STATE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. 2<>:i 



On fruits moving to San Francisco there has also been a substantia] 

 reduction, and on fares l>oth ways and on inland freights, under the present 

 ( lommission. No doubt much more may be done by careful comparison of 

 rates with aeeds of business, and this we shall hope will conic along in due 

 time. There arc persons who will never be content until they are assured 

 that the transportation companies have been ••(•inched," and such persons 

 will never he satisfied with reasonable reductions, but no one can deny, 

 who is at all familiar with the subject, that many causes of complaint have 

 been removed ; that as a rule the companies are fairly meeting the wants 

 of the producers, and that already large sums are saved annually to the 

 people by concessions now in force. 



EASTERN FRUIT SHIPMENTS. 



Notably I may mention the efforts of the companies to meet the demands 

 of the Eastern fruit shippers for low rates. Mr. Estee had the courage last 

 year to call attention to this gratifying fact, and submitted to you a com- 

 parative table of rates on car lots for the thirteen years preceding 1885, and 

 including six months of that year, and also showed the amount of ship- 

 ments. I am able now to complete this table for 1885, and show seven 

 months' results for 1886. 



In 1871 there were less than 2,000,000 pounds of green fruit shipped ; in 

 1885 there were over 45,250,000 pounds. Of canned fruits we shipped in 

 1872, 182,000 pounds, and in 1885 nearly 30,000,000 pounds. Of dried 

 fruits we shipped in 1875 a little more than 500,000 pounds, and in 1885 

 over 5,750,000 pounds. Of raisins we shipped in 1874 only 220 pounds, 

 and in 1885 over 6,200,000 pounds. The rate of increase shown for wines 

 and brandies was very great. 



But to my mind the most astonishing, though not the most important, 

 fact brought out by Mr. Estee was this : that vegetables could be exported 

 with profit. In 1874 we shipped 261,310 pounds, and in 1885 we shipped 

 13,393,200 pounds. 



The table of rates show a gradual reduction of over 100 per cent in many 

 cases, and nearly that in all. 



To reduce the comparison to carloads of green fruit, canned fruit, dried 

 fruit, raisins, and vegetables, we find that the early shipments referred to 

 amounted to 141 carloads, while in 1885 they reached the enormous gain 

 of 5,074 carloads, or 36 to 1. The gain in wine and brandy was from 117 

 carloads to 1,640 carloads, or 14 to 1. 



We shipped in 1885, of nuts 1,762,260 pounds, of which Mr. Estee made 

 no mention. In this connection I mention that in 1885 we shipped East 

 461 carloads of barley. In seven months of the present year we have 

 shipped of barley 685 carloads, and for the first time, I believe, wheat 

 shipments for the East appear. My table shows 91 carloads in seven 

 months. 



The full table furnished me by the General Freight Agent of the South- 

 ern Pacific Company I append to my remarks. 



The shipments for seven months of 1886 show a gratifying increase. 



LOW RATES ON FRUIT AND QUICK TIME. 



What we particularly wanted, however, was lower rates on green fruits 

 by passenger time. Starting with rates of $1,200 per carload, and even 

 after a reduction to $600 and $800, only choice fruits in small quantities 

 could be sent. We wanted to reach the masses of the people and at prices 



