Milford chronicle., 1919-09-12
THE TOMATO SITUATION
Joseph F. Forst,
HarbesOn, Del.
(Communicated)

(COmmunicated)
Mr.. Editor:
The article published in your last
issue in regard to the Farmers Asso-
citation and the local buyers is not
correct. There were five local buyers
at Milford station. / as one can say
l offered to buy the first car of tOma
toes loaded by the Association. 1 ask
ed the sales manager if he would give
me a chance to buy it when loaded.
He made no reply. | was simply ig-
nored. Then | offered to buy tomatoes
from the growers who belong to the
Association. They stated they would
have to ask the sales manager, and he
told them if they did so it would break
up the Association. On Wednesday
we offered to buy, provided the sales
manager was willing. We made the
price from S100 to S1.15, according to
quality, the same as we were paying
other growers, but the sales manager
positively refused to let them sell;
said they had no right to sell, accord
ing to their bylaws, and ordered the
tomatoes set off on the ground. They
sat there all Wednesday night under
a dashing rain and all day Thursday in
a hot sun, and Thursday night. Fri
day they began to haul them by truck
to a nearby town. When the packer
examined the first load he found them
rotten and refused to accept them.
They were then hauled to Greenwood
where they were sold for SS cents per
basket. The cost of transportation was
cents per basket, together with other
expenses leaving the farmer about 70
cents, when he was offered S1.10 for
the same tomatoes. The writer in his
article says when the growers came
in the buyers asked do you belong to
the Association" If so. the buyers
refused to take them. This was not
true until after the sales manager pos
itively refused to let them be sold on
the Milford market. We then, of
course, asked them if they were MEM
beTs of the Association so as to know
which loads to bid on. l can say for
myself that there was no feeling nor
thought of not buying from members
of the Association, and do not believe
other buyers had any thought of not
buying from the farmers who belong
to the Association. The writer also
states that on Monday, September 1,
tHe ASSOCldllOH lOdueu one Iull car OF
tomatoes, while the buyers loaded only
half car that same day. l bought on
September 1st and September 2nd two
cars at Milford station, paying for the
first car from S1.0O to S1.3O per bas-
ket; the second car contained S36 bas-
kets, for which I paid 1886. also
loaded two cars Wednesday and
Thursday, ranging in price from S1.00
to S1.10 per basket. Does the writer
in his article know that the sales man
ager loaded only three cars during the
entire week and failed to find market
for two of them? One of our home
Gamers came to his relief and bought
them, unloading and hauling them to
his cannery. The leading speaker at
the first meeting Of the Association
held in Milford, said "the tomatoes
should be graded and sold on their
merits" So far this has not been
done. I heard the sales manager say
that he would make no difference in
quality. Is this fair to the farmer
who puts up the standard pack to
receive no more than the man who
puts up the poor pack? l say it Is
not The speaker also stated that any