The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1914-1938, 1917-05-24
WANT FRUIT
TAKEN FROM
LUXURY LIST
CONTINUED from first page)


.nd very grave issues in the business
of fruit production and distribution
of this country and particularly OF the
Northwest. Of these issues, the fun
damental one is classification OF fresh
fruits either as luxury or as staple
food product. The matter is not yet
determined, and judgment OF the au-
thorities at Washington has not yet
been passed. Many rumors are In the
air. Already there are rumors to the
effect that fruit will be classed as a
luxury, in which event all the process
es of production, harvesting, transpor-
tation and marketing would be pro-
foundry prejudiced. Labor in the or
chards, warehouses and Offices would,
in that event, be subject to military
conscription, and the already made
quate supply would be subject to de-
pletion to the point of extreme peril.
Furthermore, the car supply, already
INADEQUATE, would be still further re-
duced thru the diversion of equipment
to the transportation of commodities
classified by the government as nee
essary to the national welfare. The
psychological effect on the American
public of the classification of fruit as
luxury would be most adverse, as
the American public will unquestion-
ably be sensitive to advice, either di-
rect or implied, concerning all mat
tiers of food economics. An entire
train of evil consequences, including
these mentioned, would result, to the
embarrassment and Encouragement Of
the fruit industry, and perhaps it is
not too much to say would result in
wholesale ruination to weaker districts
and individuals. On the other hand,
the classification of fresh fruit as an
essential food product would tend to
reverse the situation and place the
producers of fruit foods in the same
preferential position as that which is
already assured to producers Of other
necessities.
Zone of the most prominent fruit
jobbers and operators in the country,
in a conversation with me recently,
stated that he had recently held long
conversation with a very prominent
traffic officer of one of the trans-con-
tinental railroads, who stated that
there is well-defined possibility that
the transportation Of certain commod-
tiles from one producing section over
long distances to markets tributary to
local producing sections may be pro-
hibited by the authorities. This might
mean, for instance, that the shipment
| Of apples from the Northwest to New
York, would be prohibited on the
ground that New York state is the
largest apple producing section in the
country and produces more thar
enough to supply her own population
The same ruling would prevent ship.
ment of our apples into many Of the
most populous states Of the East
which together comprise our princi
pal markets. I need not point out that
the effect of such regulation upr
, our apple industry in the Northwes,
would be disastrous, as it would linn
it our markets to prescribed ares
west Of the Missouri River, and woult
even bar our fruit from certain mar.
kets more quickly and easil supplied
from Colorado or the jacksonville dis
trict of California.
"The trustees of the Fruit Growers
agency devoted the entire day to the
analysis of these various issues, ant
determined upon very vigorous cam
paign for the protection Of the thous.
ands Of fruit growers comprising the
Northwest fruit industry. A telegram
was dispatched to each Of the twenty
senators and representatives in Con.
gress from the four Northwestern
states of Washington, Oregon, Idaho
and Montana as follows:
"sFruit Growers Agency, repre-
senting fruit interests of Washing
ton, Oregon, Idaho and Montana
urge our congressional representa-
/ tiyes to confer and make united eff
fort with representatives from other
fruit sections to have government
classify fresh fruit as food so as to
secure transportation preference
and save our farm laborers from
CONSUMPTION. Without such action
our fruit industry is doomed. Let
ter follows. (Signed) ]. B. Adams
president
kilograms were sent to the Inter
national Apple Shippers association