WINTEK MEETING, 1877. 37 



2d. Always use packages of full size if possible to obtain them, and fill as full 

 as they will bear. 



3d. Sort and pack your fruit as you would if the purchaser stood by to see it 

 done. Honesty requires that all these shall be strictly attended to. 



In seasons when the supply is not equal to the demand, there is no ditliculty 

 in obtaining good prices; but when there is more than the market requires 

 (like the apple crop of the last season), then the solving of the problem of a 

 profitable m^irket becomes difficult, and requires not only sound judgment, bub 

 a good stock of general information respecting the extent of the crop in the 

 wliole country as well as the probable demand, and that depends very much on 

 the ability of the people to pay for what they want. 



Our apple crop the past season was probably the largest that the country has 

 ever produced, but I presume not very profitable. Thousands of barrels have 

 probably been sent to market at a total loss. This ought not to have been and 

 was caused I tlnnk by pursuing a wrong method in marketing, or rather market- 

 ing haphazard, without any method. 



"■'It is an easy matter to tell what ought not to be done," says the Inquirer, 

 "but a very different thing to point out a remedy for ruinous prices when we have 

 such an enormous crop as that of last season. Tell us what to do under such 

 circumstances." Very well, I will give you my views. Every one knew that 

 the supply was greater than the market required. 



PROPOSED REMEDY. 



1st. Suppose the farmers had only put one-half their fruit on the market, 

 then there would have been no overstock and apples would probably have 

 brought a fair price, say $!l.50 to 12.50 per barrel. 



2d. Suppose the one-half that was put on the market had been the choicest 

 selection from the whole crop, would they not have been at least fifty cents per 

 barrel more than the average all together? I think there is no doubt of it. If 

 these estimates of probabilities rest on a fair basis, the result would be about as 

 follows : 



1st. By withholding one-half our crop from market we have gained fifty 

 cents per barrel in price, on account of the supply being only equal to the 

 demand. 



2d. We have also gained an additional fifty cents on account of the extra 

 quality, by selecting the choicest. 



Will this pay? Let us see : Economy in methods of marketing shows the best 

 results in net cash. In order to arrive at that we must come right down to the 

 cost in dollars atid cents. That will be found about as follows: Barrels for 

 packing apples, good ones, about 35 cents ; picking, packing, and delivering 

 at depot, 15 cents; freight, drayage, etc., average 35 cents; commission 25 

 cents, 60 cents. This would make the expense per barrel about SI. 10. Has 

 the whole crop sent to market averaged over 11.25 per barrel? If that is a fair 

 average, the cost being 11.10, leaves 15 cents net to the farmer for apples and 

 profit. 



Has the one million barrels, more or less, sent to market from this State 

 averaged higher than that? 1 fear not, but I wish to be sure to get them as 

 high as any one can claim witli any propriety, say $1.35, quite up to the highest 

 quotations in Detroit at the present time, which is surely too high for a fair 

 average in this case. We will accept it, however, as the basis of our estimates 



