52 AGRICULTURE OF MAINE. 



Mr. Fraser : I think the sooner we get away from estimating 

 the whole crop, the better. We tell the people 76,000,000 bar- 

 rels, when, as a matter of fact, so far as I can get it, we had 

 about 15,000,000 barrels of commercial fruit, and I think that 

 is somewhere near the fact. It may be a million barrels out, 

 but what is the use of saying 76 million, when, as a matter of 

 fact, there are about 15 million barrels? 



Mr. Sanders : Well, personally, I heartily agree with you 

 and the time must come when the work will be done in that 

 way. The men who have been struggling with these problems 

 recognize these things fully. And now you who must come 

 together in some sort of a body make your influence and your 

 needs felt down there with the agencies that have these things 

 in charge. That was brought home to you the past year at the 

 conference that was held, and a number of the things that you 

 requested have been accomplished since then, 



Mr. Taylor: Would it be possible for you, outside of this, 

 to estimate on the commercial apple, or would it have to be 

 incorporated with the other? 



Mr. Sanders : Well, the Bureau does make sort of a stab at 

 this. It makes an inquiry as to what per cent of the total will 

 be of the commercial grades, and then I think they publish 

 some sort of figures on that, but it is not a very satisfactory way 

 of getting at it. The commercial crop ought to be the principal 

 feature of the estimates on apples. That is the way I look at it. 



Mr. Taylor: You come so near on the potato crop — don't 

 they have small potatoes when they estimate it? How do they 

 do with that? 



Mr. Sanders: That brings up another fundamental fact. 

 You see the apple crop, as I mentioned at the beginning, has so 

 many irregularities and variations different from the other 

 crops. Practically all of the cranberry crop I mentioned, and 

 a very large part of the potato crop, is commercial. But when 

 you come to apples, you see what happens. You have a large 

 margin of the total that is not apples at all, and that presents 

 another difficulty. I think the estimates ought to be made 

 primarily on the commercial crop, and then this other stuff can 

 be handled as a side line in whatever way is needed. But if 

 you people expect to get it done that way, it is up to you to 

 take some action, get yourselves together and make your influ- 

 ence felt. I have done all that I can. 



