The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1916-01-27
GOVERNMENT
WILL ASSIST
STANDARD GRADES ARE PROMISED
Weather Conditions and Marketing Re-
forr& Cause Coming Year to be
Viewed 0ptimisticalIy

Except for shipments of export fruit
that have been sent out to catch Trans
Atlantic steamers, business has been
at standstill here for the past two
weeks of extreme cold weather. While
cars have been we'll lined and equipped
with insulated flooring, Wilmer Sieg,
sales manager of the Apple Growers
Association, fears slight frost damage.
I'VE do not use heater SERVICE" he
says, "for this service is only available
as far as Chicago, and very severe
weather is encountered between that
city and the far eastern points"
The cold weather, however, MIR. Sieg
and other officials of the Association
think, will be benefit TO the apple
and pear crop. ''It will tend to keep
the buds dormant longer period" "
says MIR. Sieg. "and will probably take
US past those late frosts that cause us
damage here on some seasons. The
local peach crop may be injured. but
paintings of this fruit are very negli-
gible."
Because of these propitious weather
conditions and proposed reforms in the
grading of Northwestern box fruits
next season, the local apple men are
optimistic. According to Mr.. Sieg the
government will take a hand in the
Standardization of grades, and through
the Bureau of Chemistry. which will
enforce the rulings that are to be
made, buyers can be assured that ap-
pies shipped from the Northwest in
1916 will be up to grade.
"Ihe government has recognized be.
yond doubt the Standardization of pack
and grade, and the Department of Ag-
riculture will accept as the standard
the rules adopted by the majority of
the Northwestern Districts" says Mr..
Sieg. ''rhe rulings will be strictly
adhered to and worked out by the or
ganization that will take the place of
the present Shippers League, which
has postponed any reorganization until
the report and recommendations of the
Office of Markets and Federal Trades
Commission has been received"
"The Northwest" continued MIR.
Sieg, wants to hold out to buyers an
absolute assurance of quality, and the
United States government is going to
cooperate with us to this end.
During the past shipping season rep
resentatives of the larger shipping
concerns declare that an irreparable
damage has been caused the North
western box apple by the shipment of
offgrade fruit. Scores of carloads of
wormy and undergrade apples were
shipped to Texas points from Wenat-
chez. causing an avalanche of disaster
for the shippers, themselves, and
bringing into disrepute the district
sending out the fruit.
Hood River, according to Mr.. Sieg,
has suffered this season because of off
grade apples having been shipped to
England by individuals of the Mid-Co-
lumbia district.
With the exception of few carloads
of first grade Newtowns, the Fruit
Growers Exchange reports that its
apple holdings of the 1916 crop have
been practically cleaned up. During
the past week several carloads have
been shipped to California and the
Middle West. while we are not
meeting with any better Offers, says
Fl. M. Huxley, of the Exchange, I'VE
are finding the demand is getting much
better.
Kenneth Mckay, manager of the
Exchange. has been spending the past
two weeks in Seattle and other coast
cities, conducting a selling campaign.