136 TRANSACTIONS OF THE 



better adapted for shipment and market than the Florida orange, 

 which rots rapidly." The Cedar Keys Journal, of Florida, speaking 

 of the orange business in that State in 1878, says: "The markets 

 were crowded at the start with half-ripe fruit, which no doubt caused, 

 to some extent, the low prices that ruled. * * * The Florida 

 orange, while unsurpassed for its rich flavor a,nd size, will not keep 

 long." A San Francisco commercial journal, speaking of the San 

 Francisco trade in oranges for the same year, remarks: "The Tahiti 

 orange crop is later in market than the Los Angeles crop, and arriv^es 

 in San Francisco in hot weather in a damaged condition. The 

 business has become quite unprofitable, so much so that California 

 importers propose to abandon the trade." Thus it will be seen that 

 the difficulty in the way of a successful trade on the Atlantic Coast 

 in oranges grown in the Gulf States or the West India Islands, is that 

 they lack one of the most essential commercial qualities — the quality 

 of keeping while in transportation and while waiting for consump- 

 tion. To get them to market before they decay they are picked and 

 shipped green, and even then they open up in a decaying condition, 

 while the more sound fruit is much damaged from being wilted and 

 tough, and from loss of natura.1 freshness and delicacy of flavor 

 which fruit picked ripe only can retain. Our California oranges have 

 the advantage over all others in this important particular. Being 

 grown in a drier climate they maj^ be allowed to remain on the tree 

 till fully ripe before gathering, and then will stand transportation for 

 long distances, and will keep longer than any other oranges known. 

 Mr. Shorb, a Los Angeles producer before referred to, says "that 

 on this coast oranges remain for a period of at least from four to six 

 months on the trees after they are matured without decay, thus giv- 

 ing us that period to ship in, while other orange-producing countries 

 are compelled to ship their fruit as soon as it is matured, and very 

 often before. While other countries are compelled to gather their 

 entire crop in a yevy limited time, we can supply the market as fast 

 as the consumption warrants." If we possess such great advantages 

 over other orange-producing countries now, while only a few of our 

 southern counties are producing a surplus, what will be our advan- 

 tages when we are producing oranges all along the foothills, and 

 in Central California, and the crop in the foothills begins to ripen 

 from six w^eeks to two months earlier than it now does in these 

 southern counties? We \A\\ then be able to supply the demand for 

 oranges at home and abroad for six months in the year, and our 

 orange crop will become almost as much a staple of the world's com- 

 merce as is now our wheat crop. In further proof of the shipping 

 and keeping qualities of our oranges, Mr. Shorb states: " Eight boxes 

 of oranges were gathered and shipped from my orchard about the 

 last of March, 1875, to AVells, Fargo & Co.'s agents in London, Messrs. 

 Eiris & Albin. They were shipped to San Francisco by steamer, 

 thence over to New York, and from there by steamer to Liverpool, 

 wdrere they arrived in perfect order and condition, not one being 

 decayed, and gave general satisfaction." F. M. Shaw, in 1874, took 

 with him from the Wolfskill orchard, Los Angeles, two boxes of 

 oranges across the Isthmus, to New York, and then to England, con- 

 suming in the trip forty-nine days and through a tropical climate, 

 and yet the oranges arrived in perfect condition Mr. Shaw in his 

 report of the fact says: "It v^as almost incredible to the party of 

 ladies and gentlemen who partook of the full flavored and nice- 



