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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 1908)
14 THE MORJTiyG OREGOSTA, WEDNESDAY, JANT7ARY 1, 1908. WWfT Comparatively NewSourceofProfittoEastern Oregon Farmers '1 T LS lit t : v $ " ' -Ik , r-. -"r-- - -1: .;-: , SEEDING- SZTGzAB. BEETS wssarc jLAircir, xzsxr. z,a gjianz&, orb. . WWWflWFt t $ t . Li 'J : J 2ZHCTIKX OF AKALGAHATEIi SVTAB. CtXMPANY', TjA G-JIA2V2XE. GRB. By A. W. NeUion. THEC rapidly growing sugar beet In dustry of the Pacific Northwest must ' look to the Grand Ronde Valley In Union County to learn how the Industry progresses from year to year, and how best this valuable root crop can be increased. For the past year espe cially, the sugar beet growers of Union County Invite and solicit "the attention of the entire United States. Figures do not lie. and reliable statistics tell a story surest and best. Here Is the story: The Amalgamated Sugar Company closed Its factory the first week of last month after an unprecedented run, during which the entire crop of 20,000 tons of sugar beets grown in this valley was converted Into sugar that is in demand in all markets. Modern ideas prevail in all phases of sugar beet culture in Union County. Field Superintendent E. Slbbelov has under his direct management from 100 to 175 labor ers and from DO to 75 teams during the Summer months. New methods of seed ing have been adopted and the best methods of topping, cultivating and pull ing are also in vogue. The Knall ranch. not far from La Grande and still nearer to Union, is the banner farm of them all and is managed by the sugar com pany exclusively. Here are barns that' house hundreds of horses and boardlng--houses that make a village. The beet "dump," one of less than half a dozen on this Coast, Is located here. On the field, the pulled beets are thrown Into a. patented wagon and then hauled to the elevated contrivance known as tho dump. Here a lever unloads the beets into a chute leading to a boxcar or gondola, which can be brought to the f "it ; ''"ay. :. iiSI JAR&E 3EET JVEZD JXEAR. TLA GJRANDE i at -iJ TO ?KEIGHT CAS ranch over a branch line of three mtlea, leaving the main line of the O. R. & N. at Hot Lake. While the industry has been estab lished but a few years, it has proved Itsr-lf to be especially favored by pre vailing climatlo conditions and soil qualities. From & mere experiment it has grown to be one of the principal industries of a valley known far and wide for Its varied trades and Indus tries. The annual output of the present fac tory Is about 6,0u0,000 pounds, valued at J25O.O0O. Aside . from the 2000 acres that h sugar company annually seeds to sugar beets, there are many Individual grow ers who make "big money" on their ventures. Every year landowners are turning tracts of fertile land over to the company, that expert training and systematic methods may make better success and bring more from the ground given over to beetraistng. Favorable weather is largely responsible tor the early closing in 1807, for previously the factory has been kept busy without ceasing from early in August until well along In January. Last season the run was shortened about 30 days. MANY FRUITGROWERS' UMONS Play Prominent Part in Upbuilding of Oregon's Hor ticultural Industry Act as Agents for Producers By K. II. Khepard. Editor of Better Fruit. HAVING spent my early days In an orchard n California, and for the last flve'years having been engaged In fruitgrowing in the Hood River Val ley, for lour years of which I have been manager of the associations here, I have given the subject of marketing of fruit the very closest of study. In a limited space I will endeavor to briefly outline first the necessity for associations to the fruitgrower, and secondly to show their benefits. The production and marketing of fruit are as essentially different as the manu facturing and selling of the factory pro duct. In order to do either well special ability is required. Nearly every busi ness naturally divides Itself Into different departments, and the best success is ob tained by each department being handled by an Individual both able and competent to concentrate his efforts on bis particu lar work. To Illustrate this briefly It U but necessary to call attention to the fact that every railroad has men of special ability In charge of the different depart ' meats, such as constructlon operation, freight and passenger traffic. I feel positive that every grower who has a large orchard or a small one, will admit that It requires practically nearly all of his time. He will also tell you that his time from Spring until Winter must be spent la his orchard, either In doing the work or superintending it, if ,a large crop of choice fruit is to be pro duced. This leaves him but Utile time to attend, to the marketing. In fact, the busiest time for the orchardist is during the harvesting period, as It Is most Important that the grower should be there to see that the fruit is properly gathered, carefully handled and packed In the most perfect condition. This Is the time when the fruit Is be ing sold, and the grower cannot be in two places at once. On the other hand, he cannot divide his time and get the best results in his endeavor to d both. In order to get the best prices, the seller of fruit must be absolutely posted in every detail In reference to market conditions. It Is next to Impossible tor a grower to devote the time that is necessary to become properly informed on market conditions. Furthermore, the average grower would not be Justified in going to the expanse that is necessary to secure this Information. In order to keep properly posted on market con ditions It has taken much of my time and also that of a stenographer through out the year. During the marketing period telephone and telegraph bills run up as high as 960 per day. The expense of securing this Informa tion during the busy season Is, In round ' figures, sometimes as high as 11000 a month. The crop of the average or chardist. amounting from $1000 to 15000 a ear, cannot stand such an expense. This expense In an association, divided among several hundred growers, becomes a very small Item, but the result from such information, on the other hand, is a very big one. The individual who sells fruit must be thoroughly posted as to the standing of all the firms with whom he expects to do business. In order to get such in formation it Is necessary for an asso ciation to be a subscriber to all the mer cantile agencies. This is an expense that each grower cannot stand as an indi vidual. Furthermore, the man who is selling fruit should know personally every Individual to whom he Is selling and be familiar with all of the condi tions In each city where he expects to sell his fruit In order to sell it to the best possible advantage. Such informa tion can only be .obtained by a personal visit to the large cities, where the fruit la sold, and a personal call on the firms who sell It. It Is evident to any one that the Individual growif cannot af ford such an xpense. This Information, however, Is absolutely necessary, and when this expense Is paid by an asso ciation the Individual amount that each grower has to pay is comparatively very small. Lastly, but perhaps the most important necessity. Is business ability. The aver age grower is not, and does not claim to be, a business man. The man who sells fruit sells it to buyers in big citlea and these buyers are shrewd, keen business men whose aim In business is the same as that of any other business man's to buy as cheaply as possible, sell as high as possible, and make the biggest pos sible -profit. To do business with theae buyers so as to obtain the best possible prices growers are compelled to employ a man of good business Judgment, good business experience and good business ability, and above all a man that It shrewd. I think any orchardist will concede that very few growers possess all these char acteristics. I is therefore "up to" tho growers, I! ney expect to obtain the best prices, to form an association and em ploy a man possessed of such character istics as I have' outlined, to sell their fruit for them. The benefits resulting from association are many. - A great saving can be made through an association by buying sup plies, such as paper, spraying materials and boxes in carlots. The saving to growers In Hood River on these items alone amounts, annually to several thou sand dollars. The greatest benefit, of course, is the higher prices that growers obtain. In order to convince the unin formed that associations do obtain higher prices, I will cite an illustration: At Hood River before an association was organised Spltzenbergs brought the grower 85 cents. Since the association was organised they have brought from U to as high as IS.274 per box. Other dis tricts, like Southern Oregon, La Grande, Yakima and Wenatchee are getting far better prices since they adopted the as sociation plan than ever before. H There sare many reasons for thj. but the ui on t Important Is that In the large Eastern cities and European markets fruit is handled in carload lots and Im mense quantities are sold at auction. When fruit is sold at auction all the boxes with a single mark are piled to gether. A great number of marks in the auction sale means confusion and lack of confidence anr- low prices. Buyers cannot remember 100 different marks from one district, but they can and do remember a single label from a locality. It the ftTiit put up under that label is fair and of uniform grade It will command a fair price. If the association does Its work well It establishes a reputation for uni formity and grade which means fair prices. In addition to this there is confidence In an association, because an association guarantees Its pack and grade ind stands back of that guarantee. The as sociation is run on business methods and the buyer knows that should a car not be up to standard he can get redress. And the buyer knows that if he has bought and paid an Individual shipper tor a car of fruit. If it is not up to standard his chance of receiving a concession Is really very small indeed. Again, when a buyer buys a car of fruit from an association he knows It is put up under rules and regulations, and that every box In the car, no matter what grower it comes from, is of uniform THE SCHOOI, POPULATION OP PORTLAND. Although a larger proportion of children attend private and parochial schools In Portland than In many other cities, the attendance in the public schools Is large and rapidly growing. Several new school buildings and additions are erected each year to keep pace with . the In crease, which has been very steady, as Is shown by the fol lowing table of enrollment dur ing the school years ending in June: 18DT 10, 82 1898 11,345 1SS9 11.893 1BOO 12.280 1901 12.874 1902 13,239 1S03 14.211 1904 14.909 1003 13.877 1908 .'.17.031 1907 20.389 190S (eat.) 22,400 grade and quality and that both are guar anteed. He can therefore sell this car without Inspection and with confidence, and he Is willing to pay a better price for such a car. There was much opposition on the part of buyers to associations in the beginning for the reason that buyers were unable to purchase, at as low figures from associa tions as they could from individuals. But all this is -hanged. The following state ment may seem strong; nevertheless It Is a fact. Growers will get bettery prices through an association, ard buyers will pay better prices to an association, than they will to Individuals. The reason for this Is that the buyer is assured when he purchases from an association that he will get a uniform pack and a uniform grade and that both will be guaranteed, and that the association will live up to its guarantee. In conclusion I make one statement, which I do not believe will be refuted by any reliable firm that buys fruit in car load lots, and that is that every buyer will pay a better price for association fruit with a guaranteed pack and under one label than he will to an individual grower who does not guarantee his fruit and puts It up under individual labels. ' . h t ' -'U1 1 i i ' - , - 1 V- - ' " TTPICAI, O EEC OX TTOFYARD. LEADS IN PRODUCTION OF HOPS Oregon's Output' of 130,000 Bales for 1907 1s Nearly Half of the United States Total Crop By A. W. Prescott. REGON Is the leading hop-growing section of America, this state having produced In 1907 approximately 130,000 bales, while Ihe total crop of the United States was about 295,000 bales. Of the crop out side of Oregon, California produced 85,000 bales, Washington 40,000 bales and New York 40,000 bales. A bale of hops weighs, on an average, 188 pounds, making the crop in Oregon 24,440,000 pounds. Of the total crop, probably 14,000,000 pounds has been sold, at an average price of about 10 cents a pound, making the returns thus far $1,400,000. The remainder of the crop Is In the hands of growers. ' Owing to- the peculiarly favorable conditions of climate and soil in this state, hop-growing has been a very profitable Industry and in the laet two or three years the acreage has In creased somewhat taster than it has decreased In other states, thus bringing on, for one season, a condition of over production. Experience has shown, however, that Oregon can produce hops cheaper than any other state and the future of the Industry In this state Is not In doubt. The grower who lives upon his farm and gives his growing crops his personal attention, can pro duce hops at a cost of about 8 cents a pound. Though this has been an "off year" In the hop Industry, the crop, so tar as sold, has yielded a profit to the grower. In other years the price has ranged from 16 to 25 cents a pound, when Immense profits were realized. It has frequently occurred that growers have sold a single crop for enough money to pay all expenses and pay for the land upon which the hopB grew. The largo profits induced growers to Increase their acreage too fast and prices de clined. Many of the poorer yards are 'now being plowed up and It Is cer tain that another season will find a normal production, with prices that will yield a good margin of profit to the grower. The hop Industry Is valuable to 'the state because of the large number of persons employed in harvesting the crop. ' Hops mature early In Septem ber and must be picked by hand. Thousands of families go to the hop yards and live In tents during the three weeks of hop-picking, thereby secur ing pleasant, healthful, outdoor work at good compensation. Pickers are paid SO cents a box and an average Indus trious picker can gather four boxes a day. Exceptionally rapid pickers make as high as 84.50 and 85 a day. Where whole families go to the yards, a con siderable sum can be made In the brief harvest season. This Industry, like that of fruit-growing, distributes the money paid out In wages among a very large number of people. Hop yards vary In size from 10 t 800 acres, about 20 to 80 acres being the most popular area. Oregon has the largest hop yard In the world, that of Krebs Brothers, at Independence, Polk County, where there are 400 acres of hops In a single yard. A thousand pickers are required to harvest the crop TILLAMOOK'S APPLE INDUSTRY By Fred C. Baker. THE large crop of apples raised In Tillamook County last Summer proves that this county can raise as fine a crop of apples as any county in the state for size and flavor. This, however, la an Industry which has not received the attention It will on the completion of the railway, for at present there Is a ' greater supply than demand for ap ples. Although dairying Is the principal industry In this -section, orchardists have of late taken more interest in their orchards, with the result that they have raised splendid apples whlh are good keepers and free from blight. The best apples raised In the county come from orchards on the bench lands or near the mountains, where they are pro tected from the northwest winds. These latlds contain a large percentage of phosphoric acid, which makes them valu able for apple raising. There are thou sands of acres of land now unproductive In Tillamook County that are admirably adapted to apple growing which Is sure to become an important Industry as the county develops and is settled by new people. One of the most raccessful orch ardists In the county is Fred C. Skomp, who resides near the Trask River, not far from the mountains. He Is one of the few who have made a spe'cialty of raising apples in Tillamook county, with the result that he has a good apple crop every year. He asserts that this Is on account of the soil, which is peculiarly adapted to apple trees and perpetual bearers. The apples from It bring a much higher price than those raised In other parts of the county, being highly flavored and free from pests. A remarkable thing about apples raised In Tillamook county is that they are free from worms. There Is no fign of codling moth here. Other orchardings In the county who have taken more care of their orchards, pruning their trees and putting the orchards In good shape, are well pleased with the past season's crop, the size and flavor of the apples more than repaying them for the trouble they have taken. The apples which do well in Tillamook are the Ben Davis, King, Waxen, Baldwin, Bell Flower. Northern Spy, Gravenstein and Yellow Newtown Pippin. Sweet apples also do well and bear heavy crops every year. As soon aa the railroad is completed and shipping facilities are available Tillamook County will be able to send to market appl that will compare favorably with anjr J grown in the slate.