El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-06-17
Uncle Sam and the Orchardist
FRANK q. CARPENTERS LETTER.

own family. but many others. to af-
fluence
refer to Hale, the peach king of
Georgia, the man who is now at the
head of a syndicate which owns or
chards capitalized at $1,000, 600 or
more, and which has shown profits of
$4,000 and upward a year. I don't
know how many hundred thousand
peach trees Mr.. Hale owns, but he has
built up great peach growing in
dustry in southwestern Georgia, and
his fruit is. sent in refrigerator cars
all over the north. He sometimes har-
vests 100000 peaches a day, each
peach being handled three times in
sorting, picking and packing, and he
has the most improved methods of Gull
tivating his trees and marketing the
crop.
I have just talked with man who
knows Hale very well. Said he:
''Hale was born near a little town in
Connecticut. His father lived on
farm upon which nothing could be
raised not even the mortgage. His
father was in debt, and he died leaving
the farm ipcumbered to the amount
Of $4,000 with only two little boys,
Hale and his brother. to meet the in
terest and support the family. They
found they had to hire themselves
out to keep the farm going. and at u
years of age young Hale was cutting
corn for his neighbors at a few cents
a day.
at was one day during the noon re-
cess, when he was tired of handling
corn stalks, that he sat down under
Seeding peach tree and munched the
fruit, while he wondered whether he
should ever be able to pay off the debt
and make a man of himself AS he
did so he looked up at the peaches
and thought how fine it would be to
have few thousand such trees and
make a fortune in fruit. The thought
grew upon him. and he decided TO try.
In one way and another he scraped
and saved until he had 500 in cash.
He earned more during the winter. and
In the spring was able to buy 5000
peach trees and plant them out on the
home farm. They grew, and through
his excellent care soon surpassed all
the trees of the neighborhood- He
raised crops between the rows, and
finally brought the orchard into bear
ing
Before the fruit was ripe. however.
the mortgage came due. and the elders
Of the church which held it notified
him he must come in and pay He put
them off for a few weeks and rushed
his fruit to the markets, handling 1t
so that he got the highest prices. He
advertised in the Hartford papers, and
hired storerooms there for the display
Of his peaches. His profits were such
that he soon had more than enough
money in the bank TO pay off the
mortgages and leave him a big sum
for the future.
A $4,000 Crop.
.'Haless first peach harvest, in short
netted him about $4,000. This was
not known to the churchmen until he
came in and said:
"Well, gentlemen, have come to
arrange about that note
But, young man, we don't know
that we can extend it, said one OF the
deacons. You boys have been very ex-
travagant in selling your peaches. and
we can't afford to lose the money.
But said young Hale. You don't
need to lose the money. 1 have come
in to pay the note
"'Ohr returned the elders. If you
have the money to pay we would just
as lief let it run. We will have to
put the money elsewhere. You had
better keep it. All we want is our
interest
No, indeed replied Hale. 7 have
the money and I am going to get rid
paid the note.
THE next year." continued this man,
Hale set out more peaches. He culti-
waited and fortified his orchard and
he proved that fruit could be made
profitable in Connecticut. In 1889 he
made $4,000 out of one crop from S5
acres, and he gave such a stimulus to
peach growing in New England that
there are now something like 100000
trees in Connecticut. while there are
many in the adjoining states Of Mas
sachusetts and Rhode Island.
"A little later on Mr.. Hale got the
idea that Georgia would raise peaches.
He travelled all over that state and
picked out his present locality. Since
then he has raised enormous crops,
and has shown what could be done by
careful cultivation, intelligent market
ing modern machinery and good bust