Winter Meeting. 193 



known, and the result was that the New York Central Railroad Company 

 agreed to furnish and did furnish from some of the large cities, thou- 

 sands of laborers, and carried them over their line at less than one-half 

 the usual fare, so that all the various crops could be gathered in proper 

 time. Furthermore, to enable the farmers to move large quantities of 

 windfall apples in bulk to New York, Philadelphia, and other cities — a 

 distance of 400 miles — the New York Central made them special rates of 

 I2C per hundred pounds. To Southern points covering distances of 

 from 12 to 15 hundred miles, they made a rate of 35c per hundred 

 pounds, on their No. i apples in bulk or barrels. 



What the New York Central has done in the way of co-operation 

 with the fruit growers of the East, I believe the Frisco system and other 

 lines will do in the West. All that is required on the part of the Mis- 

 souri fruit growers and all others who are interested in the development 

 of the fruit interest of this great state, is to make known their wants 

 through their various organizations, at the right time, and the proper 

 place, before the railroad officials and they will be met in a liberal spirit 

 because it is good business policy to do so. That it pays the fruit growers 

 to co-operate and act in harmony was demonstrated by the Ozark Fruit 

 Growers Association last summer in marketing the peach crop. Although 

 it was the first attempt, it is generally admitted that much better results 

 were obtained than would have been otherwise possible. 



As I have already stated, it is to the interest of the railroads to 

 encourage and foster horticulture, because it is a goose that will lay 

 them golden eggs. In this connection it may be proper to call your 

 attention to the fact, and I do so without desiring in the least to dis- 

 parage the good work that has been done by other roads in Missouri and 

 Arkansas in the same direction, that the Frisco system and the Frisco 

 Land and Immigration Association has done more to develop the horti- 

 cultural interest of the Ozarks during the past three years, than ever 

 before in its history. 



The credit for this work is largely due to Mr. S. A. Hughes, general 

 immigration agent and his able assistants. 



In a letter which I received from Mr. Hughes a short time ago 



he wrote me as follows : "The class of immigration which has settled 



in the Ozarks during the past three years, has been a good class, most 



of it originating in northern Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa and 



Minnesota. These people were attracted to the Ozarks largely by the 



publicity given this section as a fruit growing section, and you have 



but to take a trip from St. Louis to Neosho in daylight you will see many 



new orchards of from 80 to 160 acres located on both sides of the track 



and extending entirely across the State, 

 n— J3 



