York. The car left in fast freight for
Portland where it will go out over the
o. R. & N. to Ogden. At Ogden it
will be placed in fruit train made O.
California and Oregon cars and sent
without a delay or stop direct to
New York, at which place 1t will ar
rive in about nine days after it left
Grants Pass. The picking of the
pears was begun Tuesday by the grow
ers and was completed Thursday.
though it was intended by President
R. A. N. Reymers, who had charge of
the packing and the loading of the car,
to have the picking all done by We'd
nesday noon. The delay was caused
by several of the growers not having
sufficient pickers to get the work done
Wltnln the time limit.
The result was that the car could
not be sent out by the Thursday after
noon through freight and had to wait
for the next train Friday forenoon.
This delay will cause an etxra expense
on those having pears in the shipment
as the car had been iced at Ashland.
where the refrigerator car company
has that work done for all Rogue
River Valley fruit shipments Wednes-
day afternoon and was brought to
Grants Pass that night ready for load.
ing the next morning. This holding
the Car in Grants Pass for. SO hours
will make it necessary that it be iced an
extra time while on the road to New
York. This charge is SEQ which would
have paid for several additional pick
ers. Then this delay may cause loss
ON the price the pears will sell for in
New York as there may be drop in
the market by large shipmnts aud a
day late may mean a decline OF 25 to
80 cents box. Had the car been on
time it would have been with the first
out of Rogue River Valley, the Jack
son county grow ers sending out three
cars Thursday and this Friday they
sent five cars. Hereafter it will be
the rule of the union that members
will be on time with their fruit else
as soon as delay is apparent ex ra
pickers will be sent by the manager
and fruit got in on time or if not it
will not be shipped.
Not finer car of pears ever left
Rogue River Valley than was this one.
Every grower was carefully instructed
by President Reyners in the manner
of picking and hauling the pears to
the warehouse and they were de-
livered without bruise and in per-
feet condition All the pears were
picked IN the early morning hours
while they were cool and the packing
was done in cool place, and in haul.
ing them to the warehouse the boxes
were covered to keep off the dust and
sun The grading was vigorous and
not pear with scale or blemish
or under the pa inches in size was al
lowed to go in the shipment. The
packing is equally good and more
careful and thorough work was never
done on car of fruit in this valley
than was done by the young women
whowere in the employ Of the union.
The refrigerator car was new,
clean one and President Reymers
and Foreman O. l.. Mcpherson took
the greatest pains in loading to have
the boxes placed symetrically and the
r ws thoroughly braced so the fruit
will not be shaken up while in trans.
it. Several persons who are familiar
with fruit shipments and who saw
the car when loaded, say that it was
as well loaded and presented as neat an
appearance as any car Of fruit they
ever saw. and that the fruit should
go to New York as strictly fancy pack.
The boxes were supplied by the
California Pine Box & Lumber Com.
pany of this city and were of first
quality. They were handsomely
labeled, the ends bearing the words
Grants Pass Frnit Growers Union,
Grants Pass, Oregon, and the name Of
the grower, the number of the packer
and the variety of fruit and tho .idas