STATE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. 205 



All raisins carried over the holidays, as a general thing, not only deterio- 

 rate in quality, but break in price. 



California Prunes. — We place the outpul this year, all told, at 1,400,000 



pounds, or about the same as 1884, the bulk of which has already been 

 marketed east. 



Prices opened low, and have continued to rule low throughout the year, 

 though at this writing some improvement is noticeable. We are glad to 

 state that Bomeofour Largest producers this season acted upon our repeated 



suggestions, and graded their primes after the French style, with benefit to 

 themselves and better satisfaction to the trade generally. This must be 

 done universally before our prunes will take their proper place in eastern 

 markets. 



From our wide experience in these goods, we now suggest, for the next 

 year's crop, that three distinct grades be made — 50 to 60 to the pound, 60 

 to 85 to the pound, and 95 to 115 to the pound. These three grades will 

 about cover the different sizes of our prunes; but if there should be some 

 larger, say 40 to 50 to the pound, they can be packed as "extra fancy." 

 We also advise that, with the exception of the 95 to 115 prunes, which can 

 be put in barrels or white Backs, all the balance be packed in uniform 25- 

 pound boxes, nicely faced, and boxes lined with white paper, and topped 

 with wax paper, and the grades of each kind distinctly stenciled on the 

 end of the box. The fruit should also be dipped, to give it as much gloss 

 as possible, as that is what the trade requires. 



Our prune-growers need not feel discouraged at last year's prices, for 

 trade in everything has been depressed; and while we do not look to see 

 again fancy prices obtained for these goods, we know that throughout the 

 country, east and west, they are well liked, and in many instances pre- 

 ferred to the imported article. 



With cheaper labor and reduced expense of drying, which comes from 

 experience, our ordinary run of prunes, we believe, can be sold at five cents 

 a pound, with a fair profit to the grower; and the graded or selected fruit 

 is always in demand at so much higher figures that the average cannot but 

 be satisfactory to any reasonable prune-grower in California. 



SUN-DRIED FRUITS. 



Apples. — The low prices prevailing discouraged many growers, and the 

 outturn for this season was somewhat curtailed, though as there was a con- 

 siderable "carry-over" stock, no scarcity of supply has been visible. The 

 principal reason of the low prices*and lack of demand has been caused by 

 two successive large apple crops east, which came on to the market also at 

 low figures; and as western freights were in their favor, they secured much 

 of the trade properly tributary to California. 



With light stocks held here, and generally throughout the country, we 

 look for better demand and prices as the season advances. 



Peaches — Opened at low figures and to a dull market, but when it was 

 discovered how cheap this fruit was, a sharp eastern demand set in, which 

 continued through the greater part of the Fall, and at rising figures, until 

 the bulk of the crop was marketed. The crop of this fruit in 1885, as will 

 be seen by our figures/was treble what it was in 1884, with a good prospect 

 of being quadrupled in 1886. 



The California half-dried peach, when properly graded, outranks the 

 same fruit, both in quality and in price, produced in any other section of 



