Weekly journal-miner., 1910-03-02
ORANGE SHIPMENTS.

Admiral Bob" Evans in an article in Hampton s Magazine, touches one phase of the canal question in which southern California is specially and vitally interested, although the dis tinguished naval officer has not been as accurate in his figures as might have been expected. For which in accuracies he is being properly grill ed by the California press.
 He figures it out that shipments will be made by steamer to New York in less time than by overland freight
 How many people know that it will be possible to ship the oranges of southern California from Los Angeles to New York or Boston in fewer days by steamship through the Panama canal, when completed, than by fast freights across the country?
 The distance from New York to Los Angeles via the Panama canal is, in round numbers, 5000 miles. A 5000 tons capacity steamer loaded with oranges or other fresh fruit, steaming at the rate of twelve knots an hour, would cover the distance in eighteen days. If we allowed one day for the steamer passing through the canal, her total time from port to port would be nineteen days. A ship of sixteen knots speed, such as those used in the West India fruit trade, would make the trip in four teen days, giving an allowance of one day for passing through the canal. The time for rail freights across the continent varies from twenty to sixty days. It will, therefore, be seen that the steamer could, in all cases, land her freight in a shorter time This means that many kinds of freight would be delivered in better eondi- ton and for one-third the price now charged by the railroads.
 Perhaps the admiral had not been informed-more than likely it hap pened after his article was written that freight tram made up of or anges ran from COlton to Kansas City recently in less than six days, and it was an ordinary freight with no special effort at a record. Those or anges could be delivered in any east ern distributing point in four days more, or a total of ten days.
 Where the canal competition is like ly to be of benefit is in freight rates to the eastern seabOard, although of course an arbitrary will be added for inland points probably increasing the present charges.
 The San Francisco Chronicle hauls the admiral over the coals for say ing that there are few publicly owned water fronts along the California coast at which independent steam ships may dock, and then touches up his ideas on the lemon tariff as fol lows:
 In regard to the "lemon duty'' and who gets the benefit, the admiral says:
 "The tariff duty on lemons from 1897 down to 1909 was l cent a pound. In the present tariff) Con- gress raised this duty to IA cents a pound
 "And what happened? The Pacific railroads raised their rates to eastern markets just 114 cents pound. That is the railroads appropriated to themselves the en- tire amount which Congress intended for the lemon growers"
 It is shocking to tell such stories about California 's baby" The facts are that Congress raised the duty, not a quarter but half a cent pound-that is, 50 cents per 100 pounds-whereupOn the railroads raised their rates 15 cents a hun dred, attempting to take not the whole, but less than one-third of what Congress gave. That was one of the baby's bad acts, for which it is being duly spanked, but, in justice to the kid, it should be credited with leaving something to the lemon growers.
 That is not the kind of stuff one expects from a naval officer.