STATE POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 93 



We have been meeting a condition in the Northern Spy, this 

 year, which we have not met in the past — that hard, woody 

 condition all through the apple. We have also been meeting, 

 this year, pests we never knew of before. One of our noted 

 naturalists, in a book lately published, makes the statement that 

 the next great war that is fought in this country is not going 

 to be man against man, but man against the pests. In that work 

 we have presented facts which are startling and which claim 

 our attention. Surely, we must give more attention to pests in 

 the future than we have in the past, if we are to grow the quality 

 of fruit which would be above the standard of today, as it must 

 be in order to make this a good business proposition. 



So these three points I want just to leave with you as the 

 three which are to be emphasized, and which the study of the 

 question of cost will force us, I believe, to investigate more 

 critically than we have in the past. Find the cost of production 

 and, finding that, find the incentive to investigate more thor- 

 oughly, more carefully and more critically how we can improve 

 the quality, how we can increase the yield, how we can reduce 

 the cost. And I believe by so doing we will eliminate the 

 multitudinous number of varieties which are today to be found 

 in so many orchards, and we will be getting down towards that 

 business basis which means the growing of those which are 

 most popular, most uniform in quality, best adapted to our 

 locality, and for which the buyers are ready to pay the highest 

 price. Where the Northern Spy can be grown in its perfection, 

 there is no apple that can exceed it as a popular variety. 



I think I have covered the points, Mr. President, that I 

 wanted to bring to you. I do believe that this question of cost 

 of production, which we have not touched in the past as we 

 must in the future, is one that confronts every man, and while 

 some may say it does not cost me any such sum to do my work, 

 yet I want to ask today how many men have been keeping, for 

 a series of years, an accurate account of the cost of production 

 by hours or days of men and team, the cost of items of spraying 

 — how many? Until we do this, do you not see it is simply a 

 matter of guess-work with us. We must get right down in this 

 business and find out, and finding, I believe we then have found 

 the incentive for future work of growth and improvement, and 

 will find also that we have a saner and a safer business than we 

 realize today. 



