Ashland tidings. [volume] (Ashland, Or.) 1876-1919, 1913-07-24
BANQUET IS
A SUCCESS
FIRST ANNUAL BANQUET HELD
BY COMMERCIAL CLUB.
RAILROAD OFFICIALS ARE GUESTS
Speakers Do Themselves Credit and
Talent ladies Prove Themselves
Best of Caterers-AbOut Forty
Present.

The Talent Commercial Club
struck the keynote of the needs of
the Rogue River Valley at it's first
annual banquet, given at the high
school building Tuesday evening,
July 22. The guests of honor on
that occasion were ]. H. Mulchay,
assistant general freight agent of the
Southern Pacific lines in Oregon, and
Grant Gordon, manager of the bu-
reau of community advertising of the
Southern Pacific railway and man
ager of the Sunset Magazine.
The heavy rain storm early in the
evening delayed the gathering of the
club members, many of whom are
ranchers and farmers, and it was
about $3.50 o'clock when the COM
pany gathered around the festal
board, which groaned under the pro-
fusion of viands, both dainty and
substantial, supplied by the ladies of
Talent, who have reduced the science
of cookery to fine art. The tables
were set in the form of a cross, the
invited guests being seated at the
upper end of the stem of the cross.
The tables were beautifully decorat-
ed with vines and cut flowers, while
the room was bright with bunting
and notices. The company did am
pie justice to the delectabIe banquet
spread before them, after which they
were called to order by ]. H. Fuller,
the president of the club, who acted
as toastmaster and who presided in
manner which showed him no nov
ice at after-dinner speaking, intro
ducing each speaker with witty and
pertinent remarks. The first speak
er called upon was A c. Randall,
the king of the Gophers,' who
opened by commenting upon the fact
that though he had been in the
Rogue River Valley but five years.
yet so largely had the population
changed in that period that he was
accounted one of the old-timers. He
quoted the old story Of the bunch of
fagots, to show that as individuals
we cannot work out the problems of
the valley, but must work together.
He stated that in the last few years
ne had seen the produce of Rogue
river orchards placed in about 25O
outside markets, as against about so
under the old system of individual
marketing. He also told of the ad-
vantages of the preceding plant now
being installed at Medford, one be-
ing that with that plant it will be
possible to hold fruit so as to ship
mixed cars to distant markets, a
thing heretofore impossible. 1t
would also permit the entrance of
Rogue River Valley pears into east
ern markets which could not be
reached in good condition without
plCCOOlluS.
The next speaker was DR.. w. R.
Bagley. In introducing him the
POSTMASTER stated that he had pur-
posely refrained from announcing
the keynote of the speeches, hoping
that it would come out spontaneous
ly. DR.. Bagley was assigned the
topic of Manufactures" and stated
that fruit was now the only product
which could be successfully shipped
out OF the valley, and that freight
rates were against that to a great ex-
tent. That was one of the conditions
and problems confronting the can
ner. 1t was possible to raise the
best tomatoes and in large auanti-
ties, in the valley, but that the val
ley could not compete outside with
California and Willamette Valley
pack because of the freight rates be-
ing against us. These rates he be-
lieved to be discriminating against
~S NSO6uO AeiNOl tdll0y, we must
also, he said, look for an outside
market for practically our entire
output of pears and peaches, as every
housewife in the valley, practically,
put up her own canned fruit, which
ne believed was the proper thing for
them to do. In dried fruits there
was an equally discriminating rate,
1t being SO cents per hundred to
Portland and 79 cents to Seattle
from the valley, as against 80 cents
from San Francisco to those points
He believed, however, that the rail
road managers were getting farther
sighted and that in the future the
valley will get better concessions and
less unjust determinations.
Gathered, as they were, in Talents
beautiful school building Mr. Fuller |