Imperial Valley press., 1908-06-27

The usual reaction of the cantaloupe market, which occurs in the middle of the season and is attributable to sev- eral causes, manifested itself early this week and was exaggerated by rumor to the proportions of disas- trous slump. Immense quantities of fruit have been shipped, and, because there is no cooperation among dis tributors, the market has become con gested at many points. Floods in the Mississippi valley held up trains, and many carloads arrived in bad condi- tion. Prices fell as a matter of course.
 The first remedy thought of was sus- pension of shipments, and some of the associations at once notified growers that ponies" would not be accepted and that grading of standards would be rigid. Many loads were rejected at the platforms, and the growers could see only calamity and vanishing profits. Although heavy shipments
 
 will be more than well supplied on the Fourth of July, the slump appears to have been only a fiuctuation, as the price improved by fifty cents crate before the end of the week.
 Thursday was "Cantaloupe Day" at BraWley-but somewhat different from the one previously planned. It was day in which the melon-growing clans from all over the Imperial Val ley assembled in that town to discuss the situation and take action towards limiting the output.
 First was held a meeting of the dis tributors; then came a meeting of the Brawley Cantaloupe Growers Associ- ation; this was followed by several private caucuses, and finally, in the afternoon the general meeting was held in New Hall
 Distributors Statement
 All melon distributors operating in the Imperial Valley had representa- tives present at the meeting held at Brawley Thursday forenoon to con- sider the general situation. They adopted by unanimous vote the fol lowing statement:
 Tt is the duty of all distributors in distributing products, and especially those of a perishable nature, to con- sider the results bearing upon the grower, first: that if the market con- ditions are such as to endanger the growers receiving an income or profit upon their shipments, it is the duty of the distributors to notify the growers to that effect.
 Whereas, during the past ten days shipments out of the Imperial Valley have aggregated 750 cars and only a small portion of the same have reach ed the markets; and as the reports from all markets on June 24th show low average prices, and if shipments are continued in the same ratio it means that the accumulation of cars on the various markets on July 3rd, 4th and 5th, will be enormous, that they will have to be carried over to the following week for sale and with out any question that the markets will be completely demOralized, and DIlCSS WILL DS SuCIl IlldI JHGIS WILL DS 1 nothing coming to the growers, in fact it being a question whether a majority of the cars will pay freight | and refrigeration charges; therefore 1t is the sense of the distributors that | if the Imperial Valley stops all ship ments on June 26th, 27th and 2Sth, it will give all selling agents an oppor- tunity to better manipulate the cars that are rolling and given them an op- portunity to clean up at better prices, create healthy condition on all mar kets for the week following the Fourth | of July. It is the sense of this meet ing that by not having a large ac- cumulation the markets following the Fourth of July will be healthy and will | pay such prices that the growers can receive a profit above their expenses"
 Fall to Unite.
 The meeting of growers with the distributors, held in the afternoon, re- suited in an adjournment with no definite action being taken. Each as sociation is to proceed on its own foot ing. But out of it all came the gen. eral understanding that there must be