The ranch. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1902-1914, 1909-06-01


$3.50 per box. l noticed in passing
along First Avenue that nice four tier
Arkansas Blacks were retailing at gu
cents a dozen. The same day L re-
ceived a letter from a friend in On
cinnati, Ohio, and he thought he
would tell me some good news when
he informed me that our fine Western
box apples were selling in that city
for cents a piece, or just what they
were selling for here in Seattle The
same day that our fine apples were
selling at 60 cents per dozen | saw
good large oranges sell from wagons
on the street at 20 cents per dozen.
If the California fruit growers are
making money on their oranges, what
are we making on our apples? The
fact is that the apple is the king of
fruits, and the man who raises plenty
of this royal fruit may wear diamonds
if he hasn't any more sense.
One of the things in the apple bust
ness that is demanding attention is
marking them from Hood River or
some other section noted for fine fruit,
when they were raised somewhere
else. The Hood River Fruit Growers
Union is looking the matter up by
using detectives. They propose to
prosecute to the full extent of the
law such dishonest tricks. This is
right. How much of this kind of work
is done l do not know, but I am well
satisfied that Hood River is not the
only place that suffers from this dis
honest use of good name. l have
just received letter from Minnesota
that informs me that Baldwin, apples
purporting to be shipped from Top
penish, Wash, are on sale there that
are "green in color and worse than
green in taste-are insipid and have
hardly any resemblance to Baldwins.
Just think of Baldwins from Topper
ish that are green and insipid! My
orchards are within three miles of
Toppenish, and l have been raising
the Baldwin there for years, and never
saw one that was green after it was
ripe, and the flavor is the very best.
Better Baldwins I never saw nor tast-
ed anywhere. Either these Baldwins
were picked before they were ripe, or
they grew somewhere else where the
climatic conditions are very different,
or they were not Baldwins at all. 1t
is just possible that the last suppO-
sition is the true explanation, for it
is astonishing how many apples are
misnamed. I called attention to the
fact that at the State Fair last fall
many apples were fnisnamed. If these
were Baldwins and grew somewhere
else and were marked from Topper
ish, then I would say that more dis
honest trick is scarcely possible. The
man who would do this ought to be
classed with the scoundrel SO graph
ically described by Shakespeare when
he says:
Good name in man and woman, dear
Is the immediate jewel of their souls:
Who steals my purse, steals trash;
it's something, nothing;
Twas mine, tbs his, and has been
slave to thousands;
But he that filches from me my good
name,
Robs me of that which not enriches
him,
And makes me poor indeed"
This friend in Minnesota says fur
Their: Nov, I thought perhaps these
apples might be from some other To-
cality and the Washington brand
placed on the boxes to sell them" l
do not know anything about this mat
ter, but am confident these apples
never grew near Toppenish or mis-
take was made in the variety or they
were immature Baldwins. This friend
further says: ct file away every
Ranch and hope to be able to keep
on filing for many years to come, with
your sermons upon the Gospel of good
fruits for reference"
\ II
L. F. Clipp, Wenatchee, Wash,
writes under date of April 20 as fol-
lows: 81 consider your course of in