Evening star., 1937-12-12

Early Morning Scenes on Water Street Re.
semble Bazaars of Orient, as Perishables
Are Bought for Homes and Restaurants.

worth of fresh fruits and vegetables
and years business will easily run
to 5000 900.
Chances for promotion in the food
business are good. Only five years
ago Clift Binkley began as a truck
driver and already he is a receiving
clerk, TITS hard work and long
hours" he says. but you get some
where If you know your vegetables
and attend to business"
Business is also q beehive of ac-
tivity in the farmers markets. To-
Gated just above the wholesale mer-
chants. Every day 100 to $50 farmers
roll their trucks into this market to
display their food under a large
shed, paying Is cents a day for the
space a truck occupies.
Here. early this fall, the famous
rattlesnake and Tom Watson water
melons were piled high. Then fol-
lowed truckloads of cabbage, sweet
potatoes and apples. Ruddy checked
Winesaps, Staymans, New York I'M
perial and delicious Roman Beauties
We'd with rich yellow Grimes Golden
apples, that in turn gave way to
oranges in this ever-changing scene.
Many truckloads of oranges are
coming from Florida each week end
now. Food prices vary. A farmer
from New Jersey nets $110 from $50
bushels Of sweet potatoes, while 140
bushels of Irish potatoes beside him
bring 5000. A truckload of apples
from Charles Town Is worth $75 to
$500, while spinach may net $25 one
day and $75 another.
STACKED between the apples and
spinach are pyramids Of delicate
purple and white turnips with neat
clipped tails, bushels of orange car
rots of uniform size carefully arranged
in perfect circle that will appeal to
the buyers artistic sense as well as
needs.
Getting the mostes fer the leastes"
is the main idea of the dealers who
form a steady line, milling around,
bargaining. dickering, haggling and
sorting the food to decide what will
best suit their customers. An aver
age days business in the farmers
market is $500 and a years sales
are around half million.
Within a stones throw from this
market are the produce merchants.
One of these alone brings in each day
1000 to 1900 chickens from Mary
land. Virginia and the eastern shores.
In truckload there are, from 2,700
to 5000 chickens, worth $500 to
$1,000. Beginning 10 days before
Christmas, this merchant sells 1000
chickens some days, although his
average days business is 300 to 800.
Last month from 10000 to $4,000
turkeys were sold by this house alone.
Usually the smallest turkey is twice as
heavy as the largest chicken, and
turkeys weigh up to 20 pounds A
truckload of turkeys may be worth
$2,500. Besides chickens and turkeys,
500 pounds Of butter, valued at SIPS
enough for 10000 to 10000 people at
one meal-sell daily in this market,
while on peak days 100 cases of eggs,
worth $1,000, are sold.
MOT only butter and eggs, but
cheese, Is varieties, ranging from
~ to 30 cents q pound, pass through
the same market at the rate of 300
and 400 pounds each day. The best
selling cheese is New York sharp.
followed by New York mild. Imported
cheese has many customers, Roquefort
leading the demand. French Rooue-
fort. while popular, is more expensive
than Danish Roquefort, which is gain
ing in public favor.
For years the Department Of Agri-
culture has been experimenting with
domestic Roquefort, but as yet, in the
puhlic's opinion. none has appeared
on the market that can compete with
the imported variety. The majority
Of buyers still say. I'VE don't want
domestic Roquefort."