FORTY-FIRST ANNUAL REPORT. 109 



I would like to have you pay a visit to our own locality, which as you 

 know, produces more cold storage a{»ples than any other two points in 

 Michigan. I would like to give you a little of the history of how the 

 good growers around there propose to meet the situation and solve it 

 by co-operation. I have talked co-operation for the last fifteen years, 

 and almost feel that I am a crank on the subject. 



We had an enormous crop of apples last fall and the apple buyers 

 saw the situation and started in to "bear" the market, and \\e didn't 

 have sense enough to "bull" the market. These buyers went to Detroit 

 to the apple buyers convention and when they returned from the meet- 

 ing there, they said, "We can not buy any apples." Our people got 

 excited, and finally the buyers talked that the best tliat could be offered 

 was fl.SO a barrel. Well, we got together at our Grange and talked the 

 matter over, but there was not a thing done. But when these buyers 

 saw that there had been a meeting called to talk the matter over, and 

 we showed by our coming together that we meant business, apples went 

 up 50 cents the next day. 



So I say, we must organize and have a co-operative organization. In 

 this particular instance, we were too late in the season to effect any- 

 thing much, but we did put our fruit in the Chicago cold storage, and 

 we got a fair price for it, much better than if we liad sold before, and 

 much better than if we had not had that meeting. 



We boast of our markets close at home, but did it ever occur to you 

 that this very thing may work to our disadvantage? I think it does. I 

 think that is the reason why Michigan fruit has a bad name, because 

 we have been taking advantage of our advantages, and making them our 

 disadvantages. The Avestern fruit grower does not have our favorable 

 conditions. He is not more honest than our Michigan fruit grower, 

 but his conditions com])el him to work along a business plan. When a 

 Michigan man goes out to Oregon and pays -^2,000 an acre for land, 

 does that change his nature — make him more honest? No sir, that is 

 not it, but the fact that we are near markets makes it possible for us to 

 [)ut upon the market that which never ought to go there? And when a 

 man finds that he can not raise and sell poor fruit, he will find a method 

 of raising and placing on the market better fruit. It takes a man with 

 ambition to raise something better than poor fruit. 



Personally, I do uot believe that Michigan will ever secure a wonderful 

 name for its fruit as long as the grower packs his own fruit. Of course 

 we have such men as Morrell, and Wilde and Rose with a state and na- 

 tional reputation, but the majority of the fruit growers of Michigan are 

 not in that class, and I am still to be classed among the majority. And I 

 am free to say that I honestly believe that the average grower is not fit 

 to pack his own fruit. The minute he does it he has trouble — an eye 

 trouble, I forget the name of it as given by the oculist, but it is where 

 the eye increases in its magnifying power and non-ability to see the de- 

 fects in fruit. The disease seems to be incurable except by a system of 

 co-operation, something like the western plan of co-operation. There 

 must be first a superintendency which will eliminate the greed and 

 selfishness of the grower. In our locality we have some good orchards, 

 some not so good, and some that are poor. It is intended to bring to- 

 gether these growers into an organization, having a cast-iron agreement, 

 by which a man will be employed by the year as superintendent at a 



