50 AGRICULTURE OF MAINE. 



country that has ever succeeded except that which came 

 through necessity. And that is why our western brethren in 

 fruit growing have been so successful, — because they were 

 forced by necessity to work along these lines. 



Now let us look for a few moments at our eastern condi- 

 tions. To my knowledge there has never yet been a long 

 established or successful co-operative organization anywhere 

 east of the Rocky Mountains among fruit growers. And why? 

 Simply for the reason that here in the East, right side by side 

 with our orchards we have a ready m.arket, and up to this time 

 it has only been necessary for the fruit grower to pack his fruit 

 and send it to market in order to get something for it. It 

 has not been essential, as he has thought, for him to spray his 

 trees until within recent years. He has not been forced to spray 

 until the diseases have made their appearance and until insects 

 have so increased that it has made a large proportion of his 

 fruit poor and wormy — it has only been through force of these 

 conditions that the eastern fruit growers have within the last 

 number of years taken up spraying. Here again we see neces- 

 sity is forcing better methods upon our fruit growers of the 

 East in the general increase and spread of insects and also of 

 fungous diseases. We may consider, perhaps, that the San Jose 

 scale has after all been a great blessing, because, as it has made 

 its inroads step by step over our fruit territory, the owners of 

 trees have been forced to take up this problem of spraying, and 

 hence we may think that instead of being a calamity 

 the San Jose scale is absolutely a blessing, because this is going 

 to lead us up step by step now to other measures of work 

 which we stand in need of performing here in the East. 



So extensively has the western fruit been brought into our 

 eastern markets, with its beautiful color, with its exceedingly 

 attractive packing, that steadily, degree by degree, western fruit 

 has taken its position in our markets. It has simply taken the 

 lead over everything that is brought here into our markets by 

 way of fruit, particularly of apples. Now that is making 

 trouble for the eastern fruit grower who is careless in his 

 methods, who for years has been sending to the market any- 

 thing that grew upon his trees regardless of quality, of grading, 

 or packing. The eastern fruit grower can no longer go to his 

 orchards, pick his fruit, put it all into barrels regardless of 



