The Evening standard. [volume] (Ogden City, Utah) 1910-1913, 1910-12-15
Ogden, Utah. Dec. 18th, 1910

Ogden, Utah, Dec l4tn, l9lO.
Editor STANDARDIZED as q director
in the Ogden Fruit Growers assocla
ton, but as an Individual fruit grow
er. I wish 10 state a few facts to the
fruit growers Of Utah. j will say that
this industry which is now In Its In
fancy and which means more to Utah's
future than any other one of the many
great things which are materializing
for us, needs the cooperation and as
sstance of the Standard and all good
citizens in bringing together the Utah
and also, Gf possible) the Colorado
fruit growers (whose interests are
identicaD early this winter TO ar
range for the consistent and common
sense marketing OF our fruit. don't
mean meeting for the purpose OF
hiring some gigantic intellects from
South Africa OF even California or
joplin Mo, to relieve us of our re-
sponsibilities. We have masqueraded
as the "Funny-paperfa farmer long
enough.
This season has demonstrated, even
10 the auction shark as well as to the
honest dealer and the consumer that
the Utah peach Is the very best on
earth with Colorado a close second,
and that We know how to grade, pack
and ship; also II has demonstrated
the fact that the consumer (even with
bumper crop on and the fruit TAX
en- from the producer as the proven
bIal candy is taken from the kidd must
pay a good price for this choice lrult:
price that will allow % big honest
margin for shipping and marketing
thp grower lOT
his long wait for trees to come into
bearing, his constant cultivation and
care the year around Of these trees,
his interest on land. irrigation and
tree stock Investments, not 10 mention
fertilizing, spraying sleepless nights
With the smudGe- pots and a host oil
other work and anXieties which even
tuallv lands him a success In pro1uc'
ing the marketable product and
"plum-pudding" for the gold brick mer-
chant who pumps him full OF sweet
wind and who for a commission tllke
the man at the top OF the LADDER
"does the work" Of selling on the
market For the good Lords sake
(and incidentally our OWN let us
wake up.
am throwing no stones at the peo'
pie who sold our fruit this season.
OF rather who didn't sell it, but got
Z IL per cent commission on about
four-hundred carloads for letting 1t
GO east to the auctions They claim
to have lost money even just letting 1t
20 TO market and collecting their COM
mission for so doing and perhaps they
did Let the past be past; let int
dead bury its dead; and these people
were so near dead, that, because MT
Moore of Colorado told them To hold
our fruit for a big price. they held 1t
until Mr.. Moore had filed all f. o. b.
orders with Colorado fruit and then
they sent ours TO the tender mercleS
of the Omaha. Chicago. Boston and
New York auction markets and, Ike
Bob Fltzsimmons when he got after
Sharkey, they didn't do n thing TO
us" | have never attended fruit
auction, but | have been to the big
gest horse-market auctions In the
world. When ranch-man conSlgns
his horses 10 an eastern commission
firm to be sold at auction, the process
Is funny. awfully funny. 10 the COM
mission firm and quite funny to the
buyer. but D. long ways from
funny to the ranchman. The commits
sion people take great pride In reduc-
ing, by fraction of second. the
record time in which carloads OF
horses can be sold at auction and also
they want to convince the buyer that,
in their particular town. horses can
be bought much cheaper than at any
other auction yards. and as they are
selling at so much per head the low
l.rIr
favorable conditions, work no hard
ships on the commission firm, especi'
| ally as not infrequently large per
cent OF the stock so sold is purchased
| by their own agents who then take
| them into the surrounding country to
| be retailed to the consumer (or user
who. like the poor devil who eats our
| peaches, pays all they are worth
| had q talk the other day with Mr.
| Fletcher, the Boston fruit auction
man. He boasted 10 me that they
| could there sell at auction car of
| peaches composed Of small lots In
five minutes. When ! asked sadly If
this was not little hard on the poor
devils who had put in a whole year
| to produce that car Of peaches. he
| gave me the same old chestnut that
the horse auction people did, VIZ that
You had 10 get the buyers excited
and sell them fast TO get good prices,
but In watching the horse auction
have noted the fact that 1t is ofteneT
the auctioneer than the bidder who
gets excited and the laugh is on the
man who sells rather than on the
buyer (Ask Brooks on Twenty-ffth
street how they sold his war horses
in st Louise
don't think the old gentleman
knew what was happening to him I'M
I'll, being good Missourians. they
showed him" after the sale what his
stun had sold at
Getting back to our problem, we
must make every effort to get into a
solid combination, every fruit grower
in Utah and also In Colorado. II pos
sible. making 1t nn intermountain nf.
fair. Establish offices in Omaha and
Chicago as well as at home, make
the price and make 1t fair and rea
sonable on Utah or intcrmountaln
fruit [. o. b. and fill guaranteed or
ders at prices made whlcn must be