The ranch. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1902-1914, 1909-06-15
Edited by F. Walden

than in any decade in the history of
the world. l have no lamp to guide
me in the future but the lamp of ex-
perience in the past, and as the
prophets of failure have themselves
failed in the past SO l believe they
will in the future.
While the planting of trees is
enormous in the Pacific Northwest, it
must not be forgotten that the apple
business in the United States as a
whole has been going backward. The
government reports show that the
United States produced 100000 bar
rels of apples in 1896, but only about
25,O0O,O00 barrels were produced in
each year of 1907 and 1908. Last
September one of the best informed
fruit men in the Mississippi valley
while riding with me among the or
chards of the Yakima valley, remark
ed that the apple business was retro
grading in his part of the country.
He said that the apple scab and bit
ter rot were playing havoc in their
orchards, and then added: eve must
look to the Northwest for our high
grade apples" Charles A. Green OF
Rochester, New York, recently stated
in his paper, Green's Fruit Grower,
that the high grade Western box ap-
pies had captured the Eastern fancy
apple markets, and that their home
grown fruit was down and out.
| could fill these columns with quo
tations showing that for the fancy
apple trade we have open to us the
markets of the world. These Eastern
men who so plainly see that we have
captured their markets for the fancy
apple trade, seem to think that it is
our cultural methods, our fertilizing
agencies, our methods of fighting in
sect pests and fungouS and bacterial
diseases as well as our methods OF
grading and packing that have won
their markets. They urge their grow
ers to initiate our methods and win
back their lost trade. These things
will do good and improve their mar
kets for their own fruit, but our cloud
less skies and climatic conditions can
not be bought by the square mile, or
acre, or yard and shipped across the
Rockies by the carload. Those who
want these favorable conditions must
come where they are and then, having
become settled under these favorable
skies, they can continue to "smile."
The fact is if we give our attentionto
the raising of the highest type of ap-
pies of which we are capable, keep
them clean, we'll sorted and neatly
packed, we will never lack for pro-
fitable market The whole world will
be our customers. We can ship to the
great cities on our Atlantic Coast,
across the Atlantic to the markets of
europe and find an unlimited market
for our fancy apples. Australia, New
Zealand China and Japan are stretch
ing out their hands for our fruits.
Alaska is already a great market for
fruit that is practically our own and
will grow immensely. No, we are not
laying awake of nights wondering
what we are going to do with our
apples. That is a matter well set
tied with those Of us who have thor
oughly studied the situation.
SIS there any more good fruit land
to be secured?" 1t seems strange to
us who live here and understand the
situation that such a question should
be asked. But it often is asked by
new corners who have not yet looked
over the country. The fact is that
fruit growing, like all other kinds OF
business except stock raising, had to
wait the advent of railroads. Live
stock can be driven out to the lines
of transportation but fruit especially
can not be hauled very far over mount
aims and very stony roads. Hence,
it follows that our fruit growing has
been principally developed along the
railroads. The Yakima valley raised
some fine fruit before the Northern
n.o:ao ,o iIcood aptorad that Territory