The Paonia newspaper., 1911-01-13
COMMERCIAL APPLES PICKING, PACKIk
By A. L. Roberts, President

grea test possible uniformity has been
attained in grading and packing, and
this can only he done when all pack
Ing is in direct charge of the associa-
ton management.
Also, this pro rating feature, pecu-
liar only to associations, is most
estimable feature. A grower can
hardly afford to be without this pro-
vision IL he is located near any good
association which uses it. 1t is like
an insurance policy on his crop. lfa
car or two of his fruit is smashed in
a wreck or goes wrong in any way he
does not have to lose-all fight out
claim for damages with the railroad
company. Hs gets what all his neigh
bors get and what all the associa-
tion's shippers get tfor the same thing.
lie can hardly afford to take the risk
and chance of getting very much less
for the chance that he might get just
as much,
Our own association. the North
Fork Fruit Growers Association. OF
Paonia, is believe, an example of a
successful association. one which has
been "a tremendous benefit to Paonia
growers. Since 1t has been running
our shippers have received great
deal more money for their fruit than
they We're receiving before and they
have been getting thsir money much
quicker. Land values have been ad-
vanced and the increase has been
maintained largely upon the prices
obtained by the association. In this
association all fruit Is packed under
direct charge OF the association man.
agement and all fruit = pro rated.
with like grade and variety. We
have IA board of five directors. man
ager. and. In season. a foreman for
each packing station We have three
regular packing and shipping houses
on the railroad, and have packing
stations at n number of other places
at distance from the railroad. AL
so. for the last two years we have
AtAAAAh- anu
tents for packers and help. In this
way a large responsibility In har-
vesting is removed from the growers
and II really makes their troubles
very much less, At the same time. a
single management can handle the
situation more advantageously and
more economically than individual
growers can do for themselves. Per
sonally. ! lind II a great deal Of com
fort To know that an viii be taken
care of at the pHckinghouse. that all
have to do Is To deliver my fruit to
at the packinghuuse aud spend my
money.
Nevertheless. 1t il somthing OF an
education To learn To be good asso-
citation member, us well as something
to learn to know how to run one
just right. y number of our grow
ers who have shipped with our asso-
ciutlon are not shipping with us to-
day. Their reasons for not doing so.
are, in my opinion. usually triviaI.
They are not good reasons. They
are not such reasons as ought to iu-
fluence prudent man to change n
convenient and safe system of mar
keting for something untried and
experimental. Personal pique or
personal dislike Of some official is not
IA good reasn for allowing ones self
to lose perhaps several hundred dol.
lars a year. one should be willing
to ship with his worst enemy II his
returns Were made greater thereby.
] do not recall single instance in
which n grower has not lost money
10y SO doing. Usually they have got
ten n good deal less money for a like
quantity and grade of fruit and have
had to wait for n much longer time
for what they did get.
ITO he continued next week.
An epidemic of raZZle- dazzle has