THE NINETEENTH ANNUAL MEETING. 123 



stipulated portion of work, tuhen that is performed the obligation ceases, 

 and anything that costs must be paid for in addition. 



" The demands of unreasonable shippers, is bearing, now as heretofore, 

 legitimate fruit, which was emphatically voiced last year, in the discussions 

 on marketing fruit. 



"Responsible firms are growing more and more averse to the existing 

 state of affairs, and boldly say that the commission will not pay for the ser- 

 vice exacted, and show more and more disposition to buy at home of those 

 who promise more than the responsible house can afford to perform, with 

 the inevitable result of throwing the business into the hands of those who 

 are financially irresponsible, and who by fair promises obtain the shipment, 

 but do not always fulfill all the conditions fairly expected of the commision 

 merchant. 



UNREASONABLE REQUIREMENTS AND REQUESTS. 



"On this question of unreasonable requests, or requirements, of the 

 commission men, I have a little experience that I wish to relate. It seems 

 that the commission merchant is supposed to know everything; at least, if 

 he does not know anything, that he has the time, and opportunity, and 

 inclination to do or find out everything or fill orders for anything. 



" We have had men who wanted us to advance them money on their word 

 to buy land on which to raise a crop of fruit, promising when grown they 

 would send us their products. We have had men who wanted us to furnish 

 them with a stock of goods, which they would sell to growers for fruit and 

 vegetables, and that they would shij) us the fruit and vegetables in pay- 

 ment for the same, 



"I recollect one instance where a man down in Florida wanted us to fur- 

 nish him means to go into business, saying that there was ' a good thing 

 in it.' By the way, it reminds me of a request we got from a Florida cor- 

 respondent, who wanted us to hunt up an apparatus for finding a sunken 

 treasure, as Captain Kidd is supposed to have buried a lot of gold some- 

 where along the Florida coast, and he wanted us to hunt up and send him 

 the machinery or instruments to find it. 



"Another man wrote to us as 'commission men,' and wanted us to go 

 and buy a set of second-hand faro chips, saying no doubt in Chicago there 

 would be some second-hand sets that we could buy very easily. Rough on 

 us, wasn't it? Another party wanted us to furnish him money to rig him 

 out a boat to go into the fish business, he to send us the fish when caught. 

 This seemed to us worse than catching the tradifional hare. 



"Only last week a party wrote us from Kansas, asking us to look through 

 all the pawnbrokers' shops in the city of Chicago, and get him a second- 

 hand gun; and, if we would do so, he would send us the game that he 

 should kill in payment for the same. Men have asked us to furnish them 

 means to pay off mortgages on their places. In one case we did so, and 

 the mortgage was adjusted, and we were left out in the cold, without 

 security for our money and the ' wind is whistling,' and he tells us ' whistle 

 for your money.' 



" Now, I don't believe that these are ' requirements' that should be asked 

 of a commission merchant. I don't believe a commission merchant should 

 be asked or expected to advance money on growing crops. If the dealers 

 at home, who know the party, will not advance him money, or means to 



