Seas esr caetspessteessssececstes Bees retensetesceesrsrt rere ae Sinspesns Sh Besseree He HH ini oy SSS HAHA Sa =: = esatestei Seasteceiersiesenes eis) SSS SS Yetawcececess Se eee Ce iG we Bo Book OFFICIAL DONATION. OBFICIAE REPORT OF THE TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA HELD UNDER THE AUSPICES OF THE STATE HORTICULTURAL COMMISSION, ’ AT LOS ANGELES, COMMENCING TUESDAY, MAY 5th, AND ENDING FRIDAY, MAY 8th, 1903. SACRAMENTO: WoW SEANNON : - =: : : : : SUPERINTENDENT OF STATE PRINTING 1903 CALIFORNIA STATE HORTICULTURAL COMMISSION. ELLWOOD COOPER, - - - Horticultural Commissioner. ALEXANDER CRAW, - Deputy Horticultural Commissioner. JOHN ISAAC, - - - - - = - - Clerk. DEC 13 1904 . of D, TABLE OF CONTENTS. AN ACT TO CREATE A STATE COMMISSION OF HORTICULTURE. .---_----: 5 PROCEEDINGS OF FIRST DAY. Morning Session— Pen oS OF WRLUCOME. By Hon. Berd: K. Rule .\:-..-2-.. 221.21. -<.- se. 9 Peter eePr Nh COO EWS (ASW RB Soo a aeons ee oe ee ae AO eae SRO) wee aes | ae nc eae s ee aes nee AS hess Pes AS See EON PRE OLD BNI S; AD DRNSS: -22222 2) 7.0 Tae eae 20 Afternoon Session— aL R Nev BUN: hEOy © ©) Mev be Hy Hig) see be Dowie ep ee Be Yee lola eI BiG wetON AND CULEFVATION. By John Hofman. - 2.22 =. - 2. c2.22252.. 24 | EAN DEING THE SOIL. By J. H. Reed ---2 - ceserwerey seem ice ep ein aur Mepis tla 29 DAIRYING IN CONNECTION WITH FRUIT-GROWING. By C. W. Leffing- SPELL. DIE gle Sa I ee eee Re gene ee RPO ee OS ne ee Ey ee ec 36 BEEP RBOCEAMATION OF ARID LANDS: » By. Mi Holt.scgs280 06226. 222. 2 39 ESD ep UNS OH WADE Ris (By Po S< Van, Dyke. : 265-2: 22 a2 fbb ese once 47 BISOUSSION ON 'FHE GROWING OF ORANGES.__..(..----0---) esses. 52 RESOLUTION RELATIVE TO DISEASES AND CULTURAL METHODS OF Mp ero b ob mae 255 sii oe EN ie ee oh tee EAS ays ee ee led 2 Bt Det 58 OE eee UCR NEO) Ne Piv ul GAY DION: 222022 i ee i 59 PROCEEDINGS OF SECOND DAY. Morning Session— CURING AND MARKETING OF LEMONS. ByC.C. Teague BPR ee Wh ss te He 63 (PERRO ANGE PROM BLOSSOM TO CAH: By A. D. Bishopes-.e22222- 2022.2. 66 A FRUIT-GROWER’S WANTS AND DESIRES. By Edward Berwick.---.---- 69 Menten EiNG, ClIRUS ERUITS. Dy A: TH. Nattzger.--- 22. (20 st 74 5S LS DPS SIGS Lee SR SE Sac SN aca iene ee ce ea ar i RESOLUTIONS RELATIVE TO PARCELS-POST CONVENTION. _.__....... 84 PSO LION (PEEANKING- GOVERNOR PARDBE ©622.0002.2).0000 oe gg RESOLUTIONS RELATIVE TO RATES, ETC., ON EASTERN FRUIT SHIP- RHINE SC ee ve ee | i Dagar aN Oey n, WEI ale a gh A 85 Afternoon Session— 2D TPSSIS TION ALO alee ss el Gk Np ee NR IRI Ey omer Gil COMME MEER ON, BARIM TABOR. 2. Se no ek 89 RPS easy LING se a OR ee Re Ae Re I ae a yh i I cota ny beet as Vek he 92 FRUIT-FLIES AND THEIR EXCLUSION. By Alexander Craw-_-____.__..___- 94 MOETESUE Semen yok LOmy At. dic COOK tanec oS Sot 2 ee Bee eee we 98 PARASITES OF INJURIOUS INSECTS. By Dr. W.B. Wall.___._...._... ...-- 102 DERE TISSTIOIS eas eR ACN OE ee eepar tr tees REPORT OF COMMITTEE ON RESOLUTIONS MESOLUWTONSLON LDELANKS 10-SHENATOR BARD 226). fl 111 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS. Evening Session— ADVERTISING-CALIEORNIA. “By J; A Wileher 532.352 ee ae ADVERTISING CALIBROR NLA. (By rank Wie coins oo ok. eee 116 ADVERTISING CALIFORNIA FRUID PRODUCTS: By W. D. Curtis saaesasee 120 ADVERTISING CALIFORNIA FRUIT PRODUCTS. By B.N. Rowley 2222222 125 ADVERTISING CALIFORNIA FRUIT PRODUCTS. By J.C) Newitt essa PROCEEDINGS OF THIRD DAY. Morning Session— THE MARKETING OF WALNUTS AND DRIED FRUITS. By J. B. Neff___. 135 “WALNUT MARKETING. By Frank KH. Kellove) 2) eee) 137 DECIDUOUS FRUITS IN THEZSOULE. By Prot, Jt We Millis eee 140 PESTS AND DISEASES OF DECIDUOUS FRUITS. By John Isaac ________-- 143 DISCUSSION 2-222 ei eset Se a ee 147 Afternoon Session— QUESTION=BO Xe sy ENeear o ea an So eRe. ee 154 MARKETING CITRUS FRUITS. “By HM: Chapman © 2232225522555 een DIFFERENT VARIETIES OF ORANGES AND THEIR RESPECTIVE MERITS: By Chas.C. Chapman 2. 22. .220. 2.4. 22 es PRUNING LO IMPROVE THH ORANGE.” By CR. Paines222)..- =.= 169 REPORT OF COMMITTEE ON PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS...-...-..--.--..---- 177 DISCUSSION ras ssofags hs SU eave > Bee Lo Ss ee See 177 VOTE - OR WEBANES foes te 2 ee Se ce ne 180 NEXT: CONVENTION o22 sss 288) 222. Soa iad es Oe 180 PROCEEDINGS OF FOURTH DAY. Morning Session— MEMORIAL TO PRESIDEND ROOSEVELE. 22 2 181 AN ACT TO CREATE A STATE COMMISSION OF HORTICULTURE. [Approved March 25, 1903 ] The People of the State of California, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows: Section 1. The office of State Commissioner of Horticulture of California is hereby created. It shall be the duty of the Governor, within forty days after the passage of this Act, to appoint a citizen and resident of this State to hold said office of State Com- missioner of Horticulture, who must at the date of his appointment be a skilled horti- culturist and entomologist. The term of office shall be for four years, and until a successor is appointed and qualified. The Governor may remove such Commissioner from office at any time, upon filing with the Secretary of State a certificate of removal signed by the Governor. In case of a vacancy in said office by death, resignation, removal from office, or other cause, the Governor shall fill the vacancy for the unexpired term. The salary of said Commissioner shall be two hundred and fifty dollars per month, and he shall be allowed in addition a sum not to exceed five hundred dollars yearly for traveling and incidental expenses necessary in the discharge of his duties herein provided for. Such Commissioner may appoint a clerk at a salary of one thou- sand five hundred dollars per year, who shall perform the duties required of him by such Commissioner. In appointing such Commissioner and his successor or successors, it shall be the duty of the Governor to disregard political affiliations, and be guided in his selection entirely by the professional and moral qualifications of the person so selected for the performance of the duties of said office. The office of said Commissioner shall be kept open every day except holidays, and shall be in charge of the clerk during the absence of such Commissioner. The main office of such Commissioner shall be at the City of Sacramento. The Secretary of State shall furnish and set aside in the capitol a room or rooms suitable for offices for said Commissioner, and if the Secretary of State shall make and file an affidavit with the said Commissioner stating that it is not possible for him, as such Secretary of State, to provide and set aside an office for said Commissioner in the capitol, or in any State building under his control, because there is no such office room or rooms available, then, and after the making and delivery of such affidavit to such Commissioner, the said Commissioner may rent rooms convenient and suitable for his offices under this Act, at a rental not to exceed five hundred dollars per year. Said Commissioner may also keep and maintain an office in the City and County of San Francisco at a yearly rental not to exceed the sum of five hundred dollars, and may appoint a Deputy Commissioner who shall be an expert entomologist and horticulturist, to have charge of said office under said Commissioner, and to per- form any and all duties which said Commissioner may require of him under this Act, and shall fix the monthly compensation of such deputy at $200 per month. Such deputy shall hold his position during the pleasure of such Commissioner, and may be removed from his office or position at any time by said Commissioner filing with the Secretary of State a certificate signed by said Commissioner so removing such deputy. Said Commissioner may also appoint, by and with the approval of the Governor, such temporary deputies from time to time as may be required for quarantine purposes under this Act, and such temporary deputies shall receive such compensation per diem as may be specified in the writing so approving such appointment. If there be not sufficient furniture and office appliances turned over to such Commissioner by the State Board of Horticulture heretofore existing, to furnish and equip properly the office or offices for such Commissioner at Sacramento and San Francisco aforesaid, the said Commissioner may, by and with the approval of the Governor, purchase for the use of his said office or offices such furniture and appliances as may be necessary therefor, and from time to time, at an expense not to exceed a sum to be mentioned in such approval, 6 AN ACT TO CREATE A STATE COMMISSION OF HORTICULTURE. which expense, together with all other expenses authorized by this Act, is hereby allowed for the purposes specified. Src. 2. Upon taking office under this Act such Commissioner shall be entitled to receive and have turned over to him as such Commissioner all the books, records, and property in the possession, charge, custody or control of the State Board of Horticulture heretofore existing, and all such property shall be delivered to such Commissioner upon demand. Such Commissioner shall be deemed for such purposes the successor of said board. Src. 3. Such Commissioner shall collect books, pamphlets and periodicals and other documents containing information relating to horticulture, and shall preserve the same; collect statistics and other information showing the actual condition and progress of horticulture in this State and elsewhere; correspond with horticultural societies, colleges and schools, and with the County Boards of Horticulture existing or that may exist in this State, and with all other persons necessary to secure the best results to horticulture in this State. He shall require reports from County Boards of Horticulture in this State, and may print the same or any part thereof as he may select, either in the form of bulletins or in his annual report, or both, as he shall deem proper. He shall issue and cause to be printed and distributed to County Boards of Horticulture in this State, and to all other persons whom he may deem proper, bulletins or statements containing all the information best adapted to promote the interest and protect the business and development of horticulture in this State. Such Commissioner shall be deemed to be the State horticultural quarantine officer mentioned in chapter seventy- six of the laws of eighteen hundred and ninety-nine, for the purpose of that Act, and shall be empowered to perform the duties which under that Act are to be performed by the State horticultural quarantine officer; provided, that any inspection therein author- ized, when made by such Commissioner, must be with the approval of the Governor, and as provided by this Act. Src. 4. Said Commissioner may, by and with the approval of the Governor, estab- lish, maintain and enforce such quarantine regulations as may be deemed necessary to protect the nurseries, trees, shrubs, plants, vines, cuttings, grafts, cions, buds, fruit- pits, fruit, vegetables, or other articles of horticulture, against contagion or infection by injurious disease, insects or pests, by establishing such quarantine at the boundaries of this State or elsewhere within the State, and he may make and enforce, with the approval of the Governor, any and all such rules and regulations as may be deemed necessary to prevent any infected stock, tree, shrub, plant, vine, cutting, graft, cion» bud, fruit-pit, fruit, vegetable, or other article of horticulture, from passing over any quarantine line established and proclaimed pursuant to this Act, and all such articles shall, during the maintenance of such quarantine, be inspected by such Commissioner or by a deputy appointed in writing by said Commissioner with the approval of the Governor, and he or the deputy so conducting such inspection shall not permit any such article to pass over such a quarantine line during such quarantine, except upon a cer- tificate of inspection signed by such Commissioner or in his name by such a deputy who has made such inspection, unless such article has been immediately prior to such passage inspected by an officer or agent of the United States entitled to inspect the same, and such officer or agent has granted permission for such passage. All approvals by the Governor given or made pursuant to this Act shall be in writing and signed by the Governor in duplicate, and one copy thereof shall be filed in the office of the Secre- tary of State, and the other in the oftice of said Commissioner before such approval shall take effect. Sec. 5. Upon information received by such Commissioner of the existence of any infectious disease, insect or pest, dangerous to any such article, or to the interest of horticulture within this State, or that there is a probability of the introduction of any such infectious disease, insect or pest into this State or across the boundaries thereof, he shall proceed to thoroughly investigate the same, and may, by and with the approval of the Governor, establish, maintain and enforce quarantine as hereinbefore provided’ with such regulations as may be necessary to circumscribe and exterminate or eradicate such infectious diseases, insects or pests, and prevent the extension thereof, and-is hereby authorized to enter upon any grounds or premises, and inspect any stock, tree, shrub, plant, vine, cutting, graft, cion, bud, fruit-pit, fruit, vegetable, or.other article of AN ACT TO CREATE A STATE COMMISSION OF HORTICULTURE. i] horticulture, or implement thereof, or box or package pertaining thereto, or connected therewith, or that has been used in packing, shipping or handling the same, and to open any such package, and generally to do, with the least injury possible under the condi- tions to property or business, all acts and things necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act. Src. 6. Upon the discovery of any such infectious disease, insects or pests, such Commissioner shall immediately report the same to all County Boards of Horticulture, together with a statement as to the best known means or method for circumscribing, exterminating or eradicating the same, and shall state therein specifically what treat- ment or method should be applied in each case, as the matter may require, with a detailed statement or prescription as to the method of making or procuring, and of applying any preparation or treatment so recommended therefor, and the times and duration for such treatment, and if chemicals or articles be required other than those usually obtainable at any town, the place or places where they are most readily to be obtained; and upon the receipt of such statement by any County Board of Horticulture, or any member thereof, it shall be the duty of such County Board of Horticulture to distribute such statement in printed form to every person owning or having charge or possession of any orchard, nursery stock, tree, shrub, or article of horticulture within their county, where it is supposed by said County Board there is any danger to the interests of horticulture, and such a statement must be served with or be a part of the notice to be given to the owner or owners, or person or persons, in possession of any orchard, nursery, tree, shrub, or article of horticulture, referred to, provided for, and required to be served in and by section two of chapter one hundred and eighty-three of the laws of eighteen hundred and ninety-seven, or any amendments which have been or may be made thereto. Sec. 7. Whenever it shall become necessary to establish quarantine under this Act, if there be any authorities or officers of the United States having authority to act in such matter, or any part thereof, the said State Commissioner of Horticulture shall notify such authority or officers of the United States, and co-operate as far as possible with such authorities or officers of the United States wheresoever the jurisdiction of the United States extends and is being exercised, and shal! obtain, whenever desirable and possible, the assent of the proper authority or officers of the United States to the estab- lishment or change of quarantine lines, so as to most effectively and speedily accomplish the purposes of this Act. The said Commissioner shall at once notify the Governor of all quarantine lines established under or pursuant to this Act, and if the Governor approve or shall have approved of the same or any portion thereof, the Governor shall issue his proclamation proclaiming the boundaries of such quarantine, and the nature thereof, and. the orders, rules or regulations prescribed for the maintenance and enforce- ment of the same, and shall publish such proclamation in such manner as he may deem expedient to give proper notice thereof. Src. 8. The said State Commissioner shall be ex officio a member of all County Boards of Horticulture existing or that may be created or exist inthis State pursuant to law, whenever he is present and acting with said County Board within the county, where such County Board exists, but when he is not so present in such a county, acting with such County Board, then the said County Board shall have all the power and authority conferred on it by law, and may exercise such power by the action of the members of such County Board or a majority thereof. The reports which County Boards of Horti- culture are required by law to make, or which they may desire to make, shall, after the passage of this Act, be made to the State Commissioner of Horticulture. Sec. 9. It shall be the duty of the Superintendent of State Printing to print and deliver to the State Commissioner of Horticulture, upon the written request of said Commissioner, all such bulletins, orders, rules, regulations, statements, reports, and other printed matter, as the said Commissioner may deem necessary to have and use for carrying out the purposes of this Act, and it shall be the duty of the Secretary of State to cause to be prepared and furnished to such State Commissioner all stationery, paper, blank forms, envelopes, and writing material needful and convenient for use in the office of such Commissioner. Src. 10. It shall be the duty of said State Commissioner to report in the month of January in each even-numbered year to the Governor, and in each odd-numbered year « 8 AN ACT TO CREATE A STATE COMMISSION OF HORTICULTURE. to the Legislature of this State, such matters as he may deem expedient or as may be required either by the Governor or Legislature, and to include a statement of all the persons employed, and of moneys expended under this Act, by itemized statement thereof. Sec. 11. Any person willfully refusing to comply with orders lawfully made under and pursuant to this Act shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction shall be fined not to exceed five hundred dollars. Src. 12. All moneys paid under this Act shall be paid by the State Treasurer from moneys appropriated for the support of the State Commissioner of Horticulture, and expenses other than the salary of the Commissioner, the compensation of his clerk and Deputy Commissioner, as allowed and provided by this Act, must be certified by the said Commissioner and be approved by the State Board of Examiners before being audited or paid. Any moneys remaining of any appropriation heretofore made or that may be appropriated for the use or support of the State Board of Horticulture are hereby appropriated to the support of the State Commission of Horticulture, and are directed to be applied to the payment of claims and expenses under this Act. Src. 13. The sum of four thousand dollars is hereby appropriated for the use and support and to pay the expenses of the State Commission of Horticulture for the fiscal years commencing July first, nineteen hundred and three, and July first, nineteen hundred and four, under this Act. Suc. 14. Chapter sixty-three of the laws of sieliesn hundred and eighty-three, chapter seven of the laws of eighteen hundred and eighty-five, chapter eighty-six of the laws of eighteen hundred and eighty-nine, and chapter one hundred and ninety-four of the laws of eighteen hundred and ninety-one, are hereby repealed. Src. 15. This Act shall take effect immediately. SYNOPSIS OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE Twenty-eighth State Fruit-Growers’ Convention, HELD UNDER THE AUSPICES OF THE STATE HORTICULTURAL COMMISSION, LOS ANGELES, MAY 5-8, 1903. Turspay, May 5, 1908. Pursuant to call, the Convention met in the assembly room of the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce at 9:30 a. M., May 5, 1903. President HLLwoop Cooprr, State Horticultural Commissioner, called the Convention to order. Rev. C. J. K. Jones, of Los Angeles, opened the proceedings with prayer. ADDRESS OF WELCOME. ‘Hon. Ferp K. Ruiz, President of the Los Angeles Chamber of Com- merce, delivered an address of welcome, as follows: As President of the Chamber of Commerce of Los Angeles, as well as a citizen, it is a great pleasure to welcome you to our city. We realize in this part of the country that the fruit interest is the really great interest, or the greatest interest of our State. Therefore it is all the more a pleasure to appear before gentlemen representing that interest- I feel very sure that your deliberations and your discussions will be not only interesting but also profitable, and therefore I regret all the more that the very many duties that I have before me this week will prevent my attending many of your sessions. You all know that we are in the midst of preparations for a big celebration here in anticipation of the coming of our President. Unfortunately I happen to be mixed up in it more or less and am at this time kept going from place to place. But I will do my best to get around here, and we will do our best to see that you are properly taken care of. We have our local committee, who will 10 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. be here, and I hope you will feel that you can call upon any of them, or upon our good friend downstairs, Frank Wiggins, Secretary of the . Chamber of Commerce, or myself, for anything you want. I want you to feel that you are welcome to our city, and when you go away I want you to feel that you will be glad to return. Gentlemen, I thank you. A. P. GrirritH, of Azusa, was chosen Vice-President. PRESIDENT COOPER’S ADDRESS. This will be the twenty-eighth Fruit-Growers’ Convention, and the first held under the auspices of the State Horticultural Commission. At the Convention held in December last a desire was expressed by northern fruit-growers for a spring meeting, to be held in Los Angeles. The great prosperity of this region attracts the intelligent fruit-grower from localities less sought after by the incoming settlers. J remember well the condition of Los Angeles and its surroundings in the spring of 1868, when I was a visitor in California. There was no apparent enterprise; and the wonder was to the stranger, that with such a delightful climate, such beautiful surroundings, which a bounti- ful nature had bestowed upon this region, there was not more enterprise and a greater number of people. Many things have led up to its present prosperous condition: The great beauty of the San Gabriel Valley; the salubrious climate; the summer heat modified by the gentle ocean breezes; the proximity to the sea and the surrounding mountains, offering protection from the winter cold; but more than all—its orange groves. Its great attraction for Kastern people has built up its industries and made possible what it is to-day. May this prosperity continue and nothing mar the progress of the great future that is before this region. The one thing needful, however, is the saving or preserving of the flood waters of the winter rains. One great danger is that orange-growing will be overdone. Large enterprises are being fostered in Mexico to grow oranges. Our advent into the West Indies makes possible extensive plantations of oranges in those islands, where soil, climate, water, and cheap labor will offer great competition; and especially cheaper freight rates. In this alone there will be a difference in favor of the West Indies to New York ‘of about 70 cents a box. I have already received inquiries from New York for the work on the citrus by the late B. M. Lelong, published by the State Board, showing that orange-growing is in contemplation. Five years ago this month a convention of the fruit-growers was held in this district—two days in Los Angeles and two days in Riverside. At the Riverside meeting an essay was read sounding an alarm as to the TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 11 further planting of the orange. It pointed out the difficulties in har- vesting at that time, at a profit, the crops then produced, and gave the acreage of a large area then planted, not in bearing. At that same meeting a resolution was passed discouraging further planting. It seems to me, therefore, that the orange-growers should organize so as to have a bureau of information to ascertain the probable output, the probable market ata fair profit to the grower, and the probable increase in foreign places, and from the data thus obtained decide upon the encouragement or discouragement of further planting. While we can organize to prevent competition among ourselves, we can not control importations that might prove our greatest competitors. It is not alone that the newcomer would make an unprofitable invest- ment, but in producing an over-supply would depreciate the value of all the orchards now planted. It is not the purpose of this paper to depreciate values, but on the contrary to save the industry in all sections of the State. It was demonstrated at the Convention held in San Francisco, December last, that the deciduous fruit shipments from the northern districts had caused serious losses to the growers and that further planting of such fruits should be discouraged; and not only this, but that if something could not be done to save from bankruptcy those engaged in the growing of deciduous fruits the alarm should be sounded so as to counteract the efforts made by railroad companies and land- boomers to bring here Eastern people to go into the business of growing deciduous fruits. A resolution to this effect was passed. It is to be hoped, however, that better organization, better railroad facilities, will remedy the disasters of the past season. Californians have the reputa- tion of being hospitable and generous, whith they are certainly entitled to. We have given to the public the results of our efforts, withholding nothing, so that newcomers and new planters could profit by our expe- rience; and while I do not wish my remarks to be considered pessimistic . as to fad fruit situation, I believe in the adage that ‘“‘self-preservation is the first law of nature,” and that we should not follow a course to destroy ourselves. | Labor.—The iabor question, which has so much to do with fruit- growing, was discussed at length at our last Convention. From nearly every section statements were made that the crops could not be gathered in a manner that would make fruit-growing profitable. Sufticient help could not be had. In some cases as high as $2.50 per day was paid for common labor. It was conceded by all that a large increase in the labor population was necessary to save the fruit crops. The Chinese Exclusion Act was very generally discussed pro and con, and a resolu- tion, asking the United States Congress to repeal the Exclusion Act, passed by a vote of over three fifths of the Convention, the sentiment 12 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. being in favor of a restricted immigration law. In order to meet the impending danger of insufficient labor, a committee was appointed to organize a plan to secure laborers from the Northwest and Middle West. H. P. Stabler, of Yuba City, is chairman of this committee. The effort is to be made only in the direction of securing young men brought up in the country and accustomed to farm work. A report of progress will no doubt be made at this Convention. Insect Pests.—I call your attention to my remarks at the Convention held in San Francisco, December, 1901 (Official Report, page 9). I stated that the annual expense of combatting noxious insects by artificial remedies in this State amounted to $300,000, and that there was no decrease from year to year, but rather an increase; and that there had been expended for the investigation and in the search for parasitic insects hy the United States Government $2,200, and by Cali- fornia less than $12,500, total expense less than $15,000, during a period of thirteen years. This expenditure resulted in the saving of at least $15,000,000 to the fruit interests of California, or of over $1,000 for every dollar expended. In an article published in the Sunday “ Record Herald,” of Chicago, March 1lst—author Rene Bache—it is stated that twelve insects cost the United States $350,000,000 a year. The article names the insects and gives the probable loss by each. The author, after making the detailed statement, said: ‘‘ How absurd it seems that this Government, with an army of 65,000 men, 234 warships, and more money in its treasury than any nation ever before possessed, should be helpless in a fight against twelve objectionable bugs.” Can you, as intelligent citizens, comprehend “how absurd ”’ this loss and devastation, when nature has furnished the remedy, practically costless, that would prevent serious loss by the so-called ‘‘twelve objectionable bugs” ? Every civilized government has had agricultural departments and | entomological departments. States have followed in the same line, the object being to economize labor and save the products of the soil. Yet in these thousands of years, or from the time of the first fruit orchard in the garden of Eden, this common-sense idea was not developed. Dr. Hamilton said, in speaking of Sir Isaac Newton’s discovery of the law of gravitation, ‘‘ that it took the world six thousand years to create a thinker.” Therefore, we must not reflect on the past, or on the inability of those having these subjects in charge, for not comprehending the natural law. Now, what I want to impress upon you is the fact that this discovery was made by the California fruit-growers, who were the first to demon- strate this principle—the principle of overcoming the ravages of insect pests by their natural enemies. We have now on our “borders,” I might say, as communication overcomes distances, four pests that can not be reached by sprays or fumigation. The gypsy moth in Massa- TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. ts chusetts, the Morelos orange maggot in Mexico, within two hundred miles of California, the melon maggot in Hawaii, and the fruit-fly in Australia. The citrus-growers of Southern California certainly have not forgot- ten the hopeless struggle they had in trying to eradicate the Icerya purchasi, commonly known as the white scale. One citrus-grower in the San Gabriel Valley told me that from his trees, before the advent of the above pest, he had shipped fifty cars of oranges a year, which sold at a profitable price, and that afterward the product was reduced to one car and to nothing. The fact was that all the orange-growing districts of Southern California were approaching bankruptcy, and were saved by the introduction of the ladybird, Vedalia cardinalis. I beg to call your attention to my presentation to Albert Koebele (Report of 1891, page 290). What was the effect of the Icerya in South Africa? (See Report of 1887-88, page 160.) At Cape Colony orange trees more than two hun- dred years old were cut down; in fact, rosebushes, all plants and shrubs were rooted out. Fire and devastation were resorted to, in order to get rid of this pest; and yet, this insect was found in the forests two hundred miles distant. Afterward, when they learned what we had accomplished in California, an appropriation was made and an agent employed to come to California and take back an ample supply of Vedalia to save that country. They replanted orange groves and are now ship- ping oranges to London. I understand that the fruit-fly is there. Iam sorry to say that they may have to resort to fire and devastation, as in the former case. Last year 25,000 cars of oranges and lemons were shipped from Cali- fornia. If either the gypsy moth, or the Morelos orange maggot, or the fruit-fly gets a foothold in the orange district, you may not ship 25 cars. The fruit-fly is the most alarming pest known. It attacks all kinds of fruits and will live in the berries of nightshade. There is no hope except in securing the natural enemy. For further information I refer you to an interview published in the San Francisco “Chronicle” of January 23d, and to an article in the Sunday “Examiner” of Febru- ary 8th. : At the twenty-sixth Fruit-Growers’ Convention a resolution was passed asking the Legislature to appropriate $10,000 to search for para- sitic and predaceous insects. (See Report, page 13.) At the twenty- seventh Fruit-Growers’ Convention a similar resolution was passed. (See Report, page 311.) This important matter was unanimously urged. It was the earnest prayer of the fruit-growers. The result, a bill, No. 475 in the Assembly, presented by F. A. Duryea, went to the Committee on Fruit and Vines, with recommendation ‘do pass.” It was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, with recommendation “do not 14 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. pass.” There it ended. I had anticipated that this appropriation would be made, and wrote fully to the Governor the object and purpose of such an investigation that he might not veto it. Iam happy to state that I found the Governor in full accord with the importance of this work. Food Adulteratton.—I have called the attention of fruit-growers to this subject at every Convention for many years past. So much has been said that it is almost worn threadbare. Very urgent resolutions have been passed, but, like the parasite question, it has not received the serious consideration of our lawmakers. Bill No. 293, amending Sec- tion 382 of the Penal Code, relating to adulterated foods, drinks, and drugs, was decisive, but no provision made to have violators prosecuted. I had hoped that the last Congress would do something to protect producers and consumers from the villainous substances put on the market under false labels. A most excellent bill passed the House of Representatives and went to the Senate committee. Its passage was recommended by a unanimous vote. I herewith present some of the reasons given by the Senate committee why the bill should become the law of the land: During the last quarter of the century the growth of commercial frauds, of adultera- tions in foods and dairy products, and in drugs and liquors, has become so alarming that both the State and Federal Governments have been called upon for legislation to protect the public health from harmful and deleterious foods and the people from frauds and cheats. To one unacquainted with commercial dishonesty the facts established by the hearings before the Senate and House committees and brought to light by the zealous efforts and labors of the Agricultural Department are appalling. There is scarcely a known com- modity of food which has not been seized upon by unscrupulous manufacturers and dealers and adulterated to an extent sufficient to compete with and undersell the genuine article. Senate Document No.181, Fifty-seventh Congress, prepared at the request of this committee by the Agricultural Department, will show the most common articles of con- sumption in the United States which are adulterated, the adulterants commonly used, the extent thereof as shown by examinations, and other data in reference thereto. Our canned meats are often a guess; the fat of our milks and cheeses may be extracted; our butter deodorized and colored by fats and greases; the cream may be extracted from the milk which makes our cheese and lard substituted, and our lard in turn be com- posed of beef stearin or cotton-seed oil, while the latter comes to our table labeled “pure olive oil.” Colored glucose does enormous duty in supplying the demand for molasses, syrups, and honeys. Probably more glucose is sold in one year for “pure Vermont maple syrup,” than that State produces in ten years. This staple article, pure and wholesome in itself, is the most clever impersonator of all food products. With a little coloring and a little flavoring added it is convertible into honey; with a dash of darker coloring matter and another flavoring material it is instantly converted into any kind of fruit jelly or jam. Copper mines furnish the material for preserving the natural color of canned vegetables, and which enters into many of our preserves. Asparagus is bleached with sulphates. Cocoas and chocolates are manufactured from wheat, corn, rice, potatoes, cocoa husks, and low-grade sugars: Pepper, cinnamons, allspice, cloves, ginger, nutmegs, and mustards, when ground, are manufactured from almost any cereal or flour. Pure vinegar is extremely scarce. Almost any brand of wine is drawn from the same tank and priced in the market according to the value of the wine it is colored to imitate. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. a Equally serious is the demoralizing effect on the commerce of the country. As long as these spurious nostrums are sold at enormous profits, which enrich the unscrupulous and dishonest, the fair, honest goods are forced by this competitor to go begging for meager profits, and in many instances are forced out of the markets and the honest dealer compelled to quit business. Both producer and consumer suffer. The producers of food products—the entire agricultural population—suffer immeasurable hardships and wrongs when their honest, home-made products, their butter, their fruits and jellies, their syrups and sugars, come into competition with counterfeits whose cost is but slight and whose selling price is 95 per cent clear profit. The other half of the community suffer the imposition of this continuous stream of spurious frauds upon their stomachs and purses. And all this is for the benefit of only afew hundred manufacturers, whose sole objection to the proposed legislation is that it will injure their business. In the opinion of your committee, Congress owes to our producers the duty of pro- tection against counterfeit articles of production, and to our consumers a protection against fraudulent and deceptive articles of consumption. Itis the belief of your com- mittee that, whenever commerce in this country is readjusted upon a proper plane, so that every article shall be sold for what it is, no heathful product will be despoiled of a market, but that all products will find more seats consumption, each on its own merits, and each reaping a fair and legitimate profit whenit comes into the field of competition under its own true color and its true name, It gives a fair and honest article a fair and honest opportunity in the competitive field of commerce. It will have the effect of readjusting commerce of food and drug products upon a proper plane, where each product will be sold for just what it actually is, will reap a fair and legitimate profit, and no article will be despoiled of its market by a spurious com- petitor. Believing that counterfeit goods which are traded for honest dollars should be placed under the same ban as counterfeit dollars traded for honest goods, this committee recommends that the bill H. R. 3109 do pass. The latest adulterant to which my attention was called was taken from the ‘‘Cosmos,” Paris, February 14th, written by Paul Combres: “That ordinary sawdust has for several years been a favorite ingredient of cheap flours and cereal foods—that these suspected articles contained no less than 40 per cent of wood sawdust.” That our Legislature in California should continue making laws governing the labels on foods, drugs, and drinks, without any provision for the enforcement, is farcical; and proves conclusively that they have neither the comprehension nor ability to cope with this evil. The vast capital and accumulated fortunes that have been made by this system of fraud are too great perhaps for us to hope for any relief in our struggle, and we may be doomed for the time being to servitude to ill-gotten gains. Distribution of Fruits.—This subject concerns the growers to a greater degree than all others. With proper distribution, we will have success. With improper distribution, we will have failure. I have understood that the Southern California Citrus Fruit Exchange has merged with other shippers and associations and that the merger controls 87 per cent of all the citrus fruits. Under these conditions it 16 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. will not be my purpose to discuss the marketing of the citrus product, but rather to wait and see the result of this experiment. In the examination before the Interstate Commerce Commission, in this City of Los Angeles, in the early part of last month, terminating on the 11th, there is much furnished the orange and lemon growers for reflection. The testimony adduced as to the condition of this industry and the statements made by railroad officials should be carefully com- piled and printed in pamphlet form for distribution among the growers of these fruits and the prospective planters of new orchards. As a ~ result of this examination—to sum up briefly—the losses occur from the following causes: Delayed service by fault of transportation; the shipment of unsound and bad fruit; too great a quantity at times to one market; and extraordinary expenses in fighting insect pests. We pay to transportation companies for fruits and vegetables about $18,000,000 annually. One would suppose that this traffic was of suffi- cient importance to warrant every facility that would insure our prosperity. On the other hand, if we do not so act in our business affairs as to protect ourselves, we can not expect transportation com- panies to keep up or look after our end of the business. We should exhaust our every effort in performing our part, then we will be in a position to command transportation companies to do their part. The fact is, the most sensible view would be that the interests are mutual and that we should work in harmony for the advantage of both parties. The sooner we realize that it is a cold business proposition the better. There is no longer any sentiment or denunciation necessary to be made in the controversy. ~ The Shipment of Unsound and Bad Fruits—I have been urging, for many years, the necessity for an inspection law that would prevent this. Nothing has been done. Flooding Eastern Markets—This has been discussed time and again, but has not decreased the terrible sacrifice and losses to the growers, and can only be remedied by our selling our own fruits through a central organization which can control shipments to every Kastern market. Fighting insect pests should be eliminated by securing the natural enemies to do the fighting. With the foregoing I will close my remarks. I recommend that a committee be appointed to draft resolutions to express our appreciation of the consistent and persistent efforts of our Hon. Senator T. R. Bard in opposing the reciprocity treaty with Cuba. MR. DORE. I move that the Vice-President appoint a committee of three, to consist of Southern California fruit-growers, to whom shall be referred the President’s address. JI make the motion for Southern TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 7 California fruit-growers, because vast interests are involved and it is peculiarly a question that has brought this Convention to Los Angeles. Adopted. PRESIDENT COOPER. It will bein order to nominate a committee to thank our Senator Bard. Mr. John Isaac, clerk of the Horticultural Commission, will act as secretary of this Convention. I will state to the Convention that owing to the change in the law by the last Legislature, many people have been under the impression that the Convention would not be held. Of course you know that the State Board of Horticulture was abolished and a new horticultural bill passed. J qualified as Commissioner of Horticulture on the 27th of April, and was necessarily detained in Sacramento to organize and commence the business there, and I did not have time to incorporate many things in my opening address that I should have desired to do. On my way down I made some notes, and I will now read them if there is no objection. Orange-Growing—Wm. C. Allen, a Philadelphia gentleman,in an article written for the “ Friend,” April 11, 1903, states that he bought large oranges in San Juan, Porto Rico, three for one cent. We have much to fear from competition with the West Indies. Both orange and lemon growing, to be successful, will depend largely on by-products; but while turnips, squashes, and other vegetables containing glucose can be turned into so-called orange marmalade, orange jelly, lemon jelly, etc., it will be impossible to utilize the real product. This will be the case, also, with berry-growing, and with the by-products of the deciduous fruits. You can not rely upon the intelligence of the consumers, for the reason that with the assurance of the dealers and the cheaper price, they will buy the substitute. Olive-Growing.—A recent number of the “Atlanta Constitution” says: “In December we shipped 2,909 tons of cotton-seed oil to Marseilles, France, and it will soon come back to us as pure olive oil.” This ton- nage, allowing 10 per cent off for the weight of the barrels, would fill 4,833,000 bottles, or in round numbers 400,000 cases. The cost of refined cotton-seed oil is ten times cheaper than what it costs to make olive oil; therefore, if the olive-growers can not get relief by a law compelling a true label on food products, they might as well root out their trees. Archbishop Nugent, when visiting my place some two months ago, stated that while on a recent visit in Italy, large olive trees were being cut down and rooted out by the growers, as the product did not reward them, and the land was wanted for other purposes more remunerative. In France proper, 7. e., from the Pyrenees on the west to Toulon, a region once famous for its olives, one finds but few olive trees left— scarcely enough to supply the local demands for cooking purposes. 2—F-GC 18 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. Even this remnant of once extensive plantations exists, on sufferance only, in the midst of wheat fields or of some other equally thirsty crop that drinks all the moisture from the soil before the poor olive tree is in blossom. Inthe eastern part of this region, 7. ¢., east of the River Rhone, things improve. Cultivation is a little more rational, and one finds the circle around the roots of the tree picked up with a grub hoe a little larger. Pruning is a trifle more regular, but somewhat more severe. Nature having endowed the land with less richness, the olive is retained, for the simple reason that nothing else will grow there. Ellwood Rancho.—There are seven different olive orchards, a half to one mile apart; three persimmon orchards, walnut orchards, chestnut orchards, deciduous fruits, orange, lemon, and lime trees. In the flower garden there are about one thousand different kind of plants, and numerous vines and thickets; among these are oleanders and acacia trees, which are particularly attractive to the black and white scales. We have on this ranch the white scale, black scale, soft orange scale, red spider, walnut aphis, green aphis, and other noxious pests. I have not fumigated or sprayed for ten years, except for the codling-moth, and for two years I have not sprayed for the codling-moth. Last year we had 90 per cent of our apples freefrom worms. I am not certain but that a parasite for the codling-moth is at work in the orchard. I will report on this at the Fall Convention. Considering the great number and variety of plants and trees, I have less injury from pests than any other ranch. The oranges and lemonsare clean. The olives are beau- tiful. All this was brought about by the parasites collected in Australia by Albert Koebele. The Woolly Aphis on Apple Trees.—I tried the experiment of fighting the apple aphis with caustic soda, and by neglect on the part of a man whose business it was to apply it, about half the apple trees in the orchard were killed by not sufficiently diluting the caustic soda. MR. BERWICK. What proportion was used—how much to the gallon? | PRESIDENT COOPER. Idonotremember now. It was many years ago. ButI followed the formula. I tried experiments with the common California ladybirds—the brown, the red, and the seven black spotted. I gathered those ladybirds and placed them on the trees in the orchard, and the moment they were liberated they flew away. I failed. I went to the walnut orchard and gathered the leaves where they had deposited their eggs. I found that they deposited their eggs on the under side of © the walnut leaf, near the trunk, where there was the most shade, about twenty-five to thirty eggs in a clump. I took those leaves off and tied the stems at the foot of the apple trees, where the woolly aphis was most numerous, and on the limbs, where a limb had been cut off, TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 19 around the recent cut. I tied those leaves at those places so that the wind could not blow them away. The eggs hatched into the larve of the ladybirds and they did the work; the larve did the work, and we never had any trouble with the woolly aphis afterward. - There has nothing yet been discovered that we could depend on for the purple scale. The ladybird that was imported from Australia and liberated in Los Angeles County was not a success, for the reason that in Hawaii, where it was successful, there were always young and tender and soft scales upon the trees upon which the larve of this ladybird could work. It was not the case in Southern California. They were killed out in the winter. So something else will have to be secured for the purple scale. We have now liberated in various parts of the State parasites for all the pests that are seriously dangerous except the codling-moth and the purple scale. George Compere is now on a voyage around the world to look for the parasite of thefruit-fly. He is a member of the Agricuitural Depart- ment of Western Australia, and is traveling for the West Australian government. Before his departure he visited me and I planned a voyage that he should make and how he should make it, expecting to get an appropriation from the Legislature. But as that appropriation failed, we will have to resort to some other plan to get the money. However, we suggested to the Governor a plan, and he has assented, and we may be able to get a sufficient amount of money so that I can have the direction of George Compere on this vovage. The West Australian goy- ernment will pay half of the expense and California the other half, and they will be very glad, indeed, to co-operate with us; and it is my opinion that they will also be willing for Mr. Compere to be directed by the fruit-growers of California in his travels. And the hope is that we will secure, or gain the knowledge where we can secure, the parasite for the fruit-fly, for the Morelos orange maggot, and for the gypsy moth which has denuded the forests around Boston. MR. ALLEN. Mr. President, you spoke some time back about the competition to be met with in the West Indies in the shippers’ business. You were formerly a resident of the West Indies for some years ? PRESIDENT COOPER. I lived in the West Indies for ten years. MR. ALLEN. I would like to ask you whether, in your opinion, lemon culture will be equally successful with orange culture in the West Indies; that is, are the natural conditions such as to favor lemon culture there ? PRESIDENT COOPER. No, I doubt whether they will ever go into lemon-growing. ‘They have their lemons, of course, and use them more or less. But they depend largely, for all their culinary purposes, on the sour orange; that is to say, they clean all the dishes and all the pots and everything with sour oranges. They don’t use soap. So far 20 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. as lemon-growing is concerned, it will be a matter of many years in the future. MR. ALLEN. Can they grow satisfactory lemons there? Will the fruit develop the proper acidity ? PRESIDENT COOPER. Yes, I think they can grow lemons there just as well as we in California. It may, however, be too warm. Because, according to my knowledge, the lemons were grown high up in the mountains. Probably experience taught them that the fruit wouldn’t grow on plains. MR. ALLEN. Isn’t it a fact that citrus fruits grown in a truly tropi- — cal country do not develop the same amount of acidity as those grown farther north, as in the northern part of Florida and California? And, if that be true, might not it follow that lemons would not grow sgatis- factorily in the tropics ? PRESIDENT COOPER. I should be inclined to that opinion, with- out any positive knowledge. ; VICE-PRESIDENT GRIFFITH. I appoint as a committee on the President’s address: Thomas Stone, of Pasadena; C. R. Paine, of Red- lands; and C. C. Teague, of Santa Paula. MR. GOODWIN. If there is nothing before the Convention, it seems to me there is one matter the Fruit-Growers’ Convention, assembled here to-day, should take action on. And, with that in view, I would move you that this Fruit-Growers’ Convention do congratulate Governor Pardee upon his selection of Frank Wiggins and J. A. Filcher as the commission from the State of California to the St. Louis Exposition, and that we do most heartily indorse the appointments and pledge our- selves to aid them in every possible way. And further, that the secre- tary of this Convention be instructed to so notify Governor Pardee. Motion adopted. MR. DORE. I move that a committee be appointed to tender to Senator Bard our thanks for his work in behalf of the California fruit-growers. Adopted. PRESIDENT COOPER. I will name that committee at the after- noon session. Also, I will name a committee on resolutions at the opening of this afternoon’s session. MR. BERWICK. Mr. Chairman, as the thought occurs to me, we are going to have an unusual opportunity during this Convention or after this Convention to do some good for ourselves. Our President will be here in this city. Heis here partly to know what are the wishes of each locality. It strikes me that a committee should be formed to sum up our deliberations and our wishes as expressed in this Convention, and convey it to President Roosevelt during his visit here. It would be very appropriate that a committee of Southern California fruit-growers TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 21 should wait upon him and state their wishes, and so on, in such matters as the Convention desires. I move that a committee be appointed for that purpose. PRESIDENT COOPER. I want you to re-form your language a little. It is not Southern California fruit-growers; it is the State of California. MR. BERWICK., Well, I would say a convention of California fruit-growers assembled in Southern California for the express purpose of learning Southern California’s wants and wishes. PRESIDENT COOPER. That is better. MR. KOETHEN. If that is the motion, I will second it. PRESIDENT COOPER. Mr. Berwick didn’t name the number. MR. BERWICK. I leave it with the Chair. It ought to be an imposing number. I should say ten or eleven. MR. DORE. I suggest, as an amendment, that the President of this Convention shall be chairman of the committee. MR. BERWICK. I accept the amendment. Motion, as amended, adopted. MR. BERWICK. Mr. Chairman, I move that if possible, the State Commissioner of Horticulture be requested to have continued by the Commercial Museum at San Francisco the cablegrams and other advices by mail from the various consuls abroad; that the Commercial Museum be requested to receive them, to interpret them, and to send them out to the fruit-growers as rapidly as possible. PRESIDENT COOPER. Well, why wouldn’t it be better to attend to that matter independently, entirely free from the Commercial Museum or any other organization; to have the Horticultural Commis- sioner get that news direct to the Horticultural Commission? MR. DORE. I think, Mr. President, although I don’t claim to be an expert on this line, that it would be much better if we had our own communications, and could get them direct and more speedily and with- out sifting or changing or in any manner diluting. MR. BERWICK. I am willing to amend my resolution in accord- ance with Mr. Dore’s wishes, although I believe it has not been seconded so far. The motion was seconded. | PRESIDENT COOPER. The motion as amended is that this matter be taken up by the Horticultural Commission, independent of any other organization, for the benefit of the fruit-growers of the State of Cali- fornia. MR. DORE. I suppose it will be more expensive? PRESIDENT COOPER. It will cost more. MR. ROWLEY. I know personally that the subscribers of the Com- mercial Museum at San Francisco don’t care to have that information given broadcast through the newspapers. They claim that they sub- 22 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. scribe and pay for it, and if there is any value in that information they are entitled to it, and not the public. So that, as you see, there is a certain amount of friction, and always will be. PRESIDENT COOPER. The understanding, thene ye is that this motion calls for independent news. Motion adopted. MR. BERWICK. Mr. President, is there anything to prevent the California Washington Navels being grown in the West Indies? PRESIDENT COOPER. No, there is nothing to prevent it. The Navel orange has been grown with very great success in Pernambuco; and Rio Janeiro, in Brazil. Probably the finest oranges ever grown anywhere in the world are now growing in Pernambuco. They are very thin skinned. And the Navel oranges, I suppose that is where they came from originally to California. The climate of the West Indies is very much like that of Pernambuco, and there is no reason why the best oranges can not be grown on any of those islands. MR. KOETHEN. Then upon what do you base your judgment that they can not plant orange groves in the West Indies and get them into bearing in four or five years, as they do here? PRESIDENT COOPER. You understand that that country is not prepared for growing oranges. It would take two or three years before the land could be subdued and before the crops could be changed to commence on these trees. And they can not be gotten in that country. The stock would have to come from some other place, and it can not be - done under four years; nor I doubt in eight years. MR. STONE. Is it not the fact that the excessive moisture of some of those islands, the West Indies Islands, militates against the Navel orange, which requires, as I understand it, a dry atmosphere? PRESIDENT COOPER. As to that I could not answer. I don’t know. MR. ALLEN. Mr. President, this question of the Jamaica orange I think has been gone through with experimentally. In the first place, its status in this country is very well understood. It has been imported here in large quantities for a great many years, and it has not competed with the California Navel orange in the New York market, for instance, or the other Hastern markets. I read recently an interesting article in the “New York Fruitman’s Guide,” which stated that this would be the last year of imports of Jamaica oranges on a commercial scale. It is stated that since the time of the Florida frost large orchards were planted on a commercial scale in Jamaica, and that those orchards have been failures and they are being abandoned and the land which had been put into orchards is now being put into other crops, such as sugar and bananas. The experience of two gentlemen, brothers, of Riverside, is an illustration of this fact. They thought Jamaica was going to be a TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. Uy point of importance, and having the California experience they went to Jamaica to exploit the business and introduce California methods; and after two or three seasons they gave it up in disgust and came back. I believe there is nothing to fear from Jamaica. | MR. BERWICK. Do you know the reason of the failure ? MR. ALLEN. They say that the cultivated orchards do not do as well as the old natural orchards—don’t produce as good fruit. MR. DORE. How about budding the old orchards ? MR. ALLEN. I don’t know in detail just how the thing has been conducted. But I do know, or at least I judge from the articles I have read, that it has been tried pretty thoroughly in Jamaica, and by people who had had experience in other localities, and that they are giving it up in disgust as a failure. And this is said to be the last year of any imports into this country in any considerable quantity. PROFESSOR PAINE. I know of an orange-grower in Redlands who was concerned about this, and who mdde a special visit to Porto Rico this past season in order to learn the orange conditions there; and, without going into details, I learned from him that he was perfectly content to go on with his orange business in Redlands without fear of great competition. — MR. DORE. How much can you produce your oranges for, and what can you get for them ?. Those are the fundamental questions that attract the attention of the practical man who undertakes to find out whether it is profitable, whether it is a permanent assurance of success in the ownership and cultivation, with his own toil and that of his family, of a limited area in this garden of the world. MR. GRIFFITH. The question is asked, ‘“ What does it cost to raise oranges ?’’? The testimony before the Interstate Commerce Com- mission was that it cost anywhere from 85 cents to $1 a box, according to different persons’ estimates, plus the freight, to raise, pack, and seil a box of oranges. MR. HARTRANFT. How much ? MR. GRIFFITH. It costs anywhere from 85 cents to $1 a box and the freight, to raise, pick, haul, pack, and freight, and sell a box of oranges. In other words, if a box of oranges sold at destination for $1.80, it brings 90 cents for the railroad company and 90 cents for the grower. MR. STONE. This gentleman has propounded a very vital question, which Mr. Griffith has only partly answered. I doubt very much if there is a man in this room who can tell us what it costs him to raise a box of oranges. We ought to know that, and it seems to me that we are pretty bad business men if we don’t know it. My orchard is young. But when it comes into bearing I shall vote myself as pretty much of a dullard if I don’t know what it costs me to raise a box of oranges. 24 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. MR. GRIFFITH. There are two ranchers at Azusa who have figures, for I think five years, on the actual cost of production, including all of the cost of picking, hauling, packing, and selling, including interest at six per cent on the value of $1,000 per acre on full bearing trees, and the cost of water—the output of money and the income of money bal- anced one as against the other. These are the Slauson ranch and the Spaulding & Powell ranch. They keep books. I saw the figures myself, but didn’t examine them. We discussed what it cost before they went on the witness stand. The result is the average cost. You will under- stand that one year it costs more than another. Taking the average for five years, Mr. Slauson figured 8735 cents, Mr. Powell 90 cents, and others on the witness stand figured $1. One man was asked to guess, and he guessed $1.25. That included everything upon a ranch of several hundred acres. At this time a recess was taken until 2 o’clock this afternoon. AFTERNOON SESSION—FIRST DAY. Tuespay, May 5, 1908. The Convention was called to order at 2 o’clock. President Cooper announced the following committees: On Resolutions of Thanks to the Honorable Senator T. Rk. Bard for his persistent efforts in opposing the reciprocity treaty with Cuba—A. P. Griffith, Azusa; C. R. Paine, Redlands; B. N. Rowley, San Francisco. On Resolutions—John §. Dore, Fresno; Edward Berwick, Pacific Grove; — Mr. Stone, Los Angeles. On Memorial to President Roosevelt—Ellwood Cooper, chairman; H. C. Allen, Pasadena; Professor A. J. Cook, Claremont; L. M. Holt, Los Angeles; B. N. Rowley, San Francisco; E. M. Ehrhorn, Mountain View; Mr. Hutchinson, Fresno; A. D. Bishop, Orange; C. R. Paine, Redlands; Edward Berwick, Pacific Grove; J. H. Reed, Riverside. IRRIGATION AND CULTIVATION. By JOHN HOFMAN, or CucAMONGA. The topic assigned me is one which, in its broadest sense, would require a paper so long that but little time would be left for other matters. This, however, being a fruit-growers’ convention, I presume the handling of soil here discussed will relate to the orchard, but even then we are confronted by a task of considerable magnitude, if every kind of soil is considered fully. Let us, then, in order to condense as TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 25 much as is practicable, divide our soil into three kinds, and simply call them heavy (containing much clay), loamy or light, sandy or gravelly. Let us also discuss this from a practical rather than a theoretical standpoint. ~ In thinking of irrigation and cultivation otr minds naturally con- sider the running of water and the stirring of the soil which follows; but I think the subject is much broader than that, and in reality relates to the work, or non-work, if I may use the term, which is given the land throughout the entire year. Here in Southern California our season really begins with the fall rains. Let us commence our reason- ing at the same time and begin then to prepare for the following summer. . The three kinds of soil previously spoken of will require different treatment, but all in a general way may be handled alike at this season, if we make an exception to extremely heavy soil, which many fihiow each way with heavy plow and subsoiler, which enables the land to take in the winter rains more readily. The practice of green-manuring is surely a good one, for in this way Wwe in a measure imitate nature, and the nearer we come to copying after her the more substantial will be our work. The mere fact of turn- ing under a wealth of green is itself of great value, and when we add to this the fertilizing benefits derived from any of the nitrogenous plants the benefits are multiplied many times. The skeptic says as much is drawn from the soil as is replaced. I do not believe it, and point to the old fields grown up to grass and weeds for years—this land is not deteriorating. Aside from the fertilizing which the soil receives by plowing-under a crop of peas, the humus added is of great value in assisting the soil to remain loose, and this is one of the ends at which the thoughtful worker aims, for such land will take in water more readily and retain it longer than will a hard, compact soil. A good way to secure a rank growth of peas is to plow early in the fall, break up the crust which has formed during the summer—roots can now be cut with comparative safety—sow peas broadcast or drill, harrow or cultivate the ground, draw furrows to allow of winter irriga- tion if necessary, and unless the season is unusually wet, irrigate often after the peas are up sufficiently to shade the ground. Plow-under as soon as the pods are well formed. This can be done by using a sharp plow, heavy chain, coulter, and patience—plenty of the latter should be taken, and then the chances are even that the stock will be fairly well exhausted by the end of the first day. A disk harrow is said to be an advantage, if run over the land before plowing. There are a number of native plants which are very valuable. All of our wild clovers and lupins are good, and it has often seemed strange to me that lupin seed is not on the market. The plant possesses some 26 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. advantages over even the pea, being among other things a deep rooter, and more easily plowed under. We have now carried our orchard to say the month of March; the plowing is completed. Many use a harrow immediately after, but the custom is not to be recommended, as it tends to pack the ground, and should later rains come the water will be taken in better if the ground be rough. By smoothing a little, moisture is saved; but the evapora- tion is light at this season, so this may not be considered of any moment. Should the land break up very lumpy, however, it may be advisable to use a harrow. : After the peas are well rotted, cultivation will of course be necessary, and it is best to do this very lightly at first, in order not to bring the vines to the surface. There are two generally accepted methods of irrigation: the basining and the furrow system. Eachis wellknown. The basining is, I believe, the method earliest adopted; and this, let us say, consists of irrigation by flooding, whether in basins or by allowing the water to spread over the entire surface. The basining proper can be done on any land; but where the water is allowed to flow gently over the surface the land must be level, or nearly so. There are several serious objections to either form and no decided advantage. First, the entire surface being soaked, the evaporation is many times what it would be were furrows used. Virtually all the water required to wet the top six or seven inches, depending on depth of cultivation following, is lost, and worse than lost, for in this moist earth capillary tubes will be much easier made than in a covering of dry earth. Second, the labor in preparing for and in cultivation after, is much increased, as well as the actual running of the water. One advantage which the advocates of this system claim, that of a more equal distribution of the water, is worth considering, although in the furrow system a careful irrigator will so arrange his streams: as to give a fair, if not actually an equal distribution of the water to all the trees. The second way spoken of is that by furrows, and here again we find many methods employed, from the shallow affair made scarcely below the surface, to the deep trench through which a subsoiler has been run to a depth of several feet. It is obvious to all that one of the main objects of the irrigator is to get the water down deep. It seems useless to argue this, or state the reasons, as every one is no doubt familiar with the subject. The deeper the furrow, the less will the water show on the surface after anirrigation. Six or eight shallow furrows drawn between two rows of trees amount to little better than a basining, except in the cost of preparation. But three, two, or even one deep furrow, made with a heavy, sharp plow, and so deep that the crust which forms just below the line of cultivation is broken, will allow the water to sink in TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. Dg rapidly, and virtually none will be lost by evaporation. The heavier the soil the less readily will the water be taken in, but the more it will spread laterally, consequently fewer streams are necessary, but the water should be run a longer time. A subsoil furrow will allow the water to sink very rapidly, and a large stream is accordingly necessary. On light soils a greater number of streams should be run, if only for a few hours, for on land of this nature the moisture will sink quickly and spread but little. On soil of this kind, it is well to wet the space between the trees by checking, “ zigzaging,” or in some other way. This method has of late become quite popular with many, but to my mind it can be overdone, for the cutting of roots to such a depth, even when the furrow is made some distance from the tree, does not seem a natural proceeding. Each orchardist must, or should, study his subsoil carefully, and this can best be done with pick and shovel propelled by the “hired man,” if such a luxury is possessed. Many of us deliberately waste water by running a longer time than is necessary on the light soil. A rough study of a piece of my ground has caused me to alter my methods materially. I ascertained that on the loamy soil, with some rock under- neath, water which had been run thirty-six hours had penetrated more than 7 feet, and at a depth of 5 feet had spread 44 feet on each side. All the water was in the ground. Two streams, then, in space between rows 20 feet apart, would wet all the land. How much better this way than the soaking of the surface for a few hours. The plan, adopted by many, cf flushing through thestreams, and then allowing the bottom of the furrows to become dry and crusted over before regulating, should be condemned, for by so doing one simply , counteracts all the effects of the deep furrow. The water will spread on the surface without penetrating. When the work is finished the land appears to be plentifully irrigated, but use a shovel and see how many roots are really treated to a wetting. I have seen trees showing signs of drought while the soil a few inches below the surface was moist; the roots down deep were dry, and those on the surface could not draw enough moisture to satisfy the tree. On lighter soil, the rows should be short. If too long, the trees at the upper end receive a far greater amount of water than is their due. Streams 150 feet long will answer very well. On slightly heavier soil they may be twice that length. Asa rule, the longer the stream the more unevenly will the water be distributed. A simple and effective way to give the trees at the lower end of the place their share, is to cross- furrow say one third the way up, and after the streams have been fairly well regulated take up what would be wasted by cutting in between the trees. This is an easier and better way than to depend on regulating entirely at the head ditch. 28 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. There is yet another system of irrigation which has been tried by some, occasionally with success, but oftener with failure. I allude to what is called subirrigation, although I have tried to impress on your minds that all trees should be subirrigated. The system invented by Mr. F. M. Chapman, of Covina, is, so far as I know, as successful as any in operation, and certainly the portion of the orchard in which this is installed compares most favorably with any I have seen. Mr. Chapman has given these trees no irrigation in four years except by this underground system. He is confident that 20 per cent of the water is saved, and virtually all of the labor of preparation and cultivation, so irksome when continued throughout a long dry season. Briefly described, the system consists of a main from which run laterals to the tops of small reservoirs built in the ground, in the center of squares made by four‘trees. The small pipes are made of cement and in avery ingenious way. A trench having been dug and leveled, two pieces of 2 by 6 are laid edgeways in the bottom about 5 inches apart. These serve as frames. A floor of cement is laid, and on this is placed a 2- inch iron pipe to serve as core. Around this is packed cement, which soon hardens. The core is then drawn out, leaving a rectangular pipe of cement with 2-inch opening. The reservoirs mentioned are also built in the ground, being, when finished, circular basins with cement sides and earth bottom. The pipes and reservoirs are buried in the ground deep enough to be safe from plow point and cultivator teeth. When in operation the reservoir at the upper end of the row is filled, then the second, and so on down to the last; when this is full all are. The water is then regulated at the main so that none wastes from the bottom. Mr. Chapman’s trees are 24 feet apart, and he says that with water standing in basins less than twenty-four hours the moisture will be drawn over to the tree and will rise to the level of the water in the reservoir. The cost is about $125 per acre. There are other and cheaper, and consequently less permanent, systems. An inverted V flume, laid under a berry patch, is of great convenience, and is said to work well—barring gophers. What may be termed a combination of the furrow and the subirrigation systems is made by running a single furrow near a row of trees, and connecting this by shovel with a hole dug, say 2 feet deep, between the trees, allow- ing the water to pass down the furrow and keeping the holes filled the necessary time. This has been tried by a number of our orchardists, but the extra cost of digging the holes discouraged the continuance of the practice. So much for irrigation. The cultivation to follow is of almost equal importance. It should be done reasonably deep, but I do not believe it necessary or advisable to run the cultivator in 8 inches, as many claim. Land in which there are no roots will retain moisture throughout an TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 29 entire summer season, if kept free from weeds and cultivated perfectly 4 inches deep. Cultivation should be done as soon after irrigation as possible, and here is another advantage the deep-furrow plan has over any other: it allows the work to be done on some land within a few hours after turning off the water. Many orchardists immediately drag a smoother or light harrow over the furrows. The dry dirt falling in, closes the pores and saves evaporation until the regular cultivation can be done. This cultivation should be followed by a second in a few days, but the latter need not be more than 4 inches deep, if done with a very fine-tooth cultivator. A heavy chain, the ends of which are fastened to the outside shanks of the cultivator, acts nicely asa smoother, and adds little to the draught. This in a rough way describes the necessary work on the land. It should be repeated at regular intervals until relieved by sufficient rain to warrant a discontinuance of artificial irrigation, when the year’s work will again be commenced. HANDLING THE SOIL. By J. H. REED, or RIVERSIDE. At the recent examination before the Interstate Commerce Com- mission in this city, the discussion concerning the cost of producing citrus fruits elicited much interest and no little solicitude. It certainly emphasized most clearly the need of better methods and greater economy in transporting and marketing our product. But however much we may hope from the efforts for fairer costs and improved service in carriage, and from the recent new organization for marketing, we must yet face the fact that if our present output, with the enormous increase already in sight in the near future, is to be taken at all, it must be at low prices. So that our final recourse for fair profits in the future must yet be sought from other sources. After many years of practical experience in the orchard, and some breadth of observation outside, I am thoroughly convinced that there is a sufficient margin yet to be gained by economy in production and better handling to easily place and retain California fruit-growing on a basis of fair profit, even with the constantly increasing output. But this will depend on our using the best known orchard methods. Hence the excuse for discuss- ing these homely every-day subjects, one of which has been assigned to me for this occasion. Lest some may yet think these small matters unworthy the consideration of such a Convention, I want to add, to illustrate: We in Riverside are proud of our achievements in orange- growing, and think we are as nearly “up-to-date” as any of our neighbors. Yet in our valley you will find a considerable percentage 30 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. of growers using tools and methods of twenty years ago. It can be easily shown that the lack of wise use of well-known improved meth- ods, entirely practical to all, costs our community not less than a quar- ter of a million dollars annually—an item worth considering, especially as the same relative condition probably exists in- other districts. No factor perhaps has helped more to gain the American manufac- turer his precedence over the rest of the world than his quickness in recognizing and adopting new machinery and new methods which would do his work better and faster. Too much like the European mechanic, we horticulturists, as a rule, are inclined to hold on to our old methods because we are accustomed to them, and to our antiquated implements because we have them. Handling the soil with reference to irrigation and cultivation, is the subject assigned me, but with your permission I would like to dwell somewhat on a feature of soil handling not immediately affecting irri- gation or cultivation as ordinarily considered, but which I think you will agree is quite pertinent to the matter in hand. The handling of, the shallow clay and other soils often overlying substrata, not only void of plant food, but detrimental to plant growth, found so generally in the far Eastern States, requiring shallow tillage, is doubtless to a considerable degree responsible for the shallow handling so generally practiced on the deeper soils of the Middle West and Pacific Coast States. Farmers too frequently, on removing from one locality to another, where local characteristics are materially different, persist in using the methods to which they have been accustomed. The mistake of shallow tillage on our deep soils haslong been recognized. For many years, perhaps no subject has been more frequently discussed at our horticultural clubs, farmers’ institutes, and in the horticultural press than that of deep cultivation. Butin spite of the agitation, and the marked advantage where adopted, it has made but slow progress. Plow- ing orange orchards in our valley commenced eight or nine years ago. Its practice has increased year by year, but not until the present season did it become practically universal. Deep cultivation has made and is yet making similarly slow progress. But it would be difficult to esti- mate the benefits that have already come to our orchards from these two improved practices. Another radical improvement in handling soils is beginning to attract attention in cereal and especially in fruit farming; that is, the stirring of the subsoil much deeper than is now generally practiced, even with our most approved methods. The value of this especially deep tillage has long been recognized and acted upon in some of the Old World countries. Traveling abroad several years ago, I found myself greatly interested in the preparation of seed-beds for common cereals in the richer agricultural districts of Italy. I knew, of course, of their raising TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. ol several cultivated crops a year on the same fields, but I had not con- ceived of the immense yields per crop, and could only account for them by the extra deep tillage. I saw gangs of men in line with long, narrow-bladed spades (plows being seldom used), turning the goil to more than twice the depth that even our better farmers plow for similar Crops. Tilling the soil for cereals is outside of my subject, but you will allow me to say, in passing, that I can not believe that the best handling of the soil in grain farming, in Southern California at least, has yet been found, or if found, is generally practiced. I was not then especially interested in fruit-growing, but two years ago my son made special study of citrus fruit culture in the Mediterranean countries. He found not only this same deep manipulation of the surface soil by hand, but where they were preparing to set out new orchards he saw them digging over the entire space to a depth of 2 or 3 feet. He found in their well-cared- for groves not only the thickly-set citrus trees, but frequently the entire space between occupied by other crops—sometimes vegetables, sometimes grapes and other small fruits. Hven with heavy fertilizing, this enor- mous amount of growth of tree, fruit, and vegetable could not be main- tained except for the extra depth of the root bed. This specially deep soil handling is practiced to some extent in other Kastern countries. In some parts of France a long, peculiarly con- structed double plow, cutting a furrow from 25 to 30 inches deep, is used in preparing the soil for vineyards. The municipal gardens near Paris, fertilized by the city sewage, are annually plowed by the same implement, and enormous crops are raised. I am told that equally deep plowing is done in parts of England. In our own country this specially deep tillage has been tested more extensively in the semi-arid regions of the Middle West States. It is now some eight or nine years since, during an exceptionally dry season, a Mr. Campbell, who had been quietly carrying on farm experiments for several years in South Dakota, astonished his neighbors by produc- ing an average of 140 bushels of potatoes to the acre, while their crops were nearly or quite failures. His land had been plowed very much deeper than usual; the bottoms of the furrows being firmed by an implement for the purpose, to conserve moisture, and the surface kept fine. The results of Mr. Campbell’s experiments attracted the atten- tion of railroad men, and since then he has had in charge experiment farms, mostly in the interests of railroads, in South Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas, with results that have attracted wide attention in this country and abroad. Of course other devices are used to help secure these results, but without the exceptionally deep plowing none of them would avail. Not only has this new method of farming made grain- raising profitable on those dry lands, but it has made fruit and timber 32 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. growing possible, and this is the point especially pertinent to this dis- cussion. With little if any rain after the middle of June, by the deep plowing and fine surface mulching, trees are kept in vigorous growth until October without irrigation. But in spite of its marked success this new system has been and probably will be of slow growth, for reasons easily appreciated. One reason, previously mentioned, is that the average agriculturist there as here is slow in adopting new methods, especially if somewhat radical. But the principal explanation is that while the processes are simple, the work must be done intelligently and at the right time, and this requires an extra expenditure of time and care, and special tools, not readily afforded. But in spite of this slow growth the new system of soil handling has helped bring about a wonderful change in that great semi-arid region. During the first half of the 90’s, a quarter of a million of people abandoned that section because the ordinary crops and the old methods of handling the soil proved failures. During the last five years the influx to these same lands has been even greater than was the outgo. More claims were entered in that dry region last year than in any previous year of its history, and lands have increased in value an average of 100 per cent within the five years. Hventually this improved system of handling soil is to be at least an equal factor with the dis- covery of new crops adapted to the dry climate, in peopling and making productive a strip of varied width, stretching a thousand miles from North Dakota to Texas, capable of sustaining many millions of people. To-day the whole nation celebrates the Louisiana purchase of one hundred years ago. Less than a hundred years from now, populous States then occupying nearly half of that great purchase, which during all the century have been considered practically uninhabitable, may celebrate the achievements of modern agriculture. I have dwelt upon this because the conditions seem not unlike our own, and I believe this new system of agriculture may do as much for us in Southern California as it is doing in those semi-arid regions. The experiments now being made with the powerful English steam plow in the beet fields at Oxnard are in this direction, and will be watched with much interest. If a root bed twice the ordinary depth not only increases the product, but also doubles the length of time the soil can profitably be used for that exacting vegetable, it is reasonable to expect that a bed of extra depth will prove of vastly more advantage to the deeper rooting fruit tree. And this is not a matter of mere opinion. Others as well as myself have put the theory to practical test sufficiently to be convinced beyond a doubt of its value. For five consecutive years, excepting one, I have planted orange trees on ground plowed from 12 to 16 inches deep, actual, in holes 2 feet deep by 24 feet in diameter. Modern after-treatment was TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 38 followed, but compared with orchards planted the old way (that is, in holes barely large enough to take the ball conveniently, dug in the unmoved soil, save a few inches of plowed surface, even with best after- treatment), the results have been markedly different. -To illustrate: From one of these orchards planted five years ago this spring, the second and third seasons after planting we took enough fruit to pay all the expenses of the first three years, including planting. Last year, before the trees had been planted full four years, the receipts from the five acres were sufficient to net a good income on a valuation of $1,000 per acre. This year the crop will pay over 10 per cent on a valuation of $2,000 per acre (a price for which the orchard could have been readily sold with the crop), after all expenses are paid. I take this instance because the orchard is the oldest of my own planted with special reference to previous preparation of the ground. But later plantings show similar results, and a large planting, now two years old, by a neighbor who made even more thorough preparations for the root bed, promises to quite outstrip my own experience. I do not claim that these results are wholly due to deep preparation of the soil before plant- ing, but insist that this is what made deep after-culture and other modern treatment able to produce them. My theory, which. has grown out of these and other experiments, sufficient, as I think, in time and extent to generalize from, is that the most important advance to be made in California horticulture during the next decade, after bringing into more general and thorough use modern deep surface cultivation, is the preparation for orchard plant- ing by making a root bed two or three times as deep as is now the usual custom. And I am inclined to think that this applies to decidu- ous fruits even more than to citrus. I expect yet to see orchards set in ground that has been thoroughly stirred in some way to a depth of from 20 to 30 inches at least. Time will not permit discussing the philosophy of this deep handling of soils; but the more extensive aération, securing deeper rooting, util- izing a larger portion of native fertility, and greater storage capacity and conservation of moisture, I think will readily occur to you as most important gains for the new system. As to handling the soil as more directly connected with irrigation and cultivation, the features now generally adopted by our most successful orchardists are so familiar that I will call your attention to but two or three practices which seem to me most important. The first in impor- tance connected with irrigation, in my estimation, is the placing of the irrigating water at once as far from the surface and as near the root bed as possible, by furrows as deep as can be made without disturbing lead- ing roots. Though the marked benefit from this deep furrowing has been demonstrated for several years, the practice has made but slow 3-—F-GC 34 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. headway among average orchardists. You will yet see more furrows 3 and 4 inches deep than from 6 to 8 inches deep, as they should be. To secure really deep furrowing requires, first, a full appreciation of its importance; next, a suitable tool and persistence in its use. It is difficult to make uniform 6 to 8 inch furrows with a three-shovel furrower, especially if the ground has not been kept thoroughly and deeply cultivated. It is usually better to take the additional time and use a two-shovel furrower, and it should be of the best form and in good condition. Too much stress can not be put on the importance of securing deep furrows at any cost. Where deep-furrowing implements have been used continuously for a considerable time with suitable application of water, followed by proper cultivation, the so-called irrigation hardpan, so much discussed, has disappeared and there is no longer excuse for that sharp-cutting subsoil implement that has done so much mischief. Another modern process coming into quite general use, in our valley at least, is covering the irrigating furrows soon after the water is taken off and before the ground is fit for cultivation. With deep furrows this is easily done with any implement that will pull in the shoulders of the furrows, without firming the moist ground. An upright plank with a wide strip of strap iron in front, at bottom, projecting a little below the wood, with sharp steel spikes thickly set in the wood, extending a couple of inches below the iron, drawn lengthwise of the furrows, serves to good purpose. It covers the bottoms of the furrows with fine earth (it is not necessary to fill the furrows), and the steel teeth fines the surface between the furrows enough to stop evaporation, which other- wise goes on rapidly before the ground is fit to cultivate. I dwell upon this simple device because, after several years’ use, I deem it really the most important process, next to deep furrowing, connected with irrigation. In our own experience we consider that it makes a saving of from 15 to 20 per cent of the water got into the ground, over the old way of allowing the excessive evaporation to go on until the soil is fit to cultivate. A heavy implement that will firm the ground should not be used. I should have stated before that the methods of handling the soil, here discussed, apply especially to clay, granite,and other of the heavier soils. In light sandy or gravelly soils, handling and irrigating are quite different problems, which I can not now discuss. After all that has been said and written, and especially after the marked results that more than bear out all that its advocates claim, I am quite ashamed to speak of deep, general cultivation between irriga- tions. Besides, to argue it before such an audience as this is like the preacher, on ‘a rainy Sunday morning, scolding the absentees over the heads of the faithful few present. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 35 But the immense loss constantly occasioned by the lack of it, urges its being preached in season and out of season. I can not enforce the importance of this modern practice better than by an object lesson we now have at Riverside. Our citrus orchards for the most part are small and generally managed by the owners. There is one large excep- tion. A dozen years ago a trust company developed several thousand acres. A considerable portion of the now bearing orchards on this tract is yet owned and managed by the company. The ordinary methods of cultivation were followed until something over a year ago, when Mr. James Mills, an enterprising orchardist of long experience, was induced to take charge of this department, with large discretionary power. His first and most radical change was to deep tillage. Instead of cultivating 3 or 4 inches deep as had been done, he insisted on a depth of from 6 to S8inches. The result on that great stretch of orchard is simply wonderful. Of course this marked improvement can not all go to the credit of deep cultivation. It was made possible by deep winter plowing and other important improvements introduced. But without the specially deep, regular, thorough cultivation, all else could not have brought about the radical change now seen in the orchards. It is true that Mr. Mills and other managers of large holdings have the advantage over us, who work only our own small orchards. They can command the tools best adapted to the work, and power to handle them. Mr. Mills is now using a simple implement, consisting of a heavy 6 by 6 wooden beam 8 feet long, to which is attached fifteen heavy shanks with narrow shovels, properly hung behind a simple running gear. This is put down from 6 to 8 inches, making a heavy draught for four large horses. It is not so easy to accomplish the same kind of work with our lighter teams and lighter implements, but it can be done. It costs more, very much more, than the old way, but if the additional cost of from $5 to $10 per acre secures an additional income of from $25 to $50, then the additional expense is true economy. There is one other modern practice which I think is not fully appre- ciated: the fining of the surface, especially of our heavier soils, and keeping it constantly loose by frequent stirring. This is our best ‘means, not only of holding the moisture in the root bed, but also of preventing the hardening of the layer immediately above the roots. A simple practice which has come into quite general use in our valley, is to attach a bar of iron, a heavy chain, or a piece of hardwood behind the culti- vator, properly hung and of sufficient weight to crush the moist clods turned up by the shovels. A slight impact pulverizes the fresh lumps, which a few hours of sun would turn into hard clods. The simple device also levels the surface, reducing evaporation. The frequent use of the fine-tooth harrow is coming more and more into use to help make and keep the important fine surface blanket of soil. 36 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. All this sounds very simple and scarcely worthy of our attention. But the fact is we have come to the point in fruit-growing in California where success depends not only on knowing the best methods, but on having all details carried out thoroughly and intelligently. The great need to-day is more intelligent labor in our orchards. The great manu- facturer with his perfected automatic machines can use automatic men. There is no automatic labor in the successful orchard. Every orchard- ist needs to be an expert and have intelligent help. Our schools, from the primary to the university, have been educating away from the farm until the professions and business offices are crowded with poorly-paid young men, while the farm and the orchard must take such material, both for management and detail, as can be found, and this is often most crude and inefficient. There are scores of places in our valley to-day waiting for young men properly trained in agriculture, where the com- pensation would be far above the average earnings in our professional and business offices. And if there is a business or profession promising more pleasure or pecuniary success than that of the capable and intelli- gent California fruit-grower, ] am not aware of it. DAIRYING IN CONNECTION WITH FRUIT-GROWING. By C. W. LEFFINGWELL, Jr., or WHITTIER. It is the destiny of California to become, in point of population and prosperity, one of the greatest States in the Union. We have here a climate in which most men desire to live when once familiar with it. We have in our great expanse of territory, a variety and richness of soil, a world of undeveloped water, such as can not elsewhere be surpassed. With such natural advantages, it is hard to realize how recently our great State has begun to make substantial progress toward the fulfill- ment of her destiny, and how backward is the condition of her agricul- tural industries as compared with the farming regions of the Hast. Among the factors which have retarded this development are the owner- ship of immense grants by individuals, and wasteful and speculative methods in farming and fruit-growing. As a State we have had too few main products, and the failure of one or two crops has had too much effect upon our general prosperity. Again, whole districts have gone mad over the planting of one kind of fruit, and the failure of one crop has produced hard times. The individual fruit-grower has bought more land than he could pay for, has set out more trees than he could care for, and has recklessly strained to get rich quickly, by deyoting every energy to the growing of one fruit crop. He has neglected to raise on the farm part of his food and sustenance. He has failed in every particular to practice the thrift and economy TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. o7 that 20 to build up a stable wealth. His farming has been extensive rather than intensive. With all his eggs in one basket, the failure of one crop has gone hard with him, and too often he has found that his soil was unfit for the variety of fruit in whose development he has spent his last dollar. : If we would realize the great possibilities that lie before us as a com- monwealth, we must correct these evils. In the place of great land grants owned by individuals, and farmed in careless fashion, we must have a vast number of small farms, each supporting a family of Ameri- can citizens. In the place of a small variety of products, we must have diversity, and diversity not only in each district, but also in the products of each farm and orchard. In place of wasteful methods of culture, we must make each acre produce to its limit. Instead of depleting our soils, we must build up and maintain their fertility. It may be safely said that California is now making rapid strides in the breaking up of large holdings into small farms, in the acquiring of an intelligent and thrifty class of small farmers, and in the diversifica- tion of products. In this diversification the development of the dairy interests is playing an important part, and is destined, in the future, to become one of the most important factors in maintaining the fertility of our soils. It is in this respect that dairying is of the utmost impor- tance to the fruit-grower. The two industries should go hand in hand, as one is supplemental to the other. Every great fruit-growing district should have part of its acreage, where possible, devoted to alfalfa. Every fruit-grower who can produce this king of milk-producing feeds, should devote part of his ranch to its culture, and keep a few cows. Many ranches have spots of soil that will pay better in alfalfa than in fruit, and in many districts alfalfa can be grown between young trees until they * come to full bearing, without detracting from their productiveness. When the trees are in full bearing, alfalfa hay can be bought, and there are few orchardists who can not find a place to grow a few pumpkins, sugar- beets and other succulents, which, with alfalfa and bran, will make up a complete cow diet. These feeds, put through the digestive apparatus of the cow, would bring in for milk and butter a regular and sure cash income, the benefit of which, in a community whose main crop is ready for market but once a year, would be felt in every line of trade. Dairy- ing would thus help tide over the long period of waiting between crops for the money that sometimes never comes. — As I have said, the most important way, however, in which dairying is supplemental to fruit-growing, is in maintaining the fertility of the soil. Nature has given us a wonderfully rich soil, which we have drawn upon lavishly; but nature’s bank account is not inexhaustible, and a day of reckoning will come if we do not make regular deposits of fertilizer to protect our soil account from overdraft. We can secure chemical fertil- 38 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. izers by paying out our hard-earned dollars, but by our methods of clean culture we are burning out our soils. We must have humus, and to supply humus together with plant food, there is nothing so beneficial to the soil as animal manure, and there is no machine so good for making manure as the cow. There is this peculiarity about the alfalfa plant, that it draws most of its nourishment in the form of nitrogen from the atmosphere. What it does not get from the atmosphere it goes down deep into the earth for, and will grow year after year on the same soil without need of fertilizer and without apparently leaving the soil any worse off. In fact, the top soil at least is greatly enriched by cropping to alfalfa. This crop forms the most perfect single cow feed known to man, and the beauty of it is that after making enough milk to pay a handsome profit on its cost, a cow returns to us 80 per cent of its nutriment in the form of manure. I estimate, from generally accepted feeding tables, that the value of the fertilizing elements in the manure from a ton of alfalfa hay is about $8 or $9. Itis probable that it would pay to buy alfalfa hay at $6 per ton and plow it under in our orchards; but how much better a proposition it is to have our cows work it into manure while making a good profit from it in the form of milk and butter. The same principle holds good regarding other feedstuffs that can be used to supplement alfalfa. The manurial value of a ton of bran after passing through the cow is about $12 per ton, and if the milk pro- duced from the bran will pay a profit on its cost, the manure, when properly cared for,.is a very cheap fertilizer to the man who, has an orchard to put it on. If a machine should be invented which would draw down nitrogen from the sky, ike cucumbers from sunbeams, and would draw up potash and phosphoric acid from the depths of the earth and combine them with humus in readily available form, every fruit- grower would want to buy such a machine; especially if it turned out — gold dollars as well as manure. This is just what the alfalfa plant, in connection with a good dairy herd, will do, and such being the case, there can be no doubt that alfalfa and dairying in connection with fruit-growing should receive more attention. It is not to be hoped that every orchardist will be able to keep a herd of cows, but even if every fruit-grower who now buys milk and butter would keep a family cow, and those who now keep one cow would keep two, this increase, small as it seems, would add thousands of dollars to our wealth, and fertilize thousands of acres that are now. . going backward. No doubt the objection is made by many that the care of cows entails too much work. It does take work, steady and faithful work; but it is a work that pays, a work that saves, the kind of work that gets the most out of the soil and builds up stable wealth and prosperity. To these objectors I say, as you raise more cows, raise more boys to milk TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. BO them, and as your boys grow up under this healthful discipline, they will have developed in them those rugged traits of industry and strength that have made the American farmer what he is, the life blood of the Republic. . To recapitulate: The stepping-stones to California’s future greatness are, the breaking up of large holdings into small farms and orchards; greater diversity in general, and in the products of each ranch; inten- sive culture; greater care in maintaining the fertility of the soil. To accomplish this latter purpose, it is to be hoped that dairying will receive more attention on the part of fruit-growers. THE RECLAMATION OF ARID LANDS. By L. M. HOLT, or Los ANGELEs, Founder of the now popular system of mutual water companies in Southern California. For many years past, the people of the United States—and especially the people of the arid West—have been studying carefully the question of reclaiming our own worthless public domain, in order to enlarge our nation and furnish homes to the increasing millions of our population. While this great question of national expansion within our own territorial limits was under consideration, a new question of national expansion beyond our territorial limits was forced upon our people by international complications which- could not be ignored, and which resulted in the annexation of extensive insular interests in and beyond the sea. The original question of home expansion finally resulted in congres- sional action in favor of the construction of national irrigation works for the reclamation and colonization of a portion of our worthless arid public domain, which action will result in the practical annexation of some of our own territory to the inhabitable area of our country. This appears to be a species of national expansion to which there can be no reasonable objection from any source, no matter how much it may be mixed up with partisan politics. It is always considered good business policy for an individual to improve his own property and make it more valuable—especially when, by so doing, he can create wealth—when, by so doing, he can make ten, five, three, or even two dollars by spending one—or make two blades of grass to grow where none grew before. If this is good, sound business sense for an individual, why is it not good, sound logic for a nation? It is the application of this sound, common sense that has created Southern California out of nothing; that has created a Riverside out of a poor sheep ranch, a Redlands out of a barren waste, and the Imperial settlements out of a worthless desert. 40 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. Thus far the work of making a garden out of a desert here on the Pacific Coast has been confined to individual capital and individual enterprise. The Government owned a large area of worthless land and many streams of worthless water. It sold the land for a song—more than it was worth—and gave away the water. Private enterprise and private capital took both of them, brought them together and made homes for millions of people and created billions of wealth. The people who thus brought the land and the water together rarely made any money out of the enterprise, and frequently they lost their investments; but the settlers generally made what the promoters lost, and the State became much more wealthy for the work done. This loss of money by the capitalists back of irrigation enterprises was the result of a combination of causes. Lack of accurate informa- tion relative to how the work should be done was a leading cause; experimental work added to the disastrous results; and slow settlement, occasioned by the greed of promoters, who frequently charged more for water rights than the traffic would stand, thus piling up a large interest account on the wrong side of the ledger, being the cap sheaf that would call for the appointment of a receiver, frequently forced the settlement of the business in bankruptcy proceedings. Incidental to this method of procedure, a high rate of interest paid for borrowed capital and exorbitant prices paid for work done, lands purchased, and material bought, because of lack of funds, were other items that tended to cancel supposed large profits. In looking over the field, we find several different stages of develop- ment work. Under the old Mexican régime, prior to the annexation of California to the United States, irrigation systems were very crude and the legal machinery for their ownership and management was very simple. Neighbors got together, dug their cheap ditches, and then took turns in cleaning them out and distributing the water. Very little or no cash changed hands in this simple process. Under American occupation, Yankee ingenuity sought out many inventions, and one of them was to incorporate a water company for profit, construct a system of canals and ditches, and then charge the land-owners under the system for the water used by them. The more they charged for the water, the larger the dividends they could declare; and sometimes they went beyond the limit of the land-owner’s ability to pay. At this stage of the proceedings, the Legislature stepped in and passed a law requiring Boards of Supervisors of counties and the governing bodies of incorporated cities and towns to fix water rates that might be charged by water corporations, whether the water was used for domestic or irri- TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 41 gation purposes. This law was a necessity, but it had the effect of stopping the investment of money in water companies on that basis. It was at this stage of the proceedings that the writer suggested a plan for the formation of mutual water companies on a co-operative basis. Such a water company was to be incorporated for the purpose of supplying water to its stockholders only at cost. No one could get water from such a company except he was a stockholder, and such cor- poration could declare no dividends, because there would be no profits. Hach person owning land to be irrigated by such company must take one share of stock for each acre of land to be irrigated, and such land should be described in his certificate of stock. Good attorneys said that such a company could not be legally formed, but they were mis- taken. The first water company formed under this mutual plan was incor- porated in 1875, for the then new settlement of Pomona; but on account of the financial panic of that year, which bankrupted the people hav- ing that enterprise in charge, the company went out of existence and other people reorganized the system. This mutual water company plan was the third stage in the legal machinery plans for the ownership and management of irrigation works. Under this mutual water company plan, the State need not supervise the rates to be charged the people for water, as the people would supply themselves with water at the lowest possible price, for they were simply helping themselves to the waters from the stream, and the mutual water company was the legal machinery through which this was done. In 1881 the Redlands Water Company was incorporated on the mutual plan basis, and that company is to-day the oldest mutual water company in the State. Then followed the Etiwanda Water Company, which was incorpo- rated in 1882, and the San Antonio Water Company at Ontario, which was incorporated in 1883. | In 1884 the Riverside Water Company was formed on the mutual plan to succeed the Riverside Land and Irrigating Company, a corpora- tion whose stock was practically all held by two individuals—a corpora- tion that was rapidly becoming bankrupt, that was ruining the fair prospects of that model settlement, and bringing financial distress upon its principal stockholders. Mutual water companies have usually been formed by moneyed men and real estate operators who would secure a tract of land and a water supply; then they would construct the irrigation system and convey it to the mutual water company, taking the stock of the company in pay- ment therefor. They would then subdivide the land and sell it at a price sufficient to cover cost of land, improvements, the water system, and what they might consider a fair margin of profit. They would 42 _ TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. then transfer one share of the water company stock with each acre of land sold, and when the land was all sold the water stock would all be in the hands of the land-owners, who would manage it to suit themselves. The fourth and last step in the construction of the legal machinery for the ownership and management of irrigation systems in this State was the enactment of the Wright irrigation district law in the spring of 1887, during the great financial and real estate boom that swept over the State in general, and vigorously swept over Southern California in particular, as many of our people have occasion to remember, because of the fortunes made or lost, or because of the fortunes both made and lost. This district law was built on a solid foundation, after years of study by some of the most competent irrigationists of the State, who had given irrigation laws careful consideration. But a building may be erected on a solid foundation and still be so poorly constructed as to be abso- lutely worthless. | Mr. Wright presented to the Legislature the best district bill that could be passed by that dual body—a bill that was made weak in spots by the requirements of the State Constitution, and made weak at other points by the unwillingness of the Legislature, backed by the people, to have the State itself take any financial responsibility in assisting the people of the arid sections to create wealth where theretofore there had been nothing but desolation. | One of the weak points of the law permitted unscrupulous speculators to take advantage of the system to enrich themselves at the expense of the public, and this kind of work was extensively done. If the law had provided that the State should supervise the formation of irrigation districts great good might have been accomplished and the law might have been a blessing to the State instead of a curse. The law might have created a State Board of Irrigation, composed of, say, the Governor, the Attorney-General, the Secretary of State, the State Treasurer, and a State Engineer. The duty of this board should have been to examine carefully all applications for the formation of irrigation districts. Such a board could have passed upon the character of the land to be reclaimed, the water-supply, the cost of constructing the works, the engineering questions connected with such construction, and the advisability of such works from a business point of view. If the application were approved, the voters of the district could vote on the question of forming the district. A qualified voter for such an election should be a land-owner in the proposed district, and he should be allowed to cast one vote for each acre of land owned by him within the proposed district. When it comes to the issuance of bonds, the State Board should fix the amount and then submit the question to the voters of the district, the same as the question of organization was submitted. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 43 Before such a law could be enacted, the State Constitution would have to be changed. If the bonds were voted, the State could then sell its own bonds and then buy the district bond issue. Three per cent State bonds could be sold at par, and 34 per cent district bonds could then be purchased by the State, and the State would thus receive one half of one per cent on all district bond issues for its work of managing or supervising the affairs of the irrigation districts and financing their bond issues. In this way the district would save 10 per cent on the sale of the bond issue and 23 per cent interest each year. One of the weakest points of the law as enacted was, that the con- struction of irrigation works reaching up into hundreds of thousands of dollars was placed in the hands of men entirely unfitted for such work; for, as a rule, only men of very limited means and more limited business experience were usually to be found residing on dry claims which must be irrigated before they could produce a living for a family. Another weak point was found in the law in the fact that the heavy burden of taxation had to be met by these poor men who only owned poor, non-productive, dry ranches, that were worthless without water, before these worthless ranches could be made productive or before portions of such ranches could be sold. For these reasons most of the districts formed have been failures, and have passed out of existence; a few have compromised their indebted- ness, some have been declared illegally organized, a few are yet working their way through the courts, and an occasional one, under favorable conditions, has met with moderate success. The mutual water company system, formed under the general incor- poration laws of the State, is the only form of irrigation system owner- ship left to the people of California to-day that is worthy of public confidence and adoption. This law is flexible and can be suited to all conditions that may be encountered, while the Wright district law is non-flexible, and must be followed to the letter or its securities are of little or no value, and its very existence is jeopardized. Nearly all the irrigation systems of Southern California are to-day in the hands of mutual water companies. As an indorsement of this mutual co-operative system, it is a noted fact that the United States officials connected with the geological survey having in charge the preparatory work of constructing irrigation systems for the Government, when they were looking over the entire irrigation interests of the United States, in order to find a perfect system from which to make a model to place on exhibition at the St. Louis World’s Fair in 1904, selected a system here in Southern California owned and operated by a mutual water company, thus giving govern- mental indorsement to this plan of co-operation as against all other systems adopted by the various States of the arid West. 44 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. Notwithstanding this fact, strenuous efforts have been made recently to make radical changes in our irrigation laws, so as to make them conform to systems of other States not so desirable as our own. Radical changes in irrigation or any other laws are to be avoided at all times, but especially should they be avoided when no improvement is made by the change. The laws of California touching on irrigation matters are not perfect by any means, but we have the basis for the best system in the world at the present time, and all that we need is to perfect that system. If California had a clear field in which to commence work—if ali the land belonged to the Government and there were no people here to secure vested rights—so that we could start from the foundation and build up, it would be different; but it must be remembered that every step taken to-day in the way of a radical change in our irrigation laws runs up against vested right snags at every turn. To illustrate: In the early history of the State, the old law of riparian rights—which was a beneficial law in a country lke England, but © which is not applicable to an arid country—was made a part of the law of the State of California. Under a rigid construction of this law, there can be no such thing as irrigation, because under that law all water taken from a stream must be returned thereto again undiminished in quantity and uncontaminated in quality. Under that law, extensive rights accrued, so that it was impossible to repeal the law, only so far as streams were concerned on which rights had not accrued. If the irrigation public would devote their time and attention to the perfection of the system which we now have, and which has proven so beneficial and so nearly perfect in its application to our needs, instead of trying to wipe out this system and establish in its place another system that has not proven to be superior, much more progress could be made toward a perfect system. A great cry has been made in favor of public ownership of irrigation systems. This demand rests on a solid foundation. But what is public ownership? Certainly there can be public ownership without placing that ownership in the hands of the United States Government, or in the hands of the State Government, or even in the hands of the County Government. The people who are interested in a particular irrigation system should own that system. The people of the City of Los Angeles would not want either the County, State, or National Governments to own their domestic water system. The mutual water company system is public ownership, pure and simple. The closer together we can get the ownership and the users of water, the better. If the people of River- side own the Riverside irrigation plant, through the machinery of a mutual water company, what more public ownership is necessary ? No public ownership can be more effectually accomplished under any other proposed plan. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 45 If California would go to work and perfect the mutual water company system we now have, this State would possess une most perfect system of irrigation laws to be found in the world. A title to the use of water is built on a less solid foundation than is the title to land. Hence, land-owners who have a water right watch with jealous eyes any attempt to interfere with present conditions of the law governing the use of water. The people recognize, in the mutual water company, a solid system upon which they can rest their rights. They believe it to be possible to make changes in that system for the better, but any attempt to make such changes must be carefully considered, and those making the attempt must know that they are on the right track, or the storm which will hover over their heads will be very like a cycione, as was the case when the late session of the Legislature attempted to upset existing con- ditions by the passage of a bill that so thoroughly aroused the business men as well as the irrigationists of the State. Gradual changes, if wisely conceived, can be made without detriment to public interests, but radical changes should be avoided. The best advice that can be given to the lawmakers of the State on the change of irrigation laws, seems to be ‘‘ make haste slowly.” There are to-day about 250,000 acres under irrigation in the five southern counties of the State—Los Angeles, San Bernardino, River- side, Orange, and San Diego outside of the Imperial settlements. This area includes the cream of this country. It represents the foundation on which our wealth is based; and while there are large interests repre- senting large capital not directly connected with the water systems that have converted these 250,000 acres of desert into 250,000 acres of wealth- producing gardens, still if these irrigation systems were wiped out of existence, Southern California would lapse back into the condition of innocuous desuetude—the condition that existed here before the American occupation of the country. In thirty years Southern California has grown from 30,000 population to 450,000, and the wealth has increased in like ratio. This wealth and this population have been built on a foundation of 250,000 acres of irrigated land. | It was believed by the general public thirty years ago that the irrigated area at that time had reached the limits of possibility, and that all the waters of Southern California worth using were then utilized. After increasing in population from 380,000 to 450,000, it is now known that the limit is not yet reached, for to-day irrigation developments are making greater strides than ever before in the history of the country. During the past three years, one plant—the Imperial Canal System — has been bringing under cultivation and wresting from desert conditions double the acreage now under irrigation in the five southern counties outside of that system. 46 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. If the irrigation of 250,000 acres has made Southern California what it is to-day, what will the irrigation of 500,000 acres more do for this country? . Most of the irrigated lands of Southern California between the moun- tains and the sea—to the extent of 250,000 acres—are devoted to the production of citrus and deciduous fruits—a $10,000,000 item of oranges annually leading the list—while the 500,000 acres under the Imperial Canal System will be devoted mostly to the production of the great staples of beef and pork. The Imperial Canal country will feed the nation on the substantials, while the coast valleys will furnish it with the delicacies. Not only is the Imperial Canal System adding this vast area to the productive soil of the country, but the United States Government, stimulated by the success of the Imperial Canal System, has undertaken to utilize a portion of the waters of the Colorado River in reclaiming other large tracts of the arid public domain—more than equal to the present irrigated area of this portion of the State—all of which will be tributary to the upbuilding of the five southern counties of the State. And why should not the Government take a hand in making valuable its own worthless public domain? It has the land and it has the water. It has the financial strength and it has the business ability. It can take an acre of land that is to-day absolutely worthless and a stream of water that is absolutely worthless, and by putting them together, it can produce wealth—can make the acre of land and the acre-foot of water very valuable, ready to assist in supporting our ever-increasing population. After the land and water are brought together, the combi- nation can be sold for more than it cost to bring them together, and the homeless citizen, in search of a place to make a home, will be glad to reimburse the Government in its effort to make valuable its own worth- less land. : To-day the Government is selling worthless land for $1.25 an acre, and the purchaser must go to work and make that land valuable; whereas, the Government should make the land valuable before selling it, and then it would not only give value received for the money it takes from the settler, but it could, if it so desired, get double the cost of the reclaimed land, and still the settler would be better satisfied than he would be to take a chunk of the desert in its native worthless- ness for nothing. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 47 THE DUTY OF WATER. By T.S. VAN DYKE, oF San DiEGo. In thirty-five years’ residence west of the Mississippi I have seen nothing more ridiculous than the financial struggle to get water into the upper end of a ditch for ignorance to throw away at the lower end. While I have done my share toward getting more water, I believe it far more important to learn to use what we have; for the amount used is actually less than the amount wasted, except in Southern California, where we are so poor in water that we have to be stingy with it. Yet no question is more difficult than the amount of water necessary to perfect a certain crop without waste. It depends so much upon the nature of the crop, the soil, the climate, the tillage, the handling of the water, the temperature of the water, the size of the irrigating head, and the length of time one can have it without interfering with the rights of others on the same ditch, as well as on the rainfall and many other things, that the question is much like asking how much food it takes to feed an animal. Dividing the total area irrigated by the number of inches or feet of water at the head of the ditch bears a painful resemblance to ascertaining the duty of meat by dividing the amount delivered at the back door of our big hotels by the number of guests on the register. Yet worthless as it is, this is about the only way of finding the duty of water in the greater part of the West. We have far better data in Southern California, though most people could make nothing out of them. The answer can only be approxi- mated, and then only by those who know how to handle the hoe in the field in the intelligent manner that years of painful economy have taught us. For there are too many points to be considered that no one else knows, and engineers generally consider the hoe beneath their dignity. The question resolves itself into the question of waste. Waste from carelessness or laziness is of too many varieties for consideration; but there is another kind, which is economic waste, or really not waste at all. To insure full wetting in time to allow others to use the water some must run off the lower end of the land, and the shortness of the time allowed the irrigator may make this waste considerable. So the nature of the crop may make it cheaper to waste water than labor, while its value may not justify tight aqueducts as oranges might. Com- mon prudence demands a reserve held for emergencies, which in good years might have to run away unused. For such a place as Riverside to base its supply on what may be required by young trees with an ordinary crop in years of fair rainfall would be very unwise. It should be based on the requirements of old trees in full bearing in a short year. For the crop is so valuable that a shrinkage in such a year would 48 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. offset all that could be made out of the water in other ways during the good years. On the other hand, for many low-grade crops the reverse of this policy might be better in many places. | All such waste is intelligent waste and rarely amounts to over 20 per cent, while in Southern California it is generally far less. Ignorant waste is quite another item, and outside of Southern California runs from 50 per cent to several hundred. This also has many forms; such as using more water as a substitute for the cultivator when the ground begins to bake, an old Indian trick to which the average white man fondly clings as long as he possibly can; ignoring the difference between products, and giving grapes as much water as oranges or watering onions like strawberries; and a score of others, like neglecting to grade the ground, trying to force water in wrong directions, etc. A good sample of ignorant waste may be seen near Albuquerque, where a resident engineer a few years ago estimated the duty of water at a cubic foot a second, or fifty California miner’s inches to eighteen acres. This would be about an inch and a half a day of rain measure or acre-inches, or nearly forty-five inches a month. Those who have seen forty-five inches of rain fall in six months on a soil much looser than the fine sediment of the Rio Grande bottoms can understand the impossibility of putting more than one tenth of this amount into the ground, for six successive months. Seven inches a month in most parts of the East and prairie States make a wet summer, and probably not over four inches enter the ground in most places having a clay subsoil, like much of the prairie. If we could have six inches a month in Southern California we would have trouble to get it all in the ground, even in summer and even if we could have it to order. And the propor- tion of it that would go in would on most all soils suffice for good crops of anything we raise here. One half of it would suffice for more than half of our products, and two thirds would be enough for almost any- thing but old orange trees in full bearing and alfalfa on some gravelly soils. | This is assuming that the season is started with the ground full of water, as it would be in the Hast from the melting snows and winter rains. But this is a very violent assumption, even for Southern Cali- fornia. For of all forms of waste to which man seems hopelessly wedded, letting all the water of winter run to the sea and starting the irrigating season on a dry subsoil is the most universal. It is a relic of barbarism that, strange to say, yet survives in Southern California, where water brings the highest price in the world; for while many have learned a lesson in the last few years of short rainfall, there are still many who have not. This equivalent of six inches of rain or less accords with the practice of our best irrigators. Remembering that so many inches or feet of TWENTY EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 49 water at the head do not mean the same number put into the ground, we find about six acre-inches a month the maximum used for heavy crops of old oranges and alfalfa, while prunes, apricots, almonds, and even peaches rarely get much over two acre-inches. Six acre- inches would be about a miner’s inch to two and a half acres. In most years this is more than is necessary, while fine crops of deciduous fruits are raised on one fourth of that and often less. And many a good crop has been raised on three irrigations of only one and a half acre-inches each, the third irrigation being after the crop is picked. This would be a miner’s inch to twenty acres. Good crops of oranges have also been had with an inch to ten acres. But on most soils and in most climates itis hardly a safe basis to depend on. We now have more places where too little water is used than places where it is wasted. The acre-inch or acre-foot, based on rain measure, is by far the most satisiactory way of expressing the amount of water used, and great confusion exists not only from the varying nature of the inch in differ- ent States, but because it is estimated not by the actual amount of © water delivered on the ground during the year, but by the rate per acre at which it is used during a certain period, called the “Irrigating sea- son,” which also varies very much. Thus if a man is entitled to an inch to ten acres, this means thirty twenty-four-hour inches each month, or its equivalent in some form, equaling a foot and a. half of rain measure a year, or an inch anda half amonth. The chances are that during the six months of winter he let his allowance run to the sea, because he expected the clouds to do their duty. Consequently he had only nine acre-inches left to use for the next six months. This was all he put into the ground from the ditch. But as it was used during that six months at the rate of an inch to ten acres it is called an inch to ten, although if the winter part had been used it would have covered the land a foot and a half deep instead of nine inches. This makes rain measure or acre feet or inches the only clear way of treating the subject. The other is as ridiculous as difficult, if we consider what it would mean if he had used the inch of water only one month during the summer. It would still have been an inch to ten acres, because used at that rate. Yet the amount put on the ground for the year would have been only one and a half acre-inches, or an inch and a half rain measure. Had he used his full right for the twelve months it would have been no more by that measure, though by rain measure it would have been a foot and a half. In twenty years’ study of this subject in many places I have found the estimate of the irrigator very unreliable. The only certain way to find what a man has used is to ignore his water right, or his opinion of what he has used, and find from the water office the amount he has ordered and paid for during the year. See if this tallies with the book 4—¥-GC . 50 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. of the ditch-tender who turns him out his water. Get the area under irrigation, not only from the owner, but by your own measurement of his fences or corners. Make an estimate of his run off or end waste by repeated watching of his irrigation. Then, and then only, can you know what amount of acre-feet or acre-inches he has put on the land. Then by considering his cultivation, the skill of his handling irrigating heads, the rainfall of that section, the nature of the subsoil, the tempera- ture of the water, which is a great item little thought of by those not familiar with the hoe handle, you can get an approximate idea of the duty of water. And you must study your own work in the same way. It will be found that the amount of water needed for any crop is greatly overestimated by all but the most intelligent irrigators. Neglect of the subsoil causes the beginner in irrigation great loss of faith. It is the most common of all errors, especially on the desert, where it is of the most importance. Nearly every one leaves the ground dry until about ready to plant, then wets a thin skin of soil on top of an ash heap dozens of feet deep that has not been wet for centuries, plants seed in this, and then says you have to keep pouring water on all the time to keep things alive. That is not the worst of it, for if that pour- ing is neglected even a day the plant may fail in very hot weather. If anything fails on a dry subsoil it is very hard and often impossible to revive it after it wilts a little. But with a wet subsoil it will not only go long without wilting if the top soil becomes too dry, but it will stand days of wilting and then revive and go ahead with little injury. With this subsoil in proper condition there is no such increased quantity of water needed as one would imagine on the deserts. In the hot, dry air of the Sacramento Valley the great crops of deciduous fruits are grown almost entirely on the water stored in the ground by the winter rains. And most of this is in thesubsoil. If that were dry it would sap the moisture from the top soil downward as fast as the sun and wind sap it above. But if the top soil is well cultivated the subsoil actually supplies moisture to it. For the past two years I have been trying to work out a problem on the lower Mojave River, on which nine different hard-working settlers failed. I have had my share of tribula- tion, but none of it from miscalculation about the duty of water. I was told I would have to sit up nights to pour water on the things fast enough. Yet last year I raised as fine melons as can be seen anywhere with a ten-hour run of water once in two weeks, although the ther- mometer was at 110° almost every day, and for days at a time at 115° inside the largest buildings, with a hot wind blowing at about double the velocity of the seabreeze on the coast and not a particle of dew at night. Yet not a leaf wilted, although melons in the gardens at Daggett, on the same soil, less than a mile away, and watered every day, wilted, failed to bear, and even died. The difference was that those were merely TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 51 sprinkled on a dry subsoil. Mine were planted in ground that had been gridironed with small streams for weeks. They were then left three weeks without water to force them to deep rooting. They were then watered once in two weeks with a deep furrow two feet or more away. ‘At the last irrigation the water was allowed to run twenty-four hours, the weather being the most intense and continuous hot spell of the summer. In less than a week hundreds of melons were cracking open, and in another week hundreds more were decaying from the inside. I found it much the same with other things; but too strong conclusions must not be drawn from such instances. There are some subsoils that will not reservoir moisture well enough, and there are trees and plants that are tremendous evaporators of water through the leaves in hot weather. But the principle holds wherever it can be applied, and thorough soaking for many feet before anything is planted will greatly reduce the amount of water needed afterward. Ii it brings up alkali, the sooner it comes the better, for it would come in time if you wet the ground enough for good success. This may be very important where your summer water is very cold. By filling the ground when the ground itself is cold and nothing growing you do no harm. But by waiting until things are ready to grow and then applying cold water too often the ground does not recover enough from the chill. In the mountains it is a common sight to see corn thus ruined. I have seen it so kept back with mountain spring water that it never tasseled, although having plenty of warm weather and planted early enough. The use of deep furrows made with a subsoil plow is a great help in increasing the duty of water, but this is not subirrigation proper. In subirrigation the water is all delivered below from openings in pipes. Without a very expensive plant these openings will be so far apart that you never can be certain of wetting all the ground, or of wetting any of it evenly. The movement of water underground, even in gravel, is very irregular and can not be ascertained by tests in boxes or anything of the sort. Unless the wetting is uniform you have limited irrigation, too much like irrigation with small basins around the tree or with one furrow to a tree. If you can do no better, this may do better than nothing. But it is generally better to go where you can get plenty of water, for you will rarely get water to do full duty when limited to only a part of the soil. PRESIDENT COOPER. The essays that you have just heard read are now before the Convention for discussion. 52 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. DISCUSSION ON THE GROWING OF ORANGES. MR. GRIFFITH. I want to ask Mr. Hofman whether the growing of peas or growing of green fertilizer has any effect upon the puffing of oranges? MR. HOFMAN. I am sorry to say I have no information to give on that subject. I have not heard the puffing of oranges mentioned with green-manuring, and I would be as interested in that as anybody. DR. WOODBRIDGE. I think there has been some confusion on that subject. I believe there is no connection at all between the grow- ing of a green crop and the dropping of the orange, but there is in plowing at the time when the trees are in blossom. I think it is a fixed fact that if the orange orchard is plowed while the trees are in blossom, the fruit will drop, especially if the plow is run deep and the spongy roots are cut off. MR. GRIFFITH. I didn’t refer to the dropping, but to the puffing of oranges. I noticed in an experience of my own that in an orchard where I had no weeds of any consequence the oranges didn’t puff much, while in another, where the weeds grew ranker, I had puffy oranges. PROFESSOR COOK. Mr. President, I wish to say that some of our very best cultivators think they do see a relation between puffing and very heavy applications of stable fertilizer. -I do not think anybody knows it yet, but some of our very best men believe it. If true, it is owing, undoubtedly, to an excessive amount of nitrogen in the soil. If that is the case, why wouldn’t a very heavy application of green fertilizer bring about the same result ? In this connection I wish to state that I think that what Dr. Woodbridge has spoken of is a very important matter. I saw the same thing that he spoke of, and that is the danger of putting in your green crop too late and plowing it under too late. Last October was too late to put in a green crop, because the winter was very cold, and where crops were put in so late as that, if they were left to full maturity, March or April, it was altogether too late to put in a green crop. A MEMBER. Why was it too late? PROFESSOR COOK. As your tree has blossomed fully, and justas the fruit is setting, the roots ought not to be disturbed; and if you plow it under at that time you are almost sure to break in upon the tree nutrition which is necessary to set a full crop of fruit. I think there is a point there. . I wish to speak specially of one paper which I was glad to hear, and that was the paper on the dairy in connection with the orchard. — I am somewhat of a crank on that subject; but when our agriculturists, our best men, tell us that alfalfa has $8.50 of value as a fertilizer in every ton—and that is backed by our Government—and when they tell TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION, 53 you that bran has a value of $11, and when you know that by the purchase of those and feeding cattle and doing it wisely we can make money on it—for people are doing it—then certainly this is not simply visionary. It is something that all ought to heed. DR. WOODBRIDGE. Now, in-regard to the puffy oranges. I want to say that I never have analyzed a puffy orange that has not had the maximum amount of sugar in it, which shows that it was ripe at the time it was puffy. And I remember hearing Mr. Charles Chapman say, | in a paper he read before one of the institutes some two or three years ago, that the time to market oranges was when they were ripe. If you will take an orange from a tree that has puffy oranges on it, you will find, as I have done in over a hundred instances, that the puffy orange has more sugar in its juice every time than has the solid orange that is not puffed. Therefore, 1 think, although I am certain that nitrogen will hasten the ripening of an orange, it will cause it to puff sooner. PROFESSOR C. R. PAINE. Outside of your test, when you come to taste a puffy orange, do you not always find it more insipid than any other orange on the tree at the same state of maturity? DR. WOODBRIDGE. I am judging entirely by the polariscope. MR. PARKER. I tried the experiment some years ago, upon a little piece of orchard, of watering my trees regularly from September right through the last part of the growing season, so that the ground was not dry at any time until after the main rains came in the fall. I kept irrigating up to that time. And I found that I had scarcely any puffy oranges on that little piece. I think that where the sap stops and checks for a period of time, from any time in September on, and then starts to flowing again, that is, when the spring growth starts in Febru- ary, the sap goes into the orange quite freely, and that is what is the cause of the puffing. MR. KRAMER. There is a certain law of nature which I think bears upon this question. Weakness causes overgrown fruit, the same as it is the cause of small fruit. No matter what causes the weakness, it makes the fruit overgrown or too small. I have found out that a good many orange trees when they were only slightly eaten by gophers pro- duced an enormous sized fruit, but when they were very badly barked it was a matter of oranges small in size and full of seeds. So, as we all learn in botany, there is this law that it is weakness that causes over- grown fruit and it is weakness that causes small fruit. Every fruit tree has got to be properly cultivated and have every proper condition of the climate and soil and everything right, in order to have the fruit in perfect condition. MR. BERWICK. That only puts the question one step farther back. Suppose that is true; then what is the cause of the weakness? I have lived quite a long time in California, and I recall the time when we 54 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. were told regarding bone fertilizer—that bone was the best thing for us as a source of phosphoric acid. Only about three years back they reversed that, and told us that bone was of no use for phosphoric acid, but was only useful for the nitrogen in it. Now, regarding this barn- yard manure. We have been told for quite awhile that it was not any good except for humus. Now we are told it causes too much nitrogen and puffs the oranges. IJ want to know regarding these things. I want _no dubious words brought in, such as “weakness,” because weakness means nothing. What causes weakness? MR. KOETHEN. I have been studying this question for quite a time, and I have come to the conclusion that it is not only one thing that may produce puffiness, but that anything which will produce a weakness in the tree at any time during the development of the crop may produce puffiness in the orange. For instance, if an orchard goes along through the summer and a portion of it is allowed to become dry, you will find invariably that that portion of the orchard will show puffiness that winter. MR. BERWICK. We are getting more definite now, and I am glad to see it. Because I asked a question and wanted to know what about barnyard manure. Scientists one day say, ‘No, there is no nitrogen there to amount to anything”; the next day they say there is lots of it there. MR. REED. I think this matter with reference to puffy oranges was up at our first farmers’ institute in Southern California, and has been up since. I think we are farther away now than we were then. At the time of the first farmers’ institute I had two trees where there was plenty of nitrogen from the stable, and I was sure the oranges therefrom © would be no good; and sure enough they were puffy next year. I was satisfied that stable manure made oranges puff. For the last few years those trees have been in the same condition and have raised good crops ever since. The last year I have had two trees that had no fertilizer whatever. They were so situated that we could keep the soil about them well mulched, and they had plenty of water; but we did not fertilize them. Those are the two trees that had more puffy oranges than any other trees in the orchard. I have no idea of the cause of it. I believe the discussion of these matters will go on in this way indefinitely until we make some provision for a definite, accurate, and careful investiga- tion by experts. I believe that if we had been trying to secure this sort of work we would have made some headway by this time. I doubt whether this way or that way of treating the orchard for puffy oranges, split oranges, black spot, and gum disease will accomplish very much except an expert will come into Southern California and take charge of an orange orchard and have perfect control of it through years of experience, watching these troubles carefully and thoroughly and per- sistently. . TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 50 MR. DORE. Mr. Chairman, it appears to me that the gentleman who has addressed the Convention might spend a little time in drafting a resolution asking from our General Government and Secretary of Agriculture just that kind of work here; and when this body shall ask for it as a body, we are quite likely to receive consideration and atten- tion. There occurred to me during the afternoon a few questions that I would like to ask. I want to’know this: Is this trouble increasing in the orange-growing district of Southern California? MR. REED. Not to speak of. MR. DORE. It has always been with you to a greater or less extent? MR. REED. Yes. MR. DORE. One question that has aroused my curiosity. I have been studying the orange business a week or so. What proportion of your oranges are afflicted with this unaccountable disease so as to destroy their value? ) MR. GRIFFITH. In answer to the question of the gentleman, and also in answer to the causes of puffing, I want to say the matter of the percentage of puffing is a varying quantity. This year there are more puffed oranges, I believe, than there were last year. MR. DORE. More frost, wasn’t there? MR. GRIFFITH. No, I think not. There was more frost last year in my orchard than this year. Now, the cause of puffing is something for which I have never found a reasonable explanation. In my orchard men have marked trees that got dry and hot, expecting to find puffy oranges, yet didn’t find any. I had puffy oranges this year on land where not a pound of fertilizer of any kind had been put for two years. There are two points, to my mind, eliminated from the puffing of oranges. The orange trees bore very heavily this year, and this year the oranges puffed more than last year. MR. DORE. Can you suggest anything in which this season differs from last season? MR.GRIFFITH. Ithas beenachilly and damp season. More water has fallen this year than usual, and there has been more chilliness and coldness in the atmosphere. — MR. DORE. Then, might not cold and wet be the inducing causes? MR. GRIFFITH. Possibly. Yet I have known this same puffiness to occur in the dry seasons that have preceded the last two or three years. This season, however, it seems to be somewhat more pronounced. I don’t know that the cause can be controlled. I sometimes think it is because of the irregularity of rainfall, because the rainfall comes at a season when it ought not to come; and sometimes I think it is because we let the ground get dry and then water again. Someof my neighbors say, “You must keep your orchards absolutely wet all through the fall, and then the fruit won’t puff.” One of my neighbors who told me that 56 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. has puffed oranges, too. There are two things connected with it which I don’t understand and which IJ have tried to find out. This year we had very few cracked oranges; some years we have a good many—1U per cent, I think, last year. This year I doubt whether there was 1 per cent. But the puffed oranges this year will be more than there were last year. There are two things I don’t understand. Why does the inside of the orange grow too fast for the outside, causing the skin to crack? Another year, later in the season, the skin commences to grow and the inside stops, and then there are puffy oranges. While our puffed oranges are good and sweet, they will not ship to market; they will decay. PRESIDENT COOPER. You gave the percentage, as you supposed, of the cracked oranges? MR. GRIFFITH. Last year we had 10 per cent. PRESIDENT COOPER. What would be your estimate of the puffy oranges? MR. GRIFFITH. It depends what season the orange was picked in. In February, no puffy oranges; in March, perhaps 15 per cent. In the next thirty days they puffed rapidly. Puffing commenced after the first of March, and it proceeded with a rush. MR. CRAMER. I would like to say that excess of moisture will cause puffy oranges. If you try to grow oranges along the coast, in a damp climate, you will raise nothing but puffy oranges; so that it looks like excessive moisture is too much for the trees and causes them to have puffy oranges. Probably the lack of moisture will cause them to crack, too. MR. DORE. I want to ask another question. I want to know how much soil is required for the best development of an orange tree? PROFESSOR PAINE. This question isa good one. There occurred in my experience, in the last weeks of December, a year ago, and in January, an instance in my own orchard, or a chance, in the laying of a pipe, for very careful measurement and observation. The orchard is laid out on the equilateral triangle system, and in the laying of this pipe the trench was cut to a depth of 30 inches, and about 43 feet from the trunks of the trees. The line was a quarter of a mile long, and there was a chance to observe very closely the effect of the cutting of the roots of those trees. The pipe perhaps passed within 2 feet of some of the trunks of the trees. I think some of the roots of the seedling trees that were cut off were as big as my leg, many as hig as my arm. I know of only one tree that seemed to wilt. The growth of the trees didn’t seem to be at all affected. I drew my conclusions by walking along the row of trees cut and comparing them with the row on either side. The crop of this winter was the one to judge by, and I must con- fess that I was surprised to see that there was no apparent difference in the result from those three rows. And I concluded that as cultivators Y TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 57 we need not be careful of cutting roots in adamp winter season; and I have satisfied myself that I don’t need to be extremely careful, in sub- soiling with a plow, not to disturb the roots. MR. HOLT. I would like to give an experience of an orchardist in Orange County on the subject of the cutting of the roots. He had an Australian Navel orchard that bore but lightly, and he had become so disgusted with it that he had concluded to cut it out. He didn’t have it cut out that spring, so he thought he would plow the orchard and try it one more year. Just then a man came along, a stranger, who wanted to work on his farm, and he hired him. Having to leave home for a few days, he told the man to plow that orchard, but not very deep. When he got back he found that the man, who had a very large, heavy team to work with, had run the plow in clear up to the beam, over the whole piece, and the whole orchard was full of roots which the man had plowed up; he had torn the roots all to pieces. He was very much pro- yoked and paid off the man and shipped him. That year he had a large crop of oranges from that orchard, where he had never had a good crop before, and he was so well pleased with the result of the plowing that he sent off and hunted up the man and prouenie him back and hired him and apologized for discharging him. PROFESSOR PAINE. What time of the year? MR. HOLT. In the winter time. MR. PAINE. Before blossoming time? MR. HOLT. Yes, sir. | MR. BLANCHARD. When I came in, this question of puffy oranges was being discussed. I supposed all knew that.an excess of nitrogen would puff oranges. There may be many other things that will puff them. A later question was asked as to the depth of soil. The soil on which I planted my trees is very, very deep. Practically, there is no bottom to it. But it took the trees fourteen years to bear a paying crop. Some of the same trees, planted up the cafion where there was very little soil, and they were seedling trees, bore in a very few years, but their life was very short. Our cafion is a rocky one. I have noticed that the orchards in some instances failed, and one seedling orchard, quite an old orchard, has been dug up. I think the reason hag been in part because the roots had got down into the rock, onto the barren soil. MR. REED. If we cut a root as much as has been indicated here, we damage the tree. If the root of your tree runs out 20 or 380 feet it is covered with fibrous roots through which the tree gets nutriment, and if we cut it, it seems to me we take some of the nutriment from that tree. The matter of subsoil plowing came up in Riverside Valley three or four years ago. It followed the matter of the hardpan. The orchardists claimed that they could not get water down. Hence the 58 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. subsoil plow came into use and for two or three years it was used con- siderably. Two years ago there were two different gentlemen came to me and wanted me to see what was the trouble with their orchards. Two of the finest orchards in the valley. They were in very bad condition. I knew nothing about the treatment until afterward. Each of those orchards had been plowed from 16 to 18 inches both ways with a cutting subsoil plow. The owners, both of them, acknowledged that they believed that that process damaged those ten acres of orchard at least $1,000 for that year. The one that was damaged the most has had very little fruit on it this year. I will simply state further that while the process of deep-root cutting was quite popular three years ago, the next year it was less popular, and last year I know of but one instance in our valley where deep-root plowing was used to any extent, and that was by Mr. Mills. I don’t know of another instance where the plow has been used in the last.twelve months. But it is not a matter of opinion. Out from the tree are running in every direction these roots, some of them 20 or 30 feet away, and the fibers are at the other end. MR. STONE. I should like to give a reply, as far as I can, to this gentleman on my right, as'to the depth of the soil. I have several kinds of soil on my place, from heavy to moderately light and very light. The moderately heavy soil I suppose would be about 10 feet deep, and the light soil would be, some of it, not more than 2 or 3 feet deep. I see very little difference in the growth of the trees, and I think it is gener- ally accepted that the fruit from the trees on the light soil is better than the fruit from the trees on the heavy soil. I know of an orchard not far from my own where it is so rocky that there are, between the trees, rocks jutting out of the ground as big as a man’s body. And it has good trees and fine fruit. MR. KOETHEN. I have a resolution I would like to present, partly prepared by Mr. Reed, as follows: Resolved, That it is the opinion of the Fruit-Growers’ Association at the twenty-eighth annual State Convention, that the time has come when the citrus fruit interests of this State demand the assistance of either the State or Federal Department of Agriculture in the investigation of diseases and cultural methods of citrus trees. PRESIDENT COOPER. That will be referred to the Committee on Resolutions, under the rule. The orange question has been pretty fully discussed. Suppose you take up that of irrigation. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 59 DISCUSSION ON IRRIGATION. MR. STONE. With regard to irrigation, there have been so many theories laid down, and some practices explained, that we are still left very much in the dark as to what is the best method of irrigation— basining, or shallow furrowing, or deep furrowing. Now, I remember hearing, not long since, of a gentleman who just had one furrow in the middle of his rows of trees. I presume they were from 20 to 24 feet apart. And he had a deep furrow—I think it must have been something like 16 inches, from 12 to 16 inches—one furrow only between his trees, and he ran the water in that furrow, and declared himself perfectly satisfied with the results. Now, there aresome other methods. There is the sub- soiler in use, which is very much the same thing, except that the water is not so much exposed as it is in the running stream. Now, I tried a subsoiler in my orchard of lemon trees. They were really wanting water, and showed that they were, and I determined to try them with the subsoiler. I never saw trees respond to the treatment of water as they did on that occasion. They responded very rapidly to it, and I have never seen any injury arising with reference to the destruction of some of the small roots of those trees, which roots undoubtedly were destroyed. Then some others use shallower furrows, perhaps not over 6 or 8 inches deep, which I have practiced myself, each side of the trees, and sometimes two on either side of the trees. That would be four in arow. If there is any gentleman here practicing that system of one deep furrow I should very much like to hear his experience with regard to it, because it means a very much less expense to those of us who have to irrigate our orchards. ' MR. HOFMAN. In that little talk of mine I tried to tell you of an experiment or investigation I made along those very lines. Water which had run thirty-six hours had penetrated more than 7 feet. Seven feet is quite a depth when you dig the hole yourself. And it had also spread laterally 43 feet to each side of the furrow at a depth of 5 feet. Of course at the top it was the width of the furrow. At 5 feet it had spread 4% feet each side of the furrow, which would be 9 feet for one stream at a depth of 5 feet. : MR. BOARDMAN. I live in western New York. In central New York we cultivate fruit to quite an extent—grapes, apples; no oranges, of course. But I want to say one word in regard to the digging of a ditch near trees. I have twenty acres of orchard about twenty-five or twenty-six years old. I commenced at the upper end of the orchard. I wanted to draw spring water to my barn, and I dug a ditch about 23° feet deep, from the upper end of the orchard, when the trees were about twenty years of age. We ran diagonally through the orchard, and the ditch was dug close to a good many apple trees. And I found this 60 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. result. The first year I think there was fully as much fruit on the trees where we had cut off the roots as there was on trees anywhere else in the orchard; as much as usual; but after that there was a loss. That was ten years ago. And I don’t think the trees have caught up in their bearing where those large roots were cut off. Now, we have about 22 inches as the average rainfall, winter and summer, in our climate. Most of my orchard is drained. We drain with tile 28 feet apart, 3 feet deep, and we keep those tile drains open at both ends, and there is a current of water usually through that tile, especially in the summer, when we notice it more particularly. And we cultivate and keep a dirt mulch 2 or 3 inches deep upon the surface; and with that and the irri- gation from that tile drain, which is open at both ends, we think we get an abundance of moisture, except perhaps in the very driest of times. And it strikes me that that is something very like your irriga- tion. But we notice that where we have built tile drains 28 feet apart and open at both ends we do not suffer very much with drought in the driest of summers. | PROFESSOR PAINE. I want tospeak onthe matter of irrigation, the subject President Cooper assigned us, and state some practices of mine that relate both to surface irrigation with ordinary surface fur- rows and subsoil furrows at the same time. I do not like to cut the roots deeply in growing times, so I make my subsoil furrows quite near the center. I frequently make, near the center, about 3 feet apart, two subsoil furrows, from 12 to 14 inches‘deep. In that way I think I injure the growing roots as little as possible. And in preparing the ground for irrigation, at the same time I am going to run water through the subsoil furrows in the middle, I make two other furrows nearer the trees. So that all in all there are six furrows in the tree space—two of them near the row of trees and two in the middle. The object of so doing is that the subsoil furrows may provide water to tide over from one irrigation to the other, provided I don’t come to them at the right time and provided I have not given them sufficient water and evenly distributed it. And I find it is effective in that respect. But I know that in the line of a row, from tree to tree, there are a good many roots near the surface which I think do not get water from the percolation from the bottom and from the low depth of these subsoil furrows, and I therefore provide those four furrows near the line of the trees to wet the roots along the line of the rows, both about the trees themselves and in the space from tree to tree. And I think that in that way I provide for the greater part of the root surface as well as can be done by sur- -face irrigation at all. And it works very satisfactorily. - MR. WEEKS. I don’t know whether Mr. Stone referred to me or not when he spoke of irrigating in a single furrow. But I have irrigated that way for some time. I don’t irrigate in deep subsoil furrows, but in TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 61 shallow surface furrows—a single furrow in between the rows of trees. In setting the old seedling trees about twenty years or more ago they were placed about 28 feet apart. Then later, when I budded over to Navels, there was a small Navel tree set in the center of the four. That brought them 14 feet apart—7 feet from the furrow. And the water is run in that furrow. Before I had my own water I used to run it two days—twenty hours. Last summer I ran it forty-eight hours without stopping. I like this method very much. I was forced to it in the first | place. After plowing-under my green crop my ground was very rough. I could not make shallow furrows and carry the water. I had been in the habit of making three. I said: If I run the water in three furrows one day or in one furrow three days I would put on the same amount of water. So I thought I would reach it in that way. I like it for several reasons. One is it saves the trouble of covering up the wet ground. I don’t get much wet ground—a little on each side. If I turn the water off to-night, to-morrow morning I run alongside of it on the side where the furrow has been thrown up with a plow and throw that loose dirt back on the wet ground. Three days after that I run the cultivator through any depth I choose. I have had very good success running the water in that way. Asa proof of it, the first year I started to do so I had some young trees that had been set the fall before; that is, they were nine months old. That was three or four years ago. That summer those young trees got no other irrigation except that single furrow, and they did splendidly and grew well. They made a strong growth and con- tinued to look in fine condition throughout the season. So I take it for granted they are getting water enough. I have all kinds of soil, from the very lightest ash-heap to an adobe that will bake pretty hard—not the worst kind, but brown adobe. I have used the same system in all, and have had good success in all. I prefer, though, for oranges, a deep soil. While it is a little slower to start with, in my estimation you get a much finer and stronger growth and a much healthier tree. MR. STONE. That seems to me to be a thing worth threshing out. Tf it is enough for us orchardists to plow one furrow between our trees instead of three or four, it is saving us a lot of labor and a lot of money, and that is what we are all after. If there is any other experience that will confirm this, I should be glad, Mr. President, if you can extract it. MR. WEEKS. One word I didn’t mention. I have found after irrigating in a single furrow and forcing the water down that way and having it disappear entirely, that if vou take a shovel and dig down anywhere—and where there is no hardpan at all—you will find mois- ture when you get down a short distance. The soil was not dry around the trees. It was moist under the surface. It saves a large amount of - weed hoeing in summer. MR. BERWICK. How often do you apply water? 62 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. MR. WEEKS. [irrigated last season three times. The first irriga- tion was a very long and heavy one. I irrigated on twenty-one or twenty-two acres, equal to one hundred and fifty ten-hour days. But we had had three very dry years and I hadn’t enough water. But I had my own system that time and I put it on for keeps. MR. BERWICK. Have you stated how long the water stands in the ditches after you irrigate? MR. WEEKS. Last year I used it forty-eight hours, two twenty- four-hour days. DR. WOODBRIDGE. I was going to say that on my small orange orchard on Buena Vista street, an acre and a quarter of trees, twenty- six or twenty-seven years old, they are 21 feet apart, which makes them on the quincunx 15 feet apart; and they have been irrigated only with one furrow for the last three or four years. I subsoil nearly at right angles to the way the water runs. MR. HUTCHINSON. In our county, Fresno, to irrigate with as little water as you people do, I think we would get very little fruit. We have plenty of water there and we put it on. At the lower end of the ditches it has got a little too much for us, and the water is rising there and it has got very near the surface. But I have tried irrigation in the rows the way you indicate, between the grape roots, which are only 10 or 12 feet apart. But we find that it is better to run closer, next to the vines. We let the water in, and sometimes it runs in one place; where it comes out it may be on for three or four days, and the other places about twenty-four hours; and we find that we don’t have any too much water; we are ready to irrigate again in about six weeks. MR. BERWICK. On that land where your water table stands so high, do you still irrigate ? MR. HUTCHINSON. No, sir; we are draining instead. At this time a recess was taken until Wednesday, at 9:30 a. M. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 63 PROCEEDINGS OF SECOND DAY. WeEbNESDAY, May 6, 1903. Convention called to order. President Cooper in the chair. CURING AND MARKETING OF LEMONS. By C. C. TEAGUE, or SANTA PAULA. The past year has marked one of the greatest, if not the greatest, strides that has been taken in the lemon business since the shipping of lemons from California has assumed anything like commercial proportions—a stride that has been a complete revolution of old methods and one that is destined to have a far-reaching effect upon the future of the business. I refer to the open-air method, as it has been termed, of holding and curing lemons. Unfortunately about 75 per cent of our lemons are gathered in the winter and spring months, and up to last year the experience of our growers and shippers who had attempted to hold their fruit until the summer months had been so disastrous, on account of the heavy decay, that they had concluded that the most profitable way was to ship the fruit within from four to six weeks after gathering. The result was that the fruit was not equally distributed throughout the year, and at times the market would be so glutted that the shipper would get “red ink” for his shipment. Not being able to hold his lemons when the market was low, and having only a small percentage of his crop in the summer when the price is usually high, one can, perhaps, imagine how the lemon- growers’ books have been balancing at the end of the year, and will probably be able to answer the question often asked, Why are so many lemon groves being budded over to oranges ? The old style lemon house, and the one still used by many of our growers, is a double-walled, double-roofed affair, some of them having patent systems of ventilation, and others depending simply upon doors and windows. When attempting to hold lemons by this method, they are massed in the house and the fruit just picked given exactly the same ventilation as that which has been in the house severai months, when, as a matter of fact, lemons in different stages of curing require radically different treatment as regards ventilation. As a result of this treatment some of the fruit is usually wilted from receiving too much air, while the greater portion of it is badly decayed from receiving too little. 64 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. Proper ventilation is the keynote of success in keeping lemons, and after extensive and expensive experience along the old lines I assert ‘ that it is entirely impractical to hold lemons in large quantities, for any great length of time, by the old method. We have all been on the wrong track in believing a low temperature first in importance. If the venti- lation is right, the temperature will take care of itself. I have often said that the proper keeping point for lemons is just that point between where they will wilt and where they will sweat. The Limoneira Company of Santa Paula was the first to equip a house on the open-air plan, and as that company has the most extensive plant and the widest experience in this method, perhaps a description of its: lemon house and its methods may be of interest. To begin with, the lemons are very carefully picked, great care being taken in handling so as not to bruise the fruit. Rings 2,3 inches in diameter are used for winter picking and 24 inches for spring and summer, never more than six weeks being allowed to elapse between pickings, and the fruit is usually picked about once a month. By careful attention to this, desirable sizes and good keeping stock are obtained. I want to say right here that this is the weak point of over 90 per cent of the lemon-growers of California. I have just returned from a tour of the principal lemon-growing sections of the State, and I found, as I have always found, that the carelessness with which picking is done is almost criminal. In grove after grove which I visited at least 50 per cent of the value had been lost by allowing the fruit to hang on the tree too long. Not only on account of large sizes would it have to be discounted 50 cents per box, but the keeping quality of the lemon which is allowed to mature on the tree is never good. Good results can not be obtained, even by the best methods of keeping lemons, unless the fruit is picked at the proper time and carefully handled. A little illustration will, perhaps, be in point. Some time ago I visited one of our Southern California packing-houses, and they happened to be getting out a car of lemons at the time. I noted the rough, careless manner with which the fruit was being handled, and spoke to the manager about it, remarking that our fruit would not stand that kind of treatment, and asked him if he did not have trouble with decay. His reply was that they had practically no decay, and that their fruit was giving fine satisfaction. Before leaving, I took note of the car number and watched it in my bulletin. When the car arrived Kast, 25 per cent decay was reported. : The Limoneira Company’s house is 300 by 100 feet. The flooring is 2-inch planking, and the roof is covered with gravel paper roofing. The building has no sides whatever, allowing free circulation of air. The fruit for storage is put into regular shipping boxes, piled in blocks of 560 boxes. There is a double row of these blocks on either side of a TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 65 20-foot space which extends the entire length of the building, and which answers the double purpose of a work room and an air space. The . boxes are so piled as to permit of the circulation of air around each box. Each block of fruit is covered with a canvas 10 by 10 by 20 feet, made box shape and open at the four corners. The ventilation is con- trolled by the raising or lowering of this canvas, and each block of fruit can be given exactly the ventilation that it requires, irrespective of the other fruit in the house. By this method, fifty or even one hundred cars of fruit can be handled and kept in as good condition as if there was only one. Each block being numbered, a complete record of the lemons from each of the six sections of the ranch is kept from the time they are picked until shipped. The fruit is washed in a lemon-washing machine, and is piled up in the house wet just as it comes from the machine. The canvas covers are not dropped over it, however, until it is thoroughly dry. The Limoneira Company handled over one hundred cars by this method last year with perfect success, some of the fruit being kept for nearly six months in good condition. Nota lemon was shipped under ice, and no allowance was allowed nor claim made for decay, excepting on one car which contained weak stock and which by reason of a mis- take in transportation was nearly a month in transit. In this case 5 per cent deduction was allowed. There are, at the present time, about sixty-five cars of lemons in the company’s packing-house, and we do not feel the least uneasiness regarding it, knowing that by this method we are masters of the situation. Any one trying to handle that quantity of fruit by the old method would be gray-headed in a single season. We hear a great deal of late about sending our lemons East as soon as cut, there to be held in cold storage for a favorable market. I must say that I have no faith in that plan, and the following are a few rea- sons why I think it impracticable: First—The lemon when picked and handled properly should stand shipment to the Eastern markets without ice, and the ventilated lemon that arrives in good condition invariably gives better satisfaction than fruit that has been iced. True, sometimes fruit that is a little weak can be iced and be made to arrive in fairly good condition, and will, per- haps, sell well; but what does it do when taken out of the low tempera- ture of the car and subjected to the hot humid atmosphere of the East? It decays and goes in as evidence that California lemons are not good keepers. I believe that the keeping qualities of hundreds of cars of California lemons are injured every year by icing. In the early summer months a few cars of lemons will, perhaps, arrive in bad condition and the order will be sent out, “In the future, ice your cars,” and the shipper immediately goes to icing, regardless of whether the fruit to be shipped is hard, good keeping stock or not. If it is bad practice to refrigerate 5—F-GC 66 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. fruit in transit, it is certainly not good practice to put it in cold storage after it arrives in the East. Second—To be successful in the lemon business means eternal vigi-. lance as to care in handling so as not to bruise the fruit. When we who grow the lemon and are so deeply interested in having it handled properly have such difficulty in securing help that will handle it carefully, what could we expect when it went from under our watchful eye to the cold- storage plant in the Kast, there to be stored, sorted over, and repacked before going to our customers? Third—The expense of storage and repacking, freight on py Fourth—Why ship them East when they can be held here and shipped whenever it is necessary? But we do not want to hold all of our lemons. What we should do is to have them more evenly distributed throughout the year, and to sell them when we can get a fair price, and be able to hold them when we can not. If we can do this, and I think we can, and if we will strive to. pick our lemons carefully and at the proper time, handle them carefully all of the time, put up an honest, well-graded pack—if we will do these things, good market conditions are sure to follow, and we will. all find our lemon groves profitable. THE ORANGE FROM BLOSSOM TO CAR. By A. D. BISHOP, or ORANGE. First, there is the care of the orchard, and this should be in progress for several months in advance of the blooming season, so as to put the trees in condition for healthy bloom and to hold the fruit after it has formed. We should endeavor to accomplish this by continuous cultiva- tion; by irrigating frequently enough to insure continuous growth to the end of the growing season; and by fertilization if necessary, and this will be shown in the color of the foliage and also in the size of the leaves, for if the leaves cease growing before they have attained more than one fourth to one half their natural size under normal conditions, be sure something is lacking. The tendency of an orange tree is toover-bloom. This is very marked in some varieties, and so burdens the vitality of the tree as to render dropping of the fruit a necessity; and as the fruit is all alike the drop- ping frequently does not stop until all is gone, unless the trees are well fortified against it by the presence of sufficient available nitrogen in the soil and by other conditions of cultivation and moisture that there may be no check in the growth until the young fruit has attained con- siderable size. | -TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 67 The character of the soil has a very marked effect upon the quality of the fruit produced—much more than on the growth of the trees— ranging from the coarse, thick-skinned, over-acid fruits, usually puffy, grown on the heavy, compact soils slowly impervious to water, to the high-colored, smooth, tender-pulp fruits of the lighter alluvial soils. I feel certain that the quality of fruit produced can be materially changed by the addition of proper fertilizers. What they really are, and the best time for applying, can only be determined by careful tests of the orchard plots themselves; and while we have been in the business long enough to have demonstrated this, the fact remains that we have only recently begun these experiments on scientific lines and only in limited numbers, the average grower waiting for the experiment station or others to determine just what is proper todo. I fear we have given too little attention to the use of potash, being misled somewhat by the fact that chemical analysis has shown a fair percentage in the soil; but it is by no means certain that all that can be shown by chemical reac- tion is present in such form as to be readily available for the needs of the tree. The fertilizer question may be considered about like the following: Nitrogen, to promote the setting of the fruit; potash and phosphoric acid, for its proper development; and possibly iron, in small quantity, in some of its readily soluble compounds, to add depth to the color. And I am inclined to the desirability of applying them separately in their more concentrated forms rather than in the mixtures. It is hardly safe to depend entirely on stable manure as a means of fer- tilization. Be very careful not to allow trees to show the need of water in November, by waiting for the first rains, with plenty of water at your command, for it will be much more detrimental to the fruit to allow the trees to suffer for water at this time than it would be to allow them to suffer in August. - A matter of no less importance than the proper growing of fruit, is putting it into the hands of the consumer in a manner to give satisfac- tion; and it is of the greatest consideration that it should carry well. To insure this it must be handled carefully. The usual essayist writes: “Fruit should be handled like eggs,” and then recommends that pickers use sacks in which to place the fruit after picking it from the trees; but we never hear of a sack being recommended in which to carry eggs. The pickers generally use the sack with its contents of fruit as a cushion to keep themselves from coming in contact with the ladder; and we frequently see them with the patent open-bottom sack standing erect, allowing the fruit to drop two or more feet to the bottom of a picking- box. Generally the fruit is piled highin the boxes, and when they are moved they are dragged across the tops of each other rather then being lifted so as not to touch the fruit in another box. We are constantly 68 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. talking about care in handling, but the people we employ to do the work do not use such care as experience has taught is necessary, and, as I have beeninformed on remonstrating with a packer, “‘ we are not con- cerned about the grower.” In a lifetime of experience in handling practically every variety of fruit grown in this country, the orange is the only fruit product in which the custom is to face the top of the box and press the cover on rather than the bottom. The fact is, fruit does not carry nearly so well as it did ten or twenty years ago, before the advent of the machinery packing-house, wherein are concentrated large quantities of fruit, necessitating large gangs of pickers and packers, with the natural hurrah attending such matters; and before the use of the modern ventilator-refrigerator car, which as a protection from frost in winter or refrigeration in summer is all right, but as a ventilator car is a complete failure, since it must be in motion to be a ventilator at all, and as most cars are twice as long in transit as they were ten years ago it is evident they must stand still one half the time. Consequently we are driven to refrigeration six weeks earlier than we should be. In contrast to this we had a packing-house without machinery; thirty- five to fifty boxes was a day’s work for a packer, who wrapped the bottom row as carefully as he did the top; it was not considered neces- sary that the fruit should be packed two or more inches above the top edge of the box, to be pressed down with the cover; two or three days were required in getting the fruit from the tree to fill one car, instead of loading two cars in one day, and when loaded even into an old combina- tion stock car the fruit carried without complaint of it having been received in bad condition. Is this difference in carrying quality due to difference in handling, or is it possible that some constitutional difficulty has come to tree and fruit, due to the growth of large quantities for a long time in one section, as has attacked many other soil products when planted continuously on the same plots ? We are frequently reading that there need be no fear of over-produc- tion of good fruit, the writers of the articles imagining, I suppose, that in their districts only could such fruit be produced. If so, there will always be plenty of inferior fruit, which will largely make the price for all, unless it should be the policy of the railroads to maintain such a high freight rate that it would be impossible to send it to market except at a loss; and this is not impossible, since a prominent railroad official stated at the Interstate Commerce Commission investigation, that about a 10,000-car crop was more profitable to the railroad companies than a larger one. . The cost of getting our fruit to the consumer is unreasonably high; even according to the terms of the new merger the price charged is very TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 69 nearly $1.60 per box cash outlay, to which must be added the profits of jobber and retailer. The wages of employés, and other items entering into the cost of picking and marketing have steadily increased for a series of years, while the average selling price has declined. A FRUIT-GROWER’S WANTS AND DESIRES. By EDWARD BERWICK, or PAciFic GROVE. This paper professes to be simply an expression of individual opinion. One of the first things this fruit-grower wants is, he wants to know— to know where, after paying boom prices for land and water, after satis- fying the exactions of materialmen and laborers, of the beef trust, the oil trust, the lumber trust, after mollifying every other trust or distrust, and after guaranteeing the railroad and refrigeration companies all the - traftic will bear—he wants to know where the horticulturist comes in. Almost everything this much-enduring person needs has risen very considerable in value during the last few months (even the commission merchants in San Francisco have raised their charges 25 per cent), while, at the same time many orchard products have actually depre- ciated: the fruit-grower has had to furnish more money from a smaller purse. Obviously one of three things must happen: prices of necessaries must come down; prices of produce must go up; or the grower will go broke, the producer will fail to produce; for no man can continue in a business: that-will not support itself and him. What I want to know next is why, in the face of these conditions, does the fruit-grower aid and abet the circulation of boom literature in the Hastern and Middle States? Special instances of unusually favorable results, rarely achieved even under unusually favorable conditions, in unusually favored localities, are published broadcast, as though they were of every-day attainment all over the Coast. The result of this is, that people flock in under false impressions and thousands are bitterly disappointed and disgusted. The transportation companies, the chief circulators of this aforesaid boom literature, are the chief beneficiaries. Any one who declines to assist in this boom business is writ down “anpatriotic.’ Why? Why, even if a grower were doing as well as the printed matter would lead a reader to infer, should he invite all the world to come and compete with him in business? Who has ever heard of a lawyer, a grocer, a saloon-keeper, or even the editor of a newspaper, who had a good thing, rushing out into the highways and hedges to ask all the world to come and start as rivals in the sameoccupation? Then why is the non-booming fruit-grower alone singled out as “unpatriotic,” because he declines to grind the S. P. ax? 70 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. When you tell a gullible public of the big things you raise, tell them also of the big things so many of us can not raise—THE BIG MORTGAGE. If that has been true in the past, as many of you know but too well it has been, is it likely to be less true in the future, with increased expenses and diminished receipts ? One of my desires then is, to stop this fruit-boom foolishness. No doubt it will result in the survival of the fittest orchards and orchardists. Many of the misfits and unfit are already grubbed out or sold out. Meanwhile, the skilled horticulturist, on a well-selected orchard, finds life none too easy, because his failing competitor, though losing money, helps to glut a limited market; for, as our canners and shippers have realized, there is a well-defined limit, even to a “‘world market.” It does not take an overpowering number cf carloads of any kind of fruit to glut even Covent Garden market, in London, England. And the citrus fruit-grower knows, to his cost, that even if his market were unlimited, the railroad company’s equipment of suitable cars and engines is entirely too limited. Let the fruit-growers, then, send forth their fiat, that this misleading booming of their industry be stopped. Another want is a time-schedule on EHast-bound fruit-cars. The grower guarantees the freight charge before the car leaves the railroad depot. He pays for the service of transporting his perishable goods, expecting that that service will be some real service to him, and that his goods will be delivered at their destination in reasonable time. Through some inefficiency, mishap, or negligence, the goods are unduly delayed. Instead of a carload of salable fruit, a carload of mushy rottenness arrives at the terminus. The railroad company, in place of a service, has performed a non-service, a disservice. Surely, the very least it should be called upon to forfeit would be the charge made the grower for a real service. There is no valid reason why fruit trains should not make as good time as cattle trains. But this point was so fully discussed in a former paper at our last San Francisco Convention, and one of the cures for this inefficient service, government ownership of our railroads, occupied so large a space at a former Convention in this city, that I will not occupy your time with them now. : I want to remind you of what may seem, to some of you, more nearly present possibilities: possibilities not merely of cheap transportation, but of such a widening of markets as would almost justify the biggest boom you.ever imagined. Looking over the British postal guide a year or two ago, I was struck with the fact that in a list of countries covering some ten pages of that guide, andembracing names of places which you and I rarely hear pro- nounced, the United States was almost the only country with which there was no recognized “parcels post.” TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. fll Now, let me tell you what a comparatively insignificant republic can and does do in the way of postal facilities. Inside its own domains it carries letters up to one half pound, and delivers them at the house to which they are addressed for one cent, provided that house be within 64 miles of the nearest postoffice; beyond that distance, for two cents; and miles are long in the Swiss Alps, that region of lofty peaks and snowfields. But little Switzerland does more than this. Parcels up to 11 pounds weight are received in its postoffices and carried to any address indi- cated inside Swiss territory at rates as follows: iprbOnl all bets 228 eno! i rs a a a oe van eh Aes 3 cents. Over 1.1 lb. and up to 5.5 lbs. ---- Femi BRL Sse ve 2 ie ee tend 8 eeeene 5 cents. Ove ombsaanG wpstOgl Lillo, +t aie fy ee ei edt elt 8 cents, On larger parcels, up to 44 pounds, the rates from postoffice to post- office are: HTL TOE WO) PAP NS ee aI PRAT SU URES ay ee a RY, CEE gt AL TE a PO hae GEE 14 cents. DOM SeaLOR SRL DSc ere ets were ea ey Seale a ee No 20 Cents: B33 MOS, HO) GN Oe ga comic es barnett ey Reeser eunhan pik nae aM 5 a EN ethan em a a ob erie 30 cents. And for 3 cents additional these packages are delivered at the domicile. On September 1, 1900, Switzerland, Austro-Hungary and Germany extended their interstate parcels post to packages up to 110 pounds in weight, at rates composed of the combined rates of both countries. What is done in Great Britain you can read fully in this month’s “Cosmopolitan Magazine.” What not to do you can also find there. When their parcels post was instituted, 55 per cent of the receipts was conceded to railway companies for the mere carriage. So mistaken was this bargain, which ends in 1904, that the postoffice department has returned in part to mail-coaches (horse or motor), and by these vehicles 11,500,000 parcels are annually rescued from the rapacity of the rail- ways. Just one word as to Germany. The German farmer can send 110 pounds of produce post haste to any part of Germany or Austria for 60 cents. For 3 cents, or less, additional, the postoffice will collect its value and forward the cash to the sender of the goods. Now let me tell you in addition what rates other countries pay. The German pays 83 cents for an 1l-pound package to Aden. The Mexican pays 90 cents, and the American pays $4. To Argentina, in South America, the German pays 73 cents, the Mexican 58 cents, and the American $4.50. To Bosnia, in Central Europe, the German pays 13 cents, the Mexican 30 cents, and the American $4. To the Transvaal, which you have heard of in South Africa, it costs the German $1.90, the Mexican 28 cents, and the American $4.25. To Venezuela, the German pays $1.72, I believe it is, the Mexican 63 cents, and the American $5. 72 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. Now, gentlemen, what Mexico can do, I think we ought to be able to do, if we try hard. I read in the “‘Review of Reviews” that two wealthy men in Ireland are preparing to furnish that distressed country with auto-trucks, these big trucks to convey agricultural products. What they are able to do in a distressed country like Ireland you ought to be able to do here also. Now, gentlemen, you are the sovereign people; it rests with you to direct your servants to go and do likewise. When you can post two boxes of oranges to any part of the Union for 60 cents, and have them delivered as quickly as are newspapers and magazines, your transpor- tation question will be solved. What hinders? Railroad and express company lobbies, do you say? Yes! But, far beyond these, your own apathy and your blind devotion and docility to your party machine—a machine operated, as you know, by corporation money! You are full well aware that what is possible for Switzerland and Germany is possible for America. You must admit this, or accept the alternative, that our Government is inferior in this respect, at least, to the Govern- ment of Germany. Now, I want every voter here, and every voter in the United States, to join the Postal Progress League, and to pledge himself to vote only for such nominees for Congress as will promise to make it their business, first, last, and all the time, to insist on the immediate institution of an efficient parcels post. If our Postmaster-General does not know how, and will not learn how, let us import a Swiss, or a German, or a New Zealander, who does. Already 420,444,573 pounds of second-class matter are annually trans- ported by the American postoffice. That is more than three times the weight of California’s average transcontinental shipment of fresh decid- uous fruits. It is no doubt important to feed the mind. There is one thing prior in importance even to that, viz.: to feed the body. Bringing producer and consumer in touch through the postoffice solves not only the question of transportation, but also the whole question of marketing and middlemen. And these three questions of marketing, middlemen, and transportation I am sure every fruit-grower in this room wants, and wants badly, to see settled. It would pay the grower then, and I almost think it would pay him now, not to pack and ship frosted oranges and grass-green lemons; and one of this grower’s desires the past winter has been to find in Pacific Grove some brand of oranges he could be sure that Jack Frost had not already sucked dry, and some brand of well-cured, juicy lemons with which to brew, for his friends, the refreshing lemonade (in view of the fact that hard drinks are there held accursed). Steel roads and auto-trucks are another of the possibilities of the TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS CONVENTION. de future that this grower wants. Perhaps you think his wants are too great for the United States Treasury to satisfy. By no means! ‘There is one simple method of furnishing the postoffice with ample funds and equip- ping national steel roads. This grower wants to see the millions, now worse than wasted on an army for destructive purposes, utilized to uni- versal advantage on an army for constructive purposes. He wants to see America a world-power in the old sense of an enlightenment and example to other nations, and not a world-power in the Kuropean sense of a bullying exploiter and destroyer of weaker peoples, under the intolerant plea that their civilization is not our civilization. The worst possible infringement of the Monroe doctrine is the introduction into this hemisphere of European militarism, with its overbearing aristo- cratic tendencies, and its endless exactions on the scantily furnished purse of the toiler. This grower deplores the day when peurile jingoism discovered George Washington and the signers of the Declaration of Independence to be “back numbers.” He wants Washington’s warning words of parting to ring in the ears of every American, young and old; the words, viz.: that a “standing army is dangerous to the liberties of any nation and it is especially inimical to republican liberties.” “Were half the power that holds the world in terror, Were half the wealth bestowed on camps and courts, Given to redeem the human mind from error, There were no need of arsenals or forts.” This brings me to the last desire I have time now to express—a desire for a better education for all of us, old and young. I am a little dis- posed to think that what Mr. Collis P. Huntington once said of our educational system is true: ‘It teaches boys to talk instead of teaching them to work.” We have to learn to realize with the leader of the Roycrofters, that ‘‘He is best educated who is most useful”; and with President Jordan that ‘‘ Wisdom is the knowledge of what is best to do next; skill is showing how to do, and virtue is doing it.” In the past, we have let pedants and pedagogues tell us what was a true education. They, with their little stock-in-trade of Latin or Greek and the like, told us that the stuff they had to peddle was the genuine goods. So in my young days a man was not called “educated” unless he could lard his eloquence with extracts of ancient Greece or offer his hearers a fragment of Latin tongue. Now we laugh at such foolishness, and deem it conceited pedantry. But we still suffer our boys and girls to be dosed with the same mixture, under the pretext that it is necessary to a knowledge of our own language; when at the same time we know, on the word of his friend Ben Jonson, that the greatest master of English literature the world has ever known, William Shakespeare, had “small Latin and less Greek.” 74 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. It is safe to say, at least from the standpoint of this fruit-grower, that a knowledge of obsolete words is one of the least useful and least neces- sary things that a child can study. Let us drop from our school courses this remnant of monkish, medieval mummery, which has masked as enlightenment, while acting as a veil for the grossest ignorance. “Too long the night has lasted of darkness and depression, Of sorrow and of anguish, of wrong and black despair; ‘ Too long has error held us in bondage and oppression, And fear-begotten death-germs to vitiate the air.” Don’t let your children be educated as slaves to the superstitions of the past. The science of fruit-growing demands an acquaintance with almost all sciences from A to Z. This being so, do not permit their minds to be made what Kipling calls “perfect rag-bags of useless knowledge.” Now, then, you good people are the salt of the earth: Californians grow the best fruits in the world; and “by their fruits ye shall know them.” So we must be the best people in the world. If you good people concur in any or all of these my wants and desires, there’s just one thing to do: Put your shoulders to the wheel and push hard for their attainment. “Good times are made and fashioned of men’s souls.” They come as they are worked for. Neither,school boards nor legislatures, neither President nor Congress, will make any move forward except under the pressure of public opinion. It is for you—you salt of the earth!—not only yourselves to loudly express, but to concentrate the expression of public opinion by forming associations. And you must needs be both loud and persistent, for the corporations, in whose grip you are now clutched, know not only the value of clamor, but the uses of cash that talks and talks loud. I have come nearly 500 miles to say these things to you. J am sure you will not let it be labor in vain. PRESIDENT COOPER. We will now listen to the address on the subject of marketing citrus fruits, by A. H. Naitzger. : MARKETING CITRUS FRUITS. By A. H. NAFTZGHR, or Los ANGELEs. Mr. Chairman, and Ladies and Gentlemen: I think this is the first time that I have ever asked a Fruit-Growers’ Convention in California to listen to an extemporaneous talk from me. I have generally endeav- ored to concentrate what I had to say into a few suggestions on paper. Unfortunately for you, perhaps, as well as to my own dissatisfaction, I have been obliged, by circumstances that I could not control, to come to you this morning and try to make a few suggestions extemporaneously. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. ii If the programme of the morning has been carried out—and it is another misfortune of mine that I was not able to be here earlier—the fruit is now cured and on board the cars. J have no doubt it was well done up to that point, because, as Mr. Berwick has told you, nobody knows better, if indeed anybody else so well as Californians, how to grow the fruit and how to prepare it for market. It has long ago been demonstrated that the climate and the soil and the men of California are particularly and peculiarly adapted to grow the most luscious fruit on the globe and to get it ready for market. We always compliment ourselves, you know, in this way. It makes us feel good, and it does nobody else any harm. Now, after the fruit is on board the cars, the real difficulties begin. Years ago it was discovered by the growers of these fruits in California that while it was a very great advantage to grow good fruit and to pre- pare it well for market, there were still serious difficulties to contend with. Having discovered this, various methods were attempted to successfully market the crop. Harly in the history of the citrus fruit industry of California, when there were only a few thousand carloads in the whole State, the difficulty began to present itself, as it always does with the attempt to market any perishable product, especially when that product is located a long way from the consumers, as is our California citrus fruit. Efforts were made by the commercial and speculative packers to inaugurate a system of handling, to get together in some form of agreement among them- selves by which they would avoid the disasters of competition and inde- pendent operating. This was not very successful. A little later a portion of the growers organized themselves into what was called the Fruit Exchange, and sought, by methods under their own control, and by a machinery absolutely at their own domination and dictation, to market their products. Into this organization was gathered probably half of all the growers in Southern California and controlling approxi- mately half the product. This was measurably successful. You will pardon me if say that I believe that for years that organization was the only safeguard of the citrus fruit-growers of California. It was the only circumstance, it made the only condition, of possible successful growing of citrus fruits and converting them into money. But it was only measurably successful, because it did not draw to itself all or nearly all of the growers. A large proportion of the growers never identified themselves with the organization. In consequence, there were various methods of trying to do the business. The individual grower shipped on his own account, or consigned to the market. Some of them sold fruit to the commercial or speculative shipper. These various ship- pers were operating, as I have said, on an individual basis. Last year I think there were more than seventy-five of them in the field in addition 76 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. to the Exchange, more than seventy-five shippers of citrus fruits out of California. No one of the seventy-five knew what the others were doing. Each of the seventy-five was striving for the best market. Generally each of them knew about as much as the others, and if any market was fairly good, everybody made a plunge for that market, and the market that was best immediately became the poorest in many cases. It is not necessary for me to go at length into a discussion of these points; you are familiar with them; you know to a certain extent what it means. But let me give you a significant illustration of it. By-and-byI will speak to you of a later organization, which took effect on the first of April of this year, and when that organization took charge of the marketing business of the various factors that merged into it, everybody had more or less fruit unsold in the markets, and this was all put together for the purpose of clearing the atmosphere, and it was found that in a single city one of these shippers, and not the largest of the lot, either, had forty-five cars of fruit on the sidetracks, a good deal of it badly decayed. Now, this was only one of quite a considerable number of shippers who combined in this organization, and, as I have said, it was not the largest by any.means. But it illustrates the condition of things. Everybody had a lot of fruit on the sidetracks in that city. Hundreds of cars were there at that time unsold, and all of them weighting down the market; all of them, or a large proportion of them, more or less decayed and becoming weaker every minute and depressing the market every minute more and more. As I have said, everybody operating on his own account, everybody struggling to get his fruit disposed of, everybody hunting the man who would buy a ear of fruit, and the man who had any disposition to buy a car of fruit knew that there were a vast number of cars on the sidetrack and he was in no hurry. The holder of it would be quite as anxious to-morrow as he was to-day, and the prices would surely not go up over night. So that the shipper was at the mercy of the buyer and at the mercy of his competitor, and the growers were at the mercy of them all. Now, I have not overdrawn the picture. This is a circumstance that is familiar to everybody who has ever attempted to market a perishable product, whether it was fruit or something else. I have perhaps suffi- ciently traced the history of these undertakings. They were to a certain extent successful. When the product was limited and the demand was strong, the fruit could be sold at a fair price. When the product increased and became large and was a little weak in itself, in its carry- ing qualities, or for any other reason, the markets were sluggish and the prices were low. And of course, since our product was steadily increas- ing, since we had more and more from year to year, with every prospect of very much more in the near future, the problem became serious as to what was to become of our citrus fruit industry. Out of those condi- TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. TH. tions came the negotiations, in the month of March of this year, for a consolidation of interests. I have said that a good many people were operating independently, and the Exchange was handling approximately half the shipments. I shall not go into the details of these negotiations. They lasted for days and nights, for weeks. They involved a great deal of thought, consideration, deliberation, concession, and sinking of differ- ences and trying to get together for the protection of the industry itself. Some of these factors were speculative factors, some of them were people not growers, but interested simply by reason of their investments, who had been buyers and shippers and had been receiving on consignment, - and so forth. Allof these things had to be taken into account and some basis reached by which the business could be transacted and nobody forced out and nobody hurt. The result was the organization of the California Fruit Agency, which is essentially and simply a marketing medium, and that only. It has no power under its charter to buy fruit or to speculate in any product whatsoever. Into this organization was absorbed the Southern California Fruit Exchange, the principal ship- pers and packers of fruit, and the growers if they chose to come into it. In order to put thisat the service of the growers, the parties formerly operating independently of the Exchange immediately proceeded to organize what they called the California Citrus Union, for the purpose of single management of their packing operations. The shippers became packers only. They put at the service of the growers their packing facilities, charging them a flat figure for packing and selling. And this figure—I think you will agree with me, as you probably know exactly what it is—is materially less than the same packers and shippers were previously charging the growers for transacting their business. This is perhaps an important factor, but it is not the most important. It is not so important to the grower that the expense should be reduced one or two or three or four or five, or even ten cents a box on his product, as that the market should be protected and that he should be able reasonably to get the value of his product. That is of much more importance. It was a matter of small consequence whether he paid forty or fifty cents for the packing and selling, if there was no margin over that. The important thing was that the markets be so steadied, if possible, that he may have a margin of profit for his industry. Now, the object to be sought in this combination was not the profit of the packer. It was to so control the distribution of the product as to put no more fruit into any one market than it required and to leave no market unsupplied. You can quite understand that the Exchange, having been operating for years without any profit to anybody—I mean by that in the shape of earnings—it was doing business at absolute cost, for the growers, and in the nature of things could not change this basis, so far as its growers were concerned, and therefore the interests of the 78 ' TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. Exchange would naturally be to continue a basis of equity to the grower. The other parties to the agreement, if they secure and hold for themselves the support of the growers and continue to pack their fruit, must also insist that the basis be equitable to the producer. And I am here prepared to say that I think that result was accomplished. The California Fruit Agency is now, after thirty days’ operation, hand- ling perhaps a little more than 80 per cent of the shipments out of California. We are not handling all, because it takes a little time to accomplish these results; but day by day we are increasing the per- _centage, and I think that before the season has closed we shall have a very large proportion of all the growers connected with this marketing system. . I think I have said about enough covering these main points. You asked me to talk about marketing citrus fruits. I have sketched the field; I have touched the high places, and I have told you of the final effort now operating to make a marketing system for every grower of citrus fruits. AndI will say this further: that this system is at the service of every citrus fruit-grower in California. We have agencies of our own in every important city in the United States and Canada. Scattered everywhere are our own agents introducing this fruit. We believe that through this system we shall be able to get a larger demand; that is, we shall introduce the fruit everywhere. Our agents will hunt every possible corner of the United States and in foreign countries as” rapidly as it is necessary, to find people who will eat California oranges and consume California lemons. Ihave no hesitancy in saying that we shall be able, by reason of the volume of the business, at a moderate expense, to introduce the fruit into wider consumption than it has ever had before. And this is one of its primary purposes, because, with the increasing product, the first year that we have a full crop in Cali- fornia we shall exceed thirty thousand cars, beyond any question. Florida is coming back to us pretty rapidly with an increase in her | product, and we are menaced more or less with the importations from the islands on the south and a little from abroad; not very much from the Mediterranean except as to lemons, and we would not have that if © we cured enough of our own. What we want is more lemons in Cali- fornia, and not less. Now, I think I shall give you an opportunity, if you desire, to ask me any questions in relation to marketing citrus fruits. I do not know anything about marketing citrus fruits to-day except the effort of the California Fruit Agency to market all the fruit for all the growers in California. If there is any other method I do not know anything about it. | PRESIDENT COOPER. Any questions you wish to ask will now be in order. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 79 MR. STONE. I would like to ask Mr. Naftzger if there is any change whatever with regard to the California Fruit Hxchange—as to its original members? MR. NAFTZGER. None whatever. The Exchange remains exactly as it has been heretofore. MR. STONE. And do I understand, Mr. Naftzger, that the other shippers who have amalgamated with you will cease to buy fruit, or are they open to go into the orchards and buy fruit as they originally did? MR. NAFTZGHR. They tell me they have no expectation of buying fruit. They are putting their packing facilities at the service of the growers, to be marketed for their-account. MR. STONE. Why I mention that is, that there is a very serious weakness if independent buyers can go into the field before the crops are ripened and attack men who are badly in need of money and induce those men to accept money on their crops. Now, I do hope to impress upon Mr. Naftzger and everybody concerned that, if possible, that system shall cease and I hope it may cease. It will be for the interest even of the poor rancher who is hard up for money sometimes, that this advance shall not be made, and that the buyer shall not go into the orchards and attack weak men in this. way and fasten themselves onto them in such a manner that they can not get rid of them. I hope that if it has not been done already, some means will be adopted to prevent that. It may for the moment tide that man over his seeming difficulties, but it will seriously injure him; and not only that, but seriously injure every other grower whether he takes money from the buyer or not. That isa point I should like thoroughly cleared up. Idon’t suppose Mr. Naftzger’ can compel them not to buy fruit—I don’t see how he can; but if they buy it, there is an alternative for that, which I have urged time and again, and that is that the local associations shall be so active in all the deals as to see that if such men are attacked, they, themselves, shall also attack them, and in order to prevent these men getting in the hands of independent shippers, they shall themselves advance the money to the growers and tide them over the event, so as to prevent in the future what has been such a manifest, such a transparent disaster in the past and which led to the Fruit Exchange and to Mr. Naftzger’s exchange. And while saying this, I will say I can not help feeling and saying that in Mr. Naftzger’s personality I seem to almost see the redeemer of the citrus industry. (Applause.) MR. NAFTZGER. I will say, Mr. Chairman, that there is no factor connected with the California Fruit Agency—and I think I am perfectly safe in saying no factor connected with the California Citrus Union—that is buying a pound of fruit, or offering to buy it, from anybody, and has no intention of offering to do it. There might come a condition later on where, in order to protect ourselves, it might be necessary for some- 80 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. body to buy the fruit; that is, in order to keep it from being marketed in the reckless way that business has been done heretofore. What we want is the control of the fruit when it is on board the cars. That is the thing we want, and when we have got that, the disaster back of that is the disaster to the individual grower who sold it for less than it was worth. And I don’t think anybody will pay him any more. I don’t think there is anybody in this business, from now on, for chari- table purposes. And so, if the grower is forced to sell, as Mr. Stone has suggested, it will be at a low value; and there is no factor connected with this marketing agency that has any inclination to take this advan- tage of the grower. We want the grower to bring his fruit into the marketing system and get its value less the cost for marketing. That is what we want. As you are very well aware, the Exchange was here for years trying to induce every grower to come into the Exchange, where the charge to him for marketing was the absolute cost and not one cent more, and he got the difference. But if there should come a circumstance or condition of things under which it might be absolutely necessary to buy in order to protect ourselves, the fruit might be bought. But even then, it must be marketed through the agency, and that is the one important factor—the control of the product after it is on board the car. MR. STONE. Iam much obliged for that explanation. One more point, as Mr. Naftzger is at the head of this organization, as I under- stand it: Suppose that such circumstances as I have shadowed forth should take place; will that be within your cognizance, Mr. Naftzger, or could it be done without your cognizance? MR. NAFTZGER. Not necessarily with mine. It might be done without. As I have already endeavored to state, the Exchange mem- bership remains intact; no disturbance of that whatever. The Citrus Union, which is the combination of all the other factors that came into this agency, and which is essentially another exchange, slightly differing from the old one of course, that organization puts its packing facilities, packing-houses, all over California, at the service of the growers, and seeks to bring them into that organization to have their fruit marketed through it. Now, if they found anywhere that they were menaced by outside influences, by speculative influences that sought to come into their territory, they might be obliged, under these conditions, to buy some fruit. JI don’t think that situation is likely to arise; but it is a possible condition, and I should most likely know of it, but it would not necessarily fall under my notice. MR. THOMPSON. I understand that the buyers’ association, or the buyers’ part of the general organization, has a right to receive only 50 per cent of the fruit, and that we as aco-operative association, at present control somewhere in the neighborhood of 43 per cent. Now, I would TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 81 like to know if the association has the right to receive the balance of this fruit uncontrolled to the extent of their 50 per cent in conjunction with the 50 per cent that the buyers’ association has a right to receive? MR. NAFTZGER. Of course this is getting into deep water. But nevertheless we have endeavored to make this organization so that there is nothing under cover at all, so that there is nothing mysterious about it. You can readily see that when we undertook to bring into one combination factors which had hitherto been discordant or antago- nistic, one of them operating on a purely co-operative basis at cost and the other speculative in character or operating for a profit, we had a difficulty to overcome. The co-operative members could not be put upon a profit-bearing basis, naturally.. The others could not be put upon an absolutely co-operative basis, else they would go out of busi- ness. You can readily see that the man who has got his money invested in packing-houses over the country, if he continues to operate at all, must operate at a profit. There is no use pretending that he doesn’t, because he expects to have his profit. Hitherto he has been charging the grower from 45 to 50 cents per box for packing and market- ing his fruit. To-day he is charging him 31 cents for packing and 83 cents a box for marketing, or, in gross, 894 cents as compared to 45 and 5() formerly charged. That isa material lessening. But, asI have said to you, the important thing is not the reduction in the cost of operating so much as in the steadying of the markets. Well, now, if the Ex- change was thrown open under this consolidation, you can see what would happen in the nature of things: nine out of every ten of all the people outside, probably, would come to the HWxchange operating on a co-operative basis, and the other man is put out of business. That we could not do. Now, he says to us: “You are only interested in your members, aren’t you? What interest have you in the people who have never been with you? You have been trying here for years to induce the fruit-growers to come into the association, and how can you claim any interest in those who have refused tocomein ?” There isno answer to his question. We may have an incidental interest in our neighbors’ children, but we have much more in our own. And when we have pro- vided for our own families, we have pretty nearly done our primary duty. Idon’t mean by that that we ignore other people; and we did not. Buthe says: “Then maintain your status. All you have a right to ask is to provide for your own members.” And wé did. We pro- vided perpetually, or so long as this organization lasts, for the marketing of every pound of fruit of every member of every organization or association connected with the Exchange in the State of California. Now, he says: ‘As we have hitherto been operating with the rest of the growers outside of the Exchange, we propose to put at their service these packing facilities, and offer them the marketing agency, the Cali- 6—F-GC 82 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. fornia Fruit Agency, at much less cost than we have ever charged them for operating before; and we submit that it isa fair proposition.” It looked so to us—in any case, gentlemen, it was the best thing that could be accomplished under the circumstances. Now, I will goa step further. Mr. Thompson says that he under- stands that the outside combination is entitled to take 50 per cent of the growers and we maintain our status, which is something between 40 and 50 per cent. Now, that leaves a ditference, a remnant in there. What about that? Well, now, this is the situation: When they have obtained their 50 per cent, then we may take into consideration how the others might be equitably provided for, to strengthen a weak asso- ciation that is operating to some disadvantage here and there. I don’t know just how it can be worked out. But our theory was this: The growers up to 50 per cent have their opportunity to come into the Citrus Union. There is no ironclad rule that they may not have any more, but that is the basis. Now, after they have obtained their 50 per cent and we have taken care of our membership on the present basis, we have got still 10 per cent to figure on. Ji they want to come into this» Agency, then we say: “Here, in this community, it would be better for the Union to maintain a packing-house. The product is small in this community; it would be better forthe Union. There can not two operate. In another community there is a small association in the Exchange operating at some disadvantage because it is small. Strengthen that up a little in order to permit the Exchange to operate advantageously for the growers.” That is the basis—trying to harmonize and to work together in this interest. I don’t tell you exactly how it will work out, because I don’t know. Some of these growers will probably never identify themselves with either. There is always somebody in a com- munity who knows more than all of his neighbors (laughter and applause), and just what may become of him I am not able to say. When he becomes a menace to us, we will have to do like the President said. You remember, when the doctors were scraping the bone in the President’s shin after he was hurt in Massachusetts—was it?—and it was hurting a good deal, he said: “I feel as though I would like to have another talk with that motorman up there in Massachusetts.” (Laughter.) Now, it may come to pass that after we have got along to that point we may want to have another talk with that grower who knows more than everybody else. But we will cross the bridge when we get to it. J have tried frankly to answer your questions. And I want to say to you now, don’t let anybody make you think that there is anything under cover in this movement. And I am prepared to say to you, in behalf of everybody connected with the Exchange, that there is not an element in it that is not straightforward and square in every particular. ‘There is TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 83 nobody to be hurt, and there is no contemplation of making war on anybody, anywhere, for any reason. If the growers of citrus fruits in California wish to make this undertaking a successful marketing agency, they can doit. If the growers get up and howl and “won’t play,” then of course itis up to them. (Applause.) MR. STONE. Mr. President, just one more question, with regard to this membership. Of course Mr. Naftzger will be operating for the present members, it seems. But they will die, and go out, and how will the present proportion be maintained? Will it be by selection, or how? MR. NAFTZGER. Perhaps I ought to have said that in addition to its present membership, the Exchange is permitted perpetually to make good its withdrawals by taking new members. It takes its full propor- tion of all new orchards as they come into bearing; so that it maintains its status in that manner. For instance, if it loses a member by with- drawal, or by the death of a man, unless his family comes into the inheritance and continues with the Exchange, it can solicit another member and take him in, in order to maintain its strength and holding, in order to continue its packing at fair expense. In other words, in every particular it is contemplated that the existing status of the Exchange and its associations be perpetually maintained. MR. STONE. I wonder if Mr. Naftzger would mind saying whether he is likely to do anything with regard to foreign markets and would like to shadow out anything to this Convention? Thatis very important. MR. NAFTZGHR. I will say that we have the question of foreign markets constantly under consideration. The Hxchange established an office last fall in London, and has been corresponding with other foreign countries, such as Germany and Scotland, and so on. We did not attempt much of anything in France, because the duty is pretty high in France. The duty is high in portions of Germany, but some of the cities of Germany are free cities. But we have that constantly in mind. We did only a little exporting, because we didn’t have the class of fruit that was wanted abroad; and we don’t have this year. We had big sizes enough this year, but they were not very desirable. What the foreign market requires, so far, is large sizes of fancy stock. But I assure you that we shall leave nothing undone to open the markets as rapidly as it is possible to do so. PRESIDENT COOPER. I desire to announce that the committee to prepare a memorial to be presented to President Roosevelt on his arrival in Los Angeles will meet here to organize immediately after the close of this morning’s session. The essays you have heard read are now before the Convention for discussion. MR. BERWICK. I have a resolution here I would like to read before being offered to the committee, if I may do so. 84 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. PRESIDENT COOPER. Read it. | MR. BERWICK. I would like to say that this is the Fruit-Growers’ Declaration of Independence,in myopinion. (Applause.) I will read the resolution: WueErzEAs, The public need of an efficient domestic and foreign parcels post is so obvious as to require no argument; and WueErEAS, This favored nation lags far behind Old World nations, and even behind the republic of Mexico, in regard to postal facilities; and WHEREAS, The Postmaster-General, by and with the consent of the President, has power to conclude parcels post conventions with any foreign government; be it Resolved, That we, the Fruit-Growers of California, in convention assembled at Los Angeles, this 6th day of May, 1903, respectfully urge on our President and Postmaster- General to take the necessary steps for the conclusion of such parcels post conventions with all nations willing to reciprocate in the matter. We also urge upon Congress the imperative need for such immediate action at its next session, as shall enable our Postmaster-General to establish a system of parcels post, at least equal to those systems it has been found possible to operate successfully in Mexico, Switzerland, Germany, and elsewhere. Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be handed to President Roosevelt during his visit to this city, and a copy be sent by our Secretary to the Postmaster-General, and to every member of Congress. The resolutions were reported favorably by the Committee on Resolu- tions and adopted by the Convention. PROFESSOR PAINE. Mr. Chairman, I have another resolution to offer, and move its adoption: WHEREAS, The official position held for a period of twenty years by the President of the State Board of Horticulture has been efficient and satisfactory; therefore, Resolved, That the twenty-eighth State Fruit-Growers’ Convention of California hereby extends its thanks to Governor Pardee for his appointment, under the new law, | of the Honorable Ellwood Cooper as State Commissioner of Horticulture. Resolved, That the Secretary of this Convention is requested to communicate this resolution to the Governor. PROFESSOR COOK. I would like to second that mation. The motion was unanimously adopted by a rising vote. MR. KOETHEN. I believe discussions are in order on the papers that have been read. I wish to say something in the nature of a chal- lenge to one remark made by Mr. Bishop in his paper; and if I am wrong I think we ought all to know it. He makes the statement that fruit raised on heavy soils is not equal to fruit raised on light soils, speaking of oranges. I have been taught, ever since I have been in California, that the most marketable fruit has come from the heavy soils such as you find in the red soils in Redlands and Riverside and other places. If I am wrong in this, I wish to be corrected; but I believe that the statement made in the essay is not in accordance with the facts. PROFESSOR PAINE. The writer used the term “alluvial” as not being the best soil on which to raise fruit. It seems to me to be recog- TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 85 nized the wide world over that the alluvial soil is not the best soil for the raising of fruits. It is a good soil, but not the best for high qualities of fruit. Fruit grown thereon is apt to be too coarse, too heavy, and with large cells. MR. GRIFFITH. Mr. President, I suppose that largely the transla- tion of this remark would depend upon “what kind of land I have got”; that each of us thinks we have the best conditions to raise the best oranges. In our own district, I believe that most of us have agreed and concluded that the lighter soil will produce a finer-skinned orange and a better keeping orange than the heavier soil, and that is probably because it is easier worked. I don’t think there is any difference, really, between the two kinds of soils; but it is easier to handle a light soil, and consequently people can make an easier success of growing finer- skinned and better keeping oranges on lighter soils than on the heavier soils. For my part I much prefer lighter soils for growing oranges. PRESIDENT COOPER. I would like to say that there is some sandy soil that furnishes more plant food than any other kind of soil. Certain sandy soils are very rich in plant food. MR. GRIFFITH. Mr. President, I have a resolution.that I would like to read, for the sake of discussion, and then have it referred to the Committee on Resolutions. If I read it now, with the permission of the President, it is simply to get light, perhaps, on the subject, now that we can have more time to discuss it than when the Committee on Resolu- tions reports. I don’t wish to have the resolution adopted, but would like to read it for the sake of discussion. PRESIDENT COOPER. Read it. MR. GRIFFITH. The resolution is as follows: WuHeErEas, By competent testimony before the Interstate Commerce Commission, sitting in Los Angeles one month ago, it was established that the transportation com- panies’ freight rates were so excessive and the time consumed in the transit of fruit- laden cars so unreasonably long as to leave the fruit-grower no margin of profit; be it Resolved, That this Convention of Fruit-Growers, assembled at Los Angeles this 6th day of May, 1903, demands a time schedule on East-bound fruit-cars, not to exceed six days to Chicago and nine to New York, with a maximum rate of $1.25 per hundred- weight, with a rebate of 10 per cent per day for each day of delay, and compensation for any decay of the transmitted fruit; be it - Resolved, That we recognize the intention of the railroad companies to foster the lemon interests by granting an emergency rate the past winter, and believe it to be their true policy to encourage the continuance of the whole citrus industry by a gradual reduction of the freight tariff. Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be forwarded by the Secretary to Hon. C. A. Prouty, Interstate Commissioner. The resolutions were referred to the Committee on Resolutions. MR. HOFMAN. I have frequently heard and read of Mr. Teague’s articles on lemons, and I would like to ask one thing. He deals largely with the climatic conditions of his own immediate neighborhood, I think. Now, were he to try this tent proposition in our country, I think ® 86 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. it would prove a failure. I would just like to hear what he thinks him- self. Ours is a high altitude. MR. TEAGUE. How far do you live from the coast? MR. HOFMAN. About forty miles from here. MR. TEAGUE. Your climate is not very different from the climate of Riverside, is it? MR. HOFMAN. No. MR. TEAGUE. The Arlington Heights Fruit Company have been in successful operation in their district. You can visit them any time. I judge they have just about the same climatic conditions that you have. MR. HOFMAN. I presume so; yes. MR. TEAGUE. Look up Mr. Little, of the Arlington Heights Fruit Company. He will show you what he is doing there. He has one of their packing-houses built on this plan, and it is in successful operation. He informed me the other day, when I was there, that he was very well * pleased with it. MR. HOFMAN. He has not tried it through one summer season though, has he? MR. TEAGUE. I was there last year, and he had lemons out in tents without even a shelter that I saw; the fruit had been there three months, three of the late spring months, and the lemons were in fairly good condition—surprisingly so to me, the way they had been treated; but the fruit so far is in excellent condition. Understand, when your hottest weather comes on, that then is the time when you want to be putting your lemons on the market. That is not the time you have got to keep them through. It is through the spring months, up to, say, June, and then you have got to begin to take them out if you get them into market. MR. GRIFFITH. I would like to ask Mr. Teague—you say the tents are 10 by 10 by 20 feet. Are they 10 feet high? MR. TEAGUE. ‘Ten feet high, 10 feet wide, and 20 feet long. MR. GRIFFITH. And then you have your building up high, raised 10 feet high off of those poles? MR. TEAGUE. No, sir; the canvas is open at the corners. They lace on the same principle asa shoe. Just unfasten the corners and throw the curtains up. MR. GRIFFITH. How far apart do you pile your boxes? MR. TEAGUE. It depends upon the climatic conditions that they areunder. If you have a dry climate, a windy climate, you would want to pile them closer. If you have a moist, damp climate, you would want to be able to give them plenty of ventilation. I would not pre- scribe any special number of inches apart. MR. BLANCHARD. Answering this gentleman here, I saw in Cuca- monga, I think in his own section, years ago, some lemons that were ee TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 87 stored away in the end of a shed—not a great quantity—covered up with paper and sacks. The owner told me they were put in there in December. I saw them in July. He went into the shed to exhibit the lemons to me, and I never saw better lemons in my life, or better cured- They had been there from December until July, and were kept practi- cally under the same conditions that we are now trying. They were kept there six months. At this time a recess was taken until 2 o’clock this afternoon. AFTERNOON SESSION—SECOND DAY. WepnEspDAy, May 6, 19038. The Convention was called to order at 2 o’clock. Vice-President Griffith in the chair. VICE-PRESIDENT GRIFFITH. Gentlemen, we will first take up the matter of the question box. We have a couple of questions here we wish to have answered. ‘‘ What about dust spray for orchards?” MR. PEASE. We took up the question of dust spraying for the purpose of trying it on our apple trees. On some of our apple orchards we have red spider, in the mountain districts, and the commencement of the codling-moth. The dust spray was highly recommended, and a Mr. Ford of Redlands has used two or three different machines which were sent to him on trial. The dust is a preparation of lime, paris green, bluestone and something else, I think—sulphur, perhaps—and it is claimed that the lime would carry it and it would stick to both sides of the leaves, no matter what the climate. But we have tried it in the mountain districts where there are no fogs, and it is a failure. In places where it has been tried on lower ground I have heard it said that the dust would be so thick that it would absolutely stick to both sides of the leaves. But so far, with us, we have had to give it up on the apple orchards. | VICE-PRESIDENT GRIFFITH. The next question is: “How does compressed air compare with common pumps for raising water?” PROFESSOR COOK. We have a good many of both around us, and with a single plant it is probably better to have the common pump. But where you have a number of wells quite different from each other, the compressed air is a great deal better, and gives satisfaction. But itis very expensive, except where you have a good many wells. We havea large number of wells which are managed by the pump at Claremont, 88 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. and they are wide apart—a mile apart, I believe. They have given excellent satisfaction. It is pretty expensive at the start, but it makes up for that by the reduction of expense in management and in running afterward. , . VICE-PRESIDENT GRIFFITH. Tell us under what conditions compressed air is useful. Itis not satisfactory under all conditions, is it? PROFESSOR COOK. It is desirable where the wells are wide apart. VICE-PRESIDENT GRIFFITH. Another condition that is neces- sary to make compressed air successful at all is a given depth of water. I think that double the depth of water to the lift is required to make compressed air successful, and that is not always to be had. Where it is to be had, I think compressed air is economical under certain con- ditions. We have another question here that is a perennial inquiry, or an inquiry every time we have the fruit-growers together, I think. It is contained in a long letter, which I won’t take the time to read. It is addressed to Professor Cook, and asks him to bring before this audience the question of variegated leaf. The gentleman does not want theories, but practical experience. He has such leaves and he wants to get rid of them before he goes on planting more fruit. Will Professor Cook tell us how to get rid of the variegated leaf? PROFESSOR COOK. Some say cold water makes variegated leaf, and I think near Claremont cold water has caused variegated leaf. I know of fruit trees put in a sheep corral, and those trees had a very bad case of variegated leaf. I think if anything affects the health of the tree, or if the tree gets too much or too little water perhaps, it will make variegated leaf. Anything that brings ill health to the tree—lack of proper nourishment, for instance—will causeit. I believe around Clare- mont the variegated leaf is caused by cold water. Variegated leaf is like a man who is pale—there is something the matter with him. MR. SCOTT. One cause of variegated leaf is lack of nourishment in the soil. J have an orchard at Duarte that fifteen years ago had this variegated leaf, and it gave me a great deal of trouble. Not only the leaf variegated, but the fruit was very often small and split. I con- sulted with one or two chemists, and they told me that if I would apply iron to the soil it might have a good effect. I used this stuff called “ferris,” from the Woodbridge Fertilizing Company, and used it two years, and to-day I have only one tree that has variegated leaf. As to irrigation, or want of irrigation, I don’t think that has anything at all to do with it, for the reason that in the same row of trees and with the same amount of cultivation and amount of water given one with another, you will find one tree with variegated leaves and the others absolutely free from it. So I don’t think that has anything to do with it. But I must say that in my own experience this sulphate of iron applied to the TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 89 soil cured my trees. I have only one tree on the place now, out of twenty acres, that has a sign of variegated leaf. MR. KOETHEN. I have an idea that Professor Cook struck the keynote exactly. It may be from one of a dozen causes. VICE-PRESIDENT GRIFFITH. Professor Cook’s theory meets a circumstance of my own that I was going to mention. I recollect inci- dentally a couple of trees, or a tree here and there on my ranch, that had been cut down to be budded. In some cases I noticed that the branch which had been pruned had budded out, and perhaps the bud had failed, and that that branch was throwing out a very sickly, miserable-looking spotted leaf, evidently coming from a wound there, from a condition of weakness, a lack of something. It came from the wound in that part of the tree, very evidently, the rest of the tree being of a very good color. We now come to the programme for the afternoon. I am requested to invite Mr. Rowley to speak this afternoon on the report of the Com- mittee on Labor, on the subject of farm labor, put into his hands by the twenty-seventh Fruit-Growers’ Convention. REPORT OF COMMITTEE ON FARM LABOR. MR. ROWLEY. As secretary of the California Tuploynaeay Com- mittee, I submit the following report for consideration: Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen of the Twenty-eighth Annual California Fruit-Growers’ Convention: GENTLEMEN—At the twenty-seventh California Fruit-Growers’ Convention, held in San Francisco in December, 1902, the Hon. H. P. Stabler contributed a paper dealing with the question of farm labor in California, and in that paper recommended that a committee of fifteen be appointed for the purpose of perfecting plans whereby an organized effort might be made to induce young men and men with families in the agricultural districts of the Eastern States to come to California to reside and engage in orchard and farm work. That committee, so far as possible, was to represent the various fruit districts of the State. In conformity with this idea the following committee of fifteen was appointed: T. H. Ramsay, Red Bluff; A. B. Humphreys, Mayhews; Thomas Jacob, Visalia; A. D. Bishop, Orange; B. N. Rowley, San Francisco; G. H. Hecke Woodland; E. W. Woolsey, Fulton; F. H. Swett, Martinez; Frank Wiggins, Los Angeles; J. F. McIntyre, Ventura; B. H. Hutchinson, Fowler; G. H. Cutter, Sacra- mento; Robert Hector, Newcastle; F. B. McKevitt, Vacaville; H. P. Stabler, Yuba City and L. F. Graham, San José. This committee without delay took up the matter assigned to it, and selected the Hon. H. P. Stabler as temporary chairman. Mr. Stabler issued a call for the entire committee to meet on December 11th at Paso Robles Hotel, Paso Robles, a quiet spo where the committee could deliberate without fear of interruption. Twelve members of the committee responded to the call, as follows: T. H. Ramsay, Thomas Jacob, A. D. Bishop, B. N. Rowley, G. H. Hecke, E. W. Woolsey, Frank Wiggins, J. F. McIntyre, B. E. Hutchinson, G. H. Cutter, F. B. McKevitt, and H. P. Stabler, and the work of organization was.at once proceeded with. The committee held several sessions during the three days that it remained at Paso Robles, and fully outlined its plans for the future. The farm labor question was con- sidered and discussed from every standpoint that suggested itself. 90 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. A permanent organization was effected, known as the California Employment Com- mittee, appointed by the State Fruit-Growers’ Convention to Procure Farm Labor. H. P. Stabler of Yuba City was elected chairman; T. H. Ramsay of Red Bluff, vice-chair- man; and B. N. Rowley of San Francisco, secretary. The following-named gentlemen were chosen as an Executive Committee: H. P. Stabler, T. H. Ramsay, B. N. Rowley, L. F. Graham, G. H. Hecke, A. D. Bishop, and B. E. Hutchinson. The vast amount of detail work considered is not necessary to this report. After the appointment of a finance committee, the general committee adjourned to meet at the call of the Chair. Immediately upon arrival in San Francisco the Executive Committee was called - together and plans for the campaign outlined. A proposition from the California Pro- motion Committee, 25 New Montgomery street, San Francisco, was received and, as that committee was in possession of funds and a well-equipped office force, its proposi- tion was accepted by your committee and a satisfactory understanding speedily arrived at whereby the California Employment Committee made its headquarters at 25 New Montgomery street, San Francisco, in the rooms of the California Promotion Commit- tee, and commenced its labors under very favorable auspices. Funds for the com- mencement of the work were provided by the California Promotion Committee, and we desire at this time to thank the California Promotion Committee and its executive officers for their hearty support. The most difficult problem which confronted your committee was as to the best method of making known throughout the Eastern and Western States the wants of California orchardists, farmers, and fruit-packers, and the best possible way to reach the greatest number of workers within the shortest period of time and induce them to come to California to labor in the orchards, vineyards, and packing-houses during the fruit harvest. It was finally decided to select from among the experienced fruitmen of the State such as were accustomed to public speaking or lecturing and who were willing to serve without pay, and send them to the thickly populated agricultural districts in the East on lecturing tours. In accordance with this plan your committee selected George W. Pierce and George B. Lorenz of Davisville, and F. W. and H. J. Crandall of San José. They were proyided with two high-power lanterns, for the purpose of exhib- iting stereopticon views, together with several hundred view plates, selected for the purpose, illustrating California’s industrial resources as well as some of the more attractive places of interest; also scenic views, such as in the judgment of your com- mittee would prove most attractive to an Eastern audience. These four gentlemen left Sam Francisco the first week in February, 1903, and traveled in company as far as Manhattan, Kansas. Here the parties separated, Messrs. Pierce and Lorenz visiting numerous small towns in Nebraska, Iowa, and Michigan, delivering stereopticon lectures and distributing a vast amount of literature of a character intended to induce young farmers and others to come to California to reside. The Messrs. Cran- dall visited numerous towns in Nebraska, Missouri, Illinois, and Michigan, delivering lectures illustrated with stereopticon views of California orchard and farm scenery as well as other scenic and industrial views. The reports from these lecturers indicate a vast amount of interest manifest in all the towns they visited, and the attendance at their lectures was beyond expectations. The weather was extremely cold; the thermometer often registered from ten to twenty degrees below zero. Notwithstanding this intense cold and otherwise disagreeable weather, the attendance was from 250 to 1,500 people, according to the size of the town and hall in which the lectures were delivered, standing room being at a premium at each and every lecture. There was no charge made for admission and no collections were taken up. HEvery- thing in connection with these lectures was absolutely free. The local daily and weekly papers in the towns throughout the districts visited gave lengthy favorable notices, all of which went to the credit of California. Your committee had a variety of literature printed for distribution in the Hastern States, chief among which were 60,000 booklets entitled “ Grasp This, Your Opportunity,” copies of which have already been distributed among those attending this Convention. & TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 91 The lecturers remained in the field about thirty-five days, and the expenses amounted to a little over $300 each. This included local railroad fares, hotel bills, advertising, rent of halls, telephoning, telegraphing, and many other small necessary items of expense. . The next gentlemen selected to take the field were H. P. Stice and H. C. Swain of Red Bluff, Tehama County. These gentlemen left San Francisco March 4th, traveling together direct to Cincinnati, Ohio, and from that city commenced a tour of the small towns in Ohio. Right from the start they met with encouragement and success, and hundreds of Eastern people, particularly young men and students, were found who were desirous of learning more about California and anxious to come to California to reside. Great quantities of literature were distributed and the beauties and benefits of California made known to thousands of people. Messrs. Stice and Swain were in the field about forty-five days, and on their return reported good results from their labors. The next gentlemen selected to visit the East in behalf of the committee were Messrs. Murray and Kells. W.H. Murray of San Francisco left for the East on his mission April 13th and will make an extended tour of the Middle Northwest and Atlantic seaboard States. On April 15th, R. C. Kells of Yuba City started for a tour of the Hast, going by way of New Orleans. He is visiting several of the Southern States and por- tions of Pennsylvania. These gentlemen give their time free of charge, the committee simply defraying their actual traveling expenses. By this method we have obtained a vast amount of advertising at a small cost by the Eastern press, as they have reported all the lectures,and many of the large dailies have published interviews with our travel- ing representatives. The Executive Committee has held several meetings in San Francisco, and as the members of this committee are widely scattered, living as they do in all parts of the State from Orange in the south to Red Bluff in the north, it is a task, I assure you, for this committee to get together. They are obliged to give four or five days’ time when- ever the committee meets, as two days are occupied in traveling and the committee generally remains in session several days. Thus far the committeemen have defrayed their own expenses, which is no small matter, and everybody connected with this move- ment has freely given his time. Your committee has, therefore, under the circum- stances, the right to consider that it has accomplished a great deal for the length of time it has been in existence. We hada very short time in which to prepare for this campaign, and started our mission without a dollar in the treasury, but in joining with the California Promotion Committee, that committee placed to our credit a generous subscription of $1,000 and gave us free use of its headquarters, thus placing us in a position to take up and vigorously push the work right from the start. Subscriptions have been received from Woodland, San José, Red Bluff, and Fresno. The following financial statement wili show from what sources we received financial aid and how the moneys have been disbursed: FINANCIAL STATEMENT. Receipts. Cash subscription by California Promotion Committee ___.-__-.--__- $1,000 00 Cash subscriptions from Woodland (raised through the efforts of com- Hence man iGo bar eek geesass (4220 leigh poh ee ey 350 00 Cash subscriptions from Red Bluff (raised through the efforts of com- PRUE SE TUL EN res Tel. EVER BEN Sch pee oe eres oe ea ed Ea 560 00 Cash subscriptions from San José (raised through the efforts of com- imcee mane 2 Wy Grahame us acted cl a eek ND Ao tA oes 650 00 Cash subscription from Fresno County Chamber of Commerce of 20 per month (secured through the assistance of committeeman Bee be ERE bE TNSON ) 220% fete Per eee ew eee k so” Le UNAS Serie aS 75 00 Further cash subscription from California Promotion Committee__-_- 365 00 Pofalcash receipts)... 22S AMES . gato She OA ee, I) ca $3,000 00 92 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. Disbursements. Expenses of lecturers and traveling representatives in the East, 8 in MUM DEL, TOO are eee eee en eee ee te Ae maar ae cae eer ee mp ee Printing, stationery, telegraphing, telephoning, expressage, and CATUA LC ee eee ree ne re ee ee ee ee ee ce ee 78 99 Stereopticon material, including gas, view plates, etc....-.....__---. 41 85 Onestandaralanvern, Ctl oa OSes Sie eer eee ae ee ee eee eae 85 40 Engraving and printing show cards for store windows. ---.-_---- ---- 50 25 Printine50,000 booklets, first edition’. e024" 42 Uo hens eeemameenedir nes 175 00 Printing 30,000 booklets, second edition _-_-___._.-.._--.---.-_-_ -.___- bill notin Telegrams to and from the East and local telephoning --_-.___-.___.. 19 00 Stanonery and rubber Stamps so. ee seam ene oe eee ee eee 8 47 Sundry small expenses connected with the return of lecturers’ out- 1S lag gh IS ec cl dh sl ae ae eee peta ad eI 10 00 TotalidisbunsemGnts <2 20a pon) 99. ekg pa Rye, aly ea ols ME eal x ach inl lieags $2,668 96 Total cash recep tsendie ce ees Be hed Fok ee eh oS. Slee et $3,000 00 Total.disbursements © o.h2:ec28 4 ojooselasele)A leet ses be ee oe ee ones Cash balance on hand =o. se. teae et ee cee Serene ete ene so eel a $331 04 In closing this report.I can not refrain from calling attention to the able manner in which chairman Stabler has performed the arduous duties imposed upon him. He has given freely of his time and money, having paid his own expenses in traveling about the State. The fruit-growers and farmers of this State have had the benefit of the best efforts that your committee could put forth, and there can be no doubt as to the bene- ficial results that will obtain from the work already done. Farmers and fruit-growers of California, it remains now with you to provide work for the hundreds of young men and families that will apply to you during the fruit har- vest. Great numbers have arrived, arearriving, and will continue toarrive until the close of the low railroad rates, which will be June 15th next. These people must be provided with work and comfortable living accommodations, and it is to be hoped that you will lend a helping hand and assist your committee in its labors. Statistical blanks have been prepared and mailed to a very large number of farmers and fruit-growers, and the committee earnestly urges that you fill out these blanks and return them to the com- mittee at 25 New Montgomery street, San Francisco. Respectfully submitted. . CALIFORNIA EMPLOYMENT COMMITTEE, B. N. Row ey, Secretary. Los ANGELES, May 6, 1903. The report was received, and a vote of thanks tendered to the com- mittee for the great amount of gratuitous work its members had done. VICE-PRESIDENT GRIFFITH. I think the subject of the report calls for discussion at this time. The report is now before you. One very important feature touched upon in the report is the matter of accommodations to farm labor, which I think requires consideration at the hands of a convention of this kind. If we are going to invite farm labor to come from the East to our shores, we require more than employ- ment to make those who come want to stay here. MR. ROWLEY. The written reports from the lecturers who have been through the East would lead one to believe that there is a scarcity of farm help all over the United States, and particularly so in California during the rush of our busy fruit season. In order to get people who TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 93 are competent to take care of your fruit and handle it properly to work in the orchards, some inducement must be held out to them. That inducement at present is a little higher rate of wages than they are receiving throughout the East generally for similar service. But the conditions there are altogether different from what they are here, and those who are engaged on farms there and work in the fruit orchards, except they are residents of small towns and cities and go in the imme- diate vicinity to work, are provided with comfortable sleeping accom- modations, and a place to eat, other than under a shed or tree somewhere; or, as has been written up in the Eastern States, the fruit-growers of California expect a man to sleep in the open air,.and sit on a fence during the day, if he has nothing to do, and no place to eat other than as provided for a basket lunch or picnic. In other words, the farm laborers are not provided with accommodations furnished ‘in the Eastern States. Ina great many instances these criticisms apply. The only inducement held out here is a change of conditions, a climate, and new scenery. They will come West for that purpose. If treated properly and given proper pay for their services, they will remain. In the outer room, a few moments ago, I heard a couple of men discussing the ques- tion of wages in California. One fellow says, “‘Have you got a job over there?” The other says, “Yes. All I can get is $1.50 a day and board myself. I went to get board and they charged me $6 a week. When I get through a week I have $3 left.” They are expecting more than that. The condition of things is such that the fruitman believes and states positively that he can not afford to pay more than $1.50 a day, where they go and board themselves, or $1 a day with board. But certainly the people who do the work from early morning until late at night expect reasonable pay, and a great many of them would give more for reasonably good accommodations than the pay. They feel better satis- fied when they get better accommodations. VICE-PRESIDENT GRIFFITH. I hoped that question would be discussed to a large extent this afternoon, for it is a very important one. I know I have been approached by laboring men with reference to the accommodations they get in California, and I know something of the accommodations they get in the East. Where they work for farmers in the Hast they are practically one of the family. In California they are liable to be outcasts, in many places. However, if there is nothing to be said on the question, I will put the question on the adoption of this report. The report was adopted. | MR. DORE. I suppose the committee is continued. VICE-PRESIDENT GRIFFITH. I presume so; yes, sir. It will not be discharged. That is a very important committee to keep. 94 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. FRUIT-FLIES AND THEIR EXCLUSION. By ALEXANDER CRAW, oF San FRANCISCO, Deputy State Commissioner of Horticulture, and Horticultural Quarantine Officer. The term “fruit-fly” has been given to a group of dipterous (two- winged) insects that deposit their eggs upon fresh fruits while the latter are nearly or quite ripe and still hanging upon the tree or attached to the plant, and on this account are considered the most troublesome pests the horticulturists have to contend with in countries where they are indigenous, or to which they have been unfortunately introduced. Repeatedly we have had to burn up importations of infested citrus and deciduous fruits entering the State. To be on the safe side we admit no fruit liable to contain their maggots. One of the first fruit-flies to demand our attention was the “ Morelos orange worm.” This pest is supposed to be a native of the State of Morelos, about one hundred miles south of the City of Mexico. From its location we had little to fear from its introduction into California, until railroads began to penetrate and traverse that country, giving rapid transit to perishable fruits and thus carrying the pest to other sections, until now it is to be found in nearly every State of Mexico; and in referring to it we have discarded the name ‘Morelos orange worm,” and use a broader term and call it the “ Mexican orange maggot” (Trypeta ludens). When oranges began to reach the Hastern States from Morelos we took immediate steps to prevent their introduction into California, and wrote to the heads of the Mexican railway companies not to receive any oranges for shipment into this State, and were assured that none would be. We also communicated with the United States officials of the Agri- cultural Department, at Washington, D. C., regarding the advisability. of placing quarantine officers to guard against the introduction of such fruit by rail; but in the absence of a Federal law, nothing could be done, and those points are still open. When Acapulco and several other Mexican Pacific Coast districts became infested, infested oranges and sweet limes began to reach us by sea in the possession of passengers and crews on vessels from there, also as freight, and were promptly destroyed by burning, as no dipping or fumigation could be relied upon to destroy the maggot. In preserving the maggots for the cabinet and to send as specimens to the various County Boards of Horticulture in the orange- growing districts of the State, we used 95 per cent alcohol and found they lived from eleven to forty-two minutes therein. Such vitality is probably owing to the fact that in that stage of their existence they live in a solution of citric acid. When the State Board of Horticulture adopted such radical measures to prevent the entry of such a pest into the orange groves of the State, TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 95 the Mexican Government became alarmed and sent out circular letters to the Governors of the various States, urging them to use all possible means to extirpate the pest, in order that the markets of the United States be not closed against their oranges. In part the circular reads: “This Department being desirous of contributing to the extent of its powers, toward warding off an evil of such magnitude from the planters of the country, has deemed fit to address this circular to you, urging upon you the necessity of apprising all growers of the fruit in question of the steps taken by the Horticultural Board of California, and of encouraging them by all possible means to extirpate this pest, which has justly alarmed said board.” No oranges have been received as freight from Mexico since the ship- ment was destroyed that arrived from Acapulco on Sunday, November 24, 1901, and referred to on page 198 of the Highth Biennial Report of the State Board of Horticulture. The shipper of that fruit arrived in San Francisco on a subsequent steamer, and from him I learned that the fruit was carefully inspected after it was picked, and again two weeks later before it was packed for shipment. He had gone to all that expense and trouble, as he intended supplying our markets with early oranges for the holiday trade, if the fruit could be selected so that it would passinspection. We had no trouble in finding infestation in the shipment, and it was burned. The introduction of such a pest into the orange groves of California would soon seriously interfere with the consumption of our oranges. It is difficult to detect a maggoty orange from external appearance, and only internally when the maggots are full grown and have con- sumed a good portion of the puip. The maggot is the same color as the pulp, with the exception of the sharp-pointed mouth, whichis black. Very few people would care to risk the possibility of eating from one to six- teen maggots in each orange, so would not use oranges. The Pacific Mail stewards and crews of the various steamers plying between San Francisco and Central American ports have been instructed not to bring any oranges or sweet limes, so we have no further trouble from that source. : During the time the opposition steamers were running between Chili and San Francisco, via Mexican ports, we had to frequently take oranges from the ships’ storerooms and even from the tables just set for meals and burn them in the ships’ furnaces, in order to remove all possible danger from infestation. In my report to the State Board of Horticulture, dated June 30, 1902, I referred to a seizure of oranges on the steamship “ Tucapel” that called at Acapulco, Mexico. In the presence of the captain, several apparently sound oranges were cut and found to contain maggots. He was so dis- gusted that he declared he would “never purchase or again eat another 96 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. Mexican orange,”.and in order to settle his stomach he had to par- take of something stronger than soda water. It is not alone from Mexico that we have to fear fruit-flies that attack oranges, for they are found in Fiji and portions of Australia. The mag- got of a nearly related fruit-fly (Trypeta fraterculus) attacks peaches in the State of Vera Cruz, Mexico. It works in the same manner as the “orange maggot.” There is little danger to us from that source, as very few peaches are grown there and none for export. Still, forewarned is to be forearmed, and it gives us a stronger argument in favor of national horticultural quarantine at our gateways. Peaches are exten- sively cultivated in the United States, and such a pest would in time be a wider spread nuisance than the orange*maggot. | Unless our national government takes action to prevent the introduc- tion of infested fruits we can not hope to be long exempt; with the ports of the Eastern and Southern States open, the flies will finally get a foothold. Since the annexation of the Hawaiian Islands, personal baggage on ships plying only between there and our local ports is free from customs inspection, and there is some danger of the introduction of a serious frnit-fly (Dacus cucurbit~) that destroys 75 per cent of the melon, cucumber, and summer squash crop about Honolulu, where it was intro- duced a few years ago, I believe, from Japan, as IJ have found and destroyed cucumbers infested with that pest from the latter country. For several years we have refused admission of the above products from the Islands. Formerly they were imported from there during the winter and spring. After a few shipments had been burned, Byron O. Clark, then Commissioner of Agriculture for Hawaii, took the matter up and questioned my right to destroy any but those found infested. I replied that I had no time to personally inspect every melon, cucumber, and squash to ascertain if it was free from eggs or newly-hatched larve of the fly. I suggested that he advise the planters of the Islands not to grow such crops for California, for they would not be admitted. I noti- fied the quarantine officials of the other Pacific States and British Columbia of the danger. Last January, Mr. Wray Taylor, Commissioner of Agriculture, visited us to consult regarding the drafting of a horti- cultural quarantine law for the Islands. He stated that he had been requested to ascertain if such products as were mentioned above were grown under glass and an affidavit to that effect accompanied each shipment, would they be admitted? I replied in the negative, because we could have no assurance that the ventilators and doors were fly- proof, or that the flies would not be admitted when a person entered or left the glass house. He said he anticipated what my answer would be. Bermuda has a peach maggot (Ceratitis capitata). In referring to this species, Dr. L. O. Howard says: “‘In Bermuda, some years ago, the TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 97 peach crop was almost annually completely destroyed by this insect and this has been practically the case since 1866.” This or a nearly related species was introduced into Western Australia and has now become such a serious pest there that it is almost impossible to raise any marketable fruit, even for home use, and the Government has sent its entomologist, Mr. George Compere, a former Californian, to the Mediterranean seaboard to look up the natural enemies of a similar fly found there. Mr. Compere’s instructions are to find the enemy of the pest, even if he has to travel the world over. He has had extensive correspondence with various countries and will visit those that present evidence of the existence of some check to the destructiveness of the fly. Queensland has a fruit-fly (Tephritis tryoni) that attacks all kinds of deciduous fruits and is doing serious damage there. That pest is also reported to have obtained a lodgment in New South Wales. The prin- cipal seaport of that State is Sydney, with which we have direct steam- ship connection and more or less danger of introducing the maggots in fruit brought by passengers. This spring a shipment of 209 boxes of fresh peaches, plums, and pears arrived on the steamship ‘“‘Sierra,”’ which we immediately quarantined because of the danger of introducing the maggot, as it is practically impossible to inspect and fumigate such consignments and render them innocuous. The fruit was freshly picked from the trees and soon thereafter placed in the refrigerator on board the steamer, thus retarding the development of either eggs or small maggots that escaped the notice of the packers, and made it equally difficult to detect infestation on arrival here. A legal representative of the shipper was present when the fruit was unloaded, and demanded that an inspection of the fruit should be made in his presence, which I positively refused to do, as in my judgment no inspection short of cutting open each peach, plum, or pear could be made that would insure the safety of California’s fruit industry. Under Section 3, of our horti- cultural quarantine law, it was necessary to find infestation in order to commence action against the fruit as a nuisance. The matter was urgent and my refusal to inspect the fruit would act against us should it be taken into the courts. I determined to lay the matter before Mr. Russ D. Stephens, the chairman of the Executive Committee of the State Board of Horticulture, at Sacramento. We submitted the case to Governor Pardee and Attorney-General U. 8. Webb, and through their advice an amendment to our horticultural quarantine law was drawn up that would cover sucha case. The Legislature was in session at the time and the amended bill was immediately presented and passed both houses without opposition, was signed by the Governor, and now we can stop such imports from countries where such pests exist. Before the bill became a law, however, that shipment, together with the boxes, had gone up in smoke. 7—F-GC 98 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. THRIPS. By PROF. A. J. COOK, or CLAREMONT. When a new insect pest comes upon us, or when an old well-known insect appears in a new role of mischief, either of which threatens the pocketbook of our people, it becomes a matter of great concern with us all. In all such cases every detail of history is very important. History.—Late last January I received from an orchardist in Fer- nando lemons which were seriously marred by brown spotting, that looked greatly like rust, and not a little like the work of the silver mite, yet quite distinct from the latter. Within a few days after that I received from our own county—-Los Angeles—from three different per- sons at San Dimas, both oranges and lemons similarly marked. In every case it was reported that the fruit was fair and perfect when gathered, but became disfigured in about three weeks after the picking. I made careful examination with a microscope, using both high and low powers; and though I discovered no signs of fungus, I did note injury of the superficial cells—the very surface or epidermal cells of the fruit. I reported this through the press. On Monday, February 2d, Mr. H. H. Garstin, of Redlands, came to me with many samples of oranges—some just picked, others picked some days before. The first showed a very indistinct injury, to discover which required very close observation; the other was really the same trouble that had interested me in the cases just reported. I said to Mr. Garstin, ‘‘ This is plainly the work of some insect, and I know of no insect common enough in our orchard to do it except the thrips; and besides, the thrips is capable of just such mischief.” He replied that Professor Eaton, of Redlands, claimed actually to have seen the thrips doing the mischief. I learned later from Mr. Williams, one of our students, who had visited his home in Redlands a few days before, that the orange-growers of Redlands were seriously anxious about the work of the thrips. They also suggested to Mr. Williams that he study up the history of the thrips, which he did, giving an illustrated article in our college paper, “‘The Student Life.” Thus the suggestion of thrips was first made by growers at Redlands. The first mention of thrips in print, so far as I know, was in the Los Angeles “Times” of February 4th, in a report of our Claremont Pomological Club, at which meeting I first called public attention to the injury and the probable agency of the thrips as the cause. Mr. Garstin also stated to me at the same time, February 2d, that fruit left on the tree must recover, as early picked fruit was spotted, while that picked later was free from blemish. This important truth seems now fully established. We are not surprised that this is so. The insect is very minute and the injury is very slight and very superficial. If the fruit is picked it fails to receive more sap and the TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 99 cells do not heal and become discolored and badly spotted. Left on the tree, they recover and no spots appear. This is a very important truth, as it will urge the delay of picking, which will result in giving the consumer much sweeter fruit and our California oranges a much better reputation. Mr. Garstin also stated that the spotting had been observed for two or three years; that it was first alarming last year, and that the present year often as much as 10 per cent of the fruit was ruined. As this spotted fruit was mixed with the other, it often led to rejection of the, entire carload. On February 13th, Messrs. S. A. Pease and G. R. Holbrook, Horticul- tural Commissioners of San Bernardino County, came to my laboratory with more of the spotted oranges. Mr. Pease, whom I have always found most cautious and accurate in all such work, also brought the thrips, which I placed under a microscope and exhibited to the students and the commissioners. Mr. Pease had closely observed the thrips at work, had taken as many as fourteen from a single spot, and only found the thrips on oranges, where the spotting was much in evidence. He found this true: no spots, no thrips; much spotting, many thrips. I have taken as many as thirty thrips from a single orange or lemon blossom; Mr. Pease has taken even more. Mr. Pease is worthy of all praise for the intelligent, energetic, untiring work that he has put into this study. He has surely changed hypothesis to fact, and all this with very little or no aid from other investigators. Why the Change.—Many wonder why spotting occurs now and did not in the earlier years. This is no surprise to the entomologist. Insects change their habits. Every year witnesses the black scale anchored on new and different food plants. Again, insects often change from one part of a plant to another, because of change in the plant. Many species of Lecaniwm work when young on the leaves, but as the leaves become dry from age or lack of sap, the young scale hie themselves to the branches. Thrips usually work on leaves and blossoms and the tender stems. It would not be strange if they, upon occasion, should betake themselves to the fruit, and who could wonder that if one of our magnificent Navels were once -tasted it should hold the banqueter to further feasts? It may be true that some condition of the tree, either from weather or soil change, makes the leaves less juicy and palatable, and thus the thrips in search of new and better pasture-ground betake themselves to the fruit. The fact that spotting—thrips injury—is most marked early in the season and disappears later would argue in favor of this second view. Description of Thrips.—The thrips are very minute, so minute that even good observers may fail to note their presence. The one in ques- tion is only about one twenty-fifth of an inch in length. They are also ubiquitous. Hardly a leaf or flower, twig or grass blade that does not 100 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ cieponoee exhibit more or less of some species of these lilliputs. Again, they are very long and slim, and many—most, when mature—have very long, slender, fringed wings. When not in use these wings lie flat on the back of the insect, so that the slender form is still maintained. The first stage, or larva, is quite like the last, or imago, except there are no wings. The pupa looks like both the larva and the imago, but curiously enough is inactive. The head is nearly square; sometimes longer than broad, and in other species the reverse is true. The compound eyes are as usual, and the three usually placed ocelli are often present, ‘Phe antenne are prominent, and from six to nine jointed in the adults, though fewer jointed in the larva. Our species, which the authorities at Washington pronounce HLuthrips tritici, but which to me seems nearer E. occidentalis, if the two are not varieties of the same species, shows eight joints in the adult and only four in the larva. The relative lengths of the joints and the hairs on them are of specific importance. The mouth organs, while structurally mandibulate, that is, fitted for biting, are functionally suctatorial, or haustellate, that is, fitted to pierce and suck. We see, then, why the wound to the orange peel is so slight. The insect is very tiny, the mouth organs exceedingly diminutive, and so in their puncture and sucking the merest trace of injury is wrought. No wonder the wound is so obscure. No wonder that it heals entirely when the fruit remains on the tree. The thorax is not especially peculiar, though its appendages, the legs and wings, are greatly different from the same in all other insects. The six feet all end in a sort of bladder, or sack, which functions, in heu of the usual claws, to hold the insect to leaf or twig. These sacks can be drawn in or pushed out by blood pressure, which is always done as the foot is set down for use. This fact gives rise to the name Physopoda, which is sometimes applied to these insects. The word means bladder- foot. The wings are equally peculiar. They are long, slender, with very few veins, and beautifully fringed. The fringe gives added spread with little added weight. The form, veins, and extent of fringe of the wings aid to determine the separate families, of which there are three. The abdomen shows ten joints. Its form, the hairs which it bears, and the presence or absence of ovipositor are of value in classification. Order Thysanoptera.—The great Linnzus placed all these insects in the genus Thrips, hence this word is singular as well as plural, and always refers to this peculiar type of insect. We still have the genus Thrips, family Thripide, and the word thrips with various prefixes, to designate several genera. Linnzeus placed these with the bugs, lice, aphids, scale insects, etc., in the order Hemiptera. True they are sucking insects, but the wings, the mouth organs, and transformation are all utterly different from the same in all the great bug group. For this reason, all entomologists now wisely separate them from the TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 101 Hemiptera and we may know them as Thysanoptera. The order is well named Thysanoptera, as it means tassel-winged, which name, from the insects’ fringed wings, is peculiarly appropriate. As we have seen, their wings are ditterent from those of any other insect. We have also noted their peculiar mouth, which is structurally mandibulate, though func- tionally it is suctatorial, Thus they are on the fence, as it were, between two great groups of insects: those with typical mouth parts, fitted for biting; and those modified to adapt them for sucking. These two groups contain practically all insects except these Thysanopterons. Once more, all other insects either pass through complete metamor- phosis from egg to adult where the larva, pupa, and imago are all totally unlike and the pupa inactive, or else incomplete, where the three stages are much alike, except for absence or partial development of wings, differences of development in reproductive organs, and in size. In this group the pupe are always active. These eat ravenously, and are like the larve, except that they have stubs of wings, and are larger, and aiso like the adults or imago, except that they do not have fully- developed wings. Here again the thrips is a sort of go-between; itis in appearance like the bug and locust, incomplete in its transformations, yet itis inactive like the pupa of the other groups. For every reason, then, we do well to separate these lilliputs, and, few as they are—scarce fifty are known in our whole country—place them in an order by them- selves—the Thysanoptera. Habits of Thrips.—Without doubt most thrips are plant-eaters. Some of our best authorities have pronounced some as predaceous on other insects. Except that some of these scientists are very careful and usually accurate, we would be tempted to think them mistaken and wonder if all thrips were now plant-destroyers. These insects are so small that a mistake would not be strange or unvenial. It has long been known that one of the most common thrips, Huthrips tritici, works on grasses, causing the well-known silver top. They have also been discovered as serious enemies of the onion. Except for their minute size, equal mischief might very likely have been discovered in other lines. I have no doubt that their mischief is far more than is known, and so is very inadequately appreciated. Natural Enemies.—As each female thrips lays from fifty to seventy-five eggs, we are certain that, numerous as they are, they must have innumerable enemies. These are both animal and vegetable. Insects are the chief of the first and fungi of the second. Some of the Cocci- nellidee—ladybird beetles—especially species of Megilla and Scymnus, prey upon them and doubtless kill great numbers. The little Scymni also destroy the red mite which has become so formidable a pest in our citrus groves. The green lace-winged fly, or Chrysopa, also destroys many of thethrips. The Syrphus fly larva, which is so hungry for plant 102 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. lice, and which lays us under a vast debt of gratitude for its destruction of aphids, is also a foe to the pestiferous thrips. A predaceous bug, not very distant in relationship from the bedbug (Triphleps insidiosis), is often seen with a thrips on its beak or rostrum. It also banquets on aphids and young scale insects. Without doubt sporozoa and fungi prey upon thrips. Thaxter has taken a species of Empusa from larval, pupal, and adult thrips which it had destroyed. Pettit thinks he has taken a sporozoan from thrips in Michigan. But without doubt rain is the most formidable enemy of the thrips. I feel certain that a heavy, dashing rain will kill them by the millions. Possibly our misfortune of the past two months is to be coordinated with our gentle rains and absence of severe downpours. Remedies.— Without doubt the distillate spray, which I believe is to be the greatest boon in the way of insecticides yet discovered, will be quick death to the thrips. Thus it will give a triple benefit: kill the scale, with many of their eggs, and destroy them in more mature growth than will fumigation; kill the red mite (red spider), and many, if not most of their eggs; and last will kill these baneful thrips. I have yet to hear of any spotting of oranges in orchards that were sprayed within a few weeks of the time—February—when the spotting occurred. PARASITES OF INJURIOUS INSECTS. By DR. W. B. WALL, oF Santa ANA. Possibly many of us have not given sufficient thought to the wonder- ful work and incalculable value of the parasites of injurious insects, many of them so small that they can scarcely be seen by the unaided eye, and yet they have done a work impossible toman. Without them, in avery few years, injurious insects would consume or destroy nearly all vegetation; so our very existence is largely dependent upon them. After their beneficial mission has been accomplished, they in turn would become an intolerable nuisance but for their self-limitation by the con- suming of their own food supply. In this way nature keeps up an equi- librium, except where man interferes with her plan, by transplanting to a new field, injurious insects to pursue their work of ruin, unrestrained by their natural parasites. | It is needless to say that California is preéminently kind to all life, animal and vegetable, and that man has been drawn here from every quarter of the world. Either carelessly or ignorantly, he has brought with him, or afterward imported, many, if not all, the injurious insect pests with which we are afflicted. It matters not how they get here; when here, they live, multiply and destroy. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 103 Horticulture in this State has been damaged many millions of dol- lars by the bringing in of pernicious insects without their parasites. The cottony cushion scale (Icerya purchast) alone, would ere this time have made California a barren waste, if no parasite had been found to arrest it in its fearful ravages. It devoured all vegetation except cone-bearing trees, and human effort was powerless to suppress it. The little Australian ladybird ( Vedalia cardinalis) came to the rescue, and in an incredibly short time brought relief. This and many other bene- ficial insects have been introduced through the efforts of the State Board of Horticulture. There are other destructive scales which we have been fighting for twenty years with washes, sprays, fumigation, cutting off of tops, trunk scrubbing, etc., and have learned in the last few years to keep them fairly in check. In doing this, however, we have expended hun- dreds of thousands of dollars, and lost in quantity and quality of fruit and tree a vast sum of money, and the fight and expense still go on. Except the cottony cushion, the most destructive scale to citrus trees, and among the most difficult to kill, is the red (Aspidiotus aurantic). The yellow (Aspidiotus citrinus) ana the black (Lecanium olex) have also been a heavy tax on tree and purse. The deciduous trees (apricots, prunes, pears, etc.) have their share of scales. With two exceptions, the codling-moth (Carpocapsa pomonella) and the purple scale (Mytilaspis citricola), there are, for all these hosts of harmful insects, legions of parasitic and predaccous ones to keep hem restricted to comparatively harmless numbers. Now it is not so much whether we have or have not parasites, as it is what they will accomplish. In order that we may have some idea as to what may reasonably be expected, we will refer to a few instances out of many as precedents for faith in their efficiency. Florida, about 1835-1840, believed her orange groves doomed to utter ruin, but they were rescued by a little chalcid fly. Australia had a like experience. In the early fifties, according to reliable report, the orange groves of California were being destroyed by the soft brown scale (Lecanium hes- peridum); some trees were killed, others were following to the same fate. No fight was made by the grower, except to cut off the tops and scrub the trunks of the trees; spray or fumigation not having been intro- duced. In time the chalcid fly (Coccophagus lecani) put in an appear- ance, freed the groves from the pest, and let them return to their former beauty and fruitfulness. The citrus groves of the San Gabriel Valley, for many years greatly damaged by the yellow scale, have been freed by the golden chalcid fly (Aspidiotophagus citrinus). And now come reports from all along the coast of the disappearance of scales, especially of the black and San José, as result of the work of parasites. In further evidence of the value of parasites, I will state conditions 104 ' - TWENTY-BIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. found through recent personal investigation. In a district south of the City of Los Angeles, a number of old groves, which were once badly infested with red and black scales, are now practically free from both, without having been sprayed or fumigated for a period of from three to five years. The pepper trees in the vicinity are also clean and bright. In the Santa Ana Valley of Orange County the same trees which for years were condemned and destroyed in large numbers because of the prolific breeding of black scales upon them, are now free from scales, and instead of being an injury to our valley, they have proven a benefit, inasmuch as they have served as a home and breeding-place for several useful ladybirds (especially the Rhizobius ventralis, which is both para- sitic and predaceous), they having found their way from these to citrus trees, where they are now in considerable numbers, except where they have been destroyed by recent fumigation or spray. After diligent search, I have been able to find only one small orange orchard and a solitary lime tree that have not been sprayed or fumigated within the past eighteen months. These have not been treated for more than four years and are now free from all scale pests, the black scales having been destroyed by the ladybirds, and the red, evidently, by the golden chalcid fly which was brought into the valley some years ago from San Gabriel, but whose work had attracted no attention until August last, when upon investigation, it was found in greater or less numbers over the entire valley. Where permitted, it is now doing a wonderful work, and but for having been held in check by annual fumigation or spraying, would have practically rid all orchards in the valley from the red scale. We have also the Chinese red scale parasite, which is undoubtedly a valuable one. In addition to the parasites mentioned, we have recently imported two for the black scale: Coccophagus flaro scutellum and the Scutellista cyanea, which have been pretty well distributed throughout the State by our horticultural quarantine officer and entomologist, Mr. Alex- ander Craw, who has rendered such splendid service. We are now fighting the codling-moth and purple scale (Mytilaspis citricola) with artificial means, and it would be impossible to estimate the value of parasites for these pests. Recently I visited an orchard, which since August last has been fumigated twice, and sprayed once with distillate by the most approved method; and there are still enough live purple scales left to thoroughly infest the trees within twelve months, if no further treatment be resorted to. This scale fortunately spreads rather slowly, but is a persistent stayer when it makes lodgment. Mr. Craw informs me that the State Board of Horticulture has know]l- edge of the whereabouts of a parasite for the scale just mentioned, and is making efforts to have it introduced. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 105 We should not allow ourselves to be led into a fancied security because we have learned in some measure to control the pests we already have (nearly all of which have been imported), for there are many others, with the importation of which we are daily threatened, either from other States of our Union, or from foreign countries. I will mention only the white fly of Florida, the orange maggot of Mexico, and the melon maggot of Honolulu, any one or all of which may be brought in at any time, by the almost daily communication by rail or steamer. To be properly safeguarded we should have a force of competent entomologists, backed by National as well as State laws, continually on the outlook to prevent the introduction of all harmful insects, and to seek the world over, if need be, for their parasites, should harmful insects in any manner escape the guards and enter the State. To do this will require a very small amount of money compared to the loss that must result from the introduction of even one of these pests, for instance, the orange maggot (Trypeta ludens), which is doing fearful mischief to the orange industry of some of the Mexican States—no fruit from the infested districts should be allowed admission into the United States. : Should not these facts convince us that our best and most rational method of fighting insect pests is to procure and protect their natural enemies? Only a few of the most salient points of this broad and important subject have been touched upon in this paper. VICH-PRESIDENT GRIFFITH. Wewill now have time for dis- cussion of the papers that have been read. MR. DORE. Mr. Chairman, I would lke to ask Professor Cook if this insect is a half-brother or closer relation to the thrips that does us some harm in the grapevine industry by destroying the foliage? Mh. COOK. Ido not suppose it is. The insect that has done so much damage in the Fresno region is not a thrips at all. I think it is an entirely different insect. Now, I think Mr. Cooper didn’t emphasize too strongly yesterday the importance of this seeking of beneficial insects. It hasseemed strange to me all these years that the fruit-growers donotdemand that. And I was sorry yesterday that Mr. Cooper seemed discouraged, for I do not think we ought to get discouraged in a good cause, and should continue our efforts until we win. Ten years ago we were working to get a fertilizer law, and we didn’t get it until this win- ter. And if you had heard from Sacramento, as I did, you would know that they took a big hold of it this winter. TheGovernor told me that he had had a great number of letters and telegrams against the signing of the bill. And two bills this winter we would not have gottenif it hadn’t been for the talk we had, and we have got all the six laws we asked for. I think that is encouraging, and I believe if the gentlemen here will say, 106 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. “We will have a law of that kind next session,” we will have it. And why shouldn’t we? It would cost nothing compared with the advan- tages we would derive from it. When, as Dr. Wall says, it is probable that all of these insects have, in their native land, a natural enemy which will hold them in check, we are justified in the belief that if we could get these natural enemies here they will hold these insects in check here. I want to speak of something which occurred in Washing- ton that has, I think, subliimityinit. Twelve years ago Professor Erwin Smith was appointed to look for the cause of peach yellows. You all know what a bad enemy that is to the peach. I hope we will never have anything like it in California. At the end of the first year he reported, ‘‘I do not know anything about it more than I did when I commenced.” The Government said, “Go ahead.” The second year he made a similar report, and the Government said, ‘‘Keep on.” The third year he said, ‘‘ We haven’t anything important,” and the Govern- ment said, ‘‘ Persist.””, And so on, for all these years. There is not much discouragement about that. I say, let us not be discouraged, not give up, but let us go to the Legislature determined to win, and let us have a man appointed, to be kept in the field all the time—the best man we can get. We had a good one—the man who went off and was stolen away from us. I do not believe in trading off a good horse when in the middle of a stream, and I think probably he is just theman. But we ought to have a man there all the time, because it seems to me the pos- sibilities of it would be just tremendous and would do away with this matter of spraying, fumigation, or anything else, in very many cases; and I hope we won’t get discouraged, but demand this measure from our Legislature. Mr. Cooper said yesterday, ‘‘ Let us go to Congress.” Ido not believe we would have half so good a chance there, because the whole country is not so interested as we are. Our interests are so con- centrated; it is the fruit interest, and a matter of so much importance tous. And I believe that the place for usto work, and work effectively— and we can do it if we say we will—is with the next Legislature, and have some man go into this field and keep right at it all the time. MR. SCOTT. Ido not disagree with the gentleman. But I say that the fruit-growers are the people who are interested in this question and if we want any help we ought to help ourselves. We now have an organization down here for handling our fruit—citrus fruits, at any rate—and there is no reason why we could not do this work ourselves. If the growers will agree to subscribe one cent a box for all the fruit they ship, they can employ their own man to do this work—employ him and pay him well—one man or half a dozen, if you will. One cent a box will pay for all that work. There will be no politics in it, but work, and we will get done what we want. We can get half a dozen men all over the world to work for us for one cent a box, and we do not TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 107 need to ask the Government, or Sacramento, or anybody else, but do it ourselves. PROFESSOR COOK. I would like to hear from Mr. Pease. He is a modest man, but he has done a lot of interesting work in this matter, and I would like to here from him. MR. PEASE. That is on the subject of the thrips, I suppose? VICH-PRESIDENT GRIFFITH. Yes, sir. MR. PEASE. My attention was first called to the thrips business on the fourth day of February. A couple of gentlemen called with specimens. Some of these specimens had gone in a regular shipment of oranges to New York, and the fruit had been returned to show the condition in which they arrived in New York. The specimens were exhibited and the spots were dark brown. Where the thrips had done . the work they were brown all around. The gentlemen were uncer- tain—did not know what was the cause of the spots. They same to me from Professor Cook, and asked me to send specimens to L. O. Howard. So I sent to Professor Howard, by express, a box of the oranges with spots on them, asking him, if possible, to take measures, even to the sending of a man here to find out what was the cause of the spotting. I also sent specimens by mail to Newton B. Pierce, of Santa Ana, who is in the Government employ. After I had sent those away I took my little glass—I carry a pretty good hand lens—and studied the orange a little myself. Right in the spots, on fresh specimens from the orchards, I found the molted skins of minute insects; and I wrote to Professor Cook what I had found, and said that from the nature of the work I should expect to find a minute sucking insect. On the 12th of February, eight days later, I went into the orchard where I had been told there was the worst spotting, and when I found the oranges that showed the fresh marks of the cutting, there I also found the insects at work, and I procured probably a hundred specimens by taking my knife and shaving off a little piece and dropping it into the phial. The first two times I went to the orchard I got all the way from one to four- teen insects from a single spot, showing that the insects are gregarious, that is, they goin numbers. I brought those specimens to Professor Cook, some of them, and sent some to L. O. Howard at Washington. By the way, aiter I had sent the box of fruit by express, I received from Washing- ton a letter that was not very encouraging. Perhaps some of you may have noticed the newspaper controversy on the subject. L. O. Howard stated that placing a piece of the orange under a microscope failed to show any indication of insect work. But as soon as I found the insects I sent him a bottle of the specimens on those little chips that I had taken off and placed in diluted alcohol. And in answer to that letter he stated that I might be right. Or, by the way, C. L. Marlatt, assistant to Mr. Howard, in the first letter, in the absence of Mr. Howard, stated I might be right in assigning the damages to the oranges to these 108 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. insects, which were a species of thrips. And he gave the name of the insects as EHuthrips tritici. But Mr. Cook gave the name of Huthrips occidentalis, and from later reading I am of the opinion that Professor Cook’s name is the right one. I have occasionally found the black thrips with them, so I think there are two species. As I before stated, I also sent a phial of the specimens to Newton B. Pierce, of Santa Ana. The first letter of mine that he answered, he stated that I might be right. And the last one—perhaps I might read just an extract of the last. The letter is from Newton B. Pierce, dated Santa Ana, California, April 15, 1903. I sent specimens of apples to him, and after answering that, he referred to the orange trouble. He says: ‘Relative to the orange trouble, I will say that the study I have given it for years past shows no evidence of bacteria or a higher fungus present which could explain its causes, and is wholly in favor of your view and observation. Personally I think it probable that you are correct.” So, you see the authorities are pretty well in line. Newton B. Pierce says I am right in assigning the damage to the thrips; L. O. Howard says I am right; C. L. Marlatt, assistant to L. O. Howard, says so; Professor Cook says so; and I think so. (Applause.) MR. KOETHEN. It appears to me from this discussion that there must be several causes that have been at work spotting fruits through- out the past winter. In speaking to an inspector of fruit cars at Riverside the other day, he told me that he found that fruit which was picked while the dew was on the trees and brought to the packing-house would spot before it was packed, if it was kept there for a week or ten days. Now, it might possibly be that the injury was first made by some insect like this thrips, and that the moisture in that injury would cause the spotting. I raise this question for the purpose of finding out whether that is the case. Certain it is that he found—and he is perfectly competent to judge—that the spotting of the fruit was invariably before the fruit was thoroughly ripe, when it was picked with the dew on the trees. And he passed the word along the line to all the packers and the association for which he was working not to allow any fruit to be picked while the dew was on the trees, and it remedied the trouble at that time, while the fruit was still immature. MR. PEASE. All this fruit that I have been examining has been good, and you can see the work of the insect before the fruit has ever been in the packing-house at all. You can find the work of the thrips without trouble, if you are looking for it. Itis so slight that the graders can pick the fruit and pack it and get it out of the way. For that reason much of it gets into the shipments. In order to prove this theory, two packers have taken a dozen boxes of the fruit, marked them, and packed them away for the length ‘of time the fruit would be in transit if sent to market, and at the end of the time the fruit was spotted, and in these spots are the thrips. Further than that, I have TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 109 found the thrips at work, and taken fourteen off of a single spot, and when you take those off you can see five or six thrips in a little piece that would go in a homeopathic phial. Itis not afungus. As you see, Newton B. Pierce acknowledges to having worked in his laboratory for the last three years or move on the fruit that was sent to him, and he says that he has never found evidence of bacteria or the higher fungus. So it is caused by the breaking down of the epidermal cells. And if the fruit is picked before that has time to heal over, it will become brown in spots; if it is left on the tree after it is first marked early in the season and the thrips leaveit, that spot will heal over. I have seen a great many instances of that. MR. STONE. When this experiment of the box was made, did you find the thrips on the spots? MR. PEASE. If you pick an orange and drop it in the box, I will guarantee that you will not find a thrips there unless it is in the end of the Navel or it is living in the larval state. Mr. Marlatt said to me that it was not strange that they didn’t find evidences of the thrips, or didn’t find any thrips there, because evidently they had been brushed off while the specimens were in transit. They are on the surface, a small insect, and if you pick an orange and then drop it, the thrips will fall off. Mk. STONE. Had the fruit in the experimental box been brushed or washed, or simply taken from the tree and put directly into the box? MR. PHASE. The oranges are taken as they are picked. The packers do not brush the oranges in this locality. The oranges are perfectly bright. MR. CRISP. Two things have been eulit out in this discussion: One is that the thrips thrives on all vegetation. The other is—or the deduction made from the statement would be reasonable—that it only works injury at a certain time of the year, because the statement was made that the fruit picked at a certain time showed injury, but if left on the trees the injuries would heal. And this fact was used as a double argument for picking fruit later, thereby avoiding the injury and at the same time giving more marketable fruit. Now, as a remedy has been offered in the distillate spray, how far should we extend that spray ? Only to our lemon trees or orange trees? Or, what immunity would you get from merely spraying our fruit trees? If the thrips is such a universal menace it would seem that merely spraying our fruit trees would be of but temporary advantage. Then again, if it is determined that the thrips only thrive or do injury at a certain time of the year, it is important to know what that time of the year is, in order, if spraying is of advantage, to do it at the proper time. MR. PHASE. I think I can answer part of that gentleman’s question all right. You will understand that I took up this matter individually very late in the day. The gentleman who called my attention to it said 110 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. that the bad effect from the work of the thrips is seen some years as early as December. In following up my examination this year I found that the spotting kept up into February. Some of the oranges would spot as late as that, or until the fruit gets so ripe that the insects fail to work very much, and then they went onto the lemons. In our county we have one man whose business it is to follow up the thrips and note every change. For instance, one of his particular instructions is to watch and see when the thrips first go onto the new fruit. Further than that, 1 will say that the thrips do not affect all orchards alike. For instance, when I first went to find the work of the thrips, I was told that the worst spotted oranges came from acertain orchard. The fruit of that orchard was all picked. The next orchard was pretty nearly picked. And I went there to look for them, but I could not find either the spots or the thrips. So my idea is, if you want to know the proper time to spray your oranges to avoid damage by the thrips, have an inspection made, and when you find the thrips at work then is the time to spray. MR. SMITH. I should like to ask Professor Cook whether he has noticed two kinds of thrips—one of them bright on the thorax and the other almost entirely dark? Those that are bright on the thorax hop away. Are very hard to catch. Have you noticed that kind? PROFESSOR COOK. Yes, nearly all hop. They do not hop so much when they get more fully developed. In the larval state they are great hoppers. And there is a black thrips, but that is not the one that works here. This is a yellow thrips. MR. SMITH. You think it is all one variety? PROFESSOR COOK. I think those that I have seen working on the oranges here—the yellow—are. We feel very certain of four different kinds, but there is only one that works on oranges, so far as I know. And that may be tritect. I am not at all certain it is not. They are very much alike—very little difference, indeed, between those two species. . PROFESSOR PAINE. I can give you my observations on that point. They say they are upon lemons, and of course itis so. I have not noticed them on my lemons, but at one time I concluded that they were infesting the Navel orange, because of the housing it afforded them. At the same time that I saw they were abundant on the Navel orange I saw that they had crowded into the navel cavity, which seemed to shelter them both from its position and the overhanging way of the orange; and I found them very abundant, and early in the morning when it would be cold and damp they would be nearest that navel. Later in the day they would spread farther from it. And at the same time I would note my seedlings, Valencia Lates, St. Michaels, and Mediterranean Sweets; and at no time during the day did I find any thrips at all there. Tike I have seen a few on some of those onaneee but very few indeed. I never saw any on my lemons. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 111 REPORT OF COMMITTEE ON RESOLUTIONS. Mr. John Dore, chairman of the Committee on Resolutions, reported, for the committee, in favor of Mr. Griffith’s resolution in regard to freight rates and time-limit of haul. The report was adopted, and, on motion of Mr. Berwick, the resolutions were adopted as presented. Mr. Dore also reported favorably from the Committee on Resolutions the resolution asking assistance of State and Federal governments for scientific experimentation for the investigation of citrus-tree diseases. The report was accepted and the resolutions adopted, as follows: Resolved, That it is the opinion of the fruit-growers assembled at this the twenty- eighth annual State Convention, that the time has come when the citrus interests of the State demand the assistance of either the State or Federal Government in the study of citrus-tree diseases, and methods of orchard care and packing from a scientific stand point, and the establishment of an experiment station for this purpose. Mr. Dore also reported favorably from the Committee on Resolutions Mr. Berwick’s resolution asking for the establishment by the Federal Government of the parcels-post system, and on motion of Mr. Hartranit, the resolution was adopted. RESOLUTIONS OF THANKS TO SENATOR BARD. Mr. A. P. Griffith, chairman of the committee appointed to draft resolutions thanking Senator Bard for his stand in the Senate on the question of reciprocity, reported the following: Wuereas, The fruit, sugar, and other industries of our section demand a tariff pro- tection to offset labor conditions of competing fruit and sugar producing countries and long freight haul to markets; and WHEREAS By the treaty of reciprocity with Cuba, our nation is endeavoring to pay a debt of charity to a needy people, almost entirely at the expense of California producers; and WHEREAS, In the position taken by our Senator, the Hon. Thomas R. Bard, our Sena- tor stood almost alone in defense of our protection, even to antagonizing his party colleagues and the administration of our honored President, thus standing for principle; therefore, be it Resolved, That the Hon. Thomas R. Bard, Senator from California, has done a service to his constituents and is entitled to our heartfelt thanks, and we California fruit- growers, in convention assembled, this 6th day of May, 1903, extend to Senator Bard our thanks for the stand he has taken in the apparently hopeless task of trying to defeat legislation which he thought, and we think, is inimical to our interests and unfair, in that it was attempted to pay a debt of our whole people at the expense of a few. Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be transmitted to Senator Thomas R. Bard, and to His Excellency the President of the United States. On motion of Mr. Koethen, the resolutions were adopted by a rising vote. On motion, a recess was taken until 8 o’clock Wednesday evening. {43 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. EVENING SESSION—SECOND DAY. WeEDNEsDAY, May 6, 1908. The Convention was called to order at 8 o’clock Pp. m. President Cooper in the chair. ADVERTISING CALIFORNIA. By J. A. FILCHER, or San FRANCISCO. A consciousness of the fact that there are advantages for homeseekers in California greater than exist in older communities and which can not all be utilized by the present population, coupled with the further fact that more people mean more business and greater general prosperity for those already here, should give a stimulus to the work of advertising this State and insure the active co-operation of every enterprising citizen. Itis true, to be sure, that well-intended efforts do not always meet with satisfactory results. Sometimes they fail for want of effective methods, sometimes for want of proper support, and sometimes for want of both. Exploiting a great State like California, with its varied natural con- ditions and multiplied resources, is a stupendous undertaking, and to be successful must be entered upon with a proper conception of con- ditions abroad, with a knowledge of the State and its possibilities, and with a realization of the immensity of the field to be covered. Equipped with these essential requirements the work must be persisted in without any abatement of energy, and with a steady determination to utilize the best discriminating intelligence available in selecting those lines of effort that promise to be the most effective. Many thousands of dollars have been wasted by well-intending organizations, because of their haste in accepting propositions made to them too often by parties who had a selfish interest to serve. Other thousands of dollars have been expended in costly literature, which failed of its purpose for want of proper distribution. There have been instances where as many copies of a costly pamphlet rotted in cellars or molded in garrets as were distributed; while tons of extra editions of papers and periodicals, printed to satisfy the advertiser or fulfill an unreasonable contract, have never seen the light of day. Not long ago the writer went into a county to plead with the Supervisors on the im- portance of supplying the State Board of Trade with literature on their locality. After he had concluded his remarks the clerk spoke up and TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 113 said they had a lot of printed matter that had been gotten out at the time of the Midwinter Fair, but nobody seemed to call for it. As a result a large edition of neat pamphlets was rescued from their hiding- place, and after they had been sent abroad on their mission through the agency of the State Board of Trade the result was so satisfactory that another edition was gotten out, and the county referred to has kept itself supplied with literature ever since. This work pays when conducted on practical and intelligent lines. It especially pays California, which has so much to offer. That portion of our State comprising the counties embraced in the territory lying south of the Tehachapi range of mountains has expended in advertising some millions of dollars, and if the prestige gained to that section by reason of this expenditure were transferable it could not be bought for ten times what it cost. ; Landholders in that part of the State began many years ago to send out literature calling attention to the advantages they had to offer. The investment proved profitable, and they have keptit up. Notwithstand- ing that the southern portion of California, by reason of this effort, is known abroad to-day better than any other part of the State, the people there are printing and distributing more literature than ever before. In the northern and central portions of California more or less of the same kind of work has been done in the past years, but it has generally been spasmodic, and too often directed on impractical lines: Much of the time the body with which I am connected has been unable to get literature on the different counties north of Tehachapi, and has often been subjected to the humiliation of having to admit that it was out of pamphlets on this, that, or the other county which parties by letter or otherwise may have asked for. The southern counties never thus em- barrassed us. Their literature has always been available, and there have been times when about all the printed matter on hand, except our own publications, was that relating to Southern California. I am pleased to say that these conditions are rapidly changing for the better. Within the last few years there has been a general awakening in the northern and central portions of the State, until to-day nearly every county of prominence has one or more local organizations engaged in exploiting its advantages. The State Board of Trade now has pam- phlets at its disposal on about thirty counties, and necessarily most of them are north of Tehachapi. This new awakening and resulting improvement in the conditions are gratifying to all Californians, because, while it means no diminution of interest in Southern California, it means greater interest in the whole State, and the result is manifest in the fact that while the southern counties are still being crowded with newcomers, San Francisco is experiencing a phenomenal growth, and many portions of Northern and Central California are rapidly filling with a desirable population. 8--F-GC 114 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. A great deal of the literature, however, lacks directness; but improve- ment in this as in other things will come from experience. The average inquirer wants specific information. To illustrate: Some time ago I received a letter from a man in Great Falls, Montana, who said: “I take the liberty of writing to you for such information as would be useful to a man who contemplates settling in your State and engaging in the fruit-raising business.” I sent him ten pamphlets on ten leading fruit counties, and in my letter I told him if he desired further or more specific information to let me hear from him again. In due time he wrote me another letter, as follows: I have read the pamphlets you were kind enough to send me, and I confess they are interesting and rather alluring, but except the circular on ‘‘ California’s Climate,’’ none of them tell what I want to know. I gather that fruit land rates from $25 an acre up to higher than I would care to pay. I want to know what the conditions are that attach to different priced land? I would assume $50 an acreasa medium. What kind of land can I buy for $50 an acre? How far would it be from market? Whatcould I raise on it? Onan average, what would the crop be worth? What kind of people would I be among? What would be the school facilities? Would there be a church within reach? Whatis the cost of fencing and building material? What isthe cost of living? Send me some grocery man’s price list. What are the prices of farm animals, horses and cows particularly? I apologize for so many questions, but you see I want to know, before breaking up here, just what I can do with the means I will have when I get there. We seldom get a letter that goes so far as this one in specific inquiries, but the general tenor of correspondence that comes to us indicates a desire for information more specific than is contained in the general run of California literature. The party who undertakes to write of California or of a county or locality should anticipate all these ques- tions and all others that the inquirer is likely to ask. Mr. W. H. Mills, who is very practical in this line of work, as in other things, evidently had in mind the wants of the average inquirer for specific information when he prepared the copy for ‘“ California’s Industries,” a pamphlet published by the Southern Pacific Company for distribution at the Pan-American Exposition two years ago. This pamphlet contained more of the kind of information prospective settlers desire than anything that has been published on California for a long time. California is being advertised more now and better than ever before. The work, however, is yet inadequate and in many instances imperfect. When it shall be done as it ought to be every portion of the world that has a population from which it is desirable to recruit, will be made to know our physical and climatic conditions, and the advantages which this ‘Italy of America”’ offers to the settler over any other part of the western hemisphere. Every scrap of literature will be prepared with a special view to the purpose which it is intended to accomplish, and all that is prepared and printed will be distributed so judiciously that little s TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 115 or none will fall on barren ground. To facilitate this work the man already here should bury his hatchet, take the brads from his heels, and throw away his hammer. It is gratifying to note the rapid advancement toward these ends, and how readily interior organizations adapt their work to the best ideas. In Northern and Central California the local boards of trade, chambers of commerce, development associations, etc., are rendering the atmos- phere unhealthy for that species of biped .known as the “knocker,” and he is either changing his profession or leaving the country. This isa very encouraging sign. It portends a healthy condition, and when there is a healthy public sentiment among a people in favor of the community in which they live, half the fight for the advancement of that commu- nity is won. Hence, if a local body does no more than kill or drive out the “knockers” it will have fully justified its existence and done enough to entitle it to the gratitude and support of every well-wisher of the community. To indicate how inadequately this work is done at present and how much room there is for expansion, it is only necessary to note that last year the State Board of Trade distributed by mail and otherwise 250,000 pieces of California literature. This on its face seems a large quantity, and certainly its distribution involved a great deal of patient work and a big bill for postage, and yet assuming that none of this went into foreign countries it can be appreciated how thinly this amount would spread over the United States. It would be only one copy to each three hundred and twenty souls. At the same rate it would require three hundred and twenty years tu send out one copy of our literature to each inhabitant of this country. At the end of that time the population would have more than doubled, so that at the same rate the State Board of Trade would be further behind in three hundred and twenty years from now in its endeavor to cover the field than it is at present. This calculation does not take into account the vast and fruitful foreign fields which must not be ignored in this line of work. But then the State Board of Trade is growing and its facilities are increasing. Besides, the burden is not all on its shoulders. Other bodies are helping with the work and are doing yeoman service, and these other bodies, we are pleased to say, are multiplying and growing in strength. In addition to these the transportation companies are mighty factors in advertising the State and promoting its development. The southern counties, as we have said, have been organized a long time, and have been active and effective. The northern and central counties are organizing and are becoming effective. The work grows. All parts of the State appear to be awakening to the importance of advertising. The people, even in some of the remote counties, are becoming infected with a desire to do something for their respective 116 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. communities. Inyo is alive and advertising. Del Norte has a board of trade, and even Modoc wants to do something and has written to ask how to do it. They are finding out that money spent wisely in exploiting their resources is a profitable investment, and knowing that. wisdom can only come from experience they are showing a disposition to start in the work and expend something to learn how. The south has done and is doing well, and the rest of the State is getting into line. California seems to be entering on a system of intelligent effort. If we persevere, each institution working harmoniously for the good of all, and all for California first, and our immediate locality second, we will see the work grow as it deserves. The “knocker” will become as extinct as the mastodon, and men of spirit and of progress will be appreciated and emulated. Every good citizen will enlist in the cause, and the increased population and accompanying prosperity that will come to the State as a whole, and to every section thereof, will be so great that we will forget there was ever a time when men discouraged such effort or when one community in California was the least bit jealous of another. ADVERTISING CALIFORNIA. By FRANK WIGGINS, or Los ANGELEs. Why this subject was assigned me is a question I am unable to answer. The Committee on Programme are men who have known me ever since my advent in the advertising business, and know I have done little else than advertise California, or a certain portion of it. My methods are familiar to all of you, and the result public property. Why not let it go at that, and not consume valuable time telling facts well known? No intelligent merchant would nowadays dream of questioning the great value of advertising. The only question is as to the most effective method of advertising. That advertising of some kind must be under- taken to secure business is unanswerably admitted. The merchant who does not advertise might as well shut up shop. Even those who refuse to advertise recognize the utility of it. When they dress up a store window attractively, what is that but advertising ? What is true of an individual or a firm is equally true of a com- munity. The section of country which blows its trumpet vigorously and makes itself heard abroad in the land is the one that forges to the front, provided always—and this is as true of communities as of indi- viduals—that the goods are there when the customer comes to see them, and they are as represented. A big trade may be worked up by a mer- chant and a big immigration by a section through extensive advertising; TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 1 Le but neither the trade nor the immigration will be permanent unless the right kind of thing is offered to those who are attracted by the notices. That California has an exceptionally choice assortment of “goods” to offer those who dwell in less favored climes none of us will surely undertake to deny. The thing to do is to place a description of our resources and attractions before as many people as possible who are likely to be tempted to seek a new place of residence. It is generally admitted that no place in the United States has been so thoroughly advertised all over the world as Los Angeles. As a result of this pub- licity, look at the wonderful growth of this city, from a population of 11,000 in 1890 to one of over 130,000 to-day. The same result would have accrued to the whole State had the same tactics been followed. The main agencies in this advertising of the charms of Southern Cali- fornia have been the public-spirited press and the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce and kindred associations. The daily and weekly news- papers and monthly magazines are never weary of telling the delights of life in this favored section. Many of them issue every year highly ornate illustrated numbers, which circulate all over the country and abroad by hundreds of thousands. The Chamber of Commerce works unceasingly br means of attractive exhibits, by circulating a vast amount of litera- ture, and by making exhibits of products at various exhibitions in this country, and when opportunity offers, in foreign countries. It is this latter form of advertising that has done more to bring new settlers to Southern California than any other. The picture or the thing itself is more effective than the printed word with the great mass of people—a fact now generally admitted by publishers. So must an attractive exhibit of products be more effective than the most forceful description of the same. People may doubt the accuracy of written statements regarding our resources and attractions—our enormous pumpkins and our bloom- ing orange groves, with snow-capped mountains in the background. They may even doubt the authenticity of the picture of these things; but when they can see and handle and even taste our products, then even a doubting Thomas must be convinced. These are items on the subject of advertising California. What has been accomplished down here can be done all over the State; but it must be understood that when once begun’ you must keep everlastingly at it, and pay strict attention to the business of advertising and nothing else. No side issues can be carried along with this par- ticular work. If you want to advertise the State as a whole, no section, locality, corporation, or individual can be taken in partnership. It it is a locality you wish to push forward, let it be that and nothing else. Individual interests must be dropped and “knocking” eliminated; and, in my estimation, the truth must be told in every instance, if you wish to make your work of a lasting character. You never heard of a busi- 118 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. ness enterprise successfully carried on by false representations and adverse criticism of competitors. It may do for awhile, but it will never wear, nor will it induce confidence. You have practical evidence all over California where this character of work has been done, and you, or at least most of you, are familiar with the results. Orchards have been dug up, mines abandoned, ranches and even towns forsaken, and the State given a black eye. To sum up the matter of advertising California, I would do exactly as the State Board of Trade and the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce are doing, only on a wholesale plan reduced to business principles: Make either one or both the nucleus for supplies and operating depart- ment, and, like the Fruit Sellers’ Agency, establish agencies all over the United States, filled by men fully capable of talking any and all sections of California, who have no interest in any one section more than another—men who work more for the love of the State than for the salary (and let me say here that the salary should be a good one, a fact. nearly always lost sight of), men who can be approached by the seeker of information with the confidence of being treated only as a Californian should treat a stranger. Make these agencies bureaus of information with exhibits attached, where a man can be supplied with demonstrated as well as illustrated information—these bureaus to be portable, taken from one section to another, when and where deemed advisable. Over these exhibits should be placed a capable chief, whose duty it will be to keep them in perfect condition and attractive, to replenish and discard — as required. The one great drawback to exhibition work is that so few are posted sufficiently to properly care for exhibits. It is a science, and can only be learned by actual experience. I want to impress this as forcibly as possible. There is no one who can tell you how to put up an exhibit. Adaptability and experience are the only teachers. ‘To go back to the bureaus. Equip them with the. most concise and up-to-date descriptive matter, dealing with everything a newcomer wants to know, combining a few industries but dealing separately with the majority. In illustrations show only that which is strictly Californian, nothing having the semblance of Hastern conditions. In this you get attention on the start, and increase the interest in us and our attractions. All the matter should be free of advertisement. Avoid being accused of inducing investments because of an advertisement that appears in your booklets or circulars. Never have to make an excuse for what you print or say. The reader of this literature, when he or she visits any section of the State and finds it up to representation, will soon be doing a most effective advertising stunt for the State. To the fruit-growers I want to say, you can do more to advertise California than any other agency. By sending to the East only your TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 119 best products in proper condition, and packed as represented, the top- layer method must be discontinued if you want to maintain a California reputation. With every package all layers must be top layers. How often do we hear it said by visitors in our exhibition hall: ‘Oh, yes; this fruit looks like the outside layers of those boxes we get Hast; but when you get down to the center, it is nothing but trash or unripe, knotty fruit, not fit to eat. Your peaches are not fit to eat, tough and tasteless.” This complaint is on the increase, and unless the grower himself, or packer, uses commercial sense and changes the practice, California wiil be the loser. The citrus fruit packer is getting “onto his job,” and for attractive and uniform pack is gaining areputation that counts; except in the one thing, that is, green fruit in the opening of the season. Better be late to market than hurt your trade with unripe stuff. Why can’t you ship your deciduous fruit more nearly matured? It would better not last so long than to be unpalatable and tough. You all know the stomach is the place to tickle, if you want to make favorable impressions. Let us go into the tickling business and place the whole universe in a good humor over ourselves and our products. Now for St. Louis. How many of you are preparing for the event of next year? To advertise California at St. Louis as she should be every section must be up and doing, and every grower setting aside certain patches of grain, certain trees, and certain vines from which to select specimens worthy of being placed beside those of other States and countries. Wehave been very slow in getting started, if we have started at all. Glassware should be ready to receive the early fruit; competent men employed to process it. Hach section should be making its esti- mate on what it will do, the amount of space it will require, and the character of display it wishes to make. The State can not arrange to handle the pruposition until it knows to a reasonable certainty just what to expect from its several divisions. How many are ready to give this information ? California has gained a reputation in the exposition line that must be maintained. If the grower does not do his share, we will not be able to maintain this reputation at St. Louis. Every mercantile establishment attempts to improve its advertising methods. We should do the same, and keep everlastingly at it, if we want to keep California always to the front. 120 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. ADVERTISING CALIFORNIA FRUIT PRODUCTS. By W. D. CURTIS, or Los ANGELEs. I recently saw a statement to this effect: That the young man of to-day must know twice as much as his father did, or he would not be able to make one half as much money, or stand one half as well in the community. To my mind this statement will apply with equal force to the fruitmen of this State, for I believe that the California fruitmen of to-morrow must be twice as well informed as the fruitmen of yester- day, or they can not make one half the money, and their products will not receive one half the recognition in the markets of the world. It has always seemed to me that the growers and packers of Cali- fornia fruit products were in a sort of comatose state. They listen to the story of their possible greatness in a half-awake condition, and then when that story is told they go to sleep again. Before taking up the main subject for consideration I want to touch very briefly upon the duties that devolve upon the advertising man, and some of the principles that underlie all successful advertising. I find many men to-day who still believe that an advertising man is simply a man who prepares, in an attractive way, advertising copy and places it in one or more periodicals. This is in reality but a small part of the work actually performed by an intelligent advertising director. The real student of modern-day publicity probes deeper than that. He is constantly endeavoring to get at the very root of the matter. He studies advertising much as the lawyer studies Jaw, or the doctor medicine. He must be familiar with merchandising in all its phases. He is often called upon to shape the entire advertising campaign and - business policy, and to fix the price. He must not only know the relative value of space in newspapers and magazines, on billboards and dead walls, and of the last space left on a programme—I say he must not only be familiar with all of these, but he must also know how to frame an advertisement that will be productive of results, and then after designing the label, and selecting the package or bottle, and preparing the follow-up letters, booklets, catalogues, and other literature, he has to see to it that the plan as a whole is carried out; and it is this last work that often means so much to the future success of an enterprise. An advertising man isa sort of sponge; he absorbs ideas and methods from the brightest and brainiest men in every walk and vocation, and then allows himself to be squeezed by this client and that client who comes to him for help, until sometimes he feels that he has been squeezed very dry. i So much for the man. Now as to a few of the underlying principles. Advertising will probably never become an exact science—there is too TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. yA) | much of you and me in it for that. There does exist, however, some science in advertising, and it is by no means the gamble that some men believe it to be. In all advertising the great law of supply and demand must be taken into account, and care exercised as to what you advertise, to whom you advertise, and how, and when, and where. To present the wrong article in the wrong way to a disinterested class of people at ‘an inopportune time is necessarily disastrous. A dyspeptic manager or a dyspeptic salesman can kill the effectiveness of a good advertise- ment. Now, advertising is not the whole thing; it is only a cog in the wheel—a very important and necessary cog, however. I would not give much for a business wheel of to-day that did not have an advertis- ing cog in it; nor would I give much for the future success of the fruit interests of this State unless an advertising cog is put in the marketing wheel. Let me give you a definition of good advertising. Good advertising is accurate information happily brought to the attention of persons most likely to be influenced. I want you to get this thought fixed in your minds: That advertising is information, and that good advertising is accurate information. Accurate information is knowledge, and we all know that knowledge is power. Therefore, good advertising is a power, and you want to harness that power to every box of fruit in California. Why is it that the public scan so closely the advertising columns of our present-day magazines if it is not on account of the information that these advertisements contain? Advertising answers human inquiry— What shall leat? What shall I wear? How shall I furnish my home ? And where shall I go in search of rest and recreation ? Advertising is everywhere recognized as an important factor in modern business, and I deem it of the utmost importance in its relations to the fruit interests of this great State. I haven’t any doubt but that the future success of the fruit industry of this State depends to a great extent upon a wise and judicious use of printer’s ink. The late Hon- orable William E. Gladstone once said that “nothing except the mint can make money without advertising.” Gentlemen, you have got to recognize the power of the press. The magazines and ladies’ publications, the religious and farm papers of large circulation, and the daily newspapers all offer a great vehicle to carry your splendid fruit story to the consumers of this country. The better class of trade papers also offer an effective way of influencing the dealers. The fruit-growers of California are not living up to their opportunities. We live in a grand State that has been advertised far and wide, and you want to take advantage of it. I want to say here that I believe State 122 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION, promotion work is a benefit rather than a menace to our fruit products? and every fruit-grower should contribute generously to the work now being done by commercial organizations. These public bodies, follow- ing close on the heels of the great advertising work of the railroads, have opened up a way, and, like the children of Israel, the fruitman can now go up (or rather east) and possess the land at a much less cost than it could otherwise be done for. There is but one California. California is a good name to conjure with. California is a good brand to put on your fruit. The word Cali- fornia has an actual money value; it should be counted as one of your greatest assets, and protected. JI wish I might dwell at length on the importance of protecting that name California, but time forbids. You have a great educational work to do, first, with the growers; second, with the packers; then with the large distributers, followed .by the large dealers, the small dealers, and last but by no means least, with the consumers. The advertising matter that goes to each of these classes must be of a nature to interest and instruct the person who receives it. It will be readily seen that you can not send the same advertising (the same information) to all. What would be beneficial to the dealer would not be particularly so to the consumer, and vice versa. If you will but keep in mind that advertising is information, and that ‘information and knowledge about the true condition of affairs is what is wanted, you will better understand why good advertising will secure for vou the desired end in all of your deliberations. Good advertising will secure for you an increased number of con- sumers, a firmer market, less friction with the packer and seller, better transportation rates, better transportation facilities, satisfied growers, better prices; yes, and I will go further than this, advertising will route cars. [imagine I hear some of you asking the question, ‘‘ How is adver- tising going to route cars?” I reply by referring to that definition of good advertising which I gave you a moment ago. California fruits possess strong talking points, and there is no excuse or reason for telling any fairy tales. A prominent railroad official is credited with saying that you have to lie about California in order to tell the truth. I certainly believe in telling the truth, and while you are about it the whole truth; but I desire to impress upon you this fact, that in advertising it is never wise to make a statement that may not be believed by a majority of those who read it; in other words, your advertisements must be credible in order to be profitable. The business and selling points of California fruits are good enough, and the half has not yet been told. I have previously and at different times called attention to the paper wrappers around fruit being used for advertising purposes, and I under- stand that it is being done to a greater extent than heretofore. Some TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 123 very interesting fifty-word stories can be told in this way. They could contain information about California in general, the locality in which the fruit was grown, as well as the particular ranch. Historic points should also be made use of, the idea being to make your printed matter teem with interesting facts. The packing-house, the orchard, and last and by no means least the fruit itself should come in for a good business- bringing story. The trouble with the average fruitman is he thinks that the public knows all about his product, when, as a matter of fact, the public is grossly ignorant. Signs on thefreight cars make good advertising. The cars stand on the sidetracks where they can be seen by the inhabitants of the towns, especially the smaller places. These signs can be greatly improved; a few qualifying adjectives would enhance their value immensely. You have gotten out some booklets; the one gotten out by the Cali- fornia Fruit Exchange and circulated extensively throughout the Hast was good, but do not stop with one. Millions of lttle inexpensive leaflets and letter inclosures should be printed for mailing purposes, and for distribution by the dealers. Some sort of an inexpensive sign should be devised on the under side of box covers, so that when the cover is removed it can be utilized as a clean, fresh sign that will serve to attract buyers. Well-written, strongly-displayed advertisements should be gotten up here in California, where men are familiar with the merits of our fruit, and these advertisements should be furnished deal- ers, free, throughout the country, for their use in local papers. You have got to furnish the talking points of your fruit, you must put the arguments into the mouths of all Eastern dealers. Get up an advertisement like this, for instance: FANCY ORANGES From THE Famous DUARTE District, IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA. NAVELS, MEDITERRANEAN SWEETS, ETC. Each one selected, wrapped with great care in paper, and perfectly packed in boxes, delivered at your door, all charges paid, for a box, containing one hundred and fifty or more oranges, according to size. These advertisements to be inserted in the daily papers by the local dealers at the most opportune time. Oranges are regarded by many people as a luxury. Oranges are not a luxury. They are an important article of food. If people of means knew this they would use a dozen oranges where they now use one; and people in more moderate circumstances, if they realized that a little money spent in oranges would prevent serious sickness, would feel justi- fied in spending many times as much for oranges as they do now. The trouble is they don’t know. Why? The orange men have never told them. 124 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. Orange men agree that the production is increasing; that in a few years it may amount to from 30,000 to 40,000 carloads. They agree that this year the demand has been lighter than last year, and attribute this to various minor causes, all of which sum up into the broad fact that the people who eat your oranges have not eaten as many as they previously did. In your anxiety you overhaul your selling agencies, you appeal to the railroads, you look for a dozen and one minor factors which we all know need looking after, but you overlook the one great factor to which you must turn for salvation—you leave out of account the great-consum- ing public. Your “‘market” is not an actual reality to you; it is simply some point to which you ship cars and where some man gets the most money he can out of the oranges. You must come to realize that your “‘market” is another set of human beings constituted the same as you and your families are; that they have daily needs to be supplied and pleasures to cater to; that they are open to argument about oranges, just as you are about Grape-Nuts or Sapolio or Force. , What I say regarding the orange can with some slight variation be applied to other fruit products. -Our canned deciduous fruits, our seeded raisins, our splendid dried figs, our prunes and other dried fruits must and will some day be advertised in a systematic way. There should be a general advertising fund created and a certain sum should be set aside each year for this purpose. I believe a tax (for want of a better word I say tax) of not less than one cent per box could be levied to advantage on every box of oranges and lemons, and on every case of dried or canned fruit that leaves the State. The fruit interests require and demand an advertising fund large enough to com- mand the attention of the buying public, and there should be a fund of this kind created, so that when occasion requires, the necessary steps can be taken without upsetting the internal workings of the various fruit organizations on the Coast. Taking it year by year, Southern California ships more than 20,000 carloads of oranges. There are 362 boxes in a carload. This gives the annual shipment of oranges as 7,240,000 boxes. Now assuming that the orange-growers felt the necessity of advertising oranges in order to increase consumption, just let us suppose that they decided to spend one cent per box for a year, and we will find that we have a sum of $72,400. I am speaking very conservatively when I say one cent a box. It would not be unbusinesslike to spend ten cents a box, and this would yield a fund of $724,000. Wherever practical I have always advocated the snndvieltdtl package. A special brand is very desirable. It is not at all unlikely that we shall some day see oranges advertised under a brand. It remains for some s TWENTY-EIGHTH- FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. g y5) genitis to evolve an inexpensive seal so that each orange as it is wrapped can be rapidly sealed by a slight hand pressure. An extensively adver- tised seal brand orange would attract much favorable attention, and if only choice fruit was wrapped in this manner it would be productive of much good to the California fruit industry. : General educational advertising without any reference to any par- ticular brand would tend to increase consumption of our California fruit products, and I am inclined to believe that such work is practical at this time. | The fruit by-product manufacturers of this State are going to solve a very great problem with you, by utilizing a great deal of the fruit that would otherwise be a dead loss. I can see a great future for advertised California by-products. Now, in all this advertising work you are bound to encounter obstacles. Plans will have to be carefully worked out and knotty problems solved, but you must ever keep in mind that increased con- sumption means a market for more fruit. Judicious advertising will sell all the fruit California can produce. Don’t talk overproduction, talk advertising. Gentlemen, I thank you for your kind attention. ADVERTISING CALIFORNIA FRUIT PRODUCTS. By B. N. ROWLEY, or San FRANCISCO. This naturally means, Can the consumption of California fruit products be increased, and if so, how? This dual question is of pro- found interest to each orchardist, fruit-packer, and fruit-canner in this State, and is a matter of deep concern to the many shippers and handlers. One has but to read regularly the representative agricultural and horticultural journals of the country to learn that the planting of fruit trees is going on year by year with great vigor and in a most wholesale way. It is a literal fact that to the creation of orchards there is no end. Almost from week to week one is told of that “greatest” orchard which is projected. Sometimes it is a peach planting; on another occasion it may be an apple orchard or a prune orchard; again it is a mixed orchard. The number of peach trees in the State of Georgia alone is placed at 13,000,000, and all of these have been planted, practically, in the last decade or two. Texas, Alabama, and certain sections of the Carolinas are also witnessing a heavy planting of peach and other fruit trees. It really seems as though more fruit trees were now being planted, or 126 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. were about to be set out, than ever before. This, however, is simply impressional, If that impression be accurate—and the very great part of these trees are being set out in territory which is nearer to the great markets of the country than is any point in California—is not one justified in coming to the conclusion that the advertising of California fruits and fruit products must be resorted to in order that the already large consump- tive demand be further increased? A superficial glance at the question would certainly seem to warrant such a conclusion, and the writer has no hesitancy in saying that the consumption of California fruits can be largely increased by judicious advertising. Starting, then, with the assumption that the use of California fruits can be extended, let us inquire how this desired end can be accom- plished. There were shipped: from this State during the year 1902, in carloads of ten tons each, Carloads. Green deciduous truitsosle 2. . See ee ee es eee ee 10,039 Citrus} HW ts oS Ae La EEO oe ey peed ee en 22,566 Driedviruitse the 298 ee Oe eee eae 2, lal a 15,194 FRAYSIVS 22 2st Sle ee Ce 2 4,757 Total 222 ook oe oe a Si a Te a ee rr Oo! There are in this country incorporated cities of 5,000 inhabitants and over to the number of about 870; in addition to which there is an unknown number of unincorporated cities of 5,000 inhabitants and over, the New England States alone having sixty-two of them. It cer- tainly is not outside the bounds of possibility, or even probability, if the right forces are set at work, to increase the consumption of Cali- fornia fruit products in all of these places. We are aware that many of these towns are supplied by the jobbers doing business in the larger cities and shipping points, and should the attempt be made to serve the small places direct from a California central agency, the jobbers would take just that much less fruit. We believe it to be in the interest of the industry to protect the jobbers, but some plan should be devised by which they as a class should reach out further than has yet been perhaps attempted in the effort to cover as many towns of 5,000 population, or smaller, as well as the larger towns, as is possible. California interests will make a mistake should they “cater to the people at both ends against the middle.” The jobber is the real distribu- ter, and he is the man who should be protected as far as possible. The man who only needs ten packages or less should buy from the jobber, who is the man who buys hundreds and thousands of packages and then sends out telegrams, letters, and postal cards everywhere in the effort to get rid of the fruit. He does more for the California grower, packer, and shipper than all the small buyers put together. The com- TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 127 petition among the jobbers will become stronger because of increased trade from the small dealers. Foreign Markets—Much can be done in aid of the good cause by developing foreign markets. Canada is a market susceptible of a steady increase. Germany offers a splendid field for exploitation, or it would were it not for the danger which results from the chronic agitation of the agrarians. Central Europe affords a market for some of California’s surplus, particularly when it is remembered that there is no lack of people who know a good thing when they see it and have the means to purchase it. The United Kingdom is an enormous consumer of fruit and fruit products whenever the opportunity presents itself. Most cured fruits are produced at the ratio of five or six pounds of fresh to one of cured. Others are produced at as low a ratio as two or two and a half pounds of fresh to one of cured. A fair average for the grand total, it is thought, when the waste is taken into consideration, would be, say four pounds of fresh to one of cured. This means that the grand total of cured fruits, cured prunes, and raisins finds in the fresh ,article an equivalent of 798,040 tons, or nearly eight times more than the shipments of fresh deciduous fruits amounted.to in the same year. Generally speaking, it may be said that greater care must be given the curing process, as too much poor fruit is allowed to leave the drying-grounds; the matter of over-sulphuring should be avoided. _ Our packages are adapted to the class of trade which is catered to, and no radical change need be suggested at this time. The packing should be more carefully done, however. Complaints are altogether too frequent of irregular, not to say, dishonest packing. A uniform pack tends to enlarge trade, always. The Matter of Retail Prices.—Let it be said here, that we believe every one to be worthy of his hire; and second, on general principles, we believe it to be the best for all interests, that as many be given a chance to make a living as is possible, within reason. Should every producer sell direct to the consumer, a vast army of people would be deprived of a means of making a living and they would gravitate down into the ranks of the unemployed, and if not a menace would be a burden on the community, and thus lower the purchasing power of the entire ‘country. . ‘ We have purchased at retail in a San Francisco market fresh apples at the rate of $250 a ton. What did the grower receive? Every one is familiar with instances similar in character. So with cured fruits. What relation does the price received by the grower bear to the price which the consumer pays? It was in an effort to accurately answer this question that a Vacaville orchardist asked a relative, who was about to come to the Coast from London, to bring along with her samples 128 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. of cured fruits and a bill showing the price that was paid. The lady in the case recently reached Vacaville, and with her were one pound of cured peaches, one pound of apricots, and one pound of pears, all grown and cured in California. For the three pounds of fruit the lady paid 5 shillings and 6 pence, or $1.32, an average of 44 cents a pound. An examination of the fruit showed that it graded as follows: apricots, fancy; pears, extra choice; and peaches, choice; the probable cost in California and the price paid to the grower being not more than 5 cents a pound for peaches, 6 cents a pound for pears, and 74 cents a pound for apricots. In other words, the entire three pounds probably brought the grower 184 cents, and the consumer paid $1.82 for the same article in the London market; a difference of $1.133. Out of that sum must be paid the cost of handling, freight, etc. The freight charge is relatively a small matter. There were three, or perhaps four, pairs of hands through which this cured fruit passed—the packer, the Eastern jobber, the London wholesaler, and the retailer. Allowing, as one may, for a liberal slice for each of these gentlemen, is there not an altogether too great difference between what the grower received and what the purchaser had to pay? No one, it is thought, will say “no” tb this inquiry. The several handlers are entitled to a fair share in the series of transactions which brings the product of the orchardist to the table of the consumer; but no one can countenance any such excessive profits for the middlemen as is here instanced. It hurts the industry as a whole, and is another point for those interested to grapple with. An undeniable influence in increasing the consumption of California fruit products, whether in this or in a foreign country, is an intelligently- conducted campaign of advertising. The efficacy of judiciously-placed and well-prepared advertising is too well appreciated to need other than passing mention. It is too late in the day to argue the value of advertising, of itself. In these times, when a score or more of mer- chants are each spending $100,000 and upward yearly and employing men to conduct the department, at salaries ranging from $5,000 to $12,000 annually, it were idle to waste time in an effort to convince some one of the fact that ‘advertising pays,” to prove to some benighted individual that there is indeed virtue in printer’s ink. It can be stated, however, that the general advertising of California fruits will not do. There must be something specific about the work. A system of brands should be introduced, and the use of them must be extended, and these should be hammered iitouets the press and possibly elsewhere, so that all shall in time become so familiar with the name or design of the brand that it, and meee it represents, form one picture in the mind of the reader. As to matters of publicity, it can be said that integrity as a basis, more than anything else, wins success. The advertisement may be TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 129 cleverly and attractively drawn, it may have the choicest of positions, the product offered at alluring prices may flatter itself with fine phrases, yet if the article advertised is deficient in real merit and not as adver- tised, it will fail to be a permanent success. Hold fast to the truth, and let the sentences be positive and powerful, though the language employed should be simple. Realize with pride the immensities of the opportunity. So-called catch phrases invariably stand out in the light. Use them, however, judiciously, and don’t overdo the thing. “Some one has said that nine out of every ten advertisers are unsuc- cessful. It may be true that ninety per cent of publicity-seekers fail to achieve financial success. There is always just as much reason for failure as there is for success. Some fail because the goods lack merit; others fail because their products, full of merit, are improperly exploited. In my judgment, it would not be advisable to outline a definite plan at this time for advertising California fruit products. It is too compli- cated a subject to be handled within the limited time in which to prepare an article of the kind for presentation to this Convention. Any plan worthy of consideration by the fruit-growers of this State will require both time and labor to outline and elaborate. I would suggest that a committee of five be appointed with instructions to take up the broad question of “ Publicity— Advertising California Fruit Products,” and evolve a plan, reporting at some future time. ADVERTISING CALIFORNIA FRUIT PRODUCTS. By J. C. NEWITT, or Los ANGELEs. After the very able and thoughtful papers presented to this Conven- tion, I shall not detain you with any extended discussion. What I shall have to say concerns the marketing as well as the advertising of California products. In the first place, you can not take any old sort of a product and stiffen it up by inserting a backbone of advertising, and make a business success. Advertising never was, is not, and never will be the whole thing, and I say this after fifteen years’ hand-to-hand experience with it. Advertising is much like electricity. Turn on the current in the proper manner and you ¢an do wonders with it; but pick it up in the wrong way and it will do wonders with you. My experience has demon- strated that finding a broad, growing market for California products hinges on two points: (1) Be sure your article is as good as you think it is; (2) Be sure it is put in the right size package, attractively labeled, oe in mind the old saying that “the apparel oft proclaims the man,” and what applies to a man applies as well to anything a woman buys. 9—F-GC 130 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. The style and appearance of a package create the first impression for your product, good or bad; and you may attach importance to this or not, but I want to make the prediction that if this first impression is bad, your product is next door to a failure and all the advertising on earth won’t save it—and it does not make much difference how good your article is, either. If the jobber doesn’t like the appearance of your product he will not buy it; if Mr. Grocer doesn’t like the looks of it he will probably buy something else not so good that looks better to him; and if Mrs. Con- sumer is not impressed with the style of your goods, she is going to buy the goods she is impressed with—advertising or no advertising. The Californian who seeks a market for his product through adver- tising has many points in his favor, as compared with an Hastern or foreign competitor. California products are held in high esteem in the Eastern market as far as these products are known; but the day has gone by when quality alone will create a world market for any sort of a product. Competition is too close, the inventive genius of man too great, for this style of merchandising. Every shrewd business man operating in-the world markets to-day is taking a short cut for the biggest market. He is not waiting for his goods to sell themselves. Most of us here can remember when Liebig’s was the only beef extract known. It was the extract that every physician specified; it was the extract that every druggist reeoommended. One day, after an exhaustive talk with a Chicago advertising man, Mr. Philip D. Armour decided to make an appropriation of $10,000 for advertising his products. What has been the result? A canvass of the drug-stores shows that out of every five calls for beef extract, four are for Armour’s, and I suppose if the investigation was carried into the other products Mr. Armour advertised, the results would be the same. This does not mean that other makers of beef extracts are not selling just as many or more goods as they were before the Armours commenced their advertising campaign, but it does mean that advertising has increased the consumption of the article. The lesson in this is that there are any number of California products with which business can be developed the same as the Armours have developed their beef-extract trade. If one cares to ascertain just how great this undeveloped field for California products is, ask any New York grocer what the best brand of California olives or olive oil is. Nine chances out of ten he can not recall the name of a single brand, good or bad. Not one retailer in a hundred in the Kast knows one brand of California wine or one brand of California fruit from another, with one or two exceptions. The Eastern retailer buys these articles just exactly as a hardware mer- chant buys pig-iron or as a dry-goods merchant buys so many bales of cotton bats; and just as long as the marketing of California products TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. Lod is kept on this basis, just so long will California products pay a narrow margin of profit. If you want to raise the profits of your business, you have first got to raise your product out of the rut, and the one lever to do this. is judi- cious, common-sense advertising, combined with skillful business management and a sales organization that can not be impeached. Elbert Hubbard, the genial editor of the ‘‘ Philistine,’ in an address at Pasadena last Monday night said: ‘‘ There are two ways to beat com- petition. One is to make the article cheaper, the other to make it better.” Let us put out our products in so much better and finer shape than the world has ever known and there will be no competition to beat. We can do it; Californians can do anything, especially if we “set our light upon the hill.” A little squib in three or four papers stating that a few drops of lemon juice in a glass of water will kill the typhoid germ is not going to move your lemon crop. Advertising prunes as a medicine is not going to raise the dignity and prestige of the fruit. The advertising of any product must be done in such a manner as to inspire enthusiasm for California and confidence in the merit of the article advertised. Let us suppose a case. Take oranges, for instance. Say we'll put $100,000 into advertising oranges next year, commencing in October and ending in May or June. We'll cal] our brand the “Golden Globe,” the most luscious of all California oranges—every one a perfect specimen of orange culture. We’ll pack the “Golden Globes” with a sealed wrapper; we'll use a different and more attractive box; we’ll put a little note in each box calling attention of the retail dealer to the exception- . ally fine quality of the fruit and give him a few points on oranges so that he can talk “Golden Globe” to his customers. We’ll say it costs another $25,000 for the extra fine labels, packing, and incidentals. Now what will $125,000 expended that way accomplish? I¢ will make oranges more popular than ever before. It will stiffen the entire market from California to Connecticut. Butit will do more. It will sell direct 500,000 boxes of fruit at from 50 cents to $1 per box more than unadvertised fruit brings, and this means that on the season’s advertising there is $125,000 clean profit. Some who have not given this matterany great thought or had any very great experience with advertising as a means of advancing prices or profits, will say this is the idle dream of anidle dreamer; but I tell you, gentlemen, that just as sure as I stand here this thing will be done some day and the wonder then will be, “ why didn’t wethink of this before?” Mr. Post, of Battle Creek, Mich., has made millions in the last few years with his Grape-Nuts and Postum Cereal. He started his business in a little barn or shed and his first advertising bill hardly amounted 132 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. to more than thirty cents. His neighbors called him “ bughouse,” but they now read books from his free library and take their recreation in public parks he has made possible. There are a dozen or more propositions lying around loose in the State of California that have as much merit as either one of Mr. Post’s articles. All these propositions need is a good swift “‘ Post” push. California as a fruit producer is already advertised to the world, yet I want to put the question: Do you gentlemen think that if the Armours, or Mr. Post, or John Wanamaker, or Marshal Field, or the Cream of Wheat people were in the fruit business in California they would go along from year to year running their canneries without trying to create a special demand for their particular brand? Would not these gentle- men as soon as the season for canned fruits opened in the fall, begin a — systematic campaign for their particular product in the journals that would reach the women of the world? Would not any one of these masters of commerce put up a good article of canned fruit, advertise it extensively, and have nerve enough to ask a price for it that would pay a handsome profit? Would they not have faith enough in advertising to know that the money so invested would secure to them the larger profit which they seek? You do not find these gentlemen doing business on a pig-iron basis, and why should California products be degraded to that level? Put out a good article, whether it is fruit, nuts, celery, or wine; give it a good name; give it a handsome label or package; put a progressive management and an alert salesman behind it; charge a good price for it; advertise it to the world, and you have got a success. Heinz’s pickles are no better than half a hundred obscure brands that might be picked up, but the advertising of fifty-seven varieties has made the Heinz people rich beyond their wildest dreams. What has been done in Pittsburg can be done in California. Why does Mr. Snider hold the catsup business of America in the palm of hishand? We can raise better tomatoes and just as cheaply right here on this Coast as can be raised in Cincinnati, and we can raise them every month in the year. As I see it, there is almost no limit to what can be done with and through the proper advertising of California products, especially Cali- fornia fruit products, but it must be done on a business basis. If you are going to let the Kastern grocer scoop your evaporated fruits out of boxes sitting around on his floor, you might as well stop advertising that evaporated fruit before you begin. There is only one way to do it and that is the right way. An adver- tised article must be put up in an attractive package of a size and at a price which will be most convenient to the consumer. The moment you leave the slightest opportunity for a merchant to substitute some other TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. toe article or some other grade of goods for the particular brand which you are advertising, your advertising campaign is the deadest thing that ever happened. In the last three or four years, more particularly the last two years, there have been a number of weak-kneed attempts to advertise California products in the East. Most of them have been signal failures, simply because advertisers thought they were going.to make a fortune by merely taking an inch or two of space in Eastern publications at $5 more or less per line. This good money was paid out to induce the retail buyer to call on the retail dealer in the hopes that the retail dealer would call on his jobber, whereat the jobber would get excited and ay once telegraph a big order to California. Some advertising men call this system of working, creating a demand or forcing the dealer. I call it “blowing your money.” Before a Cali- fornia product can be successfully advertised, it must be fairly well grounded in the markets in which you are to operate. Take, for instance, McClure’s Magazine or the Delineator, or any other publication carrying a large volume of food-product advertising. Suppose you put your advertisement in these publications. Your goods are in Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, Boston, and other jobbing centers, or you have two or three good travelers booking orders from town to town. Can’t you see that under those conditions you have more than a fighting chance for success? And can’t you see that without the goods at the strategic points or without the traveler to blaze the way, your efforts are foreordained to defeat? The success of any advertising depends upon who uses it, when and how it is used. Those who have experience, money, confidence, and a good article to sell are in love with it. Those who have used it to head off competition and get the best of the other fellow, have no use for it. Mr. Armour says the time has come when advertising must be done. Mr. Armour made a success by starting with $10,000. Mr. Post made a success by starting without a cent. The question of capital in an advertising campaign, while an important one, is not the paramount issue. A good product, a good package, a good organization, and good common business sense, combined with enthusiasm in your proposition, are more vital than money. A bright writer has said “that an advertisement is a thing that repre- sents a man’s goods and business at a place where the man and goods are not.” There are just millions and millions of places in the United States where our goods are not and where California products should be represented. PRESIDENT COOPER. The papers which have been read are now before the Convention for discussion. 134 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. ~MR. HARTRANFT. It seems a pity to say much more at this late hour, but I look on this evening’s programme as one of the important sessions of the Convention. I am surprised at the modesty of our advertising friends to come in here and refer to $100,000 appropriations. Our appropriation for citrus fruit this year was $2,000,000. We kept our prices on Christmas oranges right up to the hilt, along some $2.80 to $3.25 a box; and when it passed the Christmas trade, with no method in marketing which tended to bring those prices down, the housewives of the country got the idea into their heads that oranges were pretty high. They stood it for Christmas-time, but they just simply laid them one side after Christmas, and we plunged on into the chasm of high prices and no consumption, or very little consumption, and pretty soon we had about a thousand cars a week rolling, or eight hundred for about eight weeks—we will figure it up roughly two million boxes—and we spent a $2,000,000 appropriation there in a hurry. -(Laughter.) Only we didn’t give it to the newspapers, and I think the newspapers ought to have had it. That was all wrong. The consumers got it all. As soon as oranges went down to about $2.25 a box, every little old Italian peddler in the country says: ‘No; I won’t buy bananas this week,” and up they went through the alleys in every direction spending our appro- priation. And still we haven’t got this good will that we would have had through natural advertising. I think that follows out in all lines, and I think we spend our appropriation every year, and I hope we will have enough of these advertising talks every year so we will get this advertising appropriation spent in the right direction finally. (Applause.) | At this time a recess was taken until Thursday morning at 9:30 o’clock. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 135 ~ PROCEEDINGS OF THIRD DAY. TuHurspDay, May 7, 1903. The Convention was called to order at 9:30 o’clock A. Mm. President Cooper in the chair. THE MARKETING OF WALNUTS AND DRIED FRUIT. By J. B. NEFF, oF ANAHEIM, General Manager of California Fruit and Produce Exchange, Los Angeles. Having been successful in growing and curing walnuts and deciduous fruit, the next thing which confronts the grower is the problem of get- ting the walnuts and dried fruit into market in such a manner that he will get a fair share of the price which consumers are willing to pay for them. Marketing through, or by, associations is likely to be the plan that is finally decided upon, as associations in all other lines are much more effective than single efforts. The first fruit associations of this State were loosely held together. Joining the association did not mean that the member was to ship his fruit through the association, unless it suited his pleasure at shipping time. While this method was followed the association did not, and could not, give any better returns than any other shipper. Kixperience has shown that membership in a co-operative marketing association must be accompanied by a contract which will secure to the association all of the product of its members, in order to be at all suc- cessful, and that the contract of membership should be for a long term of years. A joint stock company, or a co-operative association having a charter from the State, seems best suited to such cases. Co-operation seems to move slowly among deciduous fruit-growers, while they are certainly the people who are to be most benefited by such movement when properly carried out. They seem to have a won- derful ability in drafting “‘resolutions” of good intentions, which are always passed unanimously—and then forgotten. To succeed in forming a prosperous association there must be at least one man of moderate ability in the community who has the confidence of the growers and who is willing to do a large amount of work in that line, in season and out of season, without much compensation, though 136 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. all labor of this kind is very valuable to the producer and should be fully compensated. Co-operative marketing was forced upon the citrus-growers because of the rapid increase of their product; but while the dried fruit product is very large and increasing, the producers seem to be at sea, so far as any concerted method of marketing is concerned. The walnut-growers have made more progress, but seem disposed to stop much short of the position they ought to occupy. Nothing has been devised, so far, which gives as good results as the Exchange plan of marketing, either in walnuts or in dried fruit. The walnuts which have been marketed in that way during the past five years have averaged the growers more money than by any other method now in operation. The local association fixes a price which the Exchange agents take as a minimum price, and by judicious handling and smaller selling charges succeed in paying the larger price. It may be said that the growers do not get the money as soon as by the f.0. b. plan, but any one can get money for walnuts f. 0. b. by paying from $50 to $200 per car for that privilege, the Exchange prices frequently being that much above the f. 0. b. price, and payments are not delayed more than twenty days. This is a rate of interest which should satisfy the most exacting. Some extracts taken from the last report of the Anaheim association will sérve to illustrate this, when it is remembered that the price estab- lished on walnuts was: No. 1 softshells, 10 cents per pound; No. 2 soft- shells, 8 cents; No. 1 hardshells, 9 cents, and No. 2 hardshells, 74 cents, with a discount of 6 per cent to the selling agents. The report read as follows: Paid to growers: For No. 1 softshells $9.874 per 100 pounds; for No. 2 softshells, $7.55 per 100 pounds; for No. 1 hardshells, $9.514 per 100 pounds; for No. 2 hardshells, $7.45 per 100 pounds. Also a reserve of 5 cents per 100 pounds was retained from net proceeds. These walnuts were all sold by the agents of the Southern California Fruit Exchange at prices ranging from 10 cents to 12 cents f. o. b. California, for No. 1 softshells, and, as appears from the report, the growers niles the benefit in prices which have never been paid to growers before by any association. The Anaheim association takes the walnuts from the grower as they come from the orchard, and does the bleaching, grading, etc., at a cost of 18 cents per 100 pounds, which is rather more than the cost to some associations having larger crops to handle, and this cuts down the net price by the amount of their expenses above that of other more favorably situated associations, and makes a very noticeable difference where ohe growers grade and bleach for themselves. If the Anaheim growers had done their own bleaching and grading TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. on they would have received $10.053 per 100 pounds for No. 1 softshells, and if the reserve had been paid, a total of $10.103 per 100 pounds would have been paid them; but this grading and bleaching are done cheaper and more uniform by the association than can be done by individuals. The price received by the walnut-growers by marketing through the Exchange was about 50 cents per 100 pounds more than if marketed in the usual way. Successful dried-fruit marketing will have to be conducted on the same lines, with the growers’ agencies established in the distributing and consuming centers. The growers must control their marketing agents in every respect as fully as they do their assistants in the orchard or packing-house. The saying that “no man can serve two masters” is also true when applied to fruit marketing. It is not possible to have brokers who have several lines of goods and who are paid a percentage on their sales, work with the faithfulness of a man whose sole duty and business is that of selling the product of his employer. If business in dried fruit is dull and sales hard to make, the broker would be more than human if he did not divert his attention to other lines, where sales were more readily made and commissions more easily earned. : } Considerable has been said about f. 0. b. sales at an established price, but it is not likely that dried-fruit producers will ever be able to realize the best prices by such sales. Conditions do arise when sales can be made at fair prices f. 0. b. the producing point, but when that can be done better prices can usually be had nearer the consumer, and in these days of fierce competition, no manufacturer nor any producer except the farmer, thinks of waiting for some one to come to him to buy. Growers’ associations can agree on a minimum price and hold their - product until such price can be obtained, if found advisable, and by having fruit stored near the consuming points and their own selling agents, they are likely to get all the product is worth, and that is all that can reasonably be expected. . WALNUT MARKETING. By FRANK E. KELLOGG, or Goueta. There are just two things to be accomplished in marketing: the one is to sell the goods, and the other is to sell at the highest possible price. To accomplish these two things in the marketing of walnuts, the first con- sideration should be the quality of the nuts. The distinction between first-class and inferior nuts should be clearly and sharply defined, and 138 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. all goods that are marked first-class should invariably be such, while inferior nuts, if placed on the market at all, shouldbe distinctly marked and sold as such. Southern California has justly gained the reputation of producing the finest walnuts in the world, and for this reason they command the highest price in the market. This preference can only be maintained by the continued excellence of our goods. In the second place, the nuts should be made attractive. They should be thoroughly cleaned, either scoured or bleached by some harmless process; for the market demands and must have an article that is pleas- ing to the eye. . But in cleansing, the quality of the nut should in no case be allowed to suffer any damage, for in the last analysis, the pur- pose of the nut is to be eaten, and not for ornamentation, and it will be valued at just what it is iC arnalced up to be.” In the third place, the nuts should be placed on the market saat as early as possible. When they are ready for harvesting, the sooner it is done the less will be the liability of damage from early rains. Also nature has favored us by ripening our walnuts several weeks sooner than those of Europe, and the earlier we can reach the consumers with ours, the more completely we will shut off the foreign competition. Furthermore, the sharpest demand for nuts is just before the holidays, when the generous impulses of the great American people express them- selves in Christmas gifts. Let us see to it that the open-hearted kindness of the glad holiday is not restrained from any lack of large, clean, fresh, full-meated and delicious California walnuts. Now abideth promptness of shipment, neatness of appearance, and the quality of the nuts; these three, but the greatest of these is the quality of the nuts. The only remaining question is, how can these three things be best secured? If unaided or unrestrained, the high standard of our goods will not be maintained by the individual growers. Owing to the high price of nuts, as compared with other farm products, many walnut orchards have been planted regardless of the adaptability of the land or locality. Consequently many inferior nuts are being produced, and it is natural for the individual grower to try to reap the benefit of the good reputation of California walnuts, and try to get his inferior goods on the market as first-class nuts. The unavoidable results will be the lowering of our standard, the loss of our reputation, and a decline in prices. There is only one way to maintain the high standard of our goods, and that is to handle the nuts co-operatively. The indi- vidual plan regards only the present crop, while the co-operative plan broadly looks out for the future welfare of the industry. The individual plan is to make the good nuts sell the bad ones, which necessarily degrades ourstandard. The co-operative plan is to sharply discriminate between good and bad, and to put the former only in branded bags, and make the brand a sure guarantee of excellence, which inevitably elevates the standard. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION: 139 Also, the co-operative plan, by subjecting all goods to rigid inspection, secures greater and more uniform care in the preparation for market and far greater promptness in shipment than is possible by the indi- vidual plan. | The great hope of the future for our industry lies in the success of the various walnut-growers’ associations, and in their wise co-operation for the common welfare. In addition to the securing of the three fundamental conditions of success already discussed, the co-operative plan, if entered into by all the growers, would entirely eliminate domestic competition among the growers, which is, to say the least, a very serious menace to good prices. Perhaps the best way to exemplify the advantages of the co-operative plan would be to briefly review the history of the walnut-growers’ associations. In the year 1896, the evils of home competition became so apparent that a general movement began in the way of organizing associations. The immediate effect was to remove competition from among the members of the respective associations, but there still existed competition between one association and another. The absolute neces- sity of consolidation of all their interests became so evident that in 1897 the various associations came together for the express purpose of putting a final end to domestic competition of all kinds, by agreeing upon a uniform price at which all would sell. When they adopted this plan, there were 414 carloads of nuts produced in the State, and the selling price for highest-grade softshell nuts was 7 cents per pound. Five years later, in 1902, they produced 811 carloads of nuts, and the price of first-grade softshells was 10 cents per pound. Thus you will see that although the quantity produced has almost doubled, yet the price has increased almost 43 per cent. The greatest difficulty with which the associations had to contend, in securing the maximum price possible, was to eliminate the element of speculation on the part of the buyer. They found him naturally inclined to “bear the market.” The plan finally adopted was to employ brokers to sell the nuts to the jobbers or retailers, on a stated commission, and at the prices fixed by the execu- tive committee, composed of representatives of all the associations. Usually the broker received 6 per cent, but it has now been reduced to 5 per cent of the gross sales. In consideration of this compensation, he not only agrees to procure the sale of the nuts, but also guarantees the collection of the money, by himself advancing the price of the nuts, less his commission, at the time they are loaded on the cars, and he assumes all the risks of collections and rejections at the point of final delivery. Thus the grower has the advantage of a cash f.o. b. sale. It would naturally be supposed that on this plan the interests of the broker would be identical with those of the grower in the matter of fixing a high price, for the higher the price the greater will be his commission; but there is 140 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. no rose without a thorn, and the thorn in this case is the man who refuses to join an association. In dealing with him, the broker prefers to become a buyer, and in order to get his nuts at a price low enough for speculative purposes, he naturally advises the fixing of a low price by the executive committee, for, to secure the outside nuts, he must pay about the same price received by the associations. Hence, so long as any considerable percentage of growers remain outside the associations, the interests of the brokers and growers will not be identical, but will actually be antagonistic, and the inevitable result of this antagonism is the fixing of prices below what the market would warrant, and all growers, inside and outside the associations, are selling their walnuts for less than the market would stand. If these outside growers would all identify themselves with the associations, then the interests of growers and brokers would be identical, and both parties would cordially unite to set the price as high as market conditions would warrant, and which, we believe, would be much above the present average price. The plan which I have briefly outlined has proved itself to be very far in advance of the old method of individual marketing. It will doubtless be improved on as the years go by, and as the outside growers more generally unite with the associations, as they surely will do. I think that not more than 25 per cent of the growers have failed to unite already, and even they almost universally admit that the improvement in prices and general market conditions is directly attributable to the work of the associations. So powerful is the influence of the Walnut- Growers’ Executive Committee, that no walnuts are any longer sold in the United States until the committee has announced its prices, or, if sold, they are only sold subject to prices to be fixed by the committee. When a little larger percentage of the growers unite with the associations, and there follows a little more centralization of authority, then the power to fix prices will only be limited by foreign competition and the conditions and demands of the market. DECIDUOUS FRUITS IN THE SOUTH. By PROF. J. W. MILLS, or Pomona. It has been said by persons who are not posted that Southern Cali- fornia is not adapted to deciduous fruit-growing. That is a broad statement, not borne out by facts. It is true that certain lines of deciduous fruit-growing have received a severe blow during the last few years, owing to the long series of dry winters, and certain areas in which it is safe or not safe to plant have been clearly defined. This does not prove that the conditions in the south are not adapted to grow- ing deciduous fruits; it only shows that we are in a better condition than ever to make a success of it. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 141 About fifteen years ago large profits were made in growing prunes in the south. This stimulated planting until large areas were set to the trees, some of the land not being adapted to prune-growing under the most favorable conditions. To-day this same blunder is being made in planting citrus trees. It is a part of the evolution of fruit-growing in all countries. However, it has developed that the south, as a whole, is not a success as a prune district as compared with the north, and here is where we must admit that we fall short. But one swallow does not make a summer, and prunes do not necessarily define a fruit-growing district. Central California turns out the largest quantities of prunes of any one district on the Coast, but Oregon and Washington can pro- duce a better grade of that fruit, and Montana carried off the cured prune prize at the Chicago fair with the Pacific Coast States in the field. Still we do not yield the palm to Montana in deciduous fruit-growing. Aside from small areas in some of the cafions and mountain valleys, we can not produce cherries that can compare with those grown in the north, and must look to that region for the bulk of that luscious fruit. But peaches! After having grown up in the peach district of the Sacramento Valley, I have yet to see and eat finer appearing and better flavored peaches than are now grown in the Chino Valley. It has been the habit of certain firms to ship peaches here from the north for canning purposes. This might lead us to think that we can not raise peaches good enough for that purpose; but the facts in the case are, that at the prices offered by canners, we can make more money raising other crops. Some canners, getting tired of this order of things, are running nursery yards in connection with their legitimate business, and urging farmers to plant certain kinds of canning peaches, at the same time offering to buy their crops at higher prices than they have been in the habit of doing. These same men claim that they must have the best grade of canning peaches in order to compete with the best grades put up in the north. These facts sum up our ability to produce the goods without further talk. ' A few months ago one of the largest buyers on the continent, a man who ships apples by the train load out of Pajaro Valley, told me that that section produced the finest Bellflower apples in the world—flavor, shipping, or storage qualities considered. He did not dwell on the qualities of other varieties, but said that that particular variety developed exceptional qualities in that particular locality. I believe that the same principle finds application in many parts of - Southern California. Before writing this article, I asked two buyers, shippers and retailers of fruit, where they obtained their best winter apples. They both said, without hesitation, that they have never been able to get better White Winter Pearmains than those grown at a certain 142 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. place on the Chino Ranch, in San Bernardino County. One of these men has shipped in, by the carload, apples grown in Oregon. and east of the Missouri River. The coast regions of certain parts of Southern California are becoming famous for their fine apples, while many of the mountain valleys have long enjoyed this distinction. When a connoisseur from the Michigan apple belt declares that the apples grown at Julian are as good as any he has ever tasted, we can not help thinking that the deciduous fruit belt really runs across us. Julian brings us close to the extremes in climatic conditions in the south that are favorable to deciduous fruit-growing. In sight of this point in the mountains where apples of the finest quality are raised, is perhaps the earliest fruit district in the United States. From Julian, we look down on what was drifting sand that produced nothing but mesquit and other desert plants, but which now produces grapes and other deciduous fruits that are ripe and luscious a month or more earlier than those shipped from the heretofore early districts of the State. Raisins are here made by placing the fresh grapes on trays and stacking them up in the vineyard or under sheds, where they dry quicker than they do if spread out in the sun in the principal raisin section of the State. Besides, such fruit sells as bleached raisins and is produced ata much less cost than standard grades are elsewhere. Early shipments of Thomson’s seedless have returned $1 per vine from vines two years from the cuttings. One hundred miles west of this and within the influence of the Pacific Ocean, are found large areas in which late varieties of fruit mature several weeks after the same varieties do in any other part of the State that has been so far devoted to fruit-growing. Numerous other features favorable to deciduous fruit-growing in the south might be mentioned. There are also several things which have prevented the development of the industry in the south further than it isat present. The direct cause is the high price at which suitable land is held. A large percentage of the lands which now produce alfalfa and wal- nuts would grow deciduous fruits to perfection; but when. alfalfa hay sells for twice as much as it does in the large deciduous fruit districts, and when from five to seven crops of hay can be cut and cured in one season, there is little incentive to grow deciduous fruits. Walnuts are an inexpensive crop to handle and pay larger profits than are ordinarily obtained for even exceptionally good crops of deciduous fruits. On lands less valuable than those referred to above, eucalyptus trees have paid better than it is possible for any kind of fruit trees on like soil. We have a neighbor who paid $250 per acre for land on which to TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 143 grow sugar-beets and alfalfa. A railroad afterward cut off a corner, which he planted to Eucalyptus globulus. At the end of ten years, he harvested his wood and found that it netted him 10 per cent annually on the investment, with practically no work after setting out. the small trees. With these conditions, we can not look for such development in decid- uous fruit-growing as our neighbors in the north have enjoyed. Their cheaper lands which are in larger areas than we have here and with unlimited supplies of water, naturally preclude any such development. PESTS AND DISEASES OF DECIDUOUS FRUITS. By JOHN ISAAC, or San FRANCISCO. You will often hear the statement made by people who look regret- fully back to the good old times, that the fruit industry is going to the bow-wows, because there are such swarms of diseases and pests now to be combatted; and that, when they were boys, such things were unknown. Now, the fact is that, although not generally known, they existed as much then as they do to-day; but in those good old times, fruit-growing was an incident, not a business, and commercial orchards were rare. Our fathers grew a few trees for family use. If they bore good fruit, well and good; if the fruit was small and scrubby, no ques- tions were asked as to the reason, and the young folks still ate it with a relish and remember its good qualities to-day. If the tree sickened and died, it couldn’t be helped, and no especial attention was paid to it. Of recent years, fruit-eating is becoming more and more general. Fruit has become an article of merchandise. It is found on every table and in various forms. In the struggle for a better market, a wider demand and larger prices, every class of fruit has been wonderfully improved, and the full strength of the tree has been forced into the fruit; while the tree itself, as a rule, has become more and more delicate, bearing at an earlier age, passing its season of usefulness sooner, and succumbing more readily to the attacks of disease and insects. Then, {oo, in our efforts to produce superior fruits, we have paid more attention to their ailments. We have studied their requirements and their sufferings closer, and are now aware of vegetable troubles that were wholly unknown or unnoticed by our ancestors. So much is this true, that vegetable pathology and entomology have practically stepped from the unknown into the ranks of the sciences, within the past century. The reasons, then, why we have more troubles to overcome in our orchards than our ancestors had, are that we know more about those troubles, that we have more trees to be attacked, and that our trees are more delicate. There is yet another reason. In our efforts to get the best, we have scoured the world over for varieties, imported them from 144 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. all parts of the globe, and with them have also been imported pests and diseases that were hitherto unknown to us. There is no such thing, it is said, as unalloyed good, and so in this case, in our efforts to improve our stock, we have become the agents for the introduction of unnum- bered ills and many pests, which were originally confined to a limited area, but which have now become almost world-wide. Now, the matter that bothers us is, how to preserve what is good and eradicate that which is ill; and it is to this end that some of the ablest minds of the age have devoted their lives, and we have numerous methods, preventive and curative, adapted to the various diseases or pests to be reached. : . Tree diseases may be roughly classed under two heads: fungous and bacterial. Among the former, we have peach curl-leaf, shot-hole fan- gus of the apricot, apple scab, rose rust, mildew, and many other forms with which we are all too well. acquainted. The cause of curl-leaf is a parasitic fungus, Hxzoacus deformans. This disease appears early in the spring, at the time when the trees are making their most vigorous growth and the tender leaves offer it the most favorable conditions for growth. It has its origin from two sources: the perennial Mycelium, which remains dormant from a previous season, and from the dormant spores shed the preceding year, which have found lodgment on the twigs and branches of the tree, awaiting the favorable conditions for growth which the spring affords, when they spring into active life, attack the new leaves and tender growth, and spread with wonderful rapidity, very soon involving the whole tree. Moist conditions are favorable to the growth of this fungus; hence, we usually find it worse in wet seasons, or in sections where there is much moisture in the air, while it is less virulent in its attacks in the drier localities and dies out as the summer advances. The history of the peach-tree curl-leaf is in a general way the history of most of the fungous diseases which attack our fruit, and their treat- ment is largely the same. For a winter wash, the salt, sulphur, and lime is the most approved of our known remedies. This is excellent, both as a fungicide and as an insecticide, and should be thoroughly applied as late in the season as it is safe to use it. When the young leaf or fruit buds begin to swell, it is too late to apply it. After the trees are in leaf, the Bordeaux mixture of reduced strength, two pounds of sulphate of copper, two pounds of lime, and fifty gallons of water, may be safely used and is recommended. The second group of diseases are those of bacterial origin, and here we have a class that is more than usually difficult to reach. I believe it is even yet a mooted question whether these bacteria can be classified as of animal or vegetable origin, but it is certain that their work is carried on beneath the surface and spreads through the sap of the tree, TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 145 and we have so far discovered no remedy that does not damage or destroy the tree. In this class we find the pear-blight, which has wrought such destruction in our State, the olive-knot, and kindred diseases. ‘The disease, in these cases, finds entrance in some tender part of the plant. In the case of the pear-blight, it is through the blossoms largely, and being taken up in the sap spreads through the cambium layer and gradually involves the whole tree. It is insidious in its work, and often passes unnoticed, until the greatest damage is accomplished. The germs in some of these diseases may be carried by the wind, but more frequently insects are the principal vehicles of their spread. In the case of pear-blight, there is little question but that our honey bees are an important source of infestation, flying as they do from blossom to blossom and carrying the germ to the most susceptible point of entry of the plant. At the same time I question very much the advisability of shutting the bees out of the orchards, as other insects and wild bees, which can not be removed, are equally culpable. The remedy for this disease is to injure the trees. When the tree is making its most vigorous growth, the sap is flowing freely, and it is then that the germs spread most rapidly. As the season advances, the growth stops, the wood hardens, and the disease is checked. If the trees are neglected, uncared for, and stunted, the disease will be largely checked. The disease may be stopped to some extent if, when the first evidences of it are observed, the diseased portion is cut back well below the point of attack. The trees should be gone over in the fall, and all wood showing any indication of the disease removed; this should be followed during the growing season by the removal of all portions which have been attacked; and all wood removed from the trees should be burned, and all tools and implements used for pruning should be disinfected. For this purpose, a solution of 5 per cent carbolic acid is effective. Spraying, fumigating, and all other external remedies are utterly worthless, as the disease is in the sapwood of the tree, pro- tected from all external influences. There is yet another group of diseases, which have proved very serious, and which are as yet unclassified. These are such as the peach yellows, peach rosette, Littles, Anaheim disease, etc. It is not yet known what causes these diseases or what remedies can be applied. As they are not responsive to external remedies, however, it is quite probable that they are bacterial in their origin. Fortunately, except for the vine disease, these scourges are unknown to our fruit-growers, and by quarantining against the sections in which they exist, we may be able to prevent them from obtaining a foothold in California. For practical purposes, pests of deciduous fruits, like the diseases, may be roughly classified under two heads—insects that gnaw, and insects that suck. Under the former classification, we include the larvee of the 10— F-cc 146 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. different moths and butterflies, all the beetles, and some others. These do damage in various ways, some by gnawing into the fruit, like the codling-moth; others by burrowing into the wood, like the peach-tree borer; others by eating the foliage or fruit, like the Diabrotica. Among this class we find some of the worst pests with which the orchardist has to contend, as many of them conduct their work under cover, where it is almost impossible to reach thein, and their destruction involves the destruction of the fruit or great damage to the tree. The best means to circumvent this class of pests is preventive. Where their habits are known, methods should be taken to keep them out of our trees, and in this case an ounce of prevention is worth many pounds of cure. In the case of the peach-root borer, it is much easier to erect barriers against the parent moth to prevent her laying eggs on the tree, than it is to dig out the larve after they have become established. The protec- tion of young trees from the sun by shading their trunks until they produce enough top to supply a natural protection will go far toward keeping out borers. But there is still a large class that can not be circumvented in this manner, and for these, the use of arsenical poisons has been found the best method of fighting. Paris green is the standard remedy for the codling-moth and all the leaf-eating insects; and while this method is a cumbersome and expensive way of fighting our little enemies, it is yet the best at our disposal. For the whole group of gnawing insects, then, the two standard remedies are preventives and poisons. The second group are the sucking insects. Here we have a very large array of injurious insects, for while some suckers are beneficial, the great majority of them are destructive. In this group we have the large and serious family of Coccide, or scale insects. It is not necessary to take up your time by describing these, as you are probably as well aware of the damage done by them and the expense of fighting them as I am. There are in this family some 2,000 named. species, some of which we have in California. The Aphis family also come under this class, and these two are probably the most numerous, widespread, and destruc- tive of the sucking insects. Their method of operation is to insert their rostrum or beak into the sapwood of the host plant and deprive it of its life fluid as rapidly as possible. Their rapid increase causes them, when once started, to soon cover the plant which harbors them, and while one is insignificant, when they are at work by millions, the plant. is soon weakened. Now, for this class of insects, of course, external poisonous applications are worthless, although I have met with people who had such faith in paris green that they used it for aphids. With their sucking beak inserted below the surface of the plant, no poison will reach them unless it could be forced through the sap of the tree, and this is not probable. To reach these, therefore, a different method TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVEN'TION. TAT of attack is necessary. Preparations that kill by contact are necessary; whale-oil soap, the kerosene emulsion, or the resin wash are usually effective; and where these will not reach, or are ineffective, hydrocyanic acid gas will do the work. - It is not improbable that in time we shall be able to restore the balance of nature by the discovery, introduction, and distribution of parasitic and predaceous insects so that our present cumbersome, inefficient, and expensive methods of fighting pests will be largely, if not wholly, rendered needless. We have already by this means greatly reduced the number of our destructive insect enemies and are keeping those that we have reached in a state of “innocuous desuetude.” At present there are not over a half dozen really serious pests of deciduous fruit trees, among which are the codling-moth, the woolly aphis, the peach-root borer, and the various forms of aphids. For the latter, the ladybirds are an efficient check, and while the pests appear in large numbers at some seasons, they also as rapidly disappear. Even under the most favorable conditions, however, we can never hope to be free from insect pests, for there will always be occasional serious outbreaks; but with their natural checks thoroughly established, these outbreaks will be spasmodic and not continuous, as in some cases at present, and will continue only until their check can again overtake them. In the meantime, it behooves our orchardists who would have marketable fruit, or often any fruit, to watch and spray. PRESIDENT COOPER. The papers you have heard read are all that are to be read at this morning’s session, and they are now open for discussion. ‘ PROFESSOR COOK. I have listened with a good deal of interest to this admirable paper which has just been read. In regard to the bacterial pests mentioned last, I think, as Professor Huxley said about the origination of organic from inorganic, that he had a scientific faith that it was so. So I guess most of us have a scientific faith that peach yellows are bacteria. Now, when the peach yellows came to St. Joseph, Michigan, the very unfortunate idea of “hush up” was in everybody’s mind, and they said, “‘say nothing.” As a result, the peach orchards all went to ruination and barely to-day have they recovered. While in South Haven the idea was to “cut back and root up,” and to-day they have splendid orchards. I have known a single orchard to sell $11,000 worth of peaches in that region. Where we found those blights, even though we may not know what they are, the matter of rooting up and cutting back is exceedingly valuable. I wish to speak of another thing which comes in here very oppor- tunely. The gentleman says that in fighting the sucking insects he would use the soap solutions and use the kerosene emulsion, which I 148 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. would never use again. I was once a very stout advocate of it. I am happy to change my mind when occasion comes to require it. I used to favor fumigation tremendously. I don’t favor it a bit now, and I would never use kerosene emulsion any more, for the reason which I will give ina moment. Now, the gentleman mentions distillate, and his distillate means the distillate spray. Many of you have tried it and know of its value. It seems to me it is a wonderful insecticide. I have been surprised and astonished at its efficacy. The kerosene emulsion was faulty in this, that if the emulsion was not properly mixed it did a great deal of harm. It would be all kerosene, and then there would be no kerosene; everything would rise to the top, and below there would be no kerosene. And that faulty emulsion has been so often used that the kerosene emulsion has lost favor, and rightly so. MR. BERWICK. It was not the emulsion’s fault. PROFESSOR COOK. Yes, it was; because it is so very difficult to make it, and Professor Riley did so much in that direction that his old formula, which is a very faulty one, has always been adhered to. I want to say that with cold and hard water you can’t get any emulsion with that old formula. If you have got soft water and water warm or tepid you can get an emulsion; otherwise you can’t. In the old kero- sene emulsion we never used less than one twenty-fifth kerosene, and I used to put in as high as one twelfth. One twenty-fifth, I think, was the weakest I ever heard of anybody recommending it. With this dis- tillate spray they use one fiftieth of the distillate, and itis marvelous what itdoes. I took oneday,from an orchard where they were spraying, the leaves with the eggs of the red spider on them, treated in three ways: one with sulphur, one with distillate, and one with a wash, which I think probably was a resin wash. I put the leaves in confinement, and not a single egg hatched from either the spray with the distillate or with this other wash, whatever it may be, but those with the sulphur almost every egg hatched. The distillate spray has only been used one year, and still it is wonderfully effective, and in many places has given better satisfaction than fumigation. Now, there is one thing that works against this distillate spray, and that is, where the foliage is so dense as it is in the orange orchard, to get it on everything. The great point is “ Dash!” It has to go on so that when it strikes the leaves it will fly everywhere. That is going to be the great point in favor of the distillate spray. For that reason, we ought not to have too large a nozzle and too little pressure. I am inclined to think that fumigation is going to go before it, although I am not ready to say that yet. MR. BISHOP. I want to state my experience with distillate spray. I am favorable to it; I believe pretty near what Professor Cook says. But I employed a professional distillate sprayer, with good machinery, and I believe he is capable, to spray a little, just to see its effect and the J TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 149 expense. I tried it on some pretty good-sized Mediterranean Sweet orange trees, and they are very compact, and he made it cost me 27 cents apiece to spray those trees, and I can fumigate them for that price. If it is at the same price, I prefer fumigation to the spray, because they didn’t come anywhere near hitting all of the foliage, and trees right by the side of them that were not fumigated or sprayed either have just as little live scale on them as those that were sprayed. Consequently I believe the destruction of the scale on the unsprayed trees was the result of a parasitic or predaceous insect, or both. MR. GRIFFITH. Ican agree almost entirely with what Professor Cook has said, but I do not think he has gone far enough. I have always been a strong advocate of fumigation. Ihave become less confi- dent in fumigation, because I am compelled to trust people who are irresponsible to fumigate while I sleep. MR. HALL. It is a great pleasure to me to meet upon common ground with Professor Cook. Years past we have often disagreed, but always in a friendly way. And it is also another pleasure to see that the years we discuss these matters pro and con in this Convention gradually the sentiment has become a fixed one that you can kill scale by spraying. But there are two points that I want to make here that have not been made. There has been talk about the proper machine to use and the proper kerosene to use. There must be a distinction made, and many do not know the difference between distillate emulsion we used to buy and the keri-water. Distillate emulsion was made with a soapy mixture, and consequently you did the damage. Keri-water is different, which we mix with water.. Properly mixed. it does the work. MR. STONE. Does the gentleman mean that the kerosene is to be used in its crude state? MR. HALL. The original keri-water was kerosene and water; but instead of kerosene we use: the crude oil, which has a certain specific gravity. | PROFESSOR COOK. There are one or two things which ought to be said in regard to this. I want to plead guilty to my friend Mr. Griffith’s charge in regard to my not saying everything. I want now to add one more caution. I would never spray an orchard when it was not in good condition, if I could help it; that is to say, I would want to irrigate before I sprayed, and have it in the best condition. A MEMBER. Are all distillates uniform in quality? PROFESSOR COOK. No; and, as Mr. Griffith says, there is the difficulty. But the Southern Refining Company, I am told, gives pretty uniformly a good article. | MR. HALL. I think our University will soon have out a bulletin. Professor Woodworth has been investigating this matter of distillate oil. Itis not crude oil, but the by-products taken out and the crude oil left. 150 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. MR. BUDLONG. There is one thing that has not been covered entirely in this spraying proposition, and which is of vital importance. T have had six years’ experience in charge of six or seven different spray- ing outfits; and I find that the great fault, and what I anticipate the greatest damage arises from in spraying, is in the application. It is not so much the mixture, it is not so much the percentage or the quality of the oil, as it is the application. You hire a man at a cent and a half a gallon to apply the distillate wash to your trees, and it is an incentive for him to put on a great quantity in order that he make a good price. You can mix up a solution of paris green and take a teaspoonful of it without any damage, whereas a bucketful would kill you. That is the effect the distillate has on the tree, the fruit, and the foliage. If you apply too much, get on a greater amount than is necessary, it does the damage. As to holding the nozzle and the application of the wash directly to the tree, I have never seen half a dozen men do it correctly and scientifically. I said I have had six years’ experience. I believe my first experience in spraying was nineteen years ago in Los Angeles, and I have had more or less experience ever since. Now, in the appli- cation of any spray for any purpose to citrus trees or trees in leaf, if you apply a spray from the outside it mats down the leaves and the spray does not penetrate the inside of the tree. Thrust the nozzle inside of the tree, and throw the spray under high pressure along the branches and the twigs, and the leaves will stand out horizontally and get a thorough coating on all sides. Go around the tree, encircle the tree with that process, only giving a little on the outside to catch what you do not get inside, and you can effect a thorough application with one fourth, one fifth, or one sixth the amount of wash they generally put on citrus trees. As I said before, it is the quantity that does the damage, and you can get a better result by the process I have described of handling the rod and nozzle than you can by putting on six times the quantity. Another thing, about the pressure to be used and the size of the nozzle, the atomization of the spray as it leaves the nozzle. It can not be done with any diameter, if you use a nozzle that has an orifice of one eighth of an inch, as I have seen many of them do. It takes a small nozzle and heavy pressure to get thorough atomization. I have a theory I would like sprayers to think of and discuss with me at some future time. That is, that on account of high pressure, throw- ing the spray in fine mist, the volatile qualities of the distillate evaporate in the air; and that is what does the damage to the fruit. MR. STONE. I desire to get back to the programme, the marketing of dried fruits. I have had some correspondence with some Fresno people who are endeavoring to get associations formed there similar to what was done in this hall several years ago. It was represented at Fresno that there was an exchange existing in Los Angeles. From what TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 151 I have heard in this paper this morning, I should imagine it was still in existence. The people around Fresno, for whom I think a Mr. Nourse is acting, are calling upon their communities to form separate associa- tions and then to affiliate into an exchange, as was done in Los Angeles. The co-operation of growers is an imperative necessity if we want to prevent ourselves from absolutely going to the wall. We have each been cutting the other’s throat for years in placing our products on the market perfectly regardless of whether the market wants as much as we want to put on it or not. Now, if this cutthroat business is to go on, I would much rather it went on in the original style. The point that I wish to bring before you is this, as I have brought it before the Fresno people by correspondence, that if they form another exchange at Fresno on the lines of the Los Angeles exchange, why that will be two strong men competing with each other in place of a lot of small men competing with one another, and in my judgment it will be more injurious than the old form of work. I have represented to Mr. Nourse that if the Los Angeles exchange is worthy of support, the Fresno people ought to make associations there and affihate with the Los Angeles association. If the Los Angeles association is not worthy of support, let it be shown, and let the Los Angeles exchange be dissipated and let there be one formed at Fresno, if they can form a better one. Let there be but one exchange to operate the deciduous fruit business, just as there is one exchange to operate the citrus fruit business. The citrus fruit business has been conducted very successfully, and it has been accomplished by one cen- tral authority. I wish to represent, in the presence of Mr. Neff, who is the manager of this association, that there should be some official com- munication with the Fresno people to prevent the formation of two exchanges of the dried fruit people; that the two interests should be amalgamated. And I should like to know what Mr. Neff may have to say to that. | : President Cooper announced that the Secretary had just received a telegram from Governor Pardee, presenting his regrets that he could not be with the Convention this evening, on account of having gone to Riverside to meet President Roosevelt, and that the Governor promised that on some other occasion he would meet with the fruit-growers. MR. NEFF. There has been some correspondence between Mr. Nourse and myself with regard to the dried fruit business, but nothing definite. The intention there is to get the fruit together and hold it for free on board sales, instead of selling it in the Hast as we have done here through our own agents. And just at present I do not think that that thing can be done. MR. HUTCHINSON. The gentleman says he thinks we can not sell our goods if we do not send them East. But I think in our part of the State there is no trouble about that. The men who have been in P52 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. that business there are willing to take hold of it and buy our fruit of us. Wecan put our fruit in storage there, and as they sell they will pay us for it. One of those firms told me they would rather do that than to take it as they do now, buy five or six hundred tons and store it and keep it. They would rather have a place they can go and get it any time they want it and furnish their customers with it. VICE-PRESIDENT GRIFFITH. What proportion of the raisin crop is in the combine there? MR. HUTCHINSON. Really, I don’t know. Very nearly all of it. VICE-PRESIDENT GRIFFITH. That makes a great deal of differ- ence. If all the dried fruits were in the exchange, you could do as you pleased with it. MR. HUTCHINSON. That is what we are trying to get—all—and all parts of the State. The northern part of the State has taken it up very vigorously, and they are all right. We have not got entirely organized yet, of course. That takes time. But I'think that it will be thoroughly organized and we will have 75 to 90 per cent of the fruit of the State before it is time to deliver. That was the report I got from the president. ? MR. DORE. So far as I understood Mr. Nourse in talking with him and in his public addresses, he has sought all the time to give the peo- ple in every locality the widest liberty in the expression of their views and in the carrying out of any plans of organization that would not be inconsistent with the general plan. There has been no cast-iron arrangement made by which the whole State should conform to a regu- lation of a body organized and started at Fresno—not by any manner of means. On the contrary, he has sought to have the whole State organized and then to have representatives from all parts of the State help to map out a plan of work for the organization, and particularly with regard to selling or holding. The great thing is to get together. If we haven’t too many fruit-producers who, as stated by Mr. Naftzger yesterday, know more than everybody else, I think we will be able to get together. MR. STONE. The great point which I wish to make, Mr. Chairman, is this, that the central exchange which they speak of forming at Fresno after they form their local associations is already in existence in Los Angeles. Now, if they would form their local associations and immedi- ately every local association, as they are here, would affiliate with the Los Angeles association, all right. But when they ask that after they have formed their separate associations they shall then unite into another strong body, why, the strong body is actually in existence. MR. DORE. I don’t know as to that. MR. STONE. That is the point which I wish to make. I wish to avoid another strong body of that kind being formed in Fresno, there TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 153 being one at Los Angeles. If they would make their separate associa- tions like the citrus associations, and then form their local exchanges, for instance, like the Semi-Tropic and the Citrus Union, and Riverside, and soon, and then finally bring those local exchanges into the Los Angeles association or the Fresno association—I don’t care which it is, but I do ask that there should not be two central agencies competing with each other. : | MR. DORE. I would ask if the Los Angeles association has ever made any attempt to organize throughout the State—in the north- ern part of the State, Sacramento Valley and San Joaquin Valley? MR. STONE. No. MR. DORE. Then our people know nothing of this down here—I did not, and I presume the rest of them did not. Possibly Mr. Hutch- inson may. ? MR. THOMPSON. It seems strange to me that there is not some one in the house who can give us some light on this organization that Mr. Stone speaks of. I have only been in Southern California twenty- one years, and within ten miles of this organization; and I can not say that I know of its being in existence. VICK-PRESIDENT GRIFFITH. I am a little surprised at what Mr. Thompson has stated about not knowing about that exchange. Five years ago it was born inthis room. A committee was appointed here to draft by-laws and a constitution and perfect the organization in Southern California. MR. THOMPSON. I do not wish it to be understood that I did not know when this child was born; but I did not know of its having nursed since that. I supposed it was dead. MR. STONE. The difficulty at Fresno, Mr. Nourse has very frankly said in his correspondence with me, is one of money. He says that he and a friend or two have put up some money to exploit fhe thing in his district, and he thinks he ought not to be asked to put up any more. And I think that is very reasonable. Now, this ought not to be a thing for private enterprise, for men to pay out of their own pockets. When this exchange was formed in this room, there were a certain number of persons in the room who guaranteed funds until the exchange itself was in funds, when it was declared in this room that the funds would be returned to the subscribers. As I said just now, faith was broken in that respect, and from that moment I have never had any confidence in the Los Angeles Dried Fruit Hxchange. Now, Mr. Neff, notwith- standing, represents that exchange, and it has funds. Now, can’t we appeal to Mr. Neff to take the initiative in this thing and with funds at his disposal communicate with the Fresno people and enter upon a campaign on behalf of the dried fruit people of this State? I don’t care whether the central selling authority is in Los Angeles or whether it is 154 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. in Fresno or San Francisco. It should be, I think, in the most central place. But there should not be more than one selling agency for the dried fruit, and as many as possible of the growers should be embraced in that union, and that can only be done by organizing and having an organizer in the field. Now, is Mr. Neff in a position to make us any proposition with regard to this, or any promise that he can undertake this? If not, it must be done by private énterprise. MR. NEFF. I do not know that I could promise exactly to furnish the funds from the exchange, because we have never run the thing for profit. All the surplus, if there was any, has always been distributed, at the end of each year, to the persons or associations furnishing the product; so that we have very little surplus on hand. MR. STONE. How many associations are affiliated with you? MR. NEFF. About half a dozen. MR. STONE. Couldn’t you get a mandate from that half dozen to furnish an organizer in the field and furnish the funds ? MR. NEFF. It may be done. I will do what I can. At this time a recess was taken until 2 o’clock this afternoon. AFTERNOON SESSION—THIRD DAY. THurspAy, May 7, 1903. The Convention was called to order at 2 o’clock p.m. President Cooper in the chair. PRESIDENT COOPHR. I understand that W. H. Paine has been successful with a sulphur wash in fighting the red a bie i If he is here he might give his formula for the wash. MR. PAINE. I can’t say that it was my formula at all; but when the investigation of the red spider was going on down there, Mr. Volek— who, I believe, as much as anybody, ought to have the credit for it—he > and I worked together very considerably at Azusa on that sulphur spray. I would not call it a wash. The formula that was used then was eleven pounds of sulphur to one pound of flour, mixed into a paste, and stirred into a barrel of water. I have been making some experi- ments with it, and I think that to do effective work on the orange trees half the amount of sulphur and half the amount of flour will be suffi- cient. That the sulphur spray is an absolute eradicator of red spider there is not a doubt. At Duarte, only recently, there were some orange TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 155 trees which were very badly infested with the red spider, and I told the owner of the orchard about this wash, and he applied it. It has eradi- cated the pest so that there is absolutely nothing there to-day. A MEMBER. I would like to ask Mr. Paine if the sulphur wash he used destroys the eggs of the red spider? MR. PAINE. No, it does not. The reason the sulphur is so bene- ficial is from the fact that it is not the actual spray itself which kills the spider. The paste is simply to hold the sulphur on the trees, and it is the action of the sun on the sulphur that forms the gas that does away with the red spider as it hatches out. It is identically the same with the sulphuring of grapes. The putting of sulphur on the grapes would not do any good to the grapes at all, but when the sun comes out it forms the gas which is the destroyer of the mildew fungus, and it is identically the same with the red spider. If the sulphur spray was used generally throughout the country, it would be only a short time before the red spider would be eradicated altogether. A MEMBER. Is it necessary to wet all of the tree with this paste— thoroughly spray it on? MR. PAINH. You have got to thoroughly spray it, but it does not require such a large amount of sulphur. I think that if you put about half a pound of the flour paste and about five or six pounds of sulphur into a barrel of water that is all that is requisite for spraying. The sulphur is dry sulphur. You don’t have to boil the sulphur at all. But it is unquestionably an absolutely perfect cure. I see that Professor Woodworth is here. He can, perhaps, tell us something about it. PROFESSOR WOODWORTH. It will kill the adults and young, but it will not kill all the molting forms or the eggs at the strength ordinarily used. PRESIDENT COOPER. The next question in the box is: ‘“‘ What wages are paid farm help, including farms or citrus ranches?” MR. BISHOP. The usual wages that have been paid are $1.25 per day, if they are on long time, where the men board themselves. The orange-pickers have been paid $1.75, or 174 cents an hour, through this season; but it is difficult to furnish ten hours work a day. PRESIDENT COOPER. The next question is: “* What ,percentage of distillate spray is used in spraying oranges, lemons, and rose bushes?” MR. BISHOP. Two per cent is about the usual formula; not much greater; and sometimes one and a half. A MEMBER. I would like to ask if it is 2 per cent that is used for oranges, and if it is not a stronger per cent that is used forlemons? I think I have seen it stated that it is sometimes as high as 34 per cent for lemons. I may be mistaken. I would like to know if any person here has ever used it for the aphids on rose bushes. , A MEMBER. I have used 2 per cent on rose bushes and it kills them. 156 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. PRESIDENT COOPER. How about lemons? What per cent is used for spraying lemons? A MEMBER. Mr. Allen of San Diego has used very successfully 3 per cent on lemons, but found it too strong for oranges. Not more than 2 per cent should be used for oranges, and sometimes hardly that. PRESIDENT COOPER. Mr. Frank Collis, please answer that question—the percentage of distillate spray used on oranges, lemons, and rose bushes. MR. COLLIS. I always used 3 per cent of distillate on lemons—I have no oranges to spray—and I found it very effective and without doing any injury whatever. I understand that the sprayers down south use a 2 per cent mixture on oranges. Why they use it weaker on oranges than on lemons I can’t state. On roses I would not use it to kill aphids, which are very easily killed. If I used it at all, it would not be more than one half per cent, because aphids are very easily killed, and rose bushes can not stand a strong spray of any kind. A good soapsuds spray will kill the aphis eggs just as well as distillate or anything else. MR. BERWICK. Might I remark on one of yesterday’s essays? PRESIDENT COOPER. It is in order. MR. BERWICK. There was a talk yesterday regarding apple culture in this southern region. I believe the scientists have a maxim that ~ altitude is equal to latitude. That means that by getting up high you can get a cool climate in a tropical region. And I don’t see why you people should not raise apples on your heights, as you are trying to do, except for one reason. When you get up high I think it is rather hard to get irrigating water. I am not familiar with your hillsides here, but I should judge that on most of your hillsides suitable for apple-growing it would be rather hard to get water, and I think your annual rainfall is insufficient to grow good, juicy apples. I live in the Carmel Valiey. Our average there is thirteen and a fraction inches, and we supplement that with all the water we can get, in the winter time more especially. It was also mentioned that the Bellflower was the one apple produced in the Pajaro Valley. The Pajaro Valley also produces in large quantities the Yellow. Newtown Pippin, one of the best winter apples grown in Cali- fornia, one of the highest-priced dessert apples in the world. I doubt if you people here would find it profitable to compete with the Pajaro Valley, because the conditions there are favorable to the production of fruit, except one—that is, nature has been so lavish there that the orchardists have become lazy and allowed the bugs to get a very strong hold, so that last year they lost as high as 50 per cent of their apples by the codling-moth. But Professor Woodworth is here to-day. I think he could tell us something about that. He is engaged in investigat- ing there and knows more regarding these things than I do. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 157 PROFESSOR WOODWORTH. We bhave just undertaken the investi- gation in the Pajaro Valley, so as yet we have no results toshow. The record of last year, according to their own estimate, is that they lost 50 per cent. It is possible, of course, that this estimate was somewhat overestimated; that it may not have been so heavy. But still it was a loss of a great many thousands of carloads, I should judge, from the way they are telling me of the loss of hundreds of carloads at one place and another. Anyway, we estimate that the loss was a half million of dollars. We have undertaken the investigation under very favorable auspices. I hope that at the end of the season we will be able to show some very practical results. The amount of spraying that is being done in that valley now is, I guess, tenfold greater than in previous years. There are now some fourteen power outfits, and the valley is not over ten miles in any direction from Watsonville. Perhaps half of the valley is not yet in bearing. MR. BERWICK. How often do they spray? PROFESSOR WOODWORTH. Some places once and some ten times. At theend of the year we will tell you what is the most practical and when you can safely leave off spraying. No one knows now when wecan. It probably differs very greatly in different localities. I have no doubt that the programme which will finally be decided upon for the Pajaro Valley would be essentially different from what would be practical in Fresno or Sacramento regions. MR. BERWICK. Have you found, so far, any parasite preying on the codling-moth or its pupa? PROFESSOR WOODWORTH. Not to amount to siuiy Unies MR. STONE. What spray is used? PROFESSOR WOODWORTH. As to the spray that is mainly used up there, they are all arsenides, of course. Paris green is used to a larger extent than any other. But we are‘experimenting with all the arsenides—of lead and lime and so on. MR. KRAMER. What effect does spraying have on trees in bloom? PROFESSOR WOODWORTH. I will say that so far as we can see now those that were sprayed when in bloom have shown no bad effects. But we can not tell for certain until after a little more time has elapsed. MR. KRAMER. Don’t the moths lay their eggs in the bloom? PROFESSOR WOODWORTH. I am certain they do not. No one has seen the egg of the first generation, so far as | am aware; but in later generations the moths certainly lay their eggs on smooth surfaces. And the bloom is thoroughly woolly. I,can not think they lay their eggs in the bloom. . A MEMBER. What do you find in regard to the quality of paris ‘green this year in the market? PROFESSOR WOODWORTH. There has not been any bad paris green in the Watsonville market this year. | 158 ' Q)WENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. A MEMBER. What brand do you find good? PROFESSOR WOODWORTH. There are only two brands really for sale there. What they call the Block brand and the Horticultural brand. | A MEMBER. I would like to ask, for information, if in this State there have been any experiments made so that comparison can be had between dust spraying and water spraying? PROFESSOR WOODWORTH. We are trying the dry method as well as the wet method. Of course we can’t say anything until we see what the results have been. PROFESSOR COOK. I want to tell our friend, Mr. Berwick, who is not acquainted down south, that we raise the best apples that are grown in California. At the New Orleans Exposition, Southern Cali- fornia got the premium over the whole United States. And I want to tell him further that in our best apple regions we have no trouble from the codling-moth. They have never gotten in there, and we think we have the brains to keep them out. And that is in the region of San Diego County, away up in the mountains; and also in San Bernardino County. It seems to me it ought to be stated that we have splendid apple orchards. They are not large, but there are a number of them away up in the valleys, and we raise magnificent apples. I have never seen better apples anywhere than those near Julian, in San Diego. County. The Spitzenberg, which we like so well Kast, is just as good down there as in New York or Michigan. Now, I don’t think anybody should spray-fruit trees in bloom. I know this; I don’t guess at it. Especially is this so if there are bees. MARKETING CITRUS FRUITS. By COL. F. M. CHAPMAN, or Covina. This subject having been assigned me, I will discuss it from the point of view of the grower. We must recognize that this is a very large sub- ject to be fully covered in one paper. I shall therefore not attempt to go into detail, but will only touch upon a few of the important phases as seen by a grower of citrus fruits. The area in which citrus fruits, and especially California’s pride, the Washington Navel, can be grown in its perfection is so limited, and the demand so constantly on the increase, that it must be apparent that the industry is of great importance. It should be, and is, one of the happiest callings in which man can engage to-day. In growing citrus fruits for the market, quality is always of greatest importance. Clean, attractive fruit is always worth more than scaly, coarse stuff. The orchardist who grows-inferior fruits should not TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 159 expect the same financiai returns as he who takes the very best care of his grove. The man who uses plenty of fertilizer, cultivates deep and frequently, and keeps his orchard clean of scale pests which infest neglected trees to the detriment of the crop and the community, is the one who succeeds. He who will not take the proper care of his orchard should get out of the business, in justice to his neighbors. After we have grown the crop we come to the important subject of how to reach the consumer,and what method should be adopted. I believe it to be impractical to adopt any one cast-iron rule that would apply to growers, shippers, and buyers alike, because some people desire to do business in one way and some in another, which is perfectly proper, just so long as they do not crowd down the market, and no longer. About seventy-five per cent of the shipments this season have gone to the five principal markets, namely, New York, Boston, Chicago, Phila- delphia, and Pittsburg, and have kept them in a congested state, and these are the markets which make the price for the whole country. Frequently thirty or forty cars would be sold, or offered for sale, in one day in a single market, with one hundred cars or more in sight, await- ing their turn at the next sale. Would youcall this “business”? Yes, business for the middlemen; but how about the grower? What part of the price paid by the consumer would be a just and fair proportion for the grower to receive as his part, considering that he invests his capital in the grove, takes all the risks of growing the crop (and these are many), with guarantee of freight and brokerage? In fact, the grower assumes all of the liabilities. From the best informa- tion at hand, the consumer pays an average of $5 per box, or 40 cents per dozen, for fancy and choice California Navel oranges, while the grower has for the past three years received about 75 cents to $1 per box for the same grade. I have reference to first-class fruit, properly grown, and put up by first-class packers. Now, judging from the above figures, would it not seem that either the grower has been receiving too little or the consumer has been paying too much? For the difference between 75 cents and $5 is certainly more than should be required by the middleman for marketing a box of oranges. It would appear to the grower that a more equitable division of the proceeds would be to give the grower 25 per cent, or $1.25 per box; rail- roads, 90 cents; packers, 50 cents; leaving $2.35 for the middlemen. I am attempting to take a general average price. I know that extreme cases can be cited where the grower has received as much as $10 per box for oranges, but it is also true that others have received “red ink” for their labors, and have been called upon to put up a considerable amount of money, in addition to the fruit, in order to cover expenses. 160 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. My information is that first-class fruit always retails at about the same price, regardless of the auction and wholesale prices. I would recommend that the grower do a little investigating on his own account. Write to some of your Eastern friends, and ask them what they are paying for good oranges. Frequently you are shown telegrams from many markets stating, ‘‘Good oranges are selling at $2.75 to $3.25 per box. Can handle several cars.” Auction sales quote the same figures. At these prices the grower should receive at least $1.50 per box. Do you get it? For an answer I refer you to your own account sales., oye A market journal states: “At the time the new marketing agency was formed, there were two thousand five hundred tramp cars of oranges in transit Hast, one firm alone having one hundred and nineteen cars rolling.” These were being offered for diversion. If this state of affairs would not “hoodoo” any market, I do not know what would. I do not wish any better evidence of the disaster of this kind of business than the fact that, just as soon as the new “‘marketing agency” was formed, and steps taken to remedy this business, the market improved and assumed a healthy condition. I never could see any merit in the “sell delivered” method. When- ever the grower loses all control of the fruit, it is up to the buyer to say what he will allow you for the fruit. You may take what he offers, or divert it to some other market and sell it as rejected fruit, which is always classed as second-rate stuff. When the far away East has the fruit and the money, with the grow- er’s guarantee for the freight and other expenses, “Where are we at?” Considering the tariff we have to pay, the railroad service should be very much better. The time made by the “ Fruit Express” between Los Angeles and the East will not average more than eight miles an hour, and frequently will not exceed five miles an hour. This is much slower service than we had seven or eight years ago. We should have an aver- age of at least fifteen miles an hour. With greater speed there will be no shortageof cars, as the railroads have plenty of refrigerator cars if they run them at a reasonable speed, instead of using them for cold-storage ware- houses. And further, we should have a flat rate of $1 per hundred pounds—a flat rate that would include England, for with a quicker serv- ice we could use the English market to advantage. Also, we should not be required to put the same amount of fruit in cars of different sizes. Three hundred and sixty-two boxes should be the maximum for long cars, and scale down in proportion to the length of the car, as it certainly is detrimental to stack fruit in cars without sufficient ventila- tion. At the present time we are required to put the same number of boxes in a car 34 feet long as in cars of 40 feet length. And again, growers are entitled to fair treatment by the “press.” We TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 161 have no desire to discuss this question of marketing in any spirit other than that which will contribute to the greatest good to all. We should never be subjected to abuse just because some grower happens to see this great and vital question in a light different from some editor who has no financial interests whatsoever involved in the business of fruit- growing. I would therefore urge the press to treat allfairly. Be gener- ous, gentlemen, who sit in your well-appointed offices; be fair to the grower who tills the soil and contributes liberally to the support of the press. What is the cause of and what the remedy for the ills of the grower? Your physician would look for the cause, and then apply the remedy. I am of the opinion that he would pronounce the grower’s ailment -“Marketing diversionitis.” It is a case for the surgeon, and there is but one remedy for the disease—the knife, amputation. Diversion of cars lies at the root of the whole trouble. I know that at first glance this will be somewhat startling to some people, but after a sober second thought you will agree with me that the diversion of cars is detrimental to the best interests of all concerned—grower, shipper, broker, com- mission man, jobber, and retailer alike, the only exception to the rule being a class of brokers who deal in tramp cars. It is the tramp car that plays “hob” with the market. | I had some experience in diverting cars, away back thirty years ago in shipping apples; and as long as we continued to do so, we had trouble. The trade got into the habit of placing orders for several cars, antici- pating an advance in price, intending that if prices declined to have ears diverted. When once it became known that the fruit would be consumed in that particular market, there was no more turning down of cars or further trouble along that line. Would it not be better to force the sale of fruit at the point to which it is consigned, than to divert the same? Also you should know pretty thoroughly what market is to take the fruit before it is picked, for it is better by far that the fruit remain on the tree, which costs nothing, than to have it rotting in the cars running over the country in search of.a market that will take it at its own price, and then be called upon to make good the commission, brokerage, and freight. Brokers frequently wire to as many as one hundred different dealers, offering a tramp car they have rolling. Now when several brokers are doing the same thing, I ask, in the name of common sense, ‘‘ What would you expect?” And again, no dealer would be justified in placing an order for several cars, when his market was likely any day to be flooded with cars which have been “hawked” about the country, from place to place, seeking some one to devour it at his own price. Ifa car is rejected I should sell it in that market. Don’t hammer down some other market 11—F-Gc 162 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. with a rejected car, which is always sold as second-rate goods, generally bringing little more than freight. Rather than do this you would better by far keep the fruit in your packing-house, or better still, on your trees, until you know where it is going. The dealer would look ahead and provide for his market. But under the “sell delivered” method, they are looking for tramp cars to buy at a bargain—and they generally find plenty of them. If the railroad companies wished to do the industry a great benefit they would decline to divert, except by the payment of the regular tariff; and I, for one, earnestly hope to see this brought about soon. Some dealers, for personal reasons, will be expected to be safeties to this method, but I hope that, in the interest of legitimate business, the foregoing thoughts may receive deliberate consideration. These plans once adopted will insure a proper distribution of the crop, which all must concede necessary to insure the consumption of our fruit at a fair price. Also, keep a string on your fruit. Don’t haul it to some packing- house, and pass it in saying “Good-bye, Good-bye,” and go home hoping that you may at least get something for it. I repeat, keep a string on your fruit, so that if at any time it should be improperly handled, for the purpose of hammering the market or punishing some real or imaginary enemy, you can prevent such a practice. Men who own the fruit never hammer down the market, you can depend upon that. It is always some one who has had the fruit furnished free, with a full guarantee of all expenses. Don’t be alarmed that the buyers won’t take your fruit. They are only too anxious to get full control of the same, and get it rolling. Sell your fruit for cash, and as near the tree as possible, and let the other fellow assume some of the labilities. Growers should not fall out among themselves, and go to devouring one another. We have about all we can do to keep from being devoured by the other fellow. The only rivalry which ought to exist between growers should be to see who could produce the best fruit, and the contest should be con- tinued between the packers, to see who could put up the best pack. Brands should become so well established that prices would be quoted on brands. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 163 DIFFERENT VARIETIES OF ORANGES AND THEIR RESPECTIVE MERITS. By CHAS. C. CHAPMAN, or FULLERTON. The California fruit-grower is among the most enterprising horticul- turists in this or any other country. He keeps in close touch with the markets, receiving daily telegraphic reports from the leading cities of the country. The slightest indication of a want by a market for any particular fruit or special variety is quickly noted by him, and straight- way he sets about endeavoring to supply the demand thus indicated. Not always even does he wait for the consumer to make known his desires in this respect, but frequently he creates a demand for his product. There is, however, one unfortunate feature in this attempt to meet such demand. Every fruit-grower is kept so well posted by attendance upon farmers’ clubs and institutes, and through the numer- ous horticultural journals, that there is at once a movement all along the line to grow fruit to meet the indicated want. The uttermost parts of the earth are called upon to supply the stock from which to make the start, or the genius of some grower develops from his own orchard the desired fruit, or one that meets favor with the trade. It is quite natural that every orchardist should want to grow fruit which meets the most ready demand at remunerative prices. Although experience has quite fully demonstrated the merits (or lack of it) of practically all the well-known varieties, the question, however, under discussion is an important one. It requires a number of years of expensive attention from the setting of a grove to its yielding a crop. A grower, therefore, contemplating putting out an orchard or the rebudding of one already in bearing, is considering a question of great interest to him. He should carefully weigh the merits and weaknesses of the various varieties from all the essential points. Marketing condi- tions during the interval from the setting of an orchard to its bearing may radically change, or a prospective favorite may develop a weakness that will make it wholly undesirable. This has been the experience of many growers who have seen their coveted wealth gradually and slowly but surely vanish. To avoid these expensive and exasperating mistakes growers should do a little careful figuring and thinking for themselves. It will not do to follow blindly and en masse in the footsteps of any grower who may have made something of a success along some particular line. There has been a great deal of thoughtless work done by growers following some neighbor who has set out a particular variety, which under his management and also under conditions not enjoyed by all, has proven successful. Thus a sentiment in behalf of this variety is created, and often without good judgment, or even a fair degree of 164 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. common sense, it is very generally adopted and set out, later to be found wholly undesirable and not adapted to existing conditions or localities, or perchance results in an overproduction. There are varieties of citrus fruits which may be grown to a limited extent with profit, but would result in disaster if very generaly cultivated. Take, for instance, the Tangerines, the Satsumas, the Kumquats, the Malta or Ruby Blood, or grape-fruit. There is a demand, at good prices, for a limited quantity of these varieties. Owing, however, to their peculiar characteristics, when this demand is supplied, they will not go into general consump- tion, except at prices that would be wholly unprofitable. In the brief discussion of the merits of the various varieties of the orange grown commercially in California, I shall not attempt to give a description of either the trees or the fruit. The mere mention of the names, I take it, will be quite sufficient, their characteristics being well known. In seeking a desirable orange tree, the grower must take into consid- eration many points. The ideal tree must be hardy, so that it will stand a low degree of temperature with little or no injury, and will also thrive with light irrigation and even with indifferent cultivation. It should be a vigorous grower, a heavy and regular bearer, thornless, and its fruitage season must come when the orange is needed by the Eastern consumer and must extend over a long period of time so that advan- tage may be taken of favorable market conditions. Such a tree must grow an orange neither too large nor too small, of attractive color, shapely, and of fine texture. It must be heavy of juice, of good flavor, the grain fine, meat show rich color, and should have no seeds or but few. Furthermore, it must have fine keeping and shipping qualities, for, however superior an orange may be, it is a failure unless it can be put upon the market in sound condition. The Washington Navel has justly won its title to be called the “‘ King of Oranges.” It is the ideal California orange, being especially adapted to conditions as they exist here. The splendid quality of the Washing- ton Navel has won for Southern California favorable recognition throughout this country and England as an orange district. The tree is an early as well as a regular and heavy bearer, and the fruit is of attractive color, desirable size, a good keeper, and is susceptible of exceedingly high development along these lines. We may have other excellent varieties introduced into California, but I believe that the Washington Navel will continue to hold the first place as California’s standard growing and shipping orange. While it is an imported variety, yet commercially it is distinctly a product of Southern California, and has no competitor in Florida, Louisiana, or in any for- eign country. It is marketable at the season when an orange is most needed and meets with a general demand throughout the country, and TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 165 so far as present indications point it will be difficult to produce more of this fruit than the markets can take care of at reasonably profitable prices; provided, however, that the growers send to market only a superior article, such as the Washington Navel is capable of being made; and further provided, that the transportation companies will deliver them promptly and with the least possible injury. The Australian Navel was introduced into Southern California at about the same time as the Washington Navel. As every grower knows, the tree of the Australian is a more vigorous grower than the Washing- ton, but is a shy and irregular bearer. It is not the province of this paper to enter into a discussion of the difference between the Washing- ton and the Australian Navel, and how these differences may have been brought about. Suffice it to say that there is a radical difference in the shape and growth of the tree as well as in the character of the fruit. Unfortunately the Australian has been well scattered through the orchards of Southern California. In the early days it was supposed by many to be identical with the Washington Navel, and no particular care was taken in securing buds for nursery stock. Orchards generally were thus badly spotted with the Australian; but many orchardists have very wisely rebudded to the more popular variety. | The continued demand for a better orange is imperative, and it behooves every grower, in order to make his business a success and to keep California in the lead as an orange-producing section, to grow only the best fruit, and the Australian Navel does not possess merit sufficient to warrant any grower in retaining it in his orchard, especially since it has been thoroughly demonstrated that large trees may be successfully budded. The Australian comes in a little later than the Washington Navel, and has at times in the past on this account found a good demand after the Washingtons have been marketed. I believe, however, that when the Valencia Late comes to be more plentiful, which it evidently will in the near future, or the Navelencia proves to be all that it is claimed for it, the Australian Navel will go begging, not finding any so poor as to want it at any price. Recently the Valencia Late has won favor with both the grower and the trade. In fact, from the phenomenally high prices received, especially last year, it may be said that it has become famous as a profitable orange to grow. Not only in Southern California has the Valencia Late won favor, but growers north of the Tehachapi have been attracted by it. The result is, this variety has perhaps been more extensively set out during the last two years than any other. Especially is this true if we are to take into consideration other varieties which have been rebudded to it. We may, therefore, soon expect a very large annual increase in the yield of this splendid orange. We are not pre- _ pared to predict with certainty just what the marketing results of this 166 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. will be. It is certain, however, that there must be a large increase in the demand for a summer orange, or there will be serious disappoint- ment among Valencia growers. I may be charged with selfishness in expressing such pessimistic views with reference to the future of the Valencia. As I have as little to fear of an overproduction as any other grower, I believe I can speak on this subject with a reasonable degree of honesty. Conditions, however, may radically change, and I trust they will. While I am convinced that a greater demand than now exists may be created for this orange, as indeed we have seen it rapidly increase during the last two years, yet I doubt that the demand will keep pace with the enormous increase in production which we must look for. The Valencia is not a heavy annual bearer. After the tree is fully matured it is inclined to produce a good crop only biennially. When these crops are supplemented by heavy deciduous crops, low prices must be expected. It must also be under- stood that it costs more to market a summer orange than it does other varieties. Extra expense is incurred not only by grower and shipper, but likewise by the Eastern handler. While I regard the Valencia grown under favorable conditions. as the best orange, all things considered, known here or elsewhere the world over, it has its objections as a standard orange for the general grower: or as the best orange suited to the most favorable marketing period, and these are conditions which must prevail if we expect to make theculture of the orange uniformly profitable. In many districts where it may be grown, so far asthe abundance of crops is concerned, the Valencia can not be held, without deteriorating, until there is a demand for it at remunerative prices. It loses color, flavor, and fineness of texture, and thus in all the essentials of a superior orange becomes a failure. It comes to its best after the markets have been supplied for six months or more with other varieties, and when both California and Eastern deciduous fruits and berries are in greatest abundance. People there- fore naturally turn from the orange and thus mn tenia reduce the demand for a summer orange. Many of the smaller cities, those ranging from 10,000 to 15,000 inhabitants, and which are large consumers of oranges during the winter and spring months, can not take care of a car of oranges aiter the Fourth of July at such prices as will make it profitable. In order that we might get a correct idea about prices received for the Valencia, and also to remove false impressions created by the high prices obtained during the close of the last two seasons, I have estimated the average price received from shipments I made during the months of July and August for the past six years. I take these months, because practically the entire crop is usually shipped by the first of September, and also because with most growers it is necessary to ship by that time, TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 167 the fruit deteriorating if left on the trees longer. Judging from “Fruit World” reports I believe that during these years the prices I have received have, on the average, been the maximum. As these were the returns with a limited supply upon the market and when every other condition was the most favorable, the growers can speculate as to what they will reach when the supply is greatly augmented, as it must certainly soon be. The average price received for fruit shipped during the time above mentioned was $1.64 per box on the tree. Some of this fruit was sold in New York as late as September 20th. This is a most excellent show- ing, and could it be maintained ought to satisfy the most grasping. Yet it seems not to be as much as many growers have the impression the fruit brought. Occasionally a car would sell at high prices, and it was such reports that made the false impressions. The average, however, gives the correct basis from which to judge of its merit as a marketing orange. In discussing the merits of the Valencia Late it should be understood that I embrace the orange known as Hart’s Tardiff, for if there be a difference between the two it is but slight. I also notice the tendency of growers and shippers of Hart’s Tardiff to abandon that name, evidently preferring that of the Valencia Late, it, for the present at least, being the more popular. Nurserymen who have heretofore adver- tised the Hart’s Tardiff have also fallen into line, and now from the same stock are able to supply the trade with the Valencia Late. One of the best oranges in many respects, and one of the most profit- able that is grown in Southern California, is the St. Michael. There are at least three distinct varieties called the St. Michael. One, how- ever, the Red St. Michael, will not rank with the others; it is not ex- tensively grown, nor is it worthy of consideration by growers. The two kinds that are well known are the small, round variety known as the paper rind, and the large, flat variety. Both have thin rinds and may be properly called paper rind, the appellation commonly given the St. Michael in general. The former I would shun, the tree being more of a dwarf, the fruit small and more inclined to drop than the other variety, which even with it is a serious weakness. All oranges should be marketed when in their prime, but it seems that this variety suffers more by neglect in this respect than any other. The tree of the larger specimen is large, hardy, and a regular and heavy bearer. The fruit runs to small sizes, and going on the market when oranges are usually higher than they are earlier in the season, enables the retailer to sell at a nominal price per dozen, and also it largely supplies the summer hotel trade. This variety has merit and may be commended to those seeking a first-class orange, especially for heavy or medium-heavy soil. I men- tion this kind of soil, not because the St. Michael can not be grown in 168 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. light soil, but it being a vigorous grower and heavy bearer, in order that the fruit may attain large and desirable sizes it must be supplied with plenty of plant food such as these rich, heavy soils usually contain. There are two varieties of the Blood orange well scattered throughout the orange districts of Southern California. These are the Malta and the Ruby Blood. The former was imported early in the history of orange culture here, and has proven generally profitable. It does not show the color indicated by its name to the extent that the Ruby variety does. It is, however, regarded by many as the superior orange, being more uniform in size and of better shape and flavor. A limited quan- tity of either of these varieties may be profitably grown. The Mediterranean Sweet, which was regarded with great favor some years ago, and was extensively planted, has proven a disappointment. The tree is tender and an irregular bearer, and the tendency of the fruit to puff and its poor keeping quality have made it generally an unsatis- factory orange. Extensive rebudding of the Sweet has been carried on the last few years, and even for this it is not desirable, although it may be successfully changed in this way to any other variety. In justice to this much-abused variety, I will say that it has behaved itself very well the last two years. The yield has been heavy, the quality good, and its greatest weakness, that of puffing, has been largely overcome. Supple- menting these improvements were most satisfactory prices. In this respect it starts off well this season. The prices thus far realized, taken in connection with the fairly good crop, make one hesitate to undertake further rebudding. There is no doubt that with proper treatment the Sweet will do better than it did for years previous. The California orange-grower has not only materially developed imported varieties, but has by his genius propagated new ones. Notably among these are Thompson’s Improved Navel and the Navelencia. The former has been pretty well disseminated throughout Southern Cali- fornia, and its qualities and merits are quite well known. I think I am justified in saying that the introduction of this orange has not gener- ally met the high expectations some growers entertained for it two or three years ago. Every section is not so well adapted to its culture as that about Duarte, nor is every grower so careful and painstaking in his farming as is Mr. Thompson. These may account, in part, for the failure of growers who secured buds from the parent grove, or set out nursery stock supposed to have been budded from it, to produce an orange altogether satisfactory. It lacks the essential qualities of a fine eating orange. A fruit-dealer of Philadelphia recently stated that some of this fruit sold on that market at a good price, but at the next sale when the fruit was cut, on account of its poor showing, prices fell on an average of 50 cents per box. I think, however, while the orange may lack in quantity of juice and quality of flavor, it has proven a better keeper than was first supposed. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 169 The Navelencia, being so more recently introduced, is not so well known. Mr. Thompson has displayed commendable enterprise in giving us the Improved Navel and the Navelencia. Some recent sales of this latter variety have shown up well. Some specimens I have seen were attractive as to texture, size, and color. Disappointment, has attended the introduction of so many varieties that it might not be prudent for growers to be too hasty in extensively setting out this new orange. However, those who care to experiment with what gives promise of being a fine orange will find this variety worthy of their attention. The Navelencia is an orange supposed to follow the Navel season and in a measure, I presume, take the place of the Mediterranean Sweet. The Washington Navel is, however, so extensively grown in Southern California and under such widely different conditions that some sections are able to hold it in good shipping condition until the Valencia comes - in. When this is the case there would, in our judgment, be but little call for an orange to supply the demand of this particular season. There are other varieties to be found here and there throughout the orange districts, but none, so far as I know, have sufficient merit to make them worthy of consideration by one contemplating setting out an orchard. I think I have named what may be termed the standard commercial varieties. ‘These have been tested by both the grower and the trade, and seem pretty generally, with the exceptions noted, to meet the wants of each. In choosing varieties local conditions must have some weight. These questions well considered by the grower, his orchard well cared for from its setting out until maturity, and even better after that, with due attention given to the care and marketing of fruit after it is grown, will in most cases make the orange business not only reasonably profitable, but perhaps as desirable an occupation as any other we may select. PRUNING TO IMPROVE THE ORANGE. By C. R. PAINE, oF REDLANDS. Pruning fruit trees and vines to improve the product is a very common practice, known from a distant period The orange tree in its youth has done so well with little or no prun- ing that the practice has been quite general to let it go virtually untended in this respect, at least until some irregular growth demands removal. Many orchards, perhaps most, have passed from youth through years of bearing satisfactory quantities and qualities of fruit with little increase of care in pruning, so that a habit has been formed among many of regarding the pruning of an orange tree as a species of work rarely necessary. 170 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. There arises the question, occasionally, whether it is worth while to undertake the “appalling task of getting into the inside of an old orange tree to saw and cut off and drag out the dead wood.” Perhaps it is not, if that is all that is contemplated by pruning. It gives con- tent and repose to consider that it is nature’s way of disposing of old and useless growth by deadening it; the brush takes but little room, and does no harm. _ There is, however, one kind of cutting that is usually done, for it is plainly seen that it is misdirected energy of plant life—that is, the removal of suckers from the body of the tree. Neither sort of interference with the tree is the result of a studied system of pruning the orange, either for the good of the tree, as a regular and thrifty fruit-bearer, or for the good of the owner, in pro- ducing the best quality of fruit. There are some exceptions to this general custom, who have founded their practice on good judgment and experience; and, I think, the tide . has turned in favor of more pruning than in earlier times. But the minority is a small one who have reasoned, observed, and acted accord- ing to sound reasoning and careful observation in regular pruning of the orange tree as a necessary feature of the work to be done in securing the best outcome; and few there are of this minority who can cut, with that unconcern which marks the pruner of deciduous fruit trees, the limbs or twigs that have any promise of fruitage. There is no reason in laws of growth why the orange tree should be an exception to the general rule that pruning should be done to secure: “(a) Convenience of the grower; (b) Health and strength of the tree; (c) Regulation of heat and light; (d) Attainment of strong bearing wood; (¢) Attainment of size and quality of fruit; and (f) Promotion of regular bearing.” I quote from Wickson’s “California Fruits,” the best authority in the State, the above statement of the objects of pruning. They were made with especial reference, I presume, to deciduous fruits. There is no orchard work more systematically and thoroughly done in California than the pruning of deciduous fruit trees, particularly by those engaged in growing the fruit for Eastern shipment. There is no work of the sort more uniform over large areas of orchard. By this means, and it could be done by no other, there is grown fruit of fine quality, of good average size, and of such value as to stand shipment across the continent. Thinning is, to be sure, an adjunct of this process, but not sufficient in itself. In fact, pruning of this or any kind of fruit tree is one form of intense culture. With the exception of many orange-growers, it is agreed that pruning is an essential for excellence of results. Man is satisfied only with the best products obtainable by the most skillful and costly efforts in direct- TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. tag ing nature’s forces. A good market is impossible without prime quality. Quantity is an acceptable accompaniment to the grower. There is no doubt that in any given locality, favorable seasonal con- ditions are the first requisite in fruit culture. Man can combat unfavor- able weather by slightly protective or modifying measures only. It is left with him to improve varieties, to till and fertilize the soil, and to train and care for the tree or vine that bears his fruit. He early learns that nature is not a fruit-grower, but a seed-producer. She is a good mother, but it is not her forte to be a disciplinarian, in the fruitman’s business, at least. If he forgets this fact, or negiects to act upon it, nature may do well without his aid for a time, while the plant is young, and grow the fruit as man delights to have it, as well as the seed for reproduction. Eventually she falls back upon the performance of her function, with undesirable results for the fruit-grower. Then wisdom comes to him, and he so directs the energies of growth that a fruitage rich and fair is the reward of his labor and skill. May it be so with the orange-grower. There is no question that we need to improve the quality of our: oranges. A better orange than the Washington Navel may appear, but it is now this superb variety which has come to need improvement, for there are far too few of them of that high quality we once knew. In the most crowded market, high-grade fruit is the kind that sells, and sells to advantage. Neither our trees, nor our wagons, nor our packing- houses, nor the railroad trains should be burdened with such a dis- proportion of second-grade fruit, amounting often to one half that is grown. To a certain extent every year this condition is beyond remedy or change; for without doubt the character of the season is the most potent cause affecting the amount and quality of the crop. Judicious and abundant fertilizing, proper irrigation, and thorough cultivation are rightly regarded as necessary factors in bringing about a good result. Some orchards, or parts of orchards, have naturally differing products, which treatments will not avail to change. Already, to a limited extent, the proper pruning of the orange tree has been shown in actual practice to have a beneficial effect in the pro- duction of fine fruit; but when other controlling influences have not been sufficient, or of the right sort, correct pruning alone can not bring about desired improvement. In one of these instances of thorough pruning with a well-defined purpose and plan, so thoroughly carried out on some old trees that only four of them could be treated in a day, a traceable effect was seen the same season, almost wonderful as compared with former years. The parts removed, dead and living, littered the ground beneath and around and seemed equal in quantity to the branches remaining. The trees 172 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. took on new life, blossomed freely on the limited growth of the preced- ing season, put forth new shoots, and bore a fine crop. Every branch of the diminished number was an efficient fruit-bearer, save a few, still crowded, which the pruner was too timid to cut off. The fruit was strikingly uniform in size, appearance, and’regularity of shape, and of superior flavor. It was plainly of higher grade and in greater quantity than that on adjacent trees on similar soil, with the same treatment except as to pruning. If orange trees should be pruned, and if the pruning is of great importance in growing high-grade fruit in large ratio, and in producing good crops, undiminished in quantity by the process, especially in mer- chantable quantity, then there must be acertain shape and condition of the tree aimed at in the work. The mind-of the pruner will entertain an ideal form to which he will try to bring the tree; but as ideals are always in practice unattainable, he will come far short of the perfect shape he desires, especially if the tree has been neglected. At the foundation of the methods of procedure there must be princi- ‘ples governing the work. These. principles can not be arbitrary, the dictum of a sensible, experienced man—to say nothing of a crank— but must be founded on well-known laws of the life and growth of plants; nor must we be tempted, in acting according to our knowledge of par- ticular laws applicable to the work, to disregard other laws or to assume too much knowledge and go astray riding a hobby. The forming of the young tree is admirably described in Wickson’s “California Fruits,” after the method of J. H. Reed, of Riverside. This paper will have to do with some of the principles and work that apply to bearing trees. The ideal object to be kept in mind by the pruner is to cause the bearing orange tree, just like the well-formed young tree, to have only such limbs grow as radiate outward from the trunk or divided stem. The lower limbs, as they have served as fruit bearers, will curve downward, and the higher ones will extend upward at an angle more or less acute, according to their age and bearing stage. Then each limb, if its vigor entitles it to remain, is to be treated as an independent unit and provided with ample space for the work of its foliage. The shoots, often quite large, that grow vigorously upright from the out- ward extending limbs, and the suckers—sometimes as large as principal limbs, if natural growth has not been interfered with—originating in the body of the tree and towering up through the favored branches with intent to form a second story, must be taken out. In some trees such treatment becomes at times heroic, if neglect has prevailed. In others, a choice must sometimes be made in their favor, if they have continued so long as to leave the original top branches diminutive and weak. In general, if these aspiring growths remain, they will ulti-_ mately dominate the tree and change it to a wood-forming or timber TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 173 tree, in so far as this condition is predominant. The wood thus formed and located will, it is true, eventually become the home of fruit, but at the immediate expense of the regular fruiting hmbs and the injury of the quantity and quality of both their fruit and their provision of new fruit twigs. These vigorous upstarts, when becoming productive, will bear fruit of a coarseness commensurate with their own rank growth. Besides advancing the tree top to an inconvenient height, they interfere seriously with the true fruit limbs—and hold their own fruit exposed to weather injury. Checking the upward flow of sap by restricting wood growth, so far as possible, to outward and declining limbs, tends to multiplication of fruits and to fineness of grain and richness of flavor, because all rank growth of branch or product is rare in pendent limbs. When each remaining limb, selected according to its worth, has been so pruned that its branches have clear action, comparable to the human arm with its hand and outstretched fingers, executive of the body, as the limbs and branches are of the body of the tree, and has such exposure as to give its foliage free access to its air food and to the light by which it may use it, then the fruits borne among its leaves, and the fruit twigs and spurs there formed for the succeeding crop, having the best of facilities and the unwasted vigor of life, will be prime in quality and abundant in quantity. , The method of pruning to produce such excellent results, just out- lined in its main features to consist of forming the tree of radiating limbs only, each given space for activity, ind as has been said, upon laws of plant life. The grower naturally gives his thought and care chiefly to his soil, because it is the tree’s visible and tangible support and affords a wells known food supply—forgetful of the truth that the largest portion of the solid matter of his tree and fruit comes from the atmosphere surrounding it. No soil, however rich, can support to full-headed grain, a multitude of stalks of wheat or corn; they may grow as spindling weaklings to some height, but they can seatcoly reproduce the seed that gave them life. Doubtless the roots lack space in the eround, but the blades, also, are too numerous for each to benefit by the air conditions. As a boy, I used to see masses of wood piled closely in a rounded heap, then sodded over carefully to exclude the air, save by slight open- ings around the base. Then it was burned slowly, day and night, for many days. In due time the fire was extinguished by closure of drafts, and the cover of sod removed. There stood the pile, to my surprise almost as large as before it was burned, all black charcoal, nearly pure carbon. This it is that is derived wholly from the air as the plant is growing. 174 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. It is diffused in the air, in very small proportion, it is true—only about four parts in ten thousand—in the form of a gas, carbon dioxid. It never accumulates, though constantly given off by animal respiration and decay of organic matter. As a correlative operation of nature, the green tissues of vegetation absorb this gas and convert it into essential elements of their solid structure. In the form of gas the carbon dioxid enters the epidermal tissues of the leaf, a watery layer; here it becomes carbonic acid, and, no longer a gas, but dissolved in water, it enters the true laboratory cells of the leaf, those containing chlorophyll granules, that give the- leaves their greenness. In these this raw material, drawn from the air, is worked up by decomposing the carbon and oxygen and recombining in marvelous ways. The simple experiment of putting a freshly plucked leaf into a glass of water and setting it in the sunlight will aid somewhat in making visible this activity of the leaf. In a little while the leaf will be covered with bubbles of a gas which may be determined to be oxygen, the gas thrown off in the water in the decomposition of carbon dioxid absorbed. If, at the same time the glass of water with the leaf is placed in the sunshine, another similar one is put beneath an unpruned orange tree so burdened with foliage and débris that within it is a chamber of dark- ness, it will be a long wait before any like sign of leaf action will be observed. It is well known how plants behave toward light. The colorless potato plant in the cellar will grow a long way toward an opening. I have just noted, while writing, a whole bunch of California poppies stretching sidewise from an overhanging alder limb. Seedling orange trees uniformly bear heaviest crops on the south side of an orchard, though adjacent to old Navel orange trees, with interlacing roots. It is quite noticeable with them, on account of the contrast of shade within the orchard which their high and broad tops produce. In cool seasons, in northern latitudes, budding and blossoming are most abundant on the south side of trees. It was observed by many that in the back- ward spring of 1902, Navel oranges set more heavily on the south side of the trees. In early April of this year I noted that blossom buds averaged a greater number from the axils of the outer leaf than from even the next within. The botanists tell us, what is easy to note for ourselves, that leaves are so arranged that one does not stand in another’s light. The absorption of the constituents of the air by the foliage eludes observation, but reflection makes it reasonable that man should lend his hand to favor the exposure of the leaf to the vital energies of the sun’s rays, and that he can profit thereby by going beyond nature’s efforts in the same direction. = TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 175 The oxygen of the air, though not requiring light for its admission to the laboratory of the leaf, is as essential as the carbon dioxid. We know how poorly a fire burns when the pieces of fuel, be they wood or coal, lie close, excluding free circulation of oxygen. When it is under- stood that the air food of the plant, the carbon dioxid, can not be obtained except by free admission of the light, and that the oxygen of the air is not available unless free circuiation is provided, the work the pruner has to do is made clear, if he would have the leaf organs most efficient. The laws of nature, operative in the atmosphere, plainly point his way and become his guiding principles. If the laws of nature are so potent, why disturb our trees at all? Like their forest companions, why may they not care for themselves? As the interior branches die, new ones spring from the exterior, and thrift goeson. If a thicket springs up, the strongest survive, excluding light and air, and so bring death to the weaker. If the leaf is the organ which absorbs from the air the gases needful for respiration and plant nutrition, if to it is carried through the channels of the new wood from the rootlets the gathered soil salts, all food material from earthy and aérial environments, there to be assimilated and elaborated into plant . food and fruit, why cut away a single one? The philosophy implied in this comports with the ease and comfort of the grower, and consoles him for leaving undone what may seem needless work. It is good enough philosophy while the tree is young, perhaps—save for the sucker growth—because no foliage is so far from the surface as not to have sufficient exposure; but as the arms of the tree lengthen and reach abroad, there are struggling limbs and leaves in the rear, and the host of leaves is made up of the weak and strong, the dead and dying among them all. What would be the strength of an army thus incumbered? Theory, and experience as well, show that when relief is given by the hand of man, the response rewards the effort. Take away the dead and finish the dying with the knife, not permitting them to be the victims oi nature, then the living become more lively. The dead branches in the center and the dead twigs clear to the out- side among the overlapping branches have not died because, having fulfilled their functions, they are of no further use; many are found which have had no opportunity to become useful. If, as coroners, we should hold an autopsy on their remains, we would bring in a verdict, ‘Died for want of breath.” Nature’s way of smothering is all right for her ends, perpetuation of the species, but we have other ends in view. Nature does her part in plant growth and will brook no unwarranted interference, but when there is added requirement for our purpose, we must share the work and expense with her and not depend on natural selection to do what, as part of nature ourselves, we are competent to decide on and perform. 176 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. Passing from the general to the particular, a few details further will suffice to make the method clear. How shall the pruner, having got out the brush and cut off the - upstarts, distinguish among the outgrowing branches the ones to be pruned away, that the best may remain and be given their freedom ? ° Mainly by their helpless situation. If the sap has left certain branches for a freer flow in others, as shown by their appearance of thrift, the first must be relentlessly cut away. If this does not give room enough, thin the remainder. With care, no large openings need be made, save sometimes by taking out large upright growths, which, destined -to ruin the tree as a bearer of prime fruit, should be cut out as soon as dis- covered. ) This way of pruning provides locations for the much prized inside oranges—not the pale, insipid, easily puffing ones that grow in darkness, but those that grow within the shelter of the foliage that has an inner and an outer wall, permeable to sifted rays of light and currents of air. The work having been all done within at first, the outer circumference now demands some attention. Pruning here should be light, for it is on dangerous ground. The orange tree is a sun-loving plant, and its ' outer leaves should be treated with great respect. Heavy one-sided growth should be diminished and symmetry be sought for. If it is desirable to cut, as is often the case, the shoots that are too long, and to prepare them for future fruiting, a mere clip at the ends or a division among the small leaves near the origin of a shoot will result in new shoot growth from each leaf axil remaining, while, if the cut is made elsewhere, only a cluster of long shoots will follow. If the tree is aging, renewal pruning is advisable, which is done by cutting back unthrifty terminals. In thus advocating pruning in a definite and easily followed way, there is no intent to go counter to any of ‘‘ the holy laws of nature,” as some critics may charge, but rather to indicate methods that will render these laws operative in order that best fruiting may result. MR. CARROLL B. SMITH. With reference to Professor Paine’s paper about pruning to improve the orange, the principle that he has there stated, that light admitted by cutting out influences the new growth, should guide every one in the use of the knife. I cite agsillustra- ~ tion a honeysuckle vine against a house, the inside of which is all dead wood, while the outside is healthy and green. Also the Baronio system of pruning the lemon. Light is let in at the top, and the new growth is violent and uncontrollable. If the tips of limbs about the outside of the tree are cut off, growth is stimulated at the points where the cut was made, and the whole tree soon blanketed with surface growth which shuts out the light and causes a formation of dead wood on the inside, just as the side of a house does with the honeysuckle vine. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 177 By taking out the whole limb here and there the whole interior of the tree is illuminated and both growth and fruit will appear on the inside. In this way the whole tree shares the burden of the crop, and the fruit- bearing area is increased. Besides this the expense of removing dead wood is saved. MR. GRIFFITH. Before proceeding to discuss the papers, I want to call for the report of the Committee on the President’s Address. REPORT OF COMMITTEE ON PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS. To the State Fruit-Growers’ Convention: Your committee, to whom was referred the President’s annual address, present the following report: We commend the address to the careful consideration of all concerned in the fruit business. We request especially that every member of the next Legislature of this State should read and digest the statement relative to the importation of parasitic and predaceous inseets, and bear in mind, in the enactment of laws, the primary importance of the fruit interests. For their convenience, we recommend that a copy of the address be placed upon the desk of each member in the halls of legislature. We call the attention, also, of the same body of men to the great need of efficient provisions for the enforcement of laws concerning the adulteration of foods, drugs, and drinks, so fully discussed in the address. We commend the wise persistency manifested in this and previous addresses that has been instrumental in securing results important to our large industry and that may avail for future good. We should take to heart the cautions given to deciduous and citrus fruit-growers about extending areas of planting. Renewed advice upon the subjects of care in growing and packing of fruits and upon marketing methods deserves our approval. We particularly commend the appeal urging growers and shippers of fruits and vegetables to endeavor to secure, in return from transportation companies for payment to them of $18,000,000 annually, a more efficient and speedy service. (Signed:) CHAS. R. PAINE, THOMAS STONE, C. C. TEAGUE, Committee on Annual Address of the President of the State Fruit-Growers’ Convention. President Cooper announced that owing to the incompleteness of the memorial to President Roosevelt it would be necessary for an adjourn- ment or recess until to-morrow morning, in order that the committee might perfect its report and present it to the Convention. MR. DORE. Discussion of the papers just read being now in order, I would like to ask the gentleman who read the paper in regard to orange trees a question. I notice in Southern California, in very many orange groves, that the branches are lying upon the ground or touch the ground, and in some of them that the fruit hes upon the ground. Is that good form? PROFESSOR PAINE. That is an excellent form, particularly in bearing fruit. In that sense it is good form, because the best fruit is 12—F-cc 178 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. borne on the lower branches. It is not subject to weather conditions. As matter of convenience it is not good form. It seems more desirable in old trees with large extending branches to cultivate more beneath the tree. | MR. DORE. How far from the ground would you consider the branches should be on a Navel orange tree? PROFESSOR PAINE. In the nursery the tree is topped to be about 3 or 34 feet. A MEMBER. I want to ask a question which bears upon both papers. There was a very valuable suggestion in the first one in regard to having a tree that would stand the greatest amount of frost, and the other suggestion comes in under Professor Paine’s paper as to the form of the tree—broad and turning downward instead of growing upward. I do not know whether any one here is acquainted with the trifoliata of Florida. The trifoliata stock it is claimed will raise trees as far north as Washington. The stock is so hardy that it would harden our trees and make them frost-resistant. Itis also broad, low, and drooping, and would spread out its branches to receive the sunlight and the air which are so necessary. It seems to me that if that tree was introduced here you would introduce with it those two very valuable ideas. PROFESSOR PAINE. I do not want to go into a discussion of the trifoliata now. I know something about it from seeing the reports to the State Board of Horticulture in Florida. It is dwarfy in character, and that makes it a good fruit-producer. When budded to our varieties it will bring fruit much earlier and produce oranges of good quality and abundantly. While I know from the authorities that it is very resistant to frost, I want to say something in regard to the matter of pruning the orange trees to give air and light, upon the point that some of you may have thought that in so doing you will expose your fruit to frost. Now, it is the exposed oranges upon the outside that are frosted, and they are frosted in the points where they are exposed. For instance, an orange that stands somewhat upward would be frosted on its upper side if there is no foliage over it. And again, if it was exposed near its stem, there the frost would appear in perhaps a little spot not greater than the end of my finger. If you have a protection of leaves over an orange, the orange is protected from frost. It is the blanket over the particular fruit that is the protection. It does not need a mass of foliage. : MR. STONE. There was a very important paper read last night, of which no notice whatever has been taken. It was well delivered. That was on the subject of advertising. I refer to the paper read by Mr. Curtis. It seems to me that some practical action should be taken with regard to advertising California products. It has occurred to me whether the Southern California Fruit Exchange could not take that up and have an advertising department—an officer who should attend TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 179 to the advertising of the products in all parts of the world. For we look not only to the United States markets to consume the products of California, but to all the countries of the world. And it seems to me that there is no orange-grower, for instance, or deciduous fruit-grower, who would object to paying a tax of one cent per box, or, if necessary, two cents per box, in order to get the products of this State brought thoroughly before all the countries of the world. And I think, per- haps, for two cents a box it might be done. That would produce something over $200,000 a year, and I think $200,000 a year would be a very moderate amount indeed to expend in advertising the products of California throughout the world. There are plenty of individual men who do that to advertise a single article. If anything could be done to bring this thing to a practical head it would be worth an enormous amount of money to us. My suggestion is that the California Fruit Agency or Exchange, as the case may be, take up and attach to itself an advertising department. ! MR. GRIFFITH. The California Fruit Exchange does not control enough fruit to make that revenue. The California Fruit Agency will control about 90 per cent of 74,000,000 boxes, or $74,000. With the shipment of 20,000 cars that would bring a revenue of about $74,000 at one cent a box. The California Fruit Exchange only controls one half of nine tenths of that. MR. STONE. It would be not only the fruit marketed by the Exchange, but that marketed by everybody else, the Agency also, and the deciduous fruit-growers and the wine-growers should all combine to pay their proportion of the advertising. We can not advertise our products too much. MR. HUTCHINSON. It seems to me that every part of the State should advertise the principal product that they raise, and advertise it very thoroughly. My part of the State has taken that up now, and we are advertising a little differently from what we are told here to adver- tise. We have got out a good many hundred thousand recipes, and we put one in each package of seeded raisins. The seeded raisins have got an immense circulation now—the cartons. And we are going to adver- tise that way. The Chamber of Commerce of Fresno took that up some time ago, and they do that. It is a very heavy expense upon us to pay that. But if a person gets a one-pound package of seeded raisins, and is told how he can use those raisins in so many different ways, it certainly should open a market for them. So it is with the oranges. If all those things that you who are in the business think of and know more about than I do, could be put into a box or into each package, so that everybody getting them could read it, it seems to me it would strengthen the market. We took up this matter of advertising, from the fact that in packing raisins many of our girls would put in a little note, ‘“ Packed 180 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. by me—such a person—at such a date, and raised on such a piece of land. Please inform us if this is satisfactory.”? Something of that kind. In very many instances we got answers from them. Nothing, of course, was ever put in except something of that kind, to know whether the packing or the fruit was satisfactory and equal to others that was delivered. And it seems to me that if each part of the State would take that upon their shoulders and advertise it thoroughly, all ws of the | State would then be benefited. On motion of Mr. Dore, the Convention passed a vote of thanks to the press for their report of the proceedings of the Convention, and to the Chamber of Commerce for its endeavor to supply the Convention’s wants. An invitation was read from the San José Chamber of Commerce to the Convention to hold its next session in that city, and asked a favor- able consideration of the request. On motion of Mr. Griffith, a vote of thanks was extended to the visit- ing brothers of the north for their attendance upon the Convention, and -also to the chairman who presided over the Convention. President Cooper announced that the next session of the Convention would be held in December, the first or second week, at some point to be hereafter selected. At this point a recess was taken until Friday morning at 10 o’clock. TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. 181 PROCEEDINGS OF FOURTH DAY. Fripay, May 8, 1903. The Convention was called to order at 10 o’clock a. m. President Cooper in the chair. PRESIDENT COOPER. The business before the Convention this morning is the consideration of the report of the ‘committee to memorialize President Roosevelt, and as chairman of that committee I would report that arrangements have been made with Secretary Loeb, whereby we shall be able to present our memorial to the President this afternoon, and the following has been prepared: | | To His Excellency THEODORE RoosEvVELT, President : The Fruit-Growers of California, in convention assembled, at the City of Los Angeles, May 6, 1903, have appointed a committee for the purpose of extending their thankful appreciation of your efforts to place yourself in sympathy with the people of our great Nation, and to present to you some of the ills under which they now suffer, and for which they seek redress by the General Government: First—The horticultural industry of California is now a most important one, involv- ing niillions of dollars of capital, and giving employment and livelihood to thousands of families; shipping some 65,000 carloads of produce annually, at the expense for freight of $19,000,000. Its requirements are therefore worthy of serious consideration. Second—The time now required to carry fruit, a perishable product, from California to Eastern points, is from eighteen to twenty-five days. This fruit is largely shipped in ventilator cars, which to be effective must be in motion. The long time consumed, how- ever, leads to their being side-tracked, often on hot deserts, and the fruit spoils, in con- sequence, causing heavy loss to the grower. Third—From present indications we may safely conclude that the acreage in fruits and vegetables will double in the next decade. Our present railroads lack equipment for adequate service. These, and those projected, will be unable to meet the increasing demands for transportation. Fourth—A very large portion of the arid West, now uninhabitable, will be reclaimed ~ within the next few years. The work is nowin progress. This region, now sparingly settled, will support a dense farming population and ought to bring great prosperity to the Pacific Coast and to the United States. Fifth—Your interest in the Isthmian Canal, and the promise of the completion of that great enterprise in the near future, has won from California enthusiastic apprecia- tion. We, the Fruit-Growers of California, representing its most important industry, are more than hopeful that you will lend your assistance to the greater and more greatly needed work of the construction of a double-track railroad from the Afélantic to the Pacific seaboard, to be owned and controlled by the General Government, as the ery facilities are entirely inadequate to our needs. Sixth—That we be secured for our perishable product an eight-day freight service to New York and a six-day service to Chicago, which more than doubles the present pas- senger time. Seventh—We would respectfully, yet most earnestly urge upon your attention the necessity of maintaining the present tariff rates upon citrus fruits and upon fruit prod- ucts in general, and stoutly urge that even with the present duty the California grower 182 TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS’ CONVENTION. is seriously handicapped because of the competition of Europe and the West Indies. From these islands the fruit can be landed fresh in New York, in less than four days, and at a freight rate per box of from 60 to 70 cents less than that charged on California fruit. Yet we must pay much more for labor. Any lowering of the present tariff rates would work incalculable injury to our great industry, and bring ruin to many of the growers. Eighth—We would also urge upon your attention the great need of a postal parcel sys- tem,in which respect weare behind many European countries, and even our neighboring republic of Mexico. Its introduction in our country would be an inestimable boon to our orchardists and to all other classes of our people. Ninth—We wish to call your attention to the magnitude of our citrus industry, and the insidious nature of destructive fungi and bacteria, and to urge strongly the desira- bility of a specialist to give his exclusive attention to citrus fruit diseases. ; Tenth—We would be gratified if you should deem it in line with public interests that you appoint a commission to investigate the complaints of California fruit-growers, which commission should be empowered to redress such of these grievances as are grounded in fact. On motion, the report was adopted and the Convention adjourned sine die. ELLWOOD COOPER, JOHN ISAAC, PRESIDENT. SECRETARY. “ x ye were Fr RSS, cane | Ve ee NH td MAN Aad Mage ya! ‘ Be aay GAN Pale i re ees _ =a IAAT | 90005169556 *